Bill & Emily's Musical Exploits - 11/21/09

Hi Everyone!

Just a reminder that this is the last week to see Emily's paintings at AS220! Call 401-831-9327 for hours or to make an appointment.
http://AS220.org/galleries/

Our instrumental duo, which we have dubbed Stay Tuned, now has a website! Or maybe it's a blog masquerading as a website - you decide. We'll get photos and mp3's up at some point.
Visit http://StayTunedDuo.blogspot.com/

Happy Thanksgiving!

Bill
http://TheUrbanMermaid.blogspot.com/
http://BillCalhounPiano.blogspot.com/
http://EmilyLiskerPaintings.blogspot.com/

Three's a Crowd
Recent Paintings by Emily Lisker
AS220 Main Gallery
115 Empire St
Providence RI 02903
401 831 9327
http://AS220.org/

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The Settings We Play In

Because we are an instrumental duo, our music is perfect for small venues, as background music for events, and as incidental music for productions. A vocalist demands and deserves a certain amount of attention, and thus is not as effective for background music. A band playing in a particular genre can alienate people who would rather not listen to that genre, or can overwhelm an event with their volume. We pose no such difficulties.

You would not, however, want us as your wedding reception dance band. And if you wanted a particular genre, like blues or jazz, you might be disappointed. But we would be perfect for playing background music as the wedding guests arrive and are seated, or during certain parts of the ceremony, or for the presentation of the newlyweds, or as guests arrive at the reception.

These are the kinds of venues we have played:
  • A bakery's pizza night, with customers lined up to pick up their orders (we played outdoors)
  • A holiday party at an assisted living facility
  • Art openings in a gallery
  • Outdoors at an arts festival
  • A private birthday party
  • Background and ceremony music for a wedding
  • The grand opening of a community health center
  • An opening act on stage
  • A flu clinic!

We are also very flexible in how we present our music. If you wanted music that was quiet and sedate, or loud and energetic, we could do that. If you wanted us to fill our set with more blues, or more folk, that could be done. We can add musicians for a larger band. We are able and willing to sing, so if you wanted us to do so, say, at the beginning of a set, to get an event rolling, that's possible.

We had our most challenging opportunity recently playing for a Halloween wedding. Not only did we play in costume, but we altered our music to make it appropriately spooky. There are many ways in which we can enhance your event!
  • For more on what we play, go here.
  • For a sample setlist, go here.
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The Music We Play

The most striking feature of the music we play as a duo is that it is instrumental. So which of us plays the melody? Well, often neither of us; we tend to imply the melody instead. Emily, with her lyrical approach to the accordion, finds harmonies and counter-melodies and weaves them through the song. Bill, with his rhythmic approach to the piano, provides the bass and the beat, and sneaks hints of the melody into his chord patterns. On the bari sax, Emily loves the low notes, and often provides a pedal point with her long tones.

So, without a singer, or a lead melody instrument, or solos, it is important for our songs to be interesting rhythmically, harmonically, and structurally. There are plenty of great songs that are very simple, and need to be carried by a vocalist, but we work with songs that cover a lot of emotional territory through their harmonies. The songs seem distantly familiar, like a dream you almost remember. This approach gives us a lot of room for interpretation.

Our music also tends to be upbeat, even when the songs are melancholy. There is often a bit of humor, and a lot of energy beneath the surface. The interplay between our two distinct personalities is also an important part of the music. Our music has a way of putting a smile on your face and a spring to your step.
  • For more on where we play, go here.
  • For a sample setlist, go here.
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What's Americana?

By Americana we mean music based on American folk music traditions. These traditions include ragtime and blues (in its various incarnations); hymns, spirituals, gospel, soul, and funk; and old-timey music, from Appalachia through its evolution to various country styles. Americana means all this and more: the various derivatives that led to Dixieland jazz, jug band music, marching band music, rock-and-roll, and beyond. Americana means all the ethnic music carried here by immigrants and transformed by the melting pot. Americana means contemporary music that can't hide its roots.

Though we don't specialize in any one of these traditions, we find them infiltrating everything we play, whether it's a traditional barrelhouse blues or a folk song one of our friends wrote yesterday. We think an important part of these traditions is creative and heartfelt interpretation, and to that end we try to let our music be shaped by our imagination, and by our affection for these traditions.
  • For more on what we play, go here.
  • For more on where we play, go here.
  • For a sample setlist, go here.
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Sign Up for our Newsletter

Our occasional email newsletter, Bill & Emily's Musical Exploits, is sent to almost 300 subscribers. It provides information on our musical performances, as well as on some non-musical events like gallery openings for Emily's paintings.

If you'd like to be put on the mailing list, please use the form below. Thanks!

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Setlist

Here's an excerpt from our setlist:

On a Night Like This
A Cajun-style tune by Bob Dylan which we play in a New Orleans fashion.

Will the Circle Be Unbroken
A classic old-time folk tune, done with a gospel touch.

Sail Away Ladies
A traditional fiddle tune played on banjo a la Uncle Dave Macon.

Tonight Will Be Fine
A Leonard Cohen tune that was covered as a country waltz by Teddy Thompson.

Things Have Changed
Another Dylan tune, which we play as a harmonic-minor quick two-step.

St James Infirmary
The classic New Orleans folk ballad.

Henryville Stomp
A ragtime boggie-woogie written by Bill Calhoun.

Willie Fugal's Blues
A New Orleans piano blues from Professor Longhair, which we play in 12 bars.

Stormy Monday
The classic T-Bone Walker song, played in a boogaloo style.

I Live In a House
A straight-tempo blues written by Bill Calhoun.

Blow Wind Blow
Another classic New Orleans song, based on Dr John's version.

Columbus Stockade Blues
A popular tune written in 1927, played on banjo and based on the Carter Family version.

Un Canadien Errant
A poignant folk waltz written by a French-Canadian, Antoine Guerin-Lajoie.

J'ai Faim, Toujours
A Parisian-style love song written by Lauren Agnelli, which she recorded with Brave Combo.

Shreveport Farewell
A ragtime blues by Little Brother Montgomery.

Amazing Grace
The classic hymn, which we play in an upbeat soul/R&B style.
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Who We Are

Bill Calhoun and Emily Lisker are musicians living in Woonsocket, Rhode Island. Bill plays piano, keyboard, and banjo, and Emily plays accordion and baritone sax. Bill is also a high-school physics teacher and a piano tuner/technician, and Emily is a painter, illustrator, and writer. She's pretty good with a camera, too.

In addition to playing as a duo, we are also founding members and managers of the Marching Milkman Band, now in its th year. The Band, led by Gerry Heroux, plays mostly original marching tunes in four or five Rhode Island parades each year, usually as the Munroe Dairy Marching Band. We've also begun playing for smaller venues and private events. Bill plays the bass drum and Emily the bari sax.

From 2007 through 2010, Bill and Emily were original members of The Big House Band, which served as a house band for The Small Town Concert Series. The STCS produced several shows a year at the Chester Meeting House in Chester CT and the Katharine Hepburn Center in Old Saybrook CT. STCS also produced shows in other venues in the region, and a smaller contingent of the House Band sometimes performed as Lauren Agnelli & Friends.

  • For more on what we play, go here.
  • For more on where we play, go here.
  • For a sample setlist, go here.

  • For more on the Marching Milkman Band, go here.
  • For a video of us as The Munroe Dairy Marching Band, go here.
  • For more on The Small Town Concert Series, go here.

  • For more on Bill's piano tuning, go here.
  • For more on Emily's painting, go here.
  • For more on Emily's writing, go here.
  • For more on Bill's teaching, go here.
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Contact Us

The best way to contact us is by email.

You can click here, and your emailing application will be launched, all set to send an email to billcalhounpiano at yahoo.com.

But if you don't use an email application, then the easiest thing to do is fill out and send this form, which will send the email for you:

Name:

Email Address:

Message:






You can also call 401 769-0555 and leave voice mail.

You can also send us mail at:

Bill Calhoun
139 Rathbun St
Woonsocket RI 02895
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2010 Calendar


Thursday, Jan 14 2010
Stay Tuned Duo
Pawtucket Arts Collaborative
Pawtucket RI
5:30 PM - 7 PM

Saturday, Jan 23 2010
with The Big House Band
The Small Town Concert Series
Ivoryton CT
7 PM - 10 PM

Friday, Mar 5 2010
with The Big House Band
The Small Town Concert Series
Old Saybrook CT
8 PM - 11 PM

Friday, Mar 26 2010
with Amalgamated Muck
Ivoryton CT
7 PM - 10 PM

Saturday, June 12 2010
with the Munroe Dairy Marching Band
Gaspee Days Parade
Pawtuxet RI
10 AM - 1 PM

Monday, July 5 2010
with the Munroe Dairy Marching Band
Bristol Fourth of July Parade
Bristol RI
10:30 AM - 1:30 PM

Friday, Sep 10 2010
Stay Tuned Duo
Newport Art Museum
Newport RI
5 PM - 8 PM

Thursday, Sep 16 2010
Stay Tuned Duo
Pawtucket Arts Collaborative
for the annual Pawtucket Gallery Night
Pawtucket RI
5:30 PM

Friday, Sep 17 2010
Stay Tuned Duo
Temple Torat Yisrael
sponsored by Jewish Family Services of RI
Cranston RI
11 AM - 12 noon

Friday, Sep 24 2010
Saturday, Sep 25 2010
with The Big House Band
The Small Town Concert Series
Chester CT
7 PM - 10 PM

Sunday, Oct 10 2010
with the Munroe Dairy Marching Band
Westerly/Pawcatuck Columbus Day Parade
Westerly RI, Pawcatuck CT
1 PM - 3:30 PM

Monday, Oct 11 2010
with the Munroe Dairy Marching Band
Autumnfest Parade
Woonsocket RI
9:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Thursday, Nov 11 2010
Stay Tuned Duo
Pawtucket Arts Collaborative
Pawtucket RI
5:30 PM - 7 PM

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2009 Calendar


Thursday, Jan 8 2009
Stay Tuned Duo
Pawtucket Arts Collaborative
Pawtucket RI
5:30 PM - 7 PM

Friday, Feb 20 2009
Saturday, Feb 21 2009
with The Big House Band
The Small Town Concert Series
Chester CT
7 PM - 10 PM

Thursday, Mar 12 2009
Stay Tuned Duo
Pawtucket Arts Collaborative
Pawtucket RI
5:30 PM - 7 PM

Saturday, June 13 2009
with the Munroe Dairy Marching Band
Gaspee Days Parade
Pawtuxet RI
10 AM - 12 noon

Saturday, July 4 2009
with the Munroe Dairy Marching Band
Bristol Fourth of July Parade
Bristol RI
10:30 AM - 1:30 PM

Saturday, July 11 2009
as Stay Tuned Duo
and with The Big House Band
The Chester Music Festival
Chester CT
11 AM - 10 PM

Friday, Sep 25 2009
Saturday, Sep 26 2009
with The Big House Band
The Small Town Concert Series
Chester CT
7 PM - 10 PM
Sunday, Sep 27 2009
3 PM - 7 PM

Sunday, Oct 11 2009
with the Munroe Dairy Marching Band
Westerly/Pawcatuck Columbus Day Parade
Westerly RI, Pawcatuck CT
1 PM - 3:30 PM

Monday, Oct 12 2009
with the Munroe Dairy Marching Band
Autumnfest Parade
Woonsocket RI
9:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Saturday, Oct 31 2009
Stay Tuned Duo
Private Event
Halloween Wedding
Boston MA

Sunday, Nov 1 2009
with Lauren Agnelli & Friends
The Empire Revue
Providence RI
8 PM - 9:30 PM

Thursday, Nov 12 2009
Stay Tuned Duo
Pawtucket Arts Collaborative
Pawtucket RI
5:30 PM - 7 PM

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Photos & Videos


Click for    Stay Tuned Duo ►
Click for    Marching Milkman Band ►
Click for    Big House Band ►
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