SOU’WESTER EVENTS!
Discover what’s happening during your next stay or plan a visit around our free live music, workshops, wellness offerings and more!
Matt Dorrien is a songwriter currently living in Portland, Oregon. Having self-released two albums under the moniker Snowblind Traveler, he now looks forward to the premiere of his most personal album to date, which will be released under his own name early next year on the Portland-based label Mama Bird Recording Co. His music has been described as timeless and heartbreaking, and his songs reminiscent of the work of artists like Harry Nilsson, Randy Newman, and Carole King: A tribute to the golden age of songwriting.
This event is free and open to the public
Lorain (formerly Grand Lake Islands) is a recording, performing, and head-clearing project of songwriter Erik Emanuelson and instrumentalists Bob Reynolds, Joseph Anderson, and Robin Bacior.
They play woozy American music. Emanuelson’s expressive tenor, recalling ghosts of Nashville Skyline era Dylan and the late Jason Molina, floats over lush textures and the band’s understated groove.
Having played and toured for years—in New York City, Portland, and throughout the west coast—under the name Grand Lake Islands, Emanuelson, along with current collaborators, Reynolds and Anderson decided to step away and reassess. The band had cultivated a creative chemistry and sound that had drifted significantly from Grand Lake Islands’ ramshackle-folk beginnings. With the addition of Portland musician, Robin Bacior, the change was imminent.
Lorain was conceived around a batch of new songs and the desire to build a project, collectively, from the ground up. These new songs emphasize restraint, relying more on subtlety, texture, and structure than crescendo to hit their mark. Despite this, Emanuelson’s ability to emote has remains intact, if not refined.
This event is free and open to the public.
New Year’s Eve Dance Party All Night Long! Bring in the New Year with dance grooves and moves!
Last person on the dance floor wins a gift certificate for a free weekend stay at The Sou’wester!
Born in Stockton, California and raised in Forest Grove, Oregon, Haley Heynderickx wasn’t brought up in a musical family, but she was keen to try it out after having a dream in which she was the female version of Jimi Hendrix. Being eleven years old and burning with desire to set her guitar on fire, her parents allowed her to take several guitar lessons. However, Forest Grove is a pretty small town and only a bluegrass instructor was available. This experience worked out for the best, bringing Heynderickx an appreciation for country music and acoustic implementations. She gradually found a love of writing and folk music once entering college. Heavily influenced by folk, rock and pop music of the 60s and 70s, Heynderickx’s writing found influence in Dylan, Nick Drake, along with local musicians she began performing with.
Her simultaneous feelings of anxiety and love for the 21st century is captured in her haunting vocals and honest lyrics. Though she has enjoyed performing this as a solo songwriter, she found greater satisfaction in a big band noise through the flair of her bandmates. With Alex Fitch of Typhoon on drums, and Lily Breshears of Big Haunt and Sheers on bass and backup vocals, Heynderickx’s subtle softness reaches greater capacities of emotion and longing with the amplification of instruments and energy. This band is young, attentive, and excited to explore their musical horizons.
Unsure of her genre, she jokingly refers to their noise as ‘doom folk,’ but will happily let you decide for yourself if you give it a listen.
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Traveling, creating, and sharing original live music are a few essential ingredients for the enrichment of humanity. Norman Baker and his band play homage to this fact by introducing new and old songs to as many communities as possible. Their new album utilizes undertones of pedal steel, mandolin, banjo, upright bass, clarinet, and of course an onslaught of acoustic and electric guitars telling stories of loss, loss prevention, camping, driving without cell phones, childlike innocence, home towns, and walking till your shoes wear through.
Baker’s respect of family values, roots, and tradition is evident throughout his music. His debut release, “The Art of Not Knowing,” features his mother on fiddle, father on keys, uncle on drums, himself on many other instruments, in addition to several other Seattle musical stalwarts. The artwork for his newest release, “Present Day,” features a series of photos from a 1970 house concert of his pops performing, his mom in attendance, and cops busting the party.
Norman was 13 the first time he performed on stage with fellow Backroads band mate Michael Muir. They sang and played Beatles and CCR while sitting in with the band their dads were in together. Twenty years later their harmonies and guitar work continue to weave seamlessly through timeless original rootsy compositions. Muir’s Clapton and Allman tinged guitar approach meshed with Baker’s Doc Watson meets Neil Young influences prove to be a great combo as the band continues tacking on the miles around the Western US.
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In 2009, Blake, a singer/songwriter in Portland, OR- released a series of music videos on
YouTube, songs that were written using a formula based on mathematical constants. His “What
Pi Sounds Like” music video went viral with millions of views and was featured by NPR’s
Morning Edition, CNN, NBC, FOX, as well as online sites Reddit, Collegehumor, IFLScience,
Gizmodo, Yahoo! and many others.
Blake is now focusing his attention on non-math related compositions as he prepares to release
a brand new full length album entitled, “Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom.” About the album Blake
states, “These songs represent a new beginning for me as a songwriter. I’m exploring musical
territories previously unknown to me, and lyrically my feelings of inadequacy and fear have
never been more honestly expressed.
“Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom” is being released on CD and 12” vinyl and is a result of Blake’s
recent successful Kickstarter campaign. It features 10 songs, the lion’s share being recorded in
Blake’s home studio in Portland, Or. Blending acoustic based indie folk with carefully edited field
recordings and touches of orchestral elements, Blake strikes a delicate balance between lush
acoustic minimalism and a densely curated collage.
This event is free and open to the public.
Drawing from diverse influences ranging from John Hartford, Joanna Newsom, Pete Seeger, Jim Henson, and Townes Van Zandt, Hollis Peach weaves evocative, mischievous and deeply personal stories in the American vernacular of song and story. This unassuming, yet highly original duo is currently touring in promotion of their debut release, “Sometimes We Feel the Same”. Founding members of the rootsy folk orchestra Patchy Sanders, songwriter and guitarist, Dan Sherrill along with his singing partner, Jacqui Aubert, create a finely nuanced musical pairing.
Though deceptively simple, their musical arrangements and harmonies are lush, intricate, and often hypnotic in their elegance. Kenneth Pattengale, of the Grammy-nominated The Milk Carton Kids, describes Dan as, “…a monster guitar player.” And this is true, as Dan’s phrasing comes out in the cleverest and subtlest of ways. When all is said and done, Hollis Peach’s music is a powerhouse of subtle gestures and graceful storytelling.
This event is free and open to the public.
Baptist Arms create a dystopian gothic folk landscape with spare instrumentation and evocative harmonies.
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Anna Fritz is a cello-wielding activist folksinger who plays songs that crack you open and heal you. She creates a musical alchemy of cello and voice, strumming the cello like a guitar and playing beautiful melodies with the bow as she sings. Her songs boldly dig into themes of colonization, climate change, racial justice, gender, spirituality, and connection to the natural world. Like the great folksingers of previous generations, Anna is a catalyst for people to sing together. Her songs are infectious and easy to learn, imbued with a sense of timelessness as if they’ve been sung for generations. Her disarming, gentle nature and powerful presence gets unlikely crowds of people singing together from town halls to night clubs.
Listeners will find plenty of rockstar cred in this folksinger’s past. Anna Fritz is a sought after cellist with a 15 year tenure spanning the world of classical music and Portland, Oregon’s indie rock scene. She toured nationally with Portland Cello Project for seven years and can be heard on albums from My Morning Jacket, Band of Horses, The Decemberists, Dirty Projectors, and case/lang/veirs. As a solo artist, Anna Fritz has independently released three albums and performed for audiences in more than 50 venues in seven states.
This event is free and open to the public.
Readings by Martha Grover, July Westhale, Lizzy Acker, & Hajara Quinn with Music by “The Morals”!
This event is free and open to the public.
Espacio Flamenco Company is the professional performance group based out of Espacio Flamenco Studio. Dedicated to sharing Flamenco art in Portland, OR, the company produces regular performances throughout the year with a focus on musical integrity and artistic development.
This event is free and open to the public
www.espacioflamencopdx.com
Workshop Series at The Sou’wester
Creative Songwriting, Arranging and Rhythm: Tell Your Story through Song with Katie Sawicki & Zanny Geffel
Portland based, orchestral-rock band, The Cabin Project – Katie Sawicki and Zanny Geffel combine freewrite, lyric exploration, and song arrangement into a workshop offering. Learn how to compose your own musical story in collaboration or independently. Over the course of 7 years, this duo has built a methodology for songwriting, which will be discussed. Specifically, the interplay of rhythm and lyric cadence, to compose melodies that are moving and dynamic. Explore communicating timeless themes such as love, justice, loss, and other life journeys. In addition, Zanny will introduce hand drumming and rhythm circle techniques, as a way to transcend one’s conscious practice, through contemplative improvisation.
Katie Sawicki provides individualized, strategic, support to organizations, coalitions, and community groups seeking to advance racial justice work. This includes policy, research and advocacy; and organizational development that centers on communities most impacted by economic and health inequities. She currently provides support to Oregon Health Equity Alliance (OHEA), MRG Foundation, The Rebuilding Center, Unite Oregon, NAACP – Past clients also include ACLU of Oregon, Women’s Foundation of Oregon. She moonlights as The Cabin Project’s lead-singer, a project that was formed in 2009, after touring the country for 10 years as a solo artist. thecabinproject.com
Zanny Geffel has a B.A. in classical percussion from Biola University. She plays drum set, classical percussion, marimba, cajon and various Latin and African percussion instruments; specializing in classical, rock, jazz, and musical theater. She performs regularly with The Cabin Project, Skull Diver and various bands and theater companies throughout Portland, OR. Zanny is a sensitive and thoughtful performer, recording artist and instructor, utilizing the many different classical techniques and rhythms from around the world. Merging many styles and influences, her lessons emphasize rhythm theory, articulation, musical feels and contemplation through drumming. zannydrums.weebly.com
COST: $40
BRING: Pen/Notebook, guitar and/or hand drum/percussion instrument (if you have one or would like to bring). No instruments are required, we will provide instruments to those who don’t have one. Any lyrics/poem drafts you’d like to share. Please bring a sack lunch and/or snack (hot tea and coffee provided).
All workshops are open to the public.
All Skill Levels Welcome.
This workshop is for students age 14 and up.
RSVP via souwesterfrontdesk@gmail.com or 360-642-2542
(All are invited to an evening of music with these instructors later in the day from 8pm-10pm in the Sou’wester Lodge. Free and open to the public. Visit www.souwesterlodge.com/calendar for TBA details.)
The Sou’wester Lodge at 3728 J Place, Seaview, WA 98644
This class is part of the Fall & Winter 2017/2018 Workshop Series at The Sou’wester. Visit www.souwesterlodge.com/calendar to see the entire schedule of more than 28 artist-led workshops.
Vradiazei, plays dark, metal influenced folk music on acoustic instruments. “The realization that the darkest days are yet to come inspired us to abandon the use of electricity in our music. We express the anguish of the past, the desperation of the present, and the uncertainty of the future without it. When the world is left in ruin our sound will echo in the empty streets.”
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Born in an attic “cabin” studio lined with Douglas Fir, The Cabin Project began as a solo act project started by Katie Sawicki, a former-folksinger from Brooklyn who became inspired by electric guitars, keys, synthesizers, and balancing all three onstage. After moving to the Pacific Northwest in 2008, Sawicki sought out sound rooted in the intimacy of folk, and the arrangements of orchestral rock. While she typically collaborates with her full-time band of percussion, strings, and bass, the solo Cabin Project builds this community of influences and collaborations and cultivates a sound that chimes earnest, reverent, and full of warmth. Her most recent record, released with the Cabin Project, Unfolded, is self-described as, “an album about despair, loss, hope, freedom, heartache, justice and love.”