"Heartbreakingly great." Jeremy Gara (Arcade Fire)
"Impossibly intimate, an experiment of the timelessness of human thought and emotion, right here and now. One of my favorite bands around." Abigail Washburn
With a brand new album out on Smithsonian Folkways (March 30), Anna Roberts-Gevalt and Elizabeth Laprelle are pioneers in developing new ways of presenting old songs and stories to modern audiences. Still in their 20s, they are historians, storytellers, visual artists, and gifted, intuitive musicians. They are leading a revival of the lost art of "crankies," handcrafted scrolling picture shows made of sewn fabric or cut paper. Bringing traditional songs to life with sparse, atmospheric arrangements using guitar, banjo, fiddle, and voices in close harmony, they invite audiences to get close to their intimate and breathtaking multi-media shows. "We believe in the power of stories-- from family jokes to ancient ballads. What keeps us going is this process of exploring how the old stories are still magical, after all these years."
Anna & Elizabeth have performed at the Atlanta Museum of Modern Art; folk festivals in Brooklyn, the Yukon, Chicago, Maine, and Uzbekistan; residencies at universities; summer traditional music schools; and small theaters and folk clubs across the U.S. and U.K. Their second album, which features legendary folk singer Alice Gerrard, was released in 2015 and was featured on the Huffington Post, No Depression, and NPRs Tiny Desk Concert series.
Tonight they'll share pieces from the new Folkways album, including ballads from the '30s and '40s from their home states of Vermont and Virginia.
Benjamin Lazar Davis will open the show. Benjamin is a native Saratogian and plays with the band Cuddlemagic. He has recently released his debut solo album, 'Nothing Matters' and also produced Anne & Elizabeth's new album.
Location
Caffe Lena (View)
47 Phila Street
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
United States
