Friday, May 27, 2016

Summer gigs (SO FAR - more to be added)

Well after a very busy spring including the move into a new house (YAY!  Great music studio and rehearsal space!!), I'm catching my breath and looking forward to lots of fun music this summer with my various projects. I love making music with all of my talented cohorts and hope you can make some of the shows to share in the fun!

The "Big Picture" for the summer...
Here are descriptions of current projects. See below for schedule.

ACOUSTIC ALLOY (TC Peart and myself, often with help from percussionist "Bad Alan"):
We will play once a month at Babe's (on the patio, or inside if rain), plus one show at The Brink in August...and a few other gigs are in the works before TC relocates to Las Vegas in August (yes, sad to say she is moving). We do pop/rock/country/folk covers including well-known and some cool but lesser known tunes. (Everything from "Why Not Me" to "Uptown Funk.")
www.acousticalloy.com

COMMON CHORD (Michael Bryant and myself with help from Delores Jenison, Faye Bruggink, and often "Bad Alan" on percussion, plus a special guest at each show):
We play once a month at The Brink Lounge and will have some other things being added to the schedule soon. These shows feature lots of originals (esp. Michael's great tunes), plus our arrangements of some unique covers, and a whole buncha instruments and harmonies.
www.commonchord.us (That goes to our Facebook page for now, website coming soon!)

CORNERSTONE - The church band I've been part of for 10 years - has official ended as a band, BUT I'll be making an appearance with some various ensembles now and then at Good Shepherd Lutheran (Raymond Road, Madison).

SOLO SHOWS: Rare but I do them now and then. I really enjoy making music with others so focus on the collaborative stuff these days.


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SHOWS scheduled as of now*

*Please watch websites and/or Facebook for updates and additions -- I won't send out another email for a few months probably...

Thursday, June 9, 2016
6:00 to 9:00 PM
Acoustic Alloy
Babe's
5614 Schroeder Road, Madison, WI 53711
(608) 274-7300   

Thursday, June 30, 2016
7:00 to 10:00 PM
Common Chord
The Brink Lounge
701 E Washington Ave., Madison, WI 53703
608-770-2640   
**Guest artist for this show will be BRUCE BUTTEL (by popular demand!)

Saturday, July 2, 2016
5:00 PM Worship
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
5701 Raymond Road, Madison WI 53711
(608)271-6633
I'll be participating with a small ensemble to lead worship, doing about 7 songs during the service. With Delores Jenison (vocals), Bill Rushmore (guitar, vocals), Kristin Landis (cello), and myself (vocals, piano, viola, guitar).

Sunday, July 3, 2016
10:45 AM Worship
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
5701 Raymond Road, Madison WI 53711
(608)271-6633
(See description for July 2 above...)

Thursday, July 7, 2016
6:00 to 9:00 PM
Acoustic Alloy
Babe's
5614 Schroeder Road, Madison, WI 53711
(608) 274-7300   

Thursday, July 14, 2016
7:00 to 10:00 PM
Common Chord
The Brink Lounge
701 E Washington Ave., Madison, WI 53703
608-770-2640   
**Guest artist for this show will be BLUE STONE doing an acoustic set, PLUS we have an added vocalist for the show filling out harmonies - Diane Kohrs. So will be doing some extra special 3- and 4-part harmony tunes. Can't wait!

Thursday, August 4, 2016
6:00 to 9:00 PM
Acoustic Alloy
Babe's
5614 Schroeder Road, Madison, WI 53711
(608) 274-7300   
LAST show at Babe's. We may have a special guest for this show....Details TBA

Thursday, August 11, 2016
7:00 to 10:00 PM
Common Chord
The Brink Lounge
701 E Washington Ave., Madison, WI 53703
608-770-2640   
**Guest artist for this show will be....TBA! Not yet confirmed so we can't tell ya yet.

Wednesday, August 17, 2016
7:00 to 10:00 PM
Acoustic Alloy
The Brink Lounge
701 E Washington Ave., Madison, WI 53703
608-770-2640   

Wednesday, September 7, 2016
A totally SOLO appearance for me.
10:45 AM (probably 45 min to 1 hour)
Oregon Area Senior Center
219 Park Street, Oregon, WI 53575
(608) 835-5801

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Updates on Common Chord (with Michael Bryant) and Acoustic Alloy (with TC Peart)

My usual disclaimer: If you want to stay informed the best thing would be to either be my "friend" on Facebook (search for my name) or "like" my Facebook page (separate from my personal profile). I don't do updates here often, but here is one...

In the days since Wild Heart's last show (Sept. 2015) I've remained very busy with music! Most of my creative time has been spent reconnecting with a longtime friend and collaborator, Michael Bryant (former leader of our trio Sticky Fingers, from the early 2000s). He and I have regrouped as an entity we are calling Common Chord, and you can find us at www.commonchord.us (which currently connects to our Facebook page...website coming soon). We perform as a duo but also usually have some help from the likes of Delores Jenison on additional harmony vocals and Faye Bruggink on clarinet. In the future we will sometimes be joined by percussionist "Bad Alan" with whom I have worked in several projects. We focus on original music but do bring in some choice covers from some of our favorite singer-songwriters and we generally have enough instruments to start a small music store between us. You'll find us in listening venues -- concert settings and coffeehouses, playing in Madison a few times a year. We will be looking to branch into neighboring areas soon, and may begin working on some recording projects as well.

About Michael: In a captivating, smooth baritone, Michael delivers his unforgettable songs, moving between catchy, can't-get-it-out-of-your-head tunes to stunningly beautiful, moving ballads. To the rest of us who call ourselves songwriters, his songs fall heavily into the "Man, I wish I'd written that!" category. I have the fun and satisfying role of adding to Michael's songs with harmony vocals and any of a number of instruments I love playing: Cello, viola, hammered dulcimer, guitar, bass, and/or piano. I generally can't bring them all to a show because my car won't hold everything, but I usually have 3 or 4 with me. (You gotta see my new electric viola and cello!) I also enjoy the opportunity to share some of my original tunes and choices of covers with Michael's assistance (harmony vocals plus extra guitar or bass or mandolin).

Otherwise, Acoustic Alloy is also alive and well! That is my duo with TC Peart, who was my colleague in Wild Heart. We have started booking some spring/summer shows. This is a cover act (with very occasional originals), featuring mostly TC's choices from a variety of styles and her powerhouse vocals (and me on harmonies). We perform as a duo (using guitar, mandolin, and keyboard) or sometimes as a trio with help from percussionist "Bad Alan." We have a lot of fun finding ways to arrange a complex variety of songs for our minimalist format. Crowd favorites in the past have been "Man in the Mirror" and "Uptown Funk." We play clubs/bars as well as small venues. Watch our website for schedule info if this sounds like your musical cup o' tea.