New but traditional folk trio opens series
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Gathering Time, a folk trio in the tradition of Peter, Paul and Mary, will open the Occasional Concerts season on Sunday. WEB PHOTO |
Toolbox
By ART EDELSTEIN Arts Correspondent - Published: October 16, 2009
To open this year's Occasional Concert Series — house concerts held in Plainfield — organizers have chosen Gathering Time, a vocal trio from Long Island, on Sunday, Oct. 18 at 7:30 p.m. (a potluck dinner begins at 6 p.m.). On the basis of listening to their CD "Songs of Hope and Freedom," this trio is highly recommended.
The songs on this album, as the title reflects, have a theme. The performers – Glen Roethel, Hillary Foxsong and Stuart Markus – each contribute several of their own songs. Each is a fine songwriter and vocalist in their own right, so a trio this talented delivers solid and memorable music. As a group they produce fine lead vocals and excellent harmonies.
The band backs itself on acoustic guitar, bass guitar, percussion and keyboards, and while they are competent players, it's the singing that really shines.
Concert organizers Karl Bissex, Mary Trerice and Lynne Goodson chose this group after hearing them at festivals and taking a songwriting workshop with Roethel.
The organizers categorize Gathering Time as having "tight harmonies that remind us of groups from the past such as Peter, Paul and Mary, and Crosby, Stills & Nash, or even the Kingston Trio. Their songwriting is contemporary and they also offer many covers from various time periods — traditional to current."
This folk-rock harmony trio was described recently as "getting a whole beehive-full of buzz" on the Long Island folk scene.
The three members have a growing reputation for their seamless vocal blend, memorable melodies, meaningful lyrics and easy-going, fun chemistry on stage. A local Long Island radio DJ Bill Hahn describes them as "… right up there with the ones we all know — they are the next generation of great trios with meaningful music performed in awesome harmony."
Opening for Gathering Time is Northfield singer-songwriter Paula Gills. Gills is a longtime folkie who returned to recording a few years back with her album "Living On," which won a Times Argus year-end Tammie Award in the comeback category. That album contains a tribute to the late Rachel Bissex.
According to Karl Bissex, Rachel's brother, the White Light Scholarship Fund honors her memory as a singer-songwriter. Rachel Bissex was a Burlington resident who developed a strong national following. She made many of her connections at festivals, conferences and workshops and was a creative force at these gatherings. After she died of breast cancer in 2005 her family established the scholarship in her honor.
This year the award is $1,000 and Karl Bissex said he hoped the money would make a difference in the career of a Vermont singer-songwriter. He called the scholarship "grassroots stimulus funds."