4 House Concerts in the works

The Auburn House Concerts venue is really taking off. Not a week into 2009 and we have four artists books and are talking with a couple more.

Stevie Coyle in 2 week, January 17th.

Jim Malcolm, February 1st, 3:00 PM.

Melanie O'Reilly, sometime around St. Patrick day.

Brian Bowers, Friday, May 22nd.

Go the the Auburn House Concerts .org website for details.

AuburnHouseConcerts Blog

We started a new blog for the Auburn House Concerts site (AHC).

AuburnHouseConcerts.blogspot.com

This is where we will announce upcoming concerts, post informal concert reports, and let you know about the publication of AHC videos.

At the bottom of the blog page is an applet that shows all the house concert videos we have posted on YouTube.

Paddy Keenan and Tommy O'Sullivan Concert

The Paddy Keenan and Tommy O'Sullivan Concert on Friday night was incredible. The concert was sold out so we started a waiting/SRO list. As expected there were unexpected events in people's lives that prevented them from attending consequently, all the folks on the waiting list were able to find a seat.

Pete Grant joined Tommy and Paddy for most of the sets. Usually Pete plays the dobro in our sessions so it was a special treat to hear some of his pedal steel guitar music. At Paddy's request Pete and Phyllis Grant did a song for the crowd. Then Bo Bowen, whistle, from Nine-8ths Irish was asked to join for a set as well.

Sharon shot several videos that we hope to publish on the concerts website after the artists have reviewed and approved their release. The MP3 recorder did a fine job capturing a great performance so we don't foresee any problems getting a couple up in the next few weeks.

After the concert we had a nice short session. Paddy played his low D whistle and Tommy played the bar man, leaning on the kitchen counter enjoying the music.

Bei Mir Bist Du Schon

Here is the first of three videos recorded at the Notorious house concert.

Bei Mir Bist Du Schön is a swing tune from New York's Yiddish vaudeville of the early 1930's.

AuburnHouseConcerts.org

After a very busy and entertaining July (Notorious and Legacy) Sharon and I decided to jump all the way into to house concert pool and build a website.

AuburnHouseConcerts.org

I've moved all the pages from www.ElbowMagic.com to the new site and left jump pages behind to teleport people to the new domain.

Please bookmark the site and tell your friends about it. Performers: room and board are part of the venue's offerings.

Note that we have a .org domain name because this whole operation is a charitable endeavor to promote music in our community.

Legacy Concert

The Auburn House Concert staring Legacy was smokin'. (Remember that is when we couldn't go outside because of the fires.) Once again the largest attendance to date. Many people had never heard of Legacy before and were delighted they took a chance. We overheard someone say that they knew Legacy from their recordings and were very impressed how great and tight they sounded at the concert.

We have posted two videos from the concert; Old Hag You’ve Killed Me / The Killavil Jig / The Killarney Boys of Pleasure / The Curlew and a song sung by Justin, Mary and the Solder.

Pictures of the concert are in the Auburn House Concerts Legacy Photo Album.

Notorious Concert

The Auburn House Concert staring Notorious was fantastic. The largest attendance to date and everyone loved it.

We have posted two videos from the concert; Bei Mir Bist Du Schön and We'll to the Woods No More.

Pictures of the concert are in the Auburn House Concerts Notorious Photo Album.

House Concert: Melanie O'Reilly

Coming to Auburn in November!

Melanie O'Reilly

Saturday evening, November 17th
7:30 PM


One of the most sensational musical pioneers to explode on the Irish scene, Melanie O'Reilly is now firmly established in the pantheon of creative Irish artists. As a performer/singer-songwriter, her exhilarating and unique blend of Irish traditional music and jazz creates a powerful and haunting soundscape, exploring untouched frontiers, and which captivates audiences on both sides of the Atlantic.
Born in Dublin, Melanie comes from a family of musicians and actors, and she spent most of her youth treading the boards as an actress and singer, while at the same time was a multiple- award -winner singing in Dublin’s Feis Ceol competitions.
Her passion for jazz began when her sister Clodagh introduced her the sound of jazz singers at the age of 11. Intrigued by the rhythms and scat improvisations of Ella Fitzgerald, she decided then that she would become a jazz singer, and she immersed herself in the music of other jazz giants such as Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie. She also absorbed much by listening to Irish groups such as Horslips, Louis Stewart’s Trio and the Sean-nos (unaccompanied traditional) singing of Sean O Riada.

"Spellbinding... uplifting music from a true innovator" -- Rough Guide to Irish Music

...A wondrous mix of what this fine singer is all about - a deep passion for Irish Traditional music and Jazz...with O'Reilly's voice weaving a spell..." --Matt Nugent, Evening Herald

"Breathtaking amazing emotional intensity...sheer virtuosity..." -- The Irish Times

“Undoubtedly one of the major talents to emerge in recent times, Melanie O'Reilly possesses a voice which is rich and resonant, and a song-writing talent which is going to ensure that we hear a lot more of her in the future." -- In Dublin

"Melanie O'Reilly has studiously carved herself a considerable reputation as a jazz singer with a keen ear for the cross-currents that link jazz's lateral thinking with Irish folk and traditional music" -- The Irish Times

"A work of special importance in the development of the sung Irish language...an uplifting celebration of Irish culture that is finding new feet upon which to confidently stride into the future." --Dublin Event Guide

[of her live performances] "...her pitch was impeccable, her timing totally secure, her phrasing ineffably right. More than this, however, was perhaps the most essential gift of all - her ability to read a lyric with an innate sense of its dramatic demands and to serve these accordingly." -- The Irish Times

"O'Reilly's sensuous voice is the perfect vehicle for entwining jazz styles with Irish Celtic influences..." -- The Scotsman

House Concert: Stevie Coyle

When we moved up to Auburn, to this great house, I started having visions of hosting house concerts, for all my musical buddies. We are starting off with a BANG!




Stevie Coyle, of The Waybacks will be up in our area doing the American River Festival the fourth weekend in September. He has graciously consented to appear at our house for a solo performance on the Friday of that weekend, September 21.

Click here for house concert page. Click here for Stevie's myspace page. Click here for The Waybacks website.

We only have 30 seats available. If you are interested, email me right away. sharon56@pacbell.net
Prepayment is recommended to hold your spot.

Stevie and I attended Salinas High school together back in the day. We both studied drama, and both appeared in Hotel Paradiso, a French farce. Steve played the bellman, and even then he showed a flair for comedy. He went on to study acting, but music was always a big part of his life. Steve and his brother Jim have been playing guitar since long before I knew them.

Stevie's talent, sense of humor and lightning quick wit have only improved with time. I feel very fortunate to know him and I'm just tickled that the rest of the world is now recognizing this great performer.

I hope you all come out and enjoy this great singer/songwriter. Tell your friends! Steve will have you tapping your feet and clapping your hands. And most likely, he'll have you laughing, too. He's an entertainer extraordinare.