Heads Up!! All the way from Boston: Fabulous American Music from Earth String Band this Friday, September 30th

The Earth String Band

at Sunset Fair, Friday, September 30th at 7pm

Earth String Band (Boston, Massachusetts) combines bluegrass and contemporary acoustic music with soulful songwriting and musicianship.  Fiery and improvisational, The Earth String Band creates pulsing earthy rhythms and melodious hooks that form a unique, infective vibe.  The group’s musical influences include the John Hartford String Band, The Stanley Brothers, Bill Monroe, and Jimmy Martin.  The Earth String Band aims to spread the message of cultural harmony through pounding grooves that transcend boundaries and speak to all generations.

STASH WYSLOUCH (ACOUSTIC GUITAR) studied at the Berklee College of Music where he majored in acoustic guitar performance and immersed himself in the bluegrass community.  After graduating from Berklee in 2010, Wyslouch joined a variety of different bands and toured internationally with the Boston Boys, Blue Moose and the Unbuttoned Zippers, and The Earth String Band.  Wyslouch brings a quirky edge to these groups, with his driving rhythm guitar and deliberate leads, as well as his love of American acoustic music and appreciation for contemporary heavy metal.

SAM GRISMAN (BASS) is the son of renowned mandolin player David Grisman.  From an early age, Grisman was exposed to his father’s eclectic musical tastes and was surrounded by legendary musicians such as Edgar Meyer, Martin Taylor, Ralph Stanley, and Del McCoury.  At 12, he began to play professionally with his father’s band David Grisman Bluegrass Experience.  After studying for two semesters at the Berklee College of Music, Grisman became a full time bass player and teacher.  In addition to touring with The David Grisman Bluegrass Experience, Sarah Jarosz, The Boston Boys, and The Deadly Gentlemen, he has recently been on the road with Darol Anger’s Republic of Strings, and Bearfoot.

 

ANDY REINER (FIDDLE AND VIOLIN) graduated from the Berklee College of Music in 2008.  He learned to play the fiddle from his father Dave Reiner, a fiddle contest champion and author.  He has played with a variety of musical groups including his family’s Reiner Family Band, heavy metal group Devil in the Kitchen, folk/ hip hop band FiddleFoxx, and several string bands, The Earth String Band, Blue Moose and the Unbuttoned Zippers.  Reiner has composed five major works for string orchestra that have been performed at the Berklee Performance Center and the Kennedy Center.  Last year, Reiner published a book of 54 original compositions for fiddle/violin, and he is currently working on a new fiddle instruction book with his father.

ERIC ROBERTSON (MANDOLIN) attended high school at the Weaver Academy for the Performing and Visual Arts and is currently in his final year at the Berklee College of Music.  At Berklee, he developed his passion for songwriting and mandolin playing, and in his explorations found connections between R&B and country music.  Robertson’s love of performing resulted in the formation of his band, The Boston Boys.  In addition to touring internationally with newgrass band, Northern Lights, and progressive acoustic jazz sextet, Dr. Magpie, he collaborates with rising singer-songwriters Emily Elbert, Margaret Glaspy, and Jenna Belle.  Robertson’s debut album is entitled Listen.

The program is co-produced by Jazz at Lincoln Center, the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and the U.S. Embassy in Dili.