Music

Music section

Dave Richardson and Tom Pirozzoli at Stage 33 Live

by Mark Piepkorn | Music

Tom Pirozzoli is celebrating Reckon by the Light, the newest CD in his 40-years-and-counting career. He got his start busking on street corners and performing at anti-war rallies, eventually finding his way into the coffeehouse scene. His Fast Folk Music recordings are now part of the Smithsonian’s collection. He was named a winner in MUSICIAN magazine’s Best Unsigned Band Contest in the early ’80s, and has shared stages with artists like Greg Brown, Jesse Winchester, and Doc Watson. “Pirozzoli’s observations and travels bring seemingly dissimilar elements to harmony.” — Boston Globe

Vermont Jazz Center Presents: Champian Fulton Quartet

by vtjazz | Music

The Vermont Jazz Center is delighted to present pianist/vocalist Champian Fulton on Saturday, January 18th at 8:00 PM. Fulton, a DownBeat Magazine Rising Star, was recently lauded as 2019 Female Vocalist of the Year and 2019 Pianist of the Year by Hot House Magazine/Jazzmobile. She will be performing with her working quartet of over a decade including her father, Stephen Fulton, on Flugelhorn, Hide Tanaka on bass and Fuku Tainaka on drums.

Champian Fulton swings hard – she’s a top-shelf pianist and vocalist with an expansive repertoire and a broad stylistic vocabulary. She likes to leave her sets open-ended so that she and her band can choose between familiar and little-known gems from the Great American Songbook on the fly. Considering her youthful age (34 years old), it is intriguing that Fulton’s repertoire naturally gravitates to selections from the swing era. Her whole persona, public and private, resonates with a love for the music from that time period. She conveys the essence of swing effortlessly and authentically; her performances give listeners a fresh appreciation of the creative possibilities inherent in an older style. In Fulton’s hands, swing is a vibrant, living music that resonates with meaning and joyous playfulness.

Second-Saturday Synthfest Series

by Mark Piepkorn | Music

An electronic music performance series celebrating synthesizers, circuit-bending, and sound manipulation on the second Saturdays of January through April at Stage 33 Live in Bellows Falls. Each session hosts up to five acts for individual performances followed by a group improvisation. Players will be in the center of the room, with the audience in the round. Sounds are expected to range from cinematic and lush to computeresque and urgent.

The series dates are January 11, February 8, March 14, and April 11, 7:00 PM at Stage 33 Live, 33 Bridge Street in Bellows Falls, Vermont. Suggested $5 donation at the door.

Christine Ohlman & Rebel Montez at Next Stage on Saturday, January 4

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project is thrilled to bring Christine Ohlman & Rebel Montez back to Putney by popular demand for an all out rock n’ soul concert/dance party on Saturday, January 4th at 7:30 pm, at Next Stage, 15 Kimball Hill, Putney, VT. There will be a beer and wine cash bar. Tickets are $18 in advance, general admission, $22 at the door, available online at: nextstagearts.org. Snow date for this event is Sunday, January 5th. Call 802-387-0102 for info in the event of snow.

Known as “The Beehive Queen” for her outrageous, mile-high hairdo, Christine is the current, long-time vocalist with the Saturday Night Live Band. Voted #7 on Alternate Roots’ list of top 30 Female Vocalists, this queen of blue-eyed rock n’ soul grew up loving equally the sweetness of a Memphis horn line and the raunch of an electric guitar riff, whether played by Muddy Waters, Keith Richards, or Pop Staples. Teased her blonde hair into a beehive in honor of Ronnie Spector and never looked back, picking up a guitar and forging a career as a songwriter in the process.

Multi-instrumentalist Owen Nied to Perform in Bellows Falls

by Mark Piepkorn | Music

BELLOWS FALLS — After wowing the audience with his energetic set last August, multi-instrumentalist Owen Nied returns as the main event to the Stage 33 Live listening room in Bellows Falls on January 5.

Here’s a 60-second taste of last time: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBBvQkxvolQ

His original music careens from edgy pop to jazz to blues, rock and hip hop, influenced by artists as diverse as Wes Montgomery, Les Paul, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jack White, Jeff Beck, Brian Wilson, B.B. King, Dick Dale, Tony Bennett, Dave Brubeck, Chet Atkins, and Ella Fitzgerald. In addition to playing solo, Owen fronts the guitar- and horn-driven indie trio The Onlys; plays lead guitar in the jazz-grass band Cats in the Limelight; and is half of the UK-based indie-jazz duo Spooky Tricycle.

Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem at Next Stage on Saturday, December 21

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music welcome back New England’s acclaimed roots, rhythm and harmony quartet Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem to perform their “Wintersong” program at Next Stage on Saturday, December 21 at 7:30 pm.  “Wintersong” is a celebratory, poetic, reflective collection of seasonal songs, an ode to light and dark at the turning of the year.  “These are some of the most soul-lifting songs you’ll hear in your life… pure magic happens when these four musicians play together” –  No Depression

Dec. 13 & 14: “An Olde New England Christmas”

by fomag | Music

Guilford, Vt. — Friends of Music at Guilford (FOMAG) presents “An Olde New England Christmas” at 7:30 on Friday, December 13, and again at 4:00 on Saturday, December 14. By tradition, this 47th annual Christmas at Christ Church event includes choral and instrumental music for the season, a dramatic reading, and a few carols for everyone.

The a cappella vocal program was drawn from tune books by New England composers born in the middle of the 18th century: William Billings, Supply Belcher, Oliver Holden, Timothy Swan, and Samuel Adams Holyoke, as well as one English composer, Joseph Stephenson. These itinerant singing masters traveled the region from about 1770 through 1810, teaching sight-singing to select groups in church parishes. They gave concerts for local folks and then moved on to the next town. This practice fundamentally changed the place of music in worship, which finds its legacy in church choirs today.

Hiroya Tsukamoto, Innovative Guitarist

by Mark Piepkorn | Music

Innovative guitarist and composer Hiroya Tsukamoto will bring his fusion of folk, jazz, and world music to Stage 33 Live in Bellows Falls on December 22 in a special matinee performance for a well-timed break from the holiday rush.

Eclectic and immersive, Tsukamoto takes audiences on an earthy, organic odyssey. In addition to original compositions, his repertoire travels the world of traditional music. While his instrumental abilities are breathtaking, he also connects to audiences with his engaging personality.

Vermont Jazz Center Presents: Annual Big Band Scholarship Fundraiser, Celebrating Nat King Cole

by vtjazz | Music

The Vermont Jazz Center’s Big Band will present its Annual Scholarship Gala on Saturday, December 7th at 8:00 PM. This year’s celebration will honor Nat King Cole’s 100th birthday-anniversary. The VJC Big Band, under the leadership of musical director Rob Freeberg, is a community orchestra made up of professional musicians who come together once a year to raise money for the VJC’s Scholarship Fund. This event is the primary funding source that helps aid scholarship students attending VJC’s educational programs. In 2019 the VJC offered $30,000 in scholarships to help students attend ensembles, private lessons and their annual summer jazz workshop.

This year’s gala will feature the arrangements of songs made famous by Nat “King” Cole, who was recognized as “one of the most influential entertainers of the 20th century” by National Public Radio. The Grammy Hall of Famer was a superstar of his time: he recorded over 150 Billboard singles and sold over 50 millions records. Cole knew he was destined for a life of music – he dropped out of high school at the age of 15 to tour as pianist in his brother Eddie’s trio and he never looked back.

John Stowell & Draa Hobbs, Jazz Guitar

by Mark Piepkorn | Music

The Bellows Falls community radio station, WOOL-FM, welcomes back guitar duo John Stowell & Draa Hobbs for a return engagement of world-class jazz at Stage 33 Live. There will also be a musician’s master class on improvisation preceding.

John Stowell, based on the West Coast, is influenced as much by pianists and horn players as by guitar players, and his original take on harmony, chords, and improvisation sets him apart. He tours, records, and teaches internationally, and has been a contributing columnist for Downbeat, Guitar Player, Soundcheck (Germany), Guitar Club (Italy), and other influential publications.

Next Stage Arts Project presents The Groovebarbers A Capella Holiday Concert on Friday, December 6

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project is delighted to welcome back to Putney the international a capella sensation The Groovebarbers for the fifth annual holiday concert, on Friday, December 6 at 7:30pm. Tickets are $15 for adults, $7.50 for 6 years old and up, and $40 for a family. Kids under 6 get in free. The renovated and accessible Next Stage is located at 15 Kimball Hill, Putney, VT. Tickets are available online at www.nextstagearts.org, or at the Putney General Store or Turn It Up! in Brattleboro three weeks in advance of the show.

49th Messiah Sing: A Benefit for the Homeless

by fomag | Music

Brattleboro, Vt. – Friends of Music at Guilford (FOMAG) invites singers and music lovers in the Tri-State region to start their holiday season at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 7, with the 49th annual Community Messiah Sing, a benefit for the homeless. Centre Congregational Church, at 193 Main Street in Brattleboro, has been home for the Sing since 1982 and for a few prior seasons as well.

Kenneth Olsson, who conducted the Sing in 2017 and 2018, is moving to the organist’s bench this year. A well-known vocalist and performer on piano and organ, as well as music director for opera and musical theater, he has led FOMAG’s Guilford Festival Orchestra since 2012 and in 2014 co-founded the Southern Vermont Lyric Theatre.

Antje Duvekot and Matt Nakoa at Next Stage on Saturday, November 30

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present a contemporary folk singer/songwriter twin bill with Antje Duvekot and Matt Nakoa at Next Stage on Saturday, November 30 at 7:30 pm.

Antje Duvekot is a German-born, American-raised singer/songwriter whose songs have been critically praised for their hard-won wisdom, dark-eyed realism and street-smart romanticism.  Her bicultural upbringing and relative newness to English have helped shape her unique way with a song, giving her a startlingly original poetic palette.  They are the keys to the powerful, even revolutionary, empathy that informs everything she writes.  She has won some of the top songwriting awards including the Grand Prize in the John Lennon Songwriting Competition, the Kerrville Folk Festival Best New Folk Award and the Boston Music Award for Outstanding Folk Act.

“Love Changes Everything”: Brattleboro Women’s Chorus’ Fall Concert

by bwchorus | Music

The Brattleboro Women’s Chorus will present their 24th annual fall concert titled Love Changes Everything on Saturday, November 23 at 3:00 pm and 7:30 pm at the newly named Epsilon Spires, formerly the First Baptist Church, on Main Street.

Director Becky Graber and the 100-plus member chorus will be joined by guest musicians Lisa McCormick with her ukulele orchestra and Cathy Martin on piano.

Trio Mambo and Caribbean Diner at Next Stage on Friday, November 22

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts project presents an evening of music by Trio Mambo and Caribbean food by the Putney Food Co-op at The Next Stage Café on Friday, November 22. Dinner and cash bar start at 6:00 pm and music hits at 7:00 pm.

Trio Mambo is a Latin jazz trio of piano, bass and congas featuring three veterans of New England jazz: Dan DeWalt on piano and trombone; Wes Brown on bass; and Julian Gerstin on percussion. Deep grooves, intricate rhythms, deliver an infectious, high energy evening of mambo magic in the casual, downstairs setting of the Next Stage Café.

Friesen, Rogers Offer Winter Concert

by Not Signed In | Music

SAXTONS RIVER, Vt. – Cellist Eugene Friesen and singer/songwriter Elizabeth Rogers will bring in the holiday season at Main Street Arts with a CD-release concert Saturday, Nov. 30 at 7:30 p.m.

The duo will bring a soulful collaboration to a repertoire of Celtic-infused holiday songs and instrumentals from their new recording “Down in Yon Forest,” featuring such classics as “The Ivy and the Holly,” “I Wonder as I Wander” and less well known songs of the season.

Heather Pierson Acoustic Trio + Emily Lyons

by Mark Piepkorn | Music

The Heather Pierson Acoustic Trio burst into the national folk scene with their 2015 EP, Still She Will Fly, and the title track was that year’s #2 single on folk radio. Their 2017 CD, Singin’, debuted at #1 and was the #11 folk charting album of the year. Heather’s new solo album, Lines and Spaces, came out this month and is her twelfth CD release.

The trio will bring their “traveling music store” of instruments — piano, acoustic guitar, tenor banjo, ukulele, melodica, cornet, dobro, fiddle, mandolin, bass, and maybe more — to Stage 33 Live in a special 2:00 PM matinee performance on November 24. Local up-and-comer Emily Lyons will open.

Sofia Rei and JC Maillard at Next Stage on Saturday, November 16

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project is delighted to present Sofía Rei & JC Maillard on Saturday, November 16  at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $22 in advance, $25 at the door, available now online at nextstagearts.org and at Turn It Up!, Brattleboro, the Putney General Store three weeks before the show.  Next Stage is located at 15 Kimball Hill, Putney, VT.

After 4 years in the works, Sofía Rei & JC Maillard‘s duo album “Keter” from John Zorn Masada was released in January 2019 on Tzadik records, with Sofía Rei on vocals, loops & charango and JC Maillard on saz bass, and vocals.

The Suitcase Junket plus Kate Lorenz and The Constellations at Next Stage on Friday, November 15

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present The Suitcase Junket – Matt Lorenz’s internationally touring, throat-singing, slide guitar playing one-man band – plus rock/folk/country/blues band Kate Lorenz and The Constellations at Next Stage on Friday, November 15 at 7:30 pm.

With warmth, wildness, unkempt vitality and sharply imaginative musicality, The Suitcase Junket works the border of Americana and rock, with image-driven songwriting, idiosyncratic storytelling and effusive vocal presence.  Artist, tinkerer, swamp yankee, singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Matt Lorenz draws from a fantastically patchwork sonic palette, shaping his songs with elements of jangly folk, fuzzed-out blues, oddly textured psych-rock and dance-hall festivity. 

Songs For Our Times: Concert this Sunday!

by Ruthie | Music

This coming Sunday, 3:00 pm, at 118 Elliot!

Directed by Lisa McCormick, the Southern Vermont Ukulele Ensemble (30+ members!) presents a concert of songs promoting Care of the Planet, Community-building, Welcome, Justice, and Peace.

Audience sing-alongs will be encouraged. All are welcome. Venue is accessible.