notloB Parlour Concerts Announces Fall Season
International Flavor and Old Friends
Three world-touring acoustic acts will comprise not-for-profit
notloB Parlour Concerts’ Fall, 2012 season at
the historic Loring-Greenough House in Jamaica Plain. Series producer
Jeff Boudreau proudly notes that the concerts begin notoB’s sixth year
presenting at the historic (c. 1760) house museum. “And at this rate, our one hundredth concert
should correspond with our sixth anniversary in early June, 2013.” Plans for
that event are underway and are being kept secret, but no doubt will include
some of the brightest starts in the Boston and New England string band, old
time, Celtic, traditional and neo-trad folk heavens. Past notloB artists
include Aoife O’Donovan, Rushad Eggleston, Tristan Clairridge and Corey DiMario
of Crooked Still, Sharon Gilchrist and Kristin Andreassen of Uncle Earl, Tao
Rodriguez-Seeger, Ruthy Ungar, Mike Merenda and Chris Merenda of the Mammals;
Celtic artists Brian Conway, Malinky, the Jeremy Kittel band, Hanneke Cassel, Matt
and Shannon Heaton, Long Time Courting, Flynn Cohen, the late John McGann;
local folk luminaries Bob Franke, Geoff Bartley, the Rowan Brothers, Dennis
Brennan, Alistair Moock, and Mark Simos.
“We’re on the cutting edge of
local acoustic music. For example, in 2007 we presented “Sometymes Why” as our
very first concert, followed in 2008 by Joy Kills Sorrow, The Boston Boys, the
Folk Arts Quartet and Blue Moose and the Unbuttoned Zippers. The next year Joy Kills
Sorrow was signed by Signature Sounds Records, Blue Moose and the Unbuttoned
Zippers won the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival “artist most wanted to return”
award, and Folk Arts Quartet was a Falcon Ridge main stage artist.
notloB also has a solid history
of presenting legends, including Spider John Koerner, Mary McCaslin, Jack
Hardy, David Massengill, Peggy Seeger, Paul Geremia, Jim Hurst and Jaime
Brockett, a name familiar with those who grew up with the folk revival music
scene at the Olde Vienna Kaffehaus.
“People used to pop culture may
not recognize the names of the artists we present, but one thing we do is to deliver
a consistent level of acoustic excellence, be they an internationally touring
veteran or a rising talent,” explains Boudreau.
The Fall season would appears to
be a continuation of the high standards evidenced since 2007. It begins Wednesday, October 10 with Richard Wood & Gordon Belsher. Award winning Prince Edward Island fiddler
Richard Wood has performed all over the world, including Carnegie Hall with
“the Chieftains”, and on “David Letterman” with Shania Twain. Most recently, he
performed for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge during their Royal Visit to
Canada, and with Symphony Nova Scotia at the East Coast Music Awards in 2011.
Combining deep-rooted traditional prowess with high-voltage rock’n’roll
attitude, each performance includes elements of Celtic jigs & reels
tempered with beautifully melodic original airs. Richard’s exciting live show
dazzles with unending energy & pounding rhythms, along with virtuoso
musicianship and an endearing stage presence. Accompanied on guitar, vocals,
mandola and bodhrán by Gordon Belsher, Gordon’s solo CD’s have been nominated
for Canada’s East Coast Music Awards. As accompanist and featured vocalist with
Richard Wood, he has toured extensively across Canada, the U.S., the U.K.,
Europe, Australia, and performed as part of a cultural delegation for
Canada in Tokyo, Japan.
“Truly Richard Wood and Gordon Belsher brought the house down
at St. Kieran’s! From opening explosion to standing ovation, they endeared
themselves into our hearts forever!” - Joan Chamberlain, St. Kieran’s Executive
Director, Berlin New Hampshire
“Perfect precision, playfulness and power!” - Charlottetown
Guardian
A new dimension to the series is the addition of master
classes or workshops. Prior to their performance, in separate rooms, Richard
will be offering a fiddle workshop and Gordon Belsher will be offering either a
DADGAD guitar or a bodhran workshop for up to 5 participants.
November sees two concerts in quick succession. Thursday,
November 1 brings Keith Murphy &
Becky Tracy across the border, from Vermont that is. Patrons who attend
violinmaker Bob Childs’ annual Childsplay
in Lexington will recognize Murphy as its artistic director. Becky and Keith
are dynamic performers of traditional music from Newfoundland, Quebec, Ireland,
France and beyond. Tracy’s fiddling pulses through tasteful arrangements of
dance tunes and resonates with beauty on traditional slow airs. Keith’s gentle
and expressive singing in English and French is balanced by the drive and power
of his guitar playing and percussion. Combined, they produce a range and
richness of sound that is striking for a duo. Their playing is seamless, the
result of years of playing together and touring across the U.S., Canada and in
Europe. Their repertoire also includes Keith’s original compositions (many of
which are included in the Black Isle Music tune collection). He is a prolific tunesmith with a writing style
strongly based on traditional dance music. Keith and Becky were two-thirds of
the popular Vermont trio, Nightingale
and are veterans of several other bands including Childsplay and Assembly
(Keith), and Wild Asparagus (Becky). Becky released her first solo recording, Evergreen, in 2001.
Keith’s album, Bound For Canaan (traditional songs from Eastern Canada and New
England) was released in the summer of 2005. He has recently rededicated
himself to his work as a solo performer.
Mike + Ruthy follow the next week, Thursday, November 8. Although notloB
usually presents one concert per month at the Loring-Greenough House, when
opportunity knocks, Boudreau answers the door. “We had finalized booking Keith
and Becky when I received a phone call from Mike Merenda about a November date
as part of their northeast tour.” Having presented Ruthy once as a member of Sometymes Why, twice as a duo, and again
as a part of Ruthy’s dad’s (Jay Ungar) The
Ungar Family Band, Boudreau has a soft spot in his heart for these Mammals. “There are artists one just
does not say ‘no’ to. Ed Stanley, President of the Tuesday Club, which owns the
Loring-Greenough House, was very understanding and accommodating.”
As a duo Mike + Ruthy
have refined their sound down to the very core of acoustic American music,
demonstrating an uncommon ability to create songs as lyrically sophisticated as
Bob Dylan or Leonard Cohen and as harmonically beautiful as Gillian Welch &
David Rawlings or Simon & Garfunkel. With their arsenal of fiddle, banjo, guitar, ukulele
and their hallmark harmony singing, a Mike + Ruthy concert is overstuffed with
soulful songs and stories and a timeless sound that is spellbinding and pure.
Over a decade of touring has taken them worldwide where
they've performed well over a thousand concerts in listening rooms, living
rooms and festivals as well as performances at NYC's Carnegie Hall accompanying
Arlo Guthrie in 2005 (with their former band The Mammals) and Madison Square
Garden as part of Pete Seeger's 90th birthday celebration in 2009.
Mike + Ruthy's 4th release is entitled “The NYC EP” featuring
the premiere recording of "My New York City" a beautifully revived
Woody Guthrie lyric from the Woody Guthrie Archives. The song will also be included on "My
Name is New York," a 4-CD compilation being issued by Woody Guthrie
Publications including new recordings by Pete Seeger, Arlo Guthrie, and Bob
Dylan and more.
Booking notloB’s December artist is currently“ in the works.”
Living legends and rising young stars performing in a 261-year-old
house make notloB Parlour Concerts a Boston treasure.
notloB Parlour Concerts Fall Season
All concerts are presented at the historic Loring-Greenough House, 12 South Street, Jamaica Plain,
MA 02130
Doors 7:30, Concert 8:00pm
Admission is by suggested
donation (amounts vary, will be specified on the website).
Reservations are strongly advised, due to the
venue’s intimate size.
Email notlobreservations at
gmail dot com.
Pastries from Fiore's
Coffee from JP Licks
Public transportation information: http://mbta.com/
notloB concerts are volunteer-run and not-for-profit. 100% of patron donations
go to the artists and production expenses.
"In this era of pop-driven acoustic music,
notloB is keeping the folk tradition alive."
-Jack Hardy
