Tim Eriksen & The Trio de Pumpkintown, Saturday, December 6

Tonight's concert is sold out

Tim Eriksen is "widely regarded as the best ballad singer of his generation" (BBC Radio). He combines hair-raising vocals with savvy arrangements for fiddle, banjo, guitar and bajo sexto, transforming American tradition with a "northern roots" Americana sound that embraces old New England murder ballads,“shape-note” gospel and haunted originals alongside Southern Appalachian and Irish songs. Tim is also known for his own compositions - “strange and original works” (NetRhythmsUK) with a“rare sense of purpose” (Q Magazine) that have been included in the upcoming feature documentary Behold the Earth. Eriksen's other notable work has included extensive contributions to Anthony Minghella’s 2004 Oscar-winning film Cold Mountain as well as collaborations ranging from hardcore punk and Bosnian pop to symphony orchestra.

On Saturday, December 6, Tim will join fellow musicians Zoe Darrow and Peter Irvine to present
The Trio de Pumpkintown, which celebrates the songs of a fictional New England village in fresh, acoustic arrangements. Much of their music comes from the 18th and 19th centuries: love songs, murder ballads, songs of travel on the high seas, rollicking Afro-Celtic sing-alongs, music of local francophone and Scottish communities and shape-note harmony including that of 18th century Native American composer Metacomet Samson. In addition to their traditional New England repertoire, the Trio also plays their own original music and, occasionally, songs by local P’town bands and music drawn from their contact with more recent immigrants to the area.

While The Trio’s own compositions have been praised as “strange and original works” (NetRhythmsUK) and “wicked awesome” (The Pumpkinville Daily Sewer), the band is also devoted to preserving other local music of the late twentieth and early twenty first centuries, and their performances sometimes include an acoustic cover version or two of songs by P’town bands like Weasel Stain (copcore), Crucifer (vegan doom) and Vaginasaur (anarcho-feminist postpop). Adding to their historical and original repertoire, The Trio de Pumpkintown sometimes draws on material gathered during the course of their collaborative research into minority musics in the region.

If you are interested in reserving a seat for this concert, please contact Sandy, at: Sandilion49@gmail.com. From there you will receive a reply and details of location and available seating. For first time visitors to this blog, the Jenkins House Concert series is located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

Bob Hipkens & Friends; Matt Glaser, Jon Sholle & Marty Confurius on Sat. November 29

This concert is sold out as of 11/27/14
Bob Hipkens, Matt Glaser and Marty Confurius have known each other since the early 70s when their band, The Central Park Sheiks, first hit the music scene in New York City. So this concert is a reunion of sorts, with the addition of guitarist, Jon Sholle. This mixed influence band released a single LP, Honeysuckle Rose. The style they are most often associated with is urban and western acoustic swing music, but they played a great deal of country and folk inflected tunes, as well as original music. The band toured many colleges in the Eastern seaboard during their years together, and had a very successful final performance at New York's Loeb Student Center in New York. While not widely known outside of the eclectic music scene, the band achieved notoriety in Japan.

Bob Hipkens has played many Jenkins house concerts during the past 12 years. He and his daughter Sarah often appear together as a duo which features Bob's dobro and guitar wizardry. Sarah will be making a guest appearance on November 29.

Matt Glaser, violinist, is the Artistic Director of the American Roots Music Program at the Berklee College of Music where he has been on the faculty for 28 years. The Boston Herald has called him,"possibly America's most versatile violinist." Matt has performed at the White House and at Carnegie Hall with Yo Yo Ma as part of Stephane Grappelli's birthday celebration. He has been on staff at the Ashokan Fiddle and Dance Camp in upstate NY and serves on numerous boards of string and chamber music associations.

Marty Confurius, bass, has been a part of the NYC music business since the Shieks toured in the early 70s. He then joined legendary mandolinist Andy Statman for ten years, resulting in numerous recording projects and tours with various Klezmer and Bluegrass bands. His is currently teaching and freelancing in the New York area.

Jon Sholle, guitarist, was a member of the David Grisman Quartet and has performed on Broadway in "Big River, " and "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." He also played with mandolinist Andy Statman and recorded with him as recently as 2011.

If you are interested in reserving a seat for this concert, please contact Sandy, at: Sandilion49@gmail.com. From there you will receive a reply and details of location and available seating. For first time visitors to this blog, the Jenkins House Concert series is located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.