Deering Live

We welcome back the 2018 Steve Martin Banjo Award winner, banjo player for the Grammy-nominated Grascals, our good friend Kristin Scott-Benson!

Kristin will be talking about what she looks for in a bluegrass banjo and the journey of tone that she considers when playing different banjos.

And we will have a special announcement at the top of the show!

Jake Sawicki is the banjo player for the self-described thrash grass band, The Native Howl who hail from Leonard, MI. Their 2016 release of "Thrash Grass" unleashed the newly-coined genre of the same name, combining the aggressiveness and intensity of thrash metal with the melodicism and precision of bluegrass.

Jake is here to talk about pushing the boundaries of how a banjo can be used, appearing on the TV Show "No Cover" and spending the last few months touring with shock rockers GWAR.

We're very excited to feature the longtime banjoist for Alison Kraus & Union Station, Ron Block, on Deering Live. When it comes to bluegrass banjo, Ron is simply one of the best in the business. His feel, tone, and timing drive the music that is rooted deeply in tradition but continues to push it into the future.

Ron has a new album coming out July 1st with Irish tenor banjo master Damien O'Kane called Banjophonics. We'll be talking about this album as well as digging deep into how he achieves his sound on the banjo.

Don't miss this episode of Deering Live. Listen to a true master of the 5-string bluegrass banjo play and talk about his style.

British clawhammer virtuoso Dan Walsh joins us on Deering Live to talk about his unique take on clawhammer playing, and whether clawhammer should be regarded as a technique or a genre.

Dan is a long-time Deering artist and if you are not familiar with him, he has a fascinating approach to playing banjo. This episode will be well worth tuning in for!

Trajan "Tray" Wellington joins us on Deering Live on the eve of his greatly anticipated solo effort, "Black Banjo".

In this episode, Tray talks to us about the inspiration behind "Black Banjo", and discusses his own experiences as a black banjo player in bluegrass music.

Michael J Miles is a composer and musician who grew up in the heart of urban Chicago and teaches at the infamous Old Town School of Music. His inner jukebox spins with 500 years of pop songs on late night radio, infused with conversations about poetry, politics, and singing around the piano with his Irish family. These songs turn into setlists, and compositions and as they say, the rest is history.

To quote his own site, "There are those who represent the American Songbook or one particular style of music. Michael J. Miles and his insatiable banjo cover the world songbook, and many musical styles. Recognized for his virtuosity and musical prowess, he calls it curiosity. Curiosity drives the day. The music he writes or arranges spins right out of the questions he asks."

Michael is an electrifying performer, educator, and bender of genres. You simply have to hear him play.

Deemed a "banjo virtuoso" by the Washington Post, Adam Hurt has fused several traditional old-time idioms to create his own elegantly innovative clawhammer banjo style, having been introduced to the instrument at age eleven in his native Minnesota.

A respected performer and teacher of traditional music, Adam has played at the Kennedy Center, conducted banjo and fiddle workshops at many venues around the country and abroad, and been featured on the cover of Banjo Newsletter. Since moving south in 2002, Adam has placed in or won most of the major old-time banjo competitions, including three first-place finishes at Clifftop, and he has claimed several state banjo and fiddle championships.

Max Allard is a gifted young 5-string banjoist in the 3 fingerstyle. He has been the winner of the 2018 RockyGrass Banjo Competition and the 2019 FreshGrass Banjo Award. He performs as a solo artist, in a duo with his brother Otto Allard, and has toured the midwest with the Minneapolis-based progressive bluegrass band Barbaro.

Max has a new album out called "Odes / Codes" that was produced by banjoist Jayme Stone. He is an extremely good young banjo player. He is currently studying composition at the prestigious Oberlin Conservatory.

"A new mature and poetic voice on the 5 string banjo. Beautiful compositions and a very nice touch.” — Béla Fleck

Our good friend Hank Smith returns to Deering Live this week, where we will discuss composing non-bluegrass music on 5 string banjo and tonality.

Hank is a Deering artist and plays a Deering Maple Blossom. He also puts the "Hank" into 'Hank, Patty & the Current', who are one of our favorite bands!

Detroit Brooks is one of New Orleans' top session and touring guitar and banjo players on the scene. He has toured around the world and recorded or played musicians such as Dr. John, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Donald Harrison, Charmaine Neville, and many more.

Detroit is deeply concerned with keeping the traditional music of New Orleans alive. He created the Danny Barker Festival which celebrates the music of Danny Barker and brings groups into the schools of New Orleans to teach about the banjo in New Orleans music.