Main Act: My Sweet Patootie
Opening Act: Alicia Toner
Desboro Music Hall 2017 Concert Series
All Ages
Doors Open: 7pm, Music Starts: 7:30pm
Tickets: Advance: $20 ($17.70 +HST), Regular: $25 ($22.12 +HST)
*Advance tickets are only available up to the Box Office hours the weekend before the show or we run out (Note: there is a limit of 25 advance tickets)
My Sweet Patootie is contemporary roots and ragtime at its best; bringing tight harmonies, monstrous guitar, sizzling fiddle and percussion together in one perfect package. Founded in 2007 by Canadian Folk Music Award winners Sandra Swannell and Terry Young, the trio has a growing international reputation. From original swing to funky fiddle-tune arrangements to exquisite ballads, they deliver a must-see show that Driftwood Magazine describes as “two parts exemplary musicianship, one part vaudeville comedy”.
Their vintage-style song writing is rooted in folk, americana and jazz; heavily influenced by the likes of Chet Atkins, Lenny Breau, Les Paul & Mary Ford and the Andrews Sisters. Throw in a penchant for light-hearted satire and their love of artists like Patsy Cline and Hank Williams and you get a sound that Young likes to call “Green Acres for the New Millennium”.
Terry Young is described by Penguin Eggs as an “acoustic guitar god”. BBC critic James Harrox calls his playing “virtuosic”, while FATEA magazine describes it as “jaw dropping”. He has taught advanced finger-style guitar clinics and has written about his technique for Chicago’s Plank Road Folk Music Society Magazine. He is a talented multi-instrumentalist who toured from 1999 – 2009 with the group Tanglefoot; performing on guitar, mandolin, banjo and pennywhistle. Terry is a classically trained singer and holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of Western Ontario.
Sandra Swannell is a classically trained violinist/ violist, but her style owes much more to the influences of Joe Venuti and Stephane Grappelli. Her diverse musical background ranges from recording with Canada’s legendary Stompin’ Tom Connors to writing a series of musical sketches for string orchestra. She was the principal violist of the Georgian Bay Symphony and fronted the Celtic art-rock band The Shards before joining the group Tanglefoot in 2005. Sandra has taught violin/ viola clinics for festivals, schools, community orchestras for many years as well as her own private studio.
With the departure of group’s original drummer Bradford Nowak in 2015, My Sweet Patootie became a truly international band with Welsh percussionist Anthony Thickett joining for UK tours, and Canadian Paul Clifford for North American tours.
Paul Clifford is a drummer, percussionist, songwriter and producer now based in Ontario. Musically growing up on the west coast of Canada, Paul played in various jazz/ blues bands, theatre productions, reggae bands, and toured/ recorded with the Vancouver folk-roots ensemble The Be Good Tanyas. Music education includes the many pilgrimages to New Orleans, Cuba, jazz studies on Vancouver Island, busking the streets of Europe with his tiny drum kit, and years of touring/ recording with the north american roots trio Groanbox. Based in the English countryside of Kent for ten years, Paul worked as a record producer for Smugglers Records, was the musical director for the vaudevillian theatre collective The Private Widdle Social Club, and kept active in the local and London blues scenes. His education continues.
The band’s name “My Sweet Patootie” is a slang term of endearment which became popular in the 1920s meaning a “hot dame” or a “sassy sweetheart”. Several ragtime titles from the jazz-age reference the expression, as do the lyrics of “Everybody Loves My Baby” (1924) by Spencer Williams and Jack Palmer. More significantly for Young and Swannell is “Sweet Patootie Blues” (1928) by Arthur “Blind” Blake, who was well known for his complex and intricate finger picking. The name was chosen to capture the vintage flavour of their music as well as the satirical edge in much of their song writing.
MSP released their third album “Good Day” in May of 2013, their first full length album as a trio. Peter Cowley’s review in FATEA magazine describes it as “infectious good humour and superb playing and singing, a delightful combination of jazzy guitar, Hot Club violin, luscious strings and horns and harmony vocals”. The CD was produced, arranged, engineered and mastered by Young & Swannell at their own Nowheresville Studio located in an historic one-room school house near Meaford, Ontario. “Good Day” is their most ambitious project to date and features each member’s skills as multi-instrumentalists, yet still remains true to their live sound as a trio. Other recordings are Patootified!”(2010, self produced) and “Nowheresville” (2008, produced by Canadian gospel-blues legend Ken Whiteley).
The trio has performed thousands of shows including theatres, festivals and clubs in Canada (Ontario, Manitoba and British Colombia), the United States from the eastern Seaboard to the Midwest, and the United Kingdom. My Sweet Patootie is played regularly on CBC, NPR, and BBC Radio. They have performed live-to-air concerts on; the nationally-syndicated WFMT “Folkstage” in Chicago, IL; WVBR’s “Bound for Glory” in Ithaca, NY; and BBC’s “The Drift” in Blackburn, Lancashire.
In 2014 My Sweet Patootie performed at the Mariposa Folk Festival and were guest artists with the Georgian Bay Symphony, performing orchestrated versions of their original songs. In 2015 they launched their fifth 2 month-long tour of England and Scotland and their eighth North American tour.
My Sweet Patootie Website
My Sweet Patootie Facebook
My Sweet Patootie Twitter
My Sweet Patootie Photos by Wayne Simpson
A critically acclaimed singer, fiddler, actor, musician, Alicia Toner has been wowing audiences with her diverse skill set for years. Classically trained in violin and voice with a diploma in Music Theatre-Performance, this unique performerʼs journey has taken her all over Canada and to several European countries.
Born and raised in Fredericton, NB, she caught the performing bug early, touring with the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra, with whom she played Carnegie Hall, and singing/ playing fiddle in the Celtic/folk quartet HATband. Since moving to Toronto 10 years ago and studying Music Theatre, Alicia has appeared in over 30 productions across Canada and Europe including the Dora Award Winning production of Assassins(TIFT/Birdland) and the hit musical Once(Mirvish) that brought home many Doras and much critical acclaim. For the last four years, she has been a staple of the Charlottetown Festival, lending her incredibly versatile voice to roles such as Cinderella in Cinderella, as well as many featured vocalist roles. Most recently, she was seen in the wildly successful new Canadian Musical The Chasse Galerie.
An East Coaster at heart, Alicia felt the pull of the Maritimes and, in 2014, made Charlottetown her home. Since then, she has shifted her attention to her first love; music. In June of 2015, Alicia went into the studio with Stuart Cameron, Peter Fusco and Blake Manning to record her first four track EP. The following Spring, with the help of FACTOR Canada, she completed her full-length debut album “I Learned the Hard Way” to be released this June, 2017.
Alicia Toner Website
Alicia Toner Facebook
Alicia Toner Twitter
Please join us for a Winter Chamber Music Concert. We have always thought the acoustics in the Hall would be perfect for a small quartet. Interro Quartet is a string quartet featuring violin, viola and cello.
Interro Quartet combines passionate performances with a curiosity to explore new sounds and venues in chamber music. The group’s repertoire includes works of classical music giants, as well as new compositions by emerging and established Canadian composers. Featuring award-winning graduates of University of Toronto, the Interro Quartet includes violinists Adam Despinic and Steve Koh, violist Maxime Despax, and cellist Sebastian Ostertag.
The mission of the Interro Quartet is not only to make quartet music accessible to those who seek it but also to broaden the spectrum of audiences through diverse programming. To complement this mission, members of the Interro Quartet are also avid educators and clinicians, dedicated to supporting education programs that encourage new ways for artists and listeners to share, experience, and incorporate chamber music into their daily lives.
Interro Quartet Website
Interro Quartet Facebook
Interro Quartet Instagram
Individual bios:
Adam Despinic, violin
Steve Koh, violin
Maxime Despax, viola
Sebastian Ostertag, cello
Opening Act: Madison Galloway
Desboro Music Hall 2018 Concert Series
**Please note this is a Friday concert (Friday April 20)**
All Ages Doors Open: 7pm, Music Starts: 7:30pm
Tickets: Limited Advance: $20, Regular: $25
*Advance tickets are only available up to the Box Office hours the weekend before the show or we run out (Note: there is a limit of 25 advance price tickets)
THE O’PEARS
The O’Pears are a Toronto-based contemporary folk trio made up of Lydia Persaud, Jill Harris and Meg Contini, three songwriters who weave stories that stir the spirit and capture the timeless character of folk music. Like Those Nights, their debut album, captures soaring harmonies and a seamless blend, evoking the profound intimacy of Nick Drake, the sister-like blend of The Staves and the dynamic harmony of Crosby, Stills, and Nash. Live performances turn the loudest bar into the warmest house concert, with their endearing, unabashed personalities balancing the intimate sincerity of the songs. They recently performed to high acclaim at festivals such as Summerfolk, Great Heart Festival, Lunenburg Folk Harbour Festival, garnered radio play across Canada, including CBC, and have been featured live with Royal Wood, Good Lovelies, Michelle Willis, and Coco Love Alcorn. Each band member a distinctly talented musician with a stand-alone voice, style, and stage presence, when these three come together it is breathtaking. A striking mix of tight a cappella and rootsy instrumentation, Like Those Nights explores lessons learned about love and loss through the eyes and hearts of young Canadian storytellers. The O’Pears continue to bring a strong, honest voice to the modern female perspective.
The O’Pears Website
The O’Pears Facebook
The O’Pears Instagram
The O’Pears Twitter
MADISON GALLOWAY
Born and raised in small town Fergus, Ontario, 18-year old Madison Galloway is a driven and dynamic musician and singer-songwriter with a unique approach to her blend of folk, rock, and blues.
At 15, Madison set out to translate her youthfulness and energy into fresh hooks and appealing melodies with her debut EP “Who Knows Where” featuring five of her original songs that flirt with country influences, while retaining Madison’s signature style and direct attitude.
Madison takes the stage with guitar, harmonica, and ukulele performing solo, as part of the duo Fork n’ Harp, or accompanied by her band, The Mud Guppies. She has over 160 shows under her belt, having shared the stage with renowned Canadian artists such as 54-40, The Sadies, Alysha Brilla, and Coco Love Alcorn. She captures the ears and hearts of her audience with a performance that is riveting for its energy; imagine Janis Joplin jamming with Neil Young while Joni Mitchell looks over proudly.
Madison Galloway Website
Madison Galloway Facebook
Madison Galloway Instagram
Madison Galloway Twitter
Madison Galloway YouTube
![Harmony B's and Friends: A Tribute to the Batterman Orchestra @ Desboro Music Hall](https://desboromusichall.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/81850014-300x155.jpg)
Harmony B’s and Friends
A Tribute to the Batterman Orchestra
Come join us for an afternoon of storytelling and music and learn the history of the Batterman Orchestra and Harmony B’s.
RSVP ONLY. There will be no tickets at the door.
Limit 100 people.
Pay What You Can at the door
Doors Open 2pm, Music at 2:30pm
Join us in between the Strawberry Supper and the Fireworks for a PWYC concert (suggested donation of $20) with Paul J McInnis. You may remember him from our very first Season at the Desboro Music Hall. Come enjoy some music from 7:30 – 9pm at the Hall.
BIO
If he were alive 100 years ago, Paul J McInnis would have been found strumming on a street corner, singing his songs about roads, girls, and small towns. His closest friends would have been pickers, singers, poets and painters. He would have enjoyed a simple life surrounded by the things he loved. Today, 100 years later, not much is different. If you look for him, Paul can be found strumming on a street corner in some small town, singing songs about roads, girls, and the things he loves. He may slip into his local pub on the way home for a pint with some old friends. It`s a simple life. Paul J McInnis’ music is his own. It is literate, joyful, melancholy, and timeless. He prefers to play in the moment; recording live off the floor with open mics and no overdubs. Mistakes happen, he’ll say, but so does magic. The resulting albums are collections of some of those magical mistakes, all written and arranged by Paul and performed beautifully with some of his closest friends on mandolin, harmonica, accordion, cello or whatever instrument is close by. It is what Paul believes music should be: simple and real.
To remind you of his music, here is the video clip of Paul’s last visit to Desboro Music Hall:
Main Act: The Unseen Strangers
Opening Act: David Lum
Desboro Music Hall 2020 Concert Series
All Ages
Doors Open: 6:30pm, Music Starts: 7:30pm
Tickets:Regular: $25
THE UNSEEN STRANGERS
The Unseen Strangers have ambitiously cultivated a musical identity shaped by good old-fashioned bluegrass, the limitless barrage of contemporary musical influences, and a curious sense of humor.
Newgrass ambassadors, The Unseen Strangers favor innovation over convention. For their newest album, Stranger Places (April 1st, 2016), the band challenged the limits of what they are capable of, exploring the gamut of what can be done with strings. The result is a collection of fun, stunning songs featuring inimitable instrumental performances.
The seven-part instrumental kick off “Ice Jam” launches the listener on an expansive journey through nine original songs, including the three-piece horn section funkiness of “Old City Jail” and the psychedelic newgrass epic “Square Trance”. The Strangers also pay homage to their bluegrass roots on “Wicked Lover” and the freight train inspired barnburner “New Railroad Blues”.
For Stranger Places, the band simplified their approach to the studio with quick, concise live off the floor sessions. The band teamed up with Toronto, ON based engineer and producer Andrew Collins (Creaking Tree String Quartet; Foggy Hogtown Boys), recording the album over several months in 2015.
The band was started in 2008 by Adam Shier, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and driving force behind The Unseen Strangers. Adam fell in love with the sound of Bluegrass while attending college in Halifax and was soon recruiting his best friends to be in a Bluegrass band. The band quickly recorded an album and were excited to win a Music Nova Scotia Award in 2009 for Bluegrass/Country Album of the Year. The group has grown immensely from these small beginnings but a similar goal remains, to play new energetic bluegrass music with respect to the incredible lineage of its tradition.
The Strangers approach to bluegrass is open-ended yet inclusive; they’ve been on the roster for several forward thinking festivals, including Delfest (hosted by bluegrass legend Del Mccoury), where they won the band competition in 2013. The Unseen Strangers continue to add to their diverse festival resume while consistently developing their sound both onstage and in the studio.
“They have music that engages all the senses and leaves listeners longing for more.”
~ Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine
“Stellar mandolin, guitar and banjo shredding that sounds straight out of Tennessee”
~ Exclaim! – ON, CANADA
“These guys are good”
~ CBC Radio –
“The Unseen Strangers aren’t pretending to be cowboys. They’ll interrupt themselves for an instrumental breakdown of I Like To Move It…”
~ The Globe and Mail – ON, CANADA
“Unseen Strangers pushes the limits of stringed jam-band wildness to new heights. ”
~ The Aquarian – NJ, USA
“The expressiveness heard in their lovely ensemble brings a natural quality to their sound, forming a honest and genuine relationship with the listener.”
~ KAOS Radio – WA, USA
“At their most creative, the music is nearly irresistible, leaving you wondering what’s next and always coming through with a new turn to relish.”
~ Grayowl Point
“Interesting Music”
~ Pete Wernick – “Dr. Banjo”, Hot Rize
“Bluegrass Band Competition Winners 2013”
~ Delfest – MD, USA
“Country/Bluegrass Song of the Year 2012”
~ International Acoustic Music Awards
DAVID LUM
Born and raised in Vancouver, David made his way across Canada, spent a decade in Winnipeg before settling in Hamilton. Infusing a blend of contemporary folk and roots, his influences include renowned Canadian singer/songwriters such as Bruce Cockburn and James Keelaghan, as well as American blues artist Keb ‘Mo and folk-rock duo The Indigo Girls.
His songs are as varied as the landscapes he has travelled through, and his versatile guitar style traverses folk, blues, pop and everything else in between. His intimate voice will draw you into his world, filled with tales of quiet desperation, longing and triumph of the human spirit.