PFAC presents Bearfoot February 12
Alaskan bluegrass group bring energetic, haunting sounds to Pinedale Auditorium
by Pinedale Fine Arts Council
February 9, 2010
The Pinedale Fine Arts Council is proud to present Alaskan bluegrass band Bearfoot performing live in the Pinedale Auditorium on Feb. 12, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. The show falls a couple days before Valentine’s so what better way to say I love you than tickets to an awesome concert? And as a special treat, you can get a free appetizer at Café on Pine before the show with the purchase of two entrees – all you have to do is have your Bearfoot tickets handy when ordering (good for Feb. 12 only).
Collaborative, uplifting, energetic, haunting, beautiful, inspired: all words that anyone should feel comfortable with while describing the sound of Bearfoot. Comprised of Kate Hamre (acoustic bass), Mike Mickelson (guitar), Jason Norris (mandolin), Angela Oudean (fiddle), and newest member Odessa Jorgensen (vocals/fiddle), Bearfoot’s rise from talented music camp counselors to an established national touring band has been nothing short of meteoric.
A mere two years after their initial meeting teaching at their namesake’s bluegrass camp for kids, Bearfoot earned one of roots music’s most prestigious awards – Telluride Bluegrass Band Champions – an honor they share with artists Dixie Chicks and Nickel Creek. Soon, they were touring extensively during summer breaks and became regular crowd favorites at prestigious festivals including Wintergrass, Grey Fox, Strawberry Festival, and six consecutive years at RockyGrass. The original band members (Hamre, Mickelson, Norris, and Oudean) had known each other and played together in various combinations in Alaska’s small but vibrant music scene and the community of musicians, fans, parents, and friends rallied around the fledgling band.
The original band name was "Bearfoot Bluegrass" but as the band evolved, they dropped "bluegrass" from the name. Bearfoot has adopted the Americana moniker to describe their music but haven’t left their bluegrass roots behind. "Even if it’s not a bluegrass song, it’s not too hard to see where it all came from," Norris points out. "You can definitely tell that we play bluegrass by how we structure our phrasing, our instruments, and how our harmonies are set up."
Tickets for the Feb. 12 performance are now on sale ($13 adults/$7 students) and are available at Rock Rabbit, Pony Express Photo, The Cowboy Shop, Office Outlets, the Big Piney Library and at the door the evening of the performance. Please note that tickets are $2 extra at the door.
Bearfoot live in Pinedale is presented by the Pinedale Fine Arts Council with support in part from the Wyoming Arts Council through funding from the Wyoming Legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts which believes a great nation deserves great art, Sublette BOCES, SCSD #1 & #9, The Sublette County Recreation Board, the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) and the Wyoming Community Foundation.
For more information including links Bearfoot’s artist and MySpace pages please visit www.pinedalefinearts.com or call 307-367-7322.
Alaskan bluegrass band Bearfoot will be conducting a free acoustic bluegrass workshop on Thursday, Feb. 11 at 7:00 p.m. in the Sublette County Library Lovatt Room. The workshop is presented by the Pinedale Fine Arts Council.
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