Reminder: Tue Sep 17: Faux Paws

[Santa Cruz House Concerts]

There are too many seats available for this Tuesday's concert with the Faux Paws. These young guys are powerhouse musicians, rocking on traditional and original fiddle tunes.  Come out and support touring musicians! 

Check out their video!

                             Tuesday, Sep 17  7:30 PM
                 Faux Paws: Traditional/Fusion fiddle music

Details below.  The concert will be held indoors, with masks optional.

Please stay at home if you have cold/flu symptoms, or mask if you're not sure.

Suggested donation: $25/person sliding scale.

Come out and support live traditional music!

To reserve your spot, please email <Conc...@InstantHarmony.com>.

Be sure to include the total in your party.

Upcoming shows in our series:

     Sat, Nov 8:    Tall Poppy Band: Old Time/Stringband Trio

     Sun, Nov 17: Dani and Debora Gurgel:  Brazilian Samba Jazz Duo *tentative*

     Tue, Nov 19:  Kalos: Celtic Roots Trio

     Fri, Dec 6:     Dror Sinai & Zirzuvi: Sephardic & Middle Eastern Music

Other musical events of interest:

      Sat, Sep 14: 7-10pm   Palo Alto Contra Dance featuring:

         Mike Lewinski, Daniel Steinberg, Ezra Warren Steinberg; Tanya Merchant calling

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                 Faux Paws: Traditional/Fusion fiddle music

                             Tuesday, Sep 17  7:30 PM

        “…a compelling blend of traditional music virtuosity and driving dancehall

         rhythms alongside progressive instrumentation and improvisation”

                                                                     - Kara Kundert, Bluegrass Pride

   From raging fiddle tunes, to saxophone solos and unrequited love songs, the music of

The Faux Paws is hard to pin down with standard genre descriptions.  The trio’s contagious

groove, and feel-good melting pot folk music has been honed over ten years of playing together,

and is the sound of three close friends (two of which happen to be brothers), who feel a musical

kinship that transcends any stylistic limitations.

   Is it bluegrass? Not usually. Old-time? Occasionally. Is it Celtic? Can’t quite say that.

Is it Folk? Americana? Jazz? Singer-songwriter? None of the above, but members of the

Paws have deep ties to all of these traditions and blend their elements effortlessly to serve

whatever musical idea is being presented. So what can we say? This band takes risks.

They’re dynamic, exciting, sincere, irreverent, infectious, and surprising. They move deftly

between moods, influences and instruments but always maintaining a “groove” that

pulses through the music like a heartbeat.

   Andrew and Noah VanNorstrand are multi-instrumentalists who grew up in Central New York.

Steeped in folk traditions from Swedish, Celtic, Quebecois, Western Swing, and Bluegrass,

they toured for over twenty years with their contradance band Great Bear with their mom Kim

VanNorstrand - pushing the boundaries of their own particular multiverse of dance music.

Jay Ungar calls Noah "one of the top five fiddlers living today," while Andrew's deep supportive

grooves and introspective songwriting are the backbone of the brother's collective sound.    

   Andrew and Noah met Chris Miller at Ungar's Ashokan Music & Dance camp in 2009, where

they quickly formed a musical kinship that has continued for the past 15 years. Chris grew up with

a deep love of bluegrass all the while pursuing an academic path on the jazz saxophone. After

moving to New York City and completing a masters in music at SUNY Purchase, he joined

members of the Red Stick Ramblers and Pine Leaf Boys to form the "Louisiana Supergroup"

The Revelers whose 2015 album earned a Grammy Nomination for Best Regional Roots music.

He now works as an organizer and instigator between tours as the program manager of

Blackpot Camp in Louisiana, the assistant program manager at the Festival of American Fiddle

Tunes in Washington, and camp store manager at Miles of Music Camp in New Hampshire.

   A Faux Paws live show is an explosive roller coaster ride that brings the audience along.

Virtuosity on the fiddle, mandolin, guitar & saxophone, but also vulnerability, personal lyrics,

tight 3-part brother harmonies, playful interplay, intricately arranged details and soaring

improvisations.  The trio brings together seemingly unrelated musical elements into one joyful

and distinctive collection, deeply rooted in the raw humanity of folk dance and music traditions.  

Visit their website.