Seacoast Guitar Festival
Friday & Saturday April 1 - 2 2005 8pm
Unitarian Church, Portsmouth NH
TICKETS & RESERVATIONS: Tickets are $15 advance, $18 door/ $12 students( 2-day pass $25, students $20) , on the web, phone: 207-363-1886 , at Tweeter Etc. (Newington) Earcraft (Dover), Acoustic Outfitters (Stratham), Tulips (Portsmouth), Red Carpet (Durham) and Gravestone Artwear (York ). The Seacoast Guitar Society is a non-profit organization to benefit the guitar lovers of the area. Musicians, students and fans are encouraged to join and support our cause..
DETAILS: The Unitarian Church (usually called the South Church) is one of the finest examples in the US of Greek revival architecture, and is a wonderful room for music, both acoustically and in atmosphere. It holds about 500 people, and the sound is great even in the back of the room. It is a favorite location for concerts in the Seacoast.
Wheelchair access: Yes
About Seacoast Guitar Festival: The SGS is presenting the 2nd guitar festival, with 8 performers and 2 nights of music. Friday night will be songwriter night, hosted by Joyce Andersen, and Harvey Reid will host the Sat night Guitar Night. Appearing Friday night will be Joyce Andersen, Steve Gillette, Peter and Lou Berryman + Andrew Calhoun. Sat night will be Harvey Reid, Stephen Bennett, Mary Flower + Chris Kleeman. Don't miss this chance to see these wonderful players in this glorious room.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
STEVE GILLETTE
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Steve Gillette has long been considered to be one of today's finest singer-songwriters.
His rich voice, innovative guitar work and impressive legacy of songs has inspired
glowing reviews from the critics and the deep loyalty of his fans. Since Ian
and Sylvia first recorded Darcy Farrow in 1966, Steve's songs have been sung
by dozens of major artists including Garth Brooks, John Denver, Nanci Griffith,
Waylon Jennings, Anne Murray, Tony Rice, Kenny Rogers, Linda Ronstadt, Jerry
Jeff Walker and Tammy Wynette.
Steve's first album, Steve Gillette, released in the Spring of 1968, immediately
put him on the map of folk songwriters, and since then he has continued to write
and perform, and has toured 31 countries. He has taught numerous workshops and
seminars on songwriting, guitar theory, and record production, and is the author
of the book "Songwriting and the Creative Process." Steve's film credits
include writing and singing the main title theme for M.G.M.'s The Outfit, Walt
Disney's The Pond, The Grass Is Greener, Summer Run, and Door To Door. Steve
has also written songs for the Walt Disney characters Jiminy Cricket, Dumbo,
Rainbow Brite, and Winnie-the-Pooh. He lives in Vermont, and performs with his
wife, Cindy Mangsen.
http://www.stevegillette.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
ANDREW CALHOUN
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Andrew Calhoun's has been called "one of contemporary folk's top songwriters"
(by the Chicago Tribune) and one of "...the greatest songwriters of his
generation." His complex, poetic songs and powerful performances have led
many to heap the highest praise on his art. His songs are unpredictable; sometimes
dark and angular, sometimes romantic and lovely, always probing and petetrating,
and they swirl between pain, beauty and fun in a way that only Calhoun can manage.
His dense, image-filled songs combine with his vibrant sense of humor and considerable
guitar skills to make his performances unpredictable, image-rich poetic journeys
with emotionally charged tales and fun sing-alongs like "You Never Can
Have Enough Pens." Acoustic blues, folk, and classical guitar studies influence
his fluid fingerpicking guitar style. In concert he performs original music
written over thirty years, contemporizes old Scottish ballads, recites poetry,
and even covers other writer's songs. Now living in Portland, Oregon, he recently
released his 9th album.
At age 7, Andrew memorized W. B. Yeats' "Song of Wandering Aengus,"
earning a nickel from his mother. He got his first guitar in 1967 at the age
of 10 and began performing in the Chicago folk scene in the late seventies.
He has since toured internationally, performing at folk clubs and festivals,
pubs and house concerts. He gives workshops in creative songwriting, great songs
of the New Folk movement, Scottish folk ballads, and music theory for guitarists.
In 1992, Calhoun founded Waterbug Records, an artists' cooperative folk label
which has grown to over 50 titles, bringing some of the brightest singer-songwriters
and folk musicians to an international audience. His recordings have been released
on Hogeye, Flying Fish and Waterbug.
http://www.andrewcalhoun.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
PETER & LOU BERRYMAN
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Peter & Lou Berryman hail from Wisconsin, and for over 30 years they have
been creating and performing their own zany brand of folk music. Their 14 recordings
chronicle an almost overwhelming body of mostly hilarious and fiendishly clever
songs on topics ranging from the weather, cheese, children, romance, and anything
imaginable. Lou plays mostly accordion, though she is accomplished on piano,
harpsichord, banjo, viola de gamba, saxophone, lute, and guitar. She has a degree
in art history, writes the melodies, and fills the tank. Peter used to be an
illustrator, writes the lyrics, plays 12 string guitar, has taken photographs
with a camera suspended from a kite, and checks the oil.
Their deadpan delivery generally leave their listeners holding their sides with
laughter, as well as puzzled and perplexed, and trying desperately to remember
enough of the Berryman's wacky songs to be able tell their friends about it.
This will be their first ever Seacoast appearance.
http://www.louandpeter.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
JOYCE ANDERSEN
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Durham native Joyce Andersen is the Seacoast's hottest rising folk artist, and
is gaining nationwide recognition as a solo artist after a decade of playing
in countless bands and recording sessions. Her solo CD's have received rave
reviews, and a great deal of attention and considerable airplay in the folk
and bluegrass circles. She performed at the Phildelphia Folk festival, and was
a featured performer on World Cafe and Mountain Stage, nationally syndicated
concert radio programs. She is about to release her 4th solo album.
http//www.joyscream.com
SATURDAY NIGHT GUITAR NIGHT ARTISTS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
STEPHEN BENNETT
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The only person to win the prestigious national guitar competition in its 30
year history in both fingerpicking and flatpicking styles, Stephen Bennett is
a very sought-after performer on the guitar circuit. His fretboard wizardy and
mesmerizing stage presence leave people shaking their heads with amazement as
he runs the gamut of celtic fiddle tunes, Broadway show tunes, Joplin rags,
slide guitar Delta blues, Beatles songs, and anything else that suits his moods.
He is truly one of the great acoustic guitarists of our time, and local fans
are still talking about his performance for the Seacoast Guitar Society in 2001.
He has produced over a dozen recordings of his guitar work, and aside from his
impressive work on the six-string guitar, Stephen is also one of the world's
premiere performers on the 14-string harp guitar, an instrument he inherited
from his great-grandfather. As a composer and arranger, he has created an enduring
repertoire and a significant body of recorded work for this instrument.
http://www.harpguitar.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
MARY FLOWER
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mary is a veteran blues singer and guitarist and for over 25 years she has developed
her own distinctive style of acoustic blues and folk music. She is widely regarded
for her teaching, lively performances and innovative guitar arrangements. She
draws from her own songwriting, popular and traditional songs, and commands
a vast repertoire of acoustic blues, folk and ragtime music. Considered to be
in the forefront of today's women guitarists, Mary is a formidable player, in
addition to being a captivating performer and singer, and a prolific songwriter.
She placed 3rd in the National Fingerpicking Competition, and has appeared on
Prairie Home Companion and concert stages nationwide. She plays acoustic and
slide guitar as well as Hawaiian lap dobro. She lives in Oregon, though she
spent much of her career teaching guitar in Denver and raising her children.
http://www.maryflower.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHRIS KLEEMAN
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chris Kleeman has been called "Vermont's best kept secret", and his
fiery performances were legendary around Northern New England in the 1970's
and 80's. He was among the first in this area to stand out as a "take no
prisoners" fingerpicker, songwriter and song interpreter. He has made several
recordings, his first album in 1970 was produced by B.B. King, and he has performed
with B.B. at the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival, as well as a star-studded
list of blues legends, including Buddy Guy, David Bromberg, Koko Taylor, and
many others. A master of Delta blues and acoustic slide guitar, Chris also performs
with 12-string and sometimes electric guitar, weaving his own compositions and
arrangements of folk & rock classics together with his large repertoire
of classic blues. Chris has resumed performing recently after a long hiatus,
and currently lives in rural Vermont with his family, where he is also a highly
regarded chef.
http://www.chriskleeman.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
HARVEY REID
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reid is one of the Seacoast area's best-known musicians, who has released 18
recordings and toured extensively across the US and abroad for the last 25 years.
A former national guitar and autoharp champion, he has shared the stage with
many of the great pickers of today; Acoustic Guitar Magazine chose his "Steel
Drivin' Man" as one of Top 10 Folk CD's of all time, and GUITAR PLAYER
Magazine has called him “a giant of the steel strings," including
him in its list of 20 essential acoustic guitar CD's. Reid is the founder and
director of the Seacoast Guitar Society.
http://www.woodpecker.com
ARTIST WEB SITES: Joyce Andersen, Steve Gillette, Peter & Lou Berryman + Andrew Calhoun. Sat night will be Harvey Reid, Stephen Bennett, Mary Flower + Chris Kleeman.
DIRECTIONS: The Unitarian Church is located 1 block behind the North Church (the tallest building in Portsmouth) on the 1-way street (State St) that runs the opposite direction from Congress (Daniel St - it has 3 names in 4 blocks!) The best place to park is on the street or in the High St parking garage, about 2.5 blocks away. Exit 7 from Rt 95 = Market St. (just before bridge to Maine). Go to end, you'll be in front of North church. Drive around behind it.
REVIEWS:
Seacoast Guitar
Society
PO Box 815 York, ME 03909
207-363-1886 (phone)
The Seacoast Guitar Society is a not-for-profit 501 c(3) corporation
SGS Home Page | About the SGS | How to Join | Upcoming Events | Tickets/Reservations | SGS CDs | Workshops | Guitar Talk | Reviews | Classified Ads | Guitarist Directory | Guitar Resources | Kid's Corner | Scrapbook | Press/Publicity Info | Contact SGS
Send your feedback or report problems to