The Pearl Company

Murphy-Dyson/Santucci: Pas de Deux: Friday/ Saturday, May 27/28. 8pm. $20/$15 students/ seniors/ un(der)waged. An exceptional blend of choreography and improvisation from two major talents in their fields. The combination of duos (dance and guitar) will make this unique and exciting event a memorable one!  Gary Santucci plays his original compositions for solo guitar; Sarah Murphy-Dyson dances. We know Sarah for both her dancing and acting chops! Remember The Naked Ballerina? She danced and acted her way through “…a heartbreaking performance in this almost autobiographical story of a dancer coming to terms with the pain of being perfect. Murphy-Dyson’s script was compelling stuff and her stunning performance rocked The Pearl Company nightly.” Gary Smith, Hamilton Spectator. Gary Santucci (Flamenco, Classical & Jazz Guitar Artist) has become a consummate musician whose repertoire spans numerous genres. Among his awards is Best Classical Musician 1982 [Hamilton Wentworth Council of the Arts],  The City of Hamilton Arts Award for Music 2004, and together with Barbara Milne, The City of Hamilton Arts Award 2008 for Lifetime Achievement.  Listen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzKBk4LxbRU

Poor Angus: Saturday, May 21. 8:00pm. $20 /$15 students/ seniors/ un(der)waged.  A Hamilton-based Celtic ensemble mixing the music of past and present with dynamic arrangements of traditional and original Scottish, Irish and East Coast pieces. They’ve shared the stage with the likes of Blue Rodeo, Kathleen Edwards, and The Proclaimers, Featuring Ross Griffiths’ masterful highland and uilleann piping and tin whistles, the virtuoso fiddling of Andrew Bryan,vocals and rhythm guitar of Joel Guenther, , the bodhran, guitar and mandolin of Brian LeBlanc, with bass and keyboard player DJ Moons.  Poor Angus is noted especially for their foot stomping vocal harmony. Their first album in 2007, won the Hamilton Music Award for Folk/Traditional Album of the Year; Their second album, “Prime Cuts”, also won the 2009 HMA for Folk/Traditional album of the Year! Greg Quill of the Toronto Star notes: ”Deftly executed instrumental ballads, jigs and reels…..” www.poorangus.com   Listen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OnKXQIOSIHA

Shari Vandermolen & SWINGLINE: Friday, May 20. 8:00. $20/$15 students/seniors/un(der)waged. SWINGLINE is an inspired and accomplished group of musicians hailing from the greater Hamilton and Toronto areas bringing you big-band jazz standards and a little soulful R & B to round things off.  They originally came together purely for the love of music; it was an opportunity to play together and develop new musical connections with other musicians. Now they are in demand and we are lucky to have them for the 20th.  Shari Vandermolen’s rich vocals filled the niche completing the band and we get to be the listeners and appreciators!  Shari Vandermolen’s recent CD release has kept her busy but she is thrilled to be back at one of her favourite venues with her favourite “little big-band”.  They will have you humming along and tapping your feet all night long giving you that big-band sound you crave!  http://swingline.webs.com/   Listen:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXw_ytuzvFc

Rae Billing & The Unpayables / Mississippi Bends: Saturday, May 14. 8:00pm. $20 /$15 students/ seniors/ un(der)waged. Rae Billing’s voice and lyrics create a touchstone that is rare on the Canadian landscape. Her voice has been described as “honest and pure, assured and desperate at the same time.” And her lyrics and music as “full of wide open spaces and bittersweet emotions,” “handled with gutsy femininity.”  Rae’s show will focus on her fourth alt-country album, the fluid, passionate, and critically acclaimed, Walls & Fences. The album was chosen by respected Penguin Eggs Magazine as the top pick for April 2014. And opening will be the talented duo Mary Simon and Andrew Aldridge in MISSISSIPPI BENDS, alt-country at its finest!
Working with the multi-talented Unpayables, Matt Coleman on violin/fiddle, Andrew Aldridge on electric guitar, K. Michael Hickey on electric and upright bass, Clifford Costa on drums, plus the talents of album producer Michael J. Birthelmer on piano and guitars
“There is a depth to her songs few contemporaries have yet to hone.” Jason MacNeil, All Music Guide.  Listen:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkI7OvCupvs     www.raebilling.com

David Woodhead’s Confabulation: Friday, May 13, 8:00. $20 /$15 students/ seniors/ un(der)waged. Bassist and multi-instrumentalist David Woodhead is one of the most accomplished of Canadian musicians and his genre-defying, (mostly) instrumental supergroup, Confabulation, is a thrill-ride for players and audiences alike. David has played on more than 200 albums. He was the bassist for folk legend Stan Rogers. He’s played with Loreena McKennitt, Valdy, Sneezy Waters, Brent Titcomb, Scott Merritt, jazz ensemble Manteca. He regularly tours with James Keelaghan. Confabulation’s musical eclecticism features: harp-like fingerstyle ukulele picking, klezmer-like horns, a few intriguing time signatures and some unexpected chord changes. The line-up: keyboardist Doug Wilde (Leonard Cohen, Jane Siberry, Manteca), drummer Rich Greenspoon (Njacko Backo, Stewed Tomatoes, Betty and the Bobs), reeds player Colleen Allen (Anne Murray, Rita MacNeil, Gino Vannelli, Ani DiFranco, Molly Johnson) and guitarist Bob Cohen (Jesse Winchester,Tim Hardin).
The quintet combines Woodhead’s sophisticated-yet-accessible compositions with the odd dramatic interpretation of Rudyard Kipling and a nod to Peter Gabriel.  Their shows merge outstanding musicianship with spontaneity, whimsy, and the musical chops to take them in whatever direction they’re moved to go. The Confabulation: http://www.davidwoodhead.com/confabulation.html  Listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m62zRUT9u4M

Steve Dawson: Wednesday, May 11. 8:00pm. $20 /$15 students/ seniors/ un(der)waged. As one of Canada’s most sought after producers, session musicians and guitarists, this Vancouver-born slide guitarist has become an indelible fixture on the North American musical landscape. He has acquired an endless stream of awards producing and/or playing on more than 80 albums since 2000 – 7 of which have won Juno Awards. Whether he’s turning heads on the concert circuit with his incendiary playing, or pulling the best possible performances out of the many artists that he works with, Dawson is always striving to take things to the next level.
Steve’s multi-faceted career has brought him to countless international festivals, and he has worked with an extensive cast of leading artists including: John Hammond, Sonny Landreth, Van Dyke Parks, Colin James, Bruce Cockburn, Geoff Muldaur, and more.
He has also recorded and released six albums of his own, exploring blues, jazz, roots, folk and even experimental music, over the years.  His latest CD, ‘Solid States and Loose Ends’, with stellar slide guitar work reminiscent of 70’s Ry Cooder albums, and with the intimacy, spontaneity, and warmth one might hear on records produced by Joe Henry or T-Bone Burnett, is a killer set of new tunes that play to all of Dawson’s many strengths.
Steve currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee. He also runs his acclaimed independent label Black Hen Music, and the always in demand, Henhouse Studios. Listen here: https://soundcloud.com/blackhenmusic/sets/steve-dawson-solid-states-and/s-44QjT   www.stevedawson.ca
And we all know Robin Benedict.  She’ll get the crowd warmed up; there will be no doubt about that! www.robinbenedict.ca

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Shari Vandermolen & David Brideau: Saturday May 5.  Doors: 7:30pm. Show: 8:00. Tickets: $20. Shari Vandermolen is a renowned vocalist and award-winning performer in Hamilton and the Greater Toronto Area who has been entertaining audiences for 15 years with her Quartet, Trio or 5-piece band Quarter to Nine.  She is also the lead vocalist for the 10-piece jazz combo SwingLine.  On May 5th Shari brings her powerful and impressive vocal stylings back to the Pearl Company for a more intimate evening of song with jazz guitarist David Brideau, James Gannett on bass and Vince Waters on drums.  “…hear Vandermolen make jelly of your emotions with her voice and her art… one example is Stormy Weather… I barely weathered that storm intact.”  – View Magazine
David Brideau is a Canadian jazz guitarist, composer, and teacher who has been an active musician for over 15 years. A Hamilton native, and honours graduate from the Mohawk Jazz program, David has played all around the GTA with his own group, the David Brideau Trio and Quartet, as well as being prominently featured in groups with Michael Morobito, Amber-Leigh Palka, and Lauren Perreira among others. He studied under jazz greats Bob Shields, Pat Collins, Kim Ratcliffe, and Mark Ucci and is currently continuing his studies at McMaster University. David often composes his own standards, and released the sold-out EP “Addicted To You” in 2016. He is a recipient of the Dave McMurdo Music Bursary, the Antony Roberts Music Bursary, and the Richard Newell Memorial Scholarship.
Ticets: https://www.ticketscene.ca/events/21098/