Foghorn Stringband
“The Foghorn Stringband, if you ask me, is one of the greatest new things in old-time music. All they have to do is play, and the power surges straight through your own chest. They are supertight, are major monster players, and they don’t do anything weird to the music – they let their own musicality and the tunes speak for themselves. It’s a major joy in my life that they and their music exist.”
-- Molly Tennebaum, The Old-Time Herald (read Molly's entire review here courtesy THE OLD TIME HERALD
What many of us here east of the Mississippi don’t realize, there exists on the West Coast a huge resurgence of Old-Time music happening, primarily based in Portland. Most players and audiences are in their 20s and 30s, masterful musicians, highly energetic and enthusiastic about the form. Many became disenchanted with Rock and Roll and discovered the visceral pulse contained in Old-Time music.
The Foghorn Stringband is a supergroup of master old-time musicians that came out of this Portland, Oregon, underground old-time music scene. Apart from their reputation as a high-energy, driving string band, Foghorn is also famous as a square dance band.
Powerful vocalist Caleb Klauder (of Calobo) adds driving biting rhythm and melody on mandolin and guitar. The Rev. P.T. Grover (of Pig Iron) adds a steady machine-gun claw hammer banjo, as well as his own 3 finger style that leaves folks scratching their heads trying to figure out whether is sounds more like old Bluegrass or Old-time mountain style; Kevin Sandri (of Crooked Jades, Blue Rooster) hits the guitar hard in between playful bass runs. Stephen “Sammy” Lind, (of Pocket Lumber from Minneapolis) leads the band with powerful high-octane fiddling that constantly takes the band to a new level.
The Flat Mountain Girls
The Flat Mountain Girls are a high-energy old-time string band based in
The Flats are known for tight, raw three-part harmonies, powerful fiddling, and performances that explode with irrepressible glee and bawdy humor.
Their repertoire includes arrangements of Carter Family classics, traditional songs from the Southern mountains, cowboy yodels, romping fiddle tunes, and the occasional original, combining tremendous enthusiasm with great respect for the old-time tradition.
With Lisa Marsicek playing fiddle, Rachel Gold on banjo, Nann Alleman on guitar and Laura Quigley on bass, the Flat Mountain Girls bring foot-stomping fun to every performance.
Frank Vignola & Aaron Weinstein
Frank is one of the most accomplished, multi-dimensional players walking the planet today. Monster player, composer and improviser, Frank plays proficiently in every genre, from jazz to bluegrass, and works with everyone and their brother. Frank’s pedigree is a mile long, but a quick Google will illustrate why he is considered one of the best on the planet.
Whether he is featured on a Donald Fagen recording, a jam with David Grisman, as Les Paul's right hand man or leading his own groups throughout the years, he has proved himself to be in the elite creating his own unique sound.
Born on suburban Long Island, Vignola was raised in the
Named a rising star by Downbeat Magazine, Aaron Weinstein is quickly earning a reputation as one of the finest jazz violinists of his generation. As a featured soloist, Aaron has performed at
A recent gradutate of the Berklee College of Music in
The Prairie Acre
This Lawrence, Kansas-based band plays a mixture of old-time music and traditional bluegrass. With first rate musicianship and a squeky-clean image, The Prairie Acre makes no aplogies for being a band you can bring home to mom and dad. The Prairie Acre's unique sound comes from the jaw-dropping fiddle skills of Tricia Spencer, from banjo player Noah Musser's unorthodox hybrid style, and from the strong rhythmic backbone provided by bassist Virginia Musser and blues-influences guitarist Greg Yother. Their reperatoire includes a mixture of fast-paced instrumental tunes and singing numbers executed with tight vocal harmonies.
Old Time Country & Blues Review
The Old Time Country & Blues Review (OTCBR) are a St. Charles Illinois-based duo of Dave “DK” Kolars and Pete Norman who play a variety of instruments – mostly guitar – in a mix of blues, old-time, folk, bluegrass, Western swing and old-time pop.
Dave “DK” Kolars migrated from North Central Kansas to DeKalb, IL after college and immediately fell into the existing music scene. DK played mostly old time music on the guitar, having been lucky enough to go to college at Kansas State University with Jay Ungar, with whom DK played for a couple of years in an old timey string band. After a stint with The Kishwaukee River Valley Ramblers in the late 60’s, DK spent a lot of time playing solo and teaching guitar. In 1971, DK became a founding member of The Pleasant Street String Band who were one of the main backup bands for Vassar Clements when he toured the area.
DK took about a 13 year “vacation” from playing music and when he started playing again, concentrated on the Dobro.
In 1994 DK helped form the Northern Illinois Bluegrass Association (NIBA) to promote bluegrass music in the region. After a couple of years of woodshedding and relaxing, DK connected with Pete Norman in late 2002 and decided that the only sensible thing to do was to become a duo and share the music they both knew: blues, old timey, folk, bluegrass, 30’s & 40’s pop, a lot of Pete’s original songs, and anything else that catches our fancy. They released their first CD, Nuff Said, in 2005
The Woodstove Flapjacks are Matt Scherger, guitar and lead vocals; Christopher Johnson, banjo and lead and backing vocals; James Morrow- slide guitar and backing vocals; and ‘B’ Washington, washtub bass and backing vocals. The Woodstove Flapjacks coalesced over a few years in the Lafayette area and have since become a local favorite keeping a fairly busy performing schedule. They call their style of old-time music “beardgrass.” In 2006 they released their debut CD. This will be their first main stage Gathering appearance.
Joshua Anliker
This year we’ll be featuring our 2005 Wilber Ade Memorial Scholarship winner, Brookston native, Joshua Anliker who’ll be doing a set Sunday afternoon backup up by his own band.
Mark Lyons and Jean Adaskevich
Mark Lyons and Jean Adaskevich will be performing the Children’s Concert this year. They are Chicago natives and long time area performers. They have been performing together since 2000 entertaining audiences with their eclectic blend of fold, country, pop and blues. They’ll be presenting a fun mix of children’s tunes, offbeat humor, and warm personality the whole family can enjoy. Mark will also be conducting his popular yodeling workshop again on Sunday.
The Bahler Graber Band hails from Bennett's Switch, Indiana. A favorite of the Fiddlers' Gathering, they perform a variety of "roots" styles ranging from rural string band and gospel to "midwestern swing," blending various vocal harmonies and instrumental styling. Led by Brad Bahler - a multi-instrumentalist and instructor - and Lynn Graber who fires up the arch-top guitar, the band is rounded out by Karen Bahler on dog-house bass and John Bahler on guitar and banjo. Apart from appearing on the Sunday afternoon concert, the group will be leading the Sunday morning Gospel Concert. Brad Bahler will be conducting a Sacred Harp Singing workshop on Saturday morning- all are welcome. If you need to prepare or want to learn more about Sacred Harp singing, follow the links below:
The Kokomo Area Sacred Harp Singers
The Kountry Kernals are a Battle Ground institution. They traditionally open the Indiana Fiddlers' Gathering on Friday evening. Comprised of local musicians, their styles reflect Indiana country music as it was heard in the 1930s. Some members have performed at every Fiddlers' Gathering since the first in 1973.