Celebrating the Art of Storytelling in Song- Inside the music of Tom Rush, Matt Nakoa and Seth Glier
American folk music is a broad term that encompasses many genres. The famous folk musician Mike Seeger once famously defined it as “all the music that fits between the cracks.” Gospel, bluegrass, Appalachian jug bands, blues and Native American music all fit within those cracks. The genres have two commonalities that tie them together; they are all uniquely American and they all rely heavily on the art of storytelling. It is that story telling that artists such as Woody Guthrie, Burl Ives and Susan Reed brought to the fore front in the great American Folk Revival of the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s. This weekend we are proud to have one of the greatest practitioners of American Folk music, Tom Rush, who helped shape the genre during the 1960’s along with the likes of Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and Judy Collins. He will be joined by new emerging artists who follow in his tradition by placing story telling at the forefront of their music; Matt Nakoa and Seth Glier.
James Taylor once said, “Tom (Rush) was not only one of my early heroes, but also one of my main influences.” It’s clear that Rush possesses many qualities that an artist like James Taylor would find inspiring; from his distinctive guitar styling to his warm, expressive voice. One would argue that the main quality that keeps audiences coming back is the wry humor and expressive story telling so distinct in his music. The story telling is especially evident evident in his performance of “The Child’s Song,” seen below. The song so perfectly tells the story of a son leaving his family for the first time. The story not only comes out in the lyrics but in Rush’s soulful expression.
Below Matt Nakoa and Seth Glier continue the tradition of Storytelling in “The Ballad of Jenny Kane” and “Love is a Language” respectively. Each plays in their own distinctive style but they both harken back to Tom Rush’s example.
These three artists converge on the Schimmel Stage for one night only. Don’t miss your opportunity to celebrate this uniquely American art form with one of the best.
An Evening with Tom Rush and Matt Nakoa with Special Guest Seth Glier; Friday, December 9 at 7:30PM; Price $29 | $39; Schimmel Center at Pace University; 3 Spruce St, New York, NY 10038; (212) 346-1715; Tickets available at http://schimmelcenter.org/event/tom-rush
