Jefferson Hamer Music

Weed, CA –(May 6, 2010)—Many of America’s most influential and brilliant acoustic musicians will gather here July 7, 2010 at 7:30 p.m., at College of the Siskiyous Kenneth Ford Theatre for what promises to be the summer’s most memorable concert, Summer String Summit 2010, produced by renowned acoustic musicians and educators Tashina and Tristan Clarridge.

The 6th annual event will bring together many of the most influential and innovative musicians from the worlds of bluegrass, jazz, Celtic, and old-time music for an evening of music and dance that will take the audience on a stunning cross-genre journey, with many special guests and spontaneous collaborations.

Six-time Grand National Fiddle Champions and northern California natives Tashina and Tristan Clarridge have, literally, grown up in the company of these musicians. Acclaimed in their own rights, both have risen to become sought-after performers and teachers in the new American acoustic tradition.

“This show is absolutely the dream show of the year for anybody interested in acoustic music, strings, or fiddling,” said Darol Anger. “I’ve watched these young artists grow up. They are the future, but they’re happening right now. Bring your kids and watch their ears grow big and their eyeballs pop.”

Tickets to the Summer String Summit are available at Village Books in Mt. Shasta, The Music Coop in Ashland, and from BrownPaperTickets.com (24/7 Hotline: 1-800-838-3006). Tickets are available at the door and can be purchased with cash or by check.
Kenneth W. Ford Theatre 800 College Ave Weed, CA
www.SummerStringSummit.com


ABOUT THE PERFORMERS:
A winner of multiple Grammy and IBMA Awards, Tim O’Brien is recognized as one of the most influential performers and songwriters in acoustic/bluegrass music.
Since he first won renown as a founding member of one of bluegrass’s premiere bands, Hot Rize, Tim has gone on to release nearly a dozen highly acclaimed albums, collaborating with numerous artists such as Del McCoury, Earl Scruggs, Edgar Meyer, Darrell Scott, Maura O'Connell, Paul Brady, Seamus Egan, Kathy Mattea and Steve Earle.
www.TimOBrien.net

Grammy nominated fiddler/composer Darol Anger was a founding member of the David Grisman Quintet, the Turtle Island String Quartet, Psychograss, and his Republic of Strings. His ideas and sound has reshaped fiddling all over the globe, inspiring 3 generations of players. He can be heard on NPR’s Car Talk every week, with Earl Scruggs, Tony Rice, and David Grisman.
www.DarolAnger.com

Appalachian fiddle master Bruce Molsky explores traditional music from an astonishingly broad range of cultures, synthesizing them and refracting them through his own evolving sensibilities to the point where the sources of his inspiration transform themselves into a sound that is uniquely his. His extensive list of collaborators includes luminaries such as Mike Seeger, Bill Frisell, Mozaik, and the Grammy nominated Fiddlers 4, with a list of performances that includes Lincoln Center, Queen Elizabeth Hall, NPR’s All Things Considered, and the Smithsonian Folklife Festival.
www.BruceMolsky.com

Vibrant young cellist and Julliard graduate Natalie Haas tours the world with famed Scottish fiddler Alasdair Fraser – (their CD won Best Album of the Year in the Scots Traditional Music Awards). She has also toured with Mark O'Connor. "Haas can make her instrument sound like the drone of a hurdy-gurdy, the jangle of a guitar, or the thump of a string bass, and she can carry the tune of fast jigs and reels as well." ~Robert Dawson Scott, - The Times
www.NatalieHaas.com

Phenomenal fiddler Brittany Haas tours the world with folk/bluegrass sensation Crooked Still. She has performed with Steve Martin on The Ellen Degeneres Show, The Late Show with David Letterman, and Saturday Night Live.
"Brittany is a joy to listen to and her style just makes you feel happy."
-Cape Breton fiddler Natalie MacMaster
www.CrookedStill.com

U.S. National Scottish Fiddle Champion and brilliant jazz violinist Jeremy Kittel holds a Masters in Jazz Performance from Manhattan School of Music. He is a member of the Grammy winning Turtle Island Quartet, and has appeared at the Kennedy Center, and on A Prairie Home Companion.
"Jeremy is an excellent musician." -Chick Corea
www.JeremyKittel.com
Nic Gareiss “may be the most inventive and expressive step dancer on the scene.” (Boston Herald)
The Bay City Times calls him “Mesmerizing…a whirling dervish in tap shoes.”
Since the age of eight, Nic has been intrigued by cultures that employ the feet as rhythmic entities, transforming dance into a musical activity that appeals to both the eyes and the ears. This fascination has led Nic on an international study of shoe-sounds and grooves from Irish sean-nós dance, to American flat-footing, to Quebecois gigue. Following his studies at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, Nic has collaborated with The Chieftains, Alasdair Fraser, and Liz Carroll, performing throughout North America, Ireland, Scotland, France, Belgium, and Australia.
www.NicGareiss.com

Widely recognized as one of his generation’s most brilliant innovators, jazz violin cult genius and Nashville recording artist Billy Contreras has recorded for Willie Nelson, and currently tours with George Jones.

A cutting edge banjoist, Noam Pikelny is a member of the supergroup Punch Brothers, lead by former Nickel Creek mandolinist Chris Thile. The New York Times dubbed their music “American country-classical chamber music” and the San Francisco Chronicle describes it as “totally mind blowing”. Noam is a former member of the jamband Leftover Salmon, and the John Cowan band.
www.PunchBrothers.com

The guitarist from Punch Brothers, Chris Eldridge studied bluegrass guitar from the legendary Tony Rice. He was also a founding member The Infamous Stringdusters, and has performed with his dad in the seminal bluegrass band, The Seldom Scene.
www.PunchBrothers.com

Tashina Clarridge, the 2005 Grand National Fiddle Champion, has performed at Carnegie Hall with Grammy winning bassist Edgar Meyer, and has toured with Mark O'Connor, Tony Trischka and others.
Five-time Grand National Fiddle Champion and brilliant cellist Tristan Clarridge tours internationally with folk/bluegrass sensation Crooked Still, and has also toured with Natalie MacMaster, Darol Anger, Mike Marshall, and Bruce Molsky.
The Bee Eaters, their quartet of fiddle, hammered dulcimer, cello, and banjo, “combines chamber music's finely calibrated arrangements with bluegrass's playful virtuosity and pop music's melodic resourcefulness." (Boston Globe).
www.BeeEaters.com

To schedule interviews with any of the performers contact Tristan Clarridge: trclarridge@gmail.com
Carol Coho, general publicity contact: cscoho@sbcglobal.net


This project supported by the Siskiyou Arts Council.