The Barns at Wolf Trap announce upcoming performances. Multiplatinum rock, fiery zydeco, historic Folk, and chamber music of the highest precision at Wolf Trap throughout five consecutive days.
Buckwheat Zydeco
G
General Admission Dance
Wednesday, February 29 at 8 p.m.
$24
A Wolf Trap favorite for many years with a reputation as an incendiary live performer, Buckwheat Zydeco returns to The Barns featuring selections from his 2009 GRAMMY-nominated release for Best Zydeco or Cajun album, Lay Your Burden Down. This latest record is viewed as the most ambitious and varied recording of Zydeco’s career, featuring five new originals plus several re-imaginings of tunes by Memphis Minnie, Bruce Springsteen, Gov’t Mule, and Jimmy Cliff. Guests on the album include Sonny Landreth, Warren Haynes, Steve Berlin, JJ Grey, and Trombone Shorty. Led by front man Stanley “Buckwheat” Dural—a multi-instrumentalist in command of organ, piano, accordion, and keyboards—each concert infuses the energetic party music of traditional zydeco with Dural’s own brand of urbanized soul, R&B, and blues. A three-time GRAMMY nominee, the New York Times dubbed Buckwheat Zydeco as “one of the best party bands in America” in 2008.
Peter Yarrow
of Peter, Paul & Mary
with Special Guest Mustard’s Retreat
Thursday, March 1 at 8 p.m.
$25
For the first time since 2006, Peter Yarrow—of the iconic folk trio Peter, Paul & Mary—brings a small piece of the 1960s folk renaissance to The Barns at Wolf Trap. No stranger to the D.C. area, Yarrow is remembered very publicly for his contributions to the Civil Rights Movement, which brought Peter, Paul & Mary to Washington in 1963 to sing for the historic march led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Aside from his work as a recording artist—which has garnered several gold and platinum-selling albums and GRAMMY awards—Yarrow is a public champion for the issues of human rights, early childhood education, and the nurturing of aspiring songwriters. In 1962 he became a founding board member of the Newport Folk Festival, shortly thereafter hosting a special concert dedicated to emerging folk performers and songwriters. This intimate evening at The Barns will feature several of the most influential and moving folk songs on record, including “Puff, the Magic Dragon,” “Day is Done,” “Light One Candle,” and “The Great Mandala.”
Video: Peter Yarrow – “Puff, the Magic Dragon”
Jerusalem String Quartet
The Discovery Series
Friday, March 2 at 8 p.m.
$35
Pronounced by leading classical magazine The Strad as “one of the young, yet great quartets of our time,” the all-male Jerusalem String Quartet arrives at The Barns for what is gearing up to be a passionate yet technically precise Wolf Trap debut performance. Formed while its members were matriculated at the Jerusalem Conservatory of Music and Dance, their playing style largely mirrors Russian/central European traditions, with a focus on Haydn, Shostakovich, and Brahms, among many others. Already highly decorated musicians for a quartet barely into their 30s, the group boasts an ECHO Classic chamber music award, the BBC’s top selection in the chamber music category during its 2010 award ceremony, and the inaugural Boreltti-Buitoni Trust award in 2003.
Buskin & Batteau
Saturday, March 3 at 7:30 p.m.
$22
After back-to-back performances in 2010 and 2011, Buskin & Batteau are set to perform another highly anticipated show at The Barns in continued support of their 2009 album, Red Shoes and Golden Hearts. The pair is currently working on a new record and will share several brand new tracks during this gig. This folk duo has been called “irresistible” and “an amalgam of melodic sensual pop, folkie grit, and killer wit” by The Washington Post David Buskin and Robin Batteau got their start when folk legend Tom Rush asked both to play in his backup band. They have gone on to conjure a wide range of emotions in their audiences, with songs that evoke light-hearted amusement from “ESPN,” the pun-filled “Death in Venice” or a gentle sense of loss expressed by their beautiful ballad for the late Kate Wolf, “Never Cry Wolf.”
As professional jingle writers in their spare time, Buskin & Batteau's voices and tunes have been heard in almost every American household. They've had us listening “to the heartbeat of America,” living “in a Burger King Town,” and climbing “all aboard Amtrak.” Buskin & Batteau combine talent, humor, and showmanship with the element of surprise to produce a crowd-pleasing performance.
