Our website is updated and the new brochure will hit a mailbox near you this week. It’s official: the 2010-2011 season has begun! Yay!
This is the exciting part of the season where we anticipate the artists and events of the year. One early act that stands out is the Celtic band Gaelic Storm. Their sense of fun is unbelievably infectious. Need proof? Watch this video. They had me at the stop-motion Lego people. Another group I’m excited for is NATURALLY 7. I’ve been forwarding their Paris Subway video to pretty much everyone I know for the last month. My personal computer may be responsible for at least 20 of that videos 4 million YouTube hits.
To get a greater sense of this year’s artists, I asked Steve Duchrow, the ECC Arts Center’s Director of Performing Arts, what he thought people should know about the upcoming season. Below he shares his personal experiences and thoughts on some of our upcoming artists.
The arts are about transforming the human spirit, your spirit. We believe artists should engage your passion and present content that is exceptional, relevant and meaningful. We want you telling others about these artists not just tomorrow but for the rest of your life.
Victor Wooten
Artists that will leave you with a sense of wonder no matter where they perform on the planet:
Victor Wooten, Leo Kottke, Howard Levy, Naturally 7, American Place Theatre
A Victor Wooten concert completely alters everything you’ve ever known about the bass. How many people in music history can redefine an instrument when they play it? Not many. He seems to do the unimaginable. As, music lovers, we all are looking for the next new sound. Well, let me tell you, Victor Wooten’s sound is the next new sound right now, and 200 years from now, he’ll still be regarded as the next new sound.
I think you should see Leo Kottke before you die. If you are a musician and/or appreciate the guitar, Leo is in this category. Chet Atkins, Segovia and Les Paul, may they rest in peace, were in that category. Joe Bonamassa, Mark Knopfler, Jeff Beck, Kelly Joe Phelps, Sonny Landreth, Tommy Emanuel and a small list of others fall into that category. You don’t get too many chances to witness this style and innovation. It took us four years to get a date with Leo, not because he didn’t want to play here, we just couldn’t get the schedules to line up. I’m thrilled that he’s part of our season.
New artists you absolutely must hear:
Dala, Miller, Hot Club of Detroit, Zili Misik
Dala at the Newport Folk Festival
I wept when I heard Dala’s song “Horses.” How is it that two people so young could write such a complete and perfect song like this? Unbelievable. They harmonize with that same quality of Emmy Lou Harris and Gillian Welch. David Tamulevich of The Roots Agency manages them and he said “I’ve been a musician for 30 years and they are such mature performers. I marvel at how they developed their overall skills this so quickly. Their stage presence and delivery to audiences is just remarkable.” I was so moved by the video for “Horses” and David’s description, I booked them before I heard them sing one note live.
I saw a live performance by Miller in St. Paul last October. I have seen thousands of performances but I rarely remember feeling this much groove from a band. Wow! It felt like that groove was shooting 600 amps of juice through all of us. It was as close to … blues ecstasy as I will ever get. Cole, the drummer wasn’t even using a drum kit. He was perched on top of this wooden beat box pounding like he was trying to evict the devil from inside it. Clayton was just locked in on guitar and LD played harmonica like a runaway freight on speed tossing sparks off the back. They are replicating the same performance here in our club this spring. It’s going to be Big Red Hot Blues in a small space.
