Okay, this one is banjo related because of Noam Pikelney!
Apparently fiddler Gabe Witcher has decided to move on from the Punch Bros., and Brittany Haas has been selected to join the group. That's replacing one fiddle demon with another!
To my ear, Haas has a less aggressive style than Witcher but is a technical wizard and plays oh-so-tastefully. Can't wait to hear what the change in lineup produces for sounds!
Edited by - eagleisland on 06/03/2023 06:42:57
I loved hearing her fiddle at Grey Fox one year. It was with another fiddler, very beautiful music. I honestly don't know if this is a great move for her, long term, because she has some beautiful music to play apart from them, but I bet the pay is good so hopefully it will help her musical career in the long run.
Haas has been playing with all of the Punchies, together and apart, for years, so there’s no surprise in her selection.
quote:
Originally posted by BanjfootI loved hearing her fiddle at Grey Fox one year. It was with another fiddler, very beautiful music. I honestly don't know if this is a great move for her, long term, because she has some beautiful music to play apart from them, but I bet the pay is good so hopefully it will help her musical career in the long run.
They've all got so many side projects that Punch Brothers only seems to get together every few years or so for recording and touring anyway. For example, Thile is out with a Nickel Creek reunion tour right now, and has his weekly PBS radio show (the show that replaced "A Prairie Home Companion" when Garrison Keeler got into trouble) for about eight months each year. My guess is that the together-and-apart model that PB is built upon will fit nicely with Haas's other interests.
I guess that if Bessie Mauldin could be a Bluegrass Boy, Brittany Haas can be a Punch Brother!
I have heard Haas' name before and watched some videos with the group with Paul Kowert which are amazing ... but never really listened, and now as I do and see her credentials, wow, she is going to be a powerhouse for the group. I don't think the band is going miss a lick with her, so to speak!
eagleisland I believe Chris Thile's show "Live From Here" ceased production several years ago with no new shows being produced since then. It could be back again I'm not sure, but that's the last I heard about it.
Edited by - banjoy on 06/03/2023 07:53:21
Thile's "Live From Here" is indeed off the air, for some time now, perhaps associated with Covid.
Thanks for the corrections on Thile's NPR show. Sounds like it was put on hiatus after the pandemic was announced and then indefinitely - or permanently - suspended.
I listened to a few of Chris's NPR shows and wasn't entertained very much.
He didn't seem well connected to his listeners.
quote:
Originally posted by steve davisI listened to a few of Chris's NPR shows and wasn't entertained very much.
He didn't seem well connected to his listeners.
I agree completely. Chris is an amazing musician and performer, but it seemed to me he was just trying to copy the same format that Garrison Keillor did, rather than doing a whole new show. With Garrison I always felt like he was talking to me. With Chris it always felt like he was talking at me. My sense is, Chris was over it too. It was not the best use of his talent.
This seems timely ... was posted a few hours ago on YouTube!
“Haas” means hare in Dutch… I’m Dutch myself so I usually notice when some bluegrasser has a Dutch surname. A few of them are Pete Kuykendall, Mitchell Van Dyke, Grace van t’Hof , Jim Van Cleve , & Bill Monroe’s maternal grandfather Vandiver, , not sure about Peter Stuyvesant..... ; )
Edited by - chuckv97 on 06/04/2023 15:18:42
quote:
Originally posted by banjoyquote:
Originally posted by steve davisI listened to a few of Chris's NPR shows and wasn't entertained very much.
He didn't seem well connected to his listeners.I agree completely. Chris is an amazing musician and performer, but it seemed to me he was just trying to copy the same format that Garrison Keillor did, rather than doing a whole new show. With Garrison I always felt like he was talking to me. With Chris it always felt like he was talking at me. My sense is, Chris was over it too. It was not the best use of his talent.
Garrison had talents that Chris lacked.
He was a fine writer and his delivery and timing far outclassed Chris.
I got to play along with her a couple of times when we had her teaching fiddle at Augusta Bluegrass Week ten years ago. She generates a POWERFUL grove on the fiddle!
Punch Brothers & Sister?
Wow, that vid of the three playing is amazing. Thanks for posting banjoy.
Along with her top-flight technique, Brittany is a great old-time dance fiddler, something not always true for bluegrass players.
Hello,
Was that Bill Kieth’s banjo Tony was playing? Nice to see it being played.
quote:
Originally posted by AradobanjoHello,
Was that Bill Kieth’s banjo Tony was playing? Nice to see it being played.
No, it's that Czech-made thing he's had for a number of years, with the extended fingerboard and sparkly inlays. The head was painted by his son. I don't remember who the maker was (NOT Prucha or Capek, IIRC).
Edited by - Ira Gitlin on 06/07/2023 06:42:50
quote:
Originally posted by Ira Gitlinquote:
Originally posted by AradobanjoHello,
Was that Bill Kieth’s banjo Tony was playing? Nice to see it being played.No, it's that Czech-made thing he's had for a number of years, with the extended fingerboard and sparkly inlays. The head was painted by his son. I don't remember who the maker was (NOT Prucha or Capek, IIRC).
I'm pretty sure he's playing a Deering banjo in that video.
Edited by - banjoy on 06/14/2023 02:20:10
Hmmm, looks like you're right, Frank. I guess I was recalling something he was playing a few (?) years back.
