Bearfoot bluegrass music opens concert series

Staff Reports

The Carson Valley Arts Council kicks off its fourth annual concert series with Americana/bluegrass band Bearfoot, 7 p.m. Friday, at the CVIC Hall, 1602 Esmeralda Ave., in Minden.

Bearfoot offers uplifting bluegrass ballads and foot-stomping tunes. The Alaska band began 10 years ago as a group of camp counselors who went on to win the Telluride Festival band contest in 2001. The band is Kate Hamre on acoustic bass, Mike Mickelson on guitar, Jason Norris on mandolin, Angela Oudean on fiddle, and newest member Odessa Jorgensen on vocals and fiddle.

The musicians have become favorites at Wintergrass, Grey Fox, RockyGrass and the Strawberry Bluegrass Festival.

"We wrangled some support from (families and friends) in the form of mileage and airline tickets," said Norris. "People wanted to see us succeed and travel. Very few bands in Alaska, particularly young bands, get the opportunity to do that so the community was excited about it and jumped onboard with us."

Norris describes their music as Americana, but said they haven't abandoned their bluegrass roots.

"Even if it's not a bluegrass song, it's not too hard to see where it all came from," Norris said. "You can definitely tell that we play bluegrass by how we structure our phrasing, our instruments, and how our harmonies are set up."

Doors open at 6 p.m. with a no host-bar and hors d'oeuvres. Tickets sold at the door at $20 for nonmembers, $17 for members.

Season tickets for the concert series will be available for $80 until Oct. 23. Upcoming concerts are Lisa Dawn Miller on Dec. 3, Fishtank Ensemble on Jan. 22, Great Basin Brass on Feb. 12 and Houston Jones Band on March 13.

Sponsorships available. Information at 781-0150 or www.cvartscouncil.com