The Greencards

Bearfoot

Location: Progress Energy Center for Performing Arts, Raleigh (www.progressenergycenter.com)
Dates / Times: Dates vary. All shows begin at 8 p.m., except Jan. 30-31
Tickets: PineCone’s Box Office 919-664-8302; TicketMaster 919-834-4000, www.ticketmaster.com; and Progress Energy Center Box Office 919-831-6060 (information only)
Price: Ticket prices vary per show
On Sale Dates: August 17; August 3 PineCone members pre-sale

Raleigh, NC — PineCone celebrates its 25th Anniversary with a Down Home Series featuring old favorites and up-and-coming artists. With a mission to preserve, present and promote traditional music, PineCone is a non-profit organization that presents more than 100 music events each year, including concerts, participatory music sessions, a weekly radio show on 94.7 WQDR, and more. Most of their programs are free and open to the public. The Down Home Series is PineCone’s biggest series, bringing national touring musicians to Raleigh. “This series allows us to highlight both established traditional musicians and up-and-coming artists whose musical careers are just taking off,” said William Lewis, PineCone’s Executive Director.

The series kicks off on Sept. 12 with an international flair – The Greencards, an acoustic ensemble that has been variously compared to Nickel Creek and Alison Krauss and Union Station. Mutual love and respect for American bluegrass, country, and blues music brought Carol Young (vocals, bass), Kym Warner (vocals, mandolin), and Eamon McLoughlin (vocals, fiddle) together in 2003. With their distinctive brand of progressive acoustic music that defies classification, The Greencards have gained legions of fans in the U.S. by touring relentlessly (including a summer tour in 2005 opening for Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson) and releasing hit albums – one of which received a Grammy nomination. They are also the first international act to have an album reach number 1 on Billboard Magazine’s Bluegrass Music Chart. This performance is part of a tour supporting their latest CD, “Fascination” (2009, Sugar Hill Records).

On Nov. 13, The Travelin’ McCourys take the stage in Fletcher to prove that the next generation of bluegrass musicians is ready, willing and able to take carry the mantle forward. Brothers Ronnie and Rob McCoury, the sons of bluegrass legend Del McCoury, continue their father’s work-a lifelong dedication to the power of bluegrass music to bring joy into people’s lives. With fiddler Jason Carter and bassist Alan Bartram, the Travelin’ McCourys extend the roots of bluegrass music into the new century.

For the last weekend in January, PineCone presents a special two-day Winter Music Festival in Meymandi Concert Hall to celebrate the organization’s 25th Anniversary. “We are excited to be able to pack a weekend full of music that allows up-and-coming artists to perform with established artists who have a history with PineCone. The idea behind the Festival is to have some music everyone can enjoy, and to spotlight bluegrass for one day because so many of Pinecone’s members and supporters from our early days are huge bluegrass fans. We want to give our audiences a lot of bang for the buck for this event, which is also a celebration of PineCone’s 25 years in Raleigh.”

Featuring singer-songwriter icon Kris Kristofferson as the Jan. 30 headliner and Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder at the top of the Jan. 31 bill, this event will offer something for everyone. Saturday’s show begins at 6 p.m. with Alaska natives Bearfoot, who bring fiery, inventive arrangements and inspiring harmonies to their bluegrass-infused music. The Tony Rice Unit returns to Raleigh for this special event, and North Carolina’s own Tift Merritt is also part of Saturday’s festivities. Also, Raleigh’s own Community Music School Choir will make a special appearance as part of Merritt’s set.

Sunday’s program is dedicated to the bluegrass music fans who helped PineCone grow in the early days. At 2 p.m., Danny Paisley & the Southern Grass get the afternoon going with their powerful, unadorned, traditional bluegrass. Another next generation band carrying on their families’ traditions, Danny and his brother Michael, the band’s bass player, are Bob Paisley’s sons. Bob grew up in Ashe County, N.C. and he formed and fronted the Southern Grass. The afternoon rolls on with Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper. Cleveland is a five-time winner of the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Fiddle Player of the Year award, and he and his band perform music reminiscent of the first-generation stars of bluegrass. Dale Ann Bradley, two-time winner of IBMA’s Vocalist of the Year Award,adds her voice to the day’s bluegrass mix, infusing traditional bluegrass music with contemporary flare.

The series takes a turn toward blues in February with pianist/singer/songwriter Allen Toussaint in Meymandi Concert Hall on Feb. 18. Toussaint’s indelible influence on American music reaches deep into the roots of rhythm and blues, pop, country, musical theater, blues and jazz. A Rock-and-Roll Hall of Famer and New Orleans native, Toussaint has been making hit records for more than 40 years. Backed by an all-star jazz combo, Toussaint will perform selections from his vast and legendary catalogue, along with tunes from his 2009 release on Nonesuch Records, The Bright Mississippi, an album that reinterprets some of the classic New Orleans jazz and blues standards of the past.

The Wailin’ Jennys, a Canadian acoustic trio whose harmonies and uplifiting lyrics have earned them larger and larger audiences over the years, return to Raleigh’s Fletcher Theater on April 15. The trio played to a sold-out house when they performed here in November 2007. Soprano Ruth Moody (guitar, banjo, accordion, bodhran) and mezzo Nicky Mehta (guitar, harmonica, ukulele, percussion) are charter members whose voices have anchored the Jennys since the first line-up formed in their Winnipeg hometown. The critical third voice belongs to alto Heather Masse, who is also the trio’s stand-up bass player. The Jennys’ live performances have been described by critics as “spine-tingling,” “sublime” and “exquisite.”

The series closes on May 14 with a performance by Phil Wiggins & Corey Harris, an acoustic harmonica-guitar blues duo who are uniquely able to showcase the synthesis of African and European elements that co-exist in the blues. Featuring call-and-response interplay between the harmonica and guitar and complementary rhythms, and incorporating traditional and original elements, this new partnership is a must-hear!

Tickets go on sale to PineCone members only on Aug. 3; tickets for the general public go on sale Aug. 17. Call 919-664-8302 to join PineCone, or join online at www.pinecone.org.