SOLD OUT! Allison de Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves – Wednesday Show

Allison de Groot:
Allison de Groot draws on a love for old-time and traditional music, and with a creative approach to the banjo, has formed her own sound – unique and full of personality. Her collaborations with Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves, Bruce Molsky’s trio Molsky’s Mountain Drifters, The Goodbye Girls and Nic Gareiss provide spaces to explore the role and dimensions of clawhammer banjo.

Allison has toured all over the world with various groups, performing at events such as Newport Folk Festival, Celtic Connections, Rockygrass, Hardly Strictly, Winnipeg Folk Festival & Tønder Festival. The music scene in her hometown of Winnipeg, Canada, immersion in old-time communities, a performance degree at Berklee College of Music in Boston, and touring extensively throughout North America and Europe have all shaped her playing.
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“One of Canada’s finest folk musicians”- CBC Q

“Allison has it all…..great clawhammer technique, exquisite tone, timing, taste. She has deep roots in the old time tradition and yet she’s fearless when it comes to breaking new ground. It’s a thrill whenever I get a chance to play with her. As Twyla Tharp once said, “Before you can think out of the box, you have to start with a box” . -Tony Trishka

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Tatiana Hargreaves

Over the past decade, Tatiana Hargreaves has been on the forefront of an up and coming generation of old time, bluegrass and new acoustic musicians. From placing first at the Clifftop Appalachian Fiddle Contest, to her bluegrass fiddling on Laurie Lewis’ GRAMMY-nominated album The Hazel And Alice Sessions, Hargreaves shows a musical fluency that flows between old time and bluegrass worlds with ease. She has toured with musicians such as Dave Rawlings, Gillian Welch, Laurie Lewis, Darol Anger, Bruce Molsky and Jake Blount. She currently tours with banjo extraordinaire Allison de Groot and teaches bluegrass fiddle at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

Tatiana’s duo with Allison de Groot has been described as a “can’t-miss pair in 2019,” by Paste Magazine, and their rendition of Alice Gerrard’s song “Beaufort County Jail” was included in Rolling Stone Country’s “10 Best Country and Americana Songs to Hear.” Their album on Free Dirt Records is a powerful opening statement and “dives deep into the old-time style and comes up with something wonderfully fresh” (Vinyl District). De Groot & Hargreaves create a sound that is adventurous, masterful, and original, as they expand on the eccentricities of old songs, while never losing sight of what makes them endure. The duo not only showcases impressive musicianship, but reflects on which voices we seek to hear as we explore the expansive, diverse canon of American roots music. Their self-titled album released in 2019 was nominated for IBMA Liner Notes of the Year.

Tatiana’s band “Hard Drive” features Sonya Badigian, Aaron Tacke and Nokosee Fields and incorporates a combination of old-time, bluegrass and Texas fiddle repertoire. From brother duets to raging fiddle tunes, Hard Drive brings a sense of deep intuition and silliness to the world that encompasses old-time, country, and bluegrass. The Bluegrass Situation described the band as “a delightful subversion of our expectations of what traditional bluegrass is supposed to be.” See more about Hard Drive on the Projects page or purchase the album on Bandcamp.

Thoughts about their recording:

Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves’s self-titled debut album is a powerful opening statement. To be released March 22, the record not only showcases the duo’s impressive musicianship, but is a reflection on which voices we seek to hear as we explore the expansive, diverse canon of American roots music.

The album’s 13 tracks feature lesser-known American fiddle and banjo songs from African American duo Nathan Frazier & Frank Patterson, centenarian Arkansas fiddler Violet Hensley, bluegrass pioneer Alice Gerrard, contemporary master tunesmith Judy Hyman (The Horse Flies), and more.

Already leaders in the young generation of roots musicians, de Groot has become known for her intricate clawhammer banjo work with Molsky’s Mountain Drifters, while Hargreaves has brought her powerhouse fiddling to the stage with Gillian Welch and Laurie Lewis.

Together they create a sound that is adventurous, masterful, and original, as they expand on the eccentricities of these old songs, while never losing sight of what makes them endure.