the 2011-2012 season
SATURDAY June 16
Sally Rogers and Claudia Schmidt
Celebrate their first joint CD in 21 years
in a CD Release Concert with special guest Lisa Null
Blue Moon Cowgirls
with the Harley String Band
May 11
"A little bit invitin', a little bit excitin', a little bit ignitin' . . .that's my trademark," proclaims an old song. And that's the Blue Moon Cowgirls, four Washington-area musicians with their own refreshing approach to country music.
A shimmering trio of female voices backed by flexible acoustic instrumentation, the Blue Moon Cowgirls blend front-porch directness with neon-lit sophistication as they sing about home and highways, heaven and honkytonks, heartbreak and hope.
Their repertoire stretches from the 1920s Appalachia to the 1990s California, with stops along the way at several decades' worth of prairie roadhouses and bayou dance halls.
April 13, 2012
Scott Ainslie
with Eleanor Ellis
From community concert series and local schools to the Kennedy Center and the renowned Empire Music Hall in Belfast, Northern Ireland; Scott Ainslie plays and speaks of the music he loves with passion and authority. Scott presents a beguiling mix of the African and American roots of the Blues in story and song.
Ainslie’s new CD, Thunder’s Mouth, is an original and moving extension of his work with African and African-American music. It is a powerful body of work that brings together diverse songs and influences from traditional acoustic blues and African-American songs, Ainslie’s original songs, and African solo guitarists blending it into a harmonious whole.
March 9, 2012
M.S.G: The Acoustic Blues Trio,
with Mike Baytop and friends
M.S.G. - The Acoustic Blues Trio performs traditional Piedmont blues. Their style of music has been influenced by the likes of Archie Edwards, Etta Baker, and Cephas & Wiggins. This band can raise the roof with some old-fashioned house party tunes, make you laugh with their witty originals and then make you weep with blues ballads! They all perform with the Archie Edwards Blues Heritage Foundation Band. They have performed at numerous regional festivals including: Blues in the 'Burg, Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Artscape, and Bayou Boogaloo. They have also had the honor of performing on the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage.
February 10, 2012
David Roth
with opening act Soul Pajamas
David Roth's songs have found their way to Carnegie Hall, the United Nations, several Chicken Soup for the Soul books, the Kennedy Center, NASA's Space Shuttle "Atlantis", and Peter, Paul, & Mary concerts.
Poignant to improbable, holistic to hilarious, David joins us from his home on Cape Cod.
January 13, 2012
Blues Divas Lea Gilmore & Sheryl Sears
The fabulous Sheryl Sears Trio, with David Oziel on the guitar and Howard Moss on the harmonica, opened the show, followed by Baltimore's Lea Gilmore, a show-stopping Blues Diva who regularly tours Europe. Common Ground on the Hill's multi-talented Walt Michael, known especially for his hammer dulcimer mastery, has performed at Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and toured extensively throughout the U.S.and Europe. Walt will hold down the rhythm section with his tasty guitar licks along with one of D.C.'s hottest blues pianists, the amazing Ian Walter.
December 9, 2011
Seasons of Light
Kim and Reggie Harris and Magpie
together on stage
Magpie (Greg Artzner and Terry Leonino) perform songs of and for the Earth. The absolute perfection and clarity of their arrangements and harmonies is masterful and stunningly emotional. They are among the finest songwriters and performers of our era.
Kim and Reggie Harris are dynamic and superbly talented traditional folk performers, whose captivating stage presence and unique harmonies has earned the respect and love of audiences throughout the US, Canada, and Europe for over 30 years. They are unique in their ability to entertain audiences of any age and background as they blend their talents as singers, songwriters, educators, interpreters of history and cultural advocates.
November 11, 2011
Charlie King and Karen Brandow
with Luci Murphy opening
Charlie King and Karen Brandow are musical storytellers and political satirists. Their repertoire covers a century and a half and four continents. They perform with the sweet and precise harmonies of life partners. They sing and write passionately about the extraordinary lives of ordinary people. (King/Brandow photograph by Josh Reynolds, courtesy of the Rosenberg Fund for Children)
October 21, 2011 (the THIRD Friday, this month only!)
Claudia Schmidt
Border's Books and Music says "Claudia Schmidt belongs to the genre of hyperliterate songwriters, a word-monger of the first order, sometimes bursting at the boundaries of song form. In addition, she's a firecracker of a singer, irrepressibly emotional, and a radiant, almost overwhelming performer. It's the folksinger trifecta, and in this Schmidt is nearly in a class by herself."
September 9, 2011
An Azalea City Showcase
Andrea
Hoag, Loretta Kelley, and Charlie Pilzer have performed at concerts and
dances across the U.S. and in Europe for over 25 years, including
appearances on All Things Considered, Performance Today, and Prairie
Home Companion.
Song poet Laura Baron
is known for her powerful vocals and passionate delivery. She fills the
venue with the emotion of her lyrics and the beauty of her voice.
People find inspiration and a lightness of spirit in her songs of
renewal, second chances and hope. Laura performs and composes
contemporary folk, blues and jazz. She often collaborates with other
musicians on stage including co-writer and DC bassist Pat Quinn.
Songwriter,
performer, and recording artist Carey Creed accompanies herself on
piano and guitar, while performing her own social justice and love
songs. Carey has won multiple awards including two Wammies for
Gospel/Inspirational Vocalist, and the Songwriters Association of
Washington DC.
Over
the years, pianist, guitarist and vocalist and songwriter Jesse
Palidofsky has shared his music at the National Theatre, on the Hudson
River sloop Clearwater with Pete Seeger, at festivals like Common Ground
on the Hill and the Washington Folk Festival, and at the Kennedy Center
and the Smithsonian National Folklife Festival with the Archie Edwards
Blues Heritage Foundation.
Ruthie
& the Wranglers, play rockin' American Roots music (also known as
FUN!) and are based in the Washington, DC area. From original Americana
Country to rousing Surf instrumentals, their clever lyrics, high energy
and spritely hillbilly harmonies set them apart from the rest. The band
has won over 25 Washington Area Music Awards (WAMMIES) including Artist
of the Year and Album of the Year.
Band Members: Ruthie Logsdon (vocals, rhythm guitar, mandolin); Greg
Hardin (bass, vocals); Andy Rutherford (guitar, baritone guitar, lap
steel, vocals); Bill Starks (piano, vocals); Robbie Magruder (drums).