Dixon resident Matt Dudman (second from left) plays mandolin, Davis resident George Kudel (second from right) plays banjo, and the Bluegrass Ensemble of Matt & George and the Pleasant Valley Boys will perform at the Vacaville Museum on Friday. (Photo provided by Vacaville Museum)
Bluegrass is somewhere between traditional blues and country. Bluegrass is Southern string band music characterized by bluesy harmonies, fast tempos, and high-pitched vocal and instrumental sounds.
In the 1940s, one of its inventors, Bill Monroe, called it “a high, lonely sound.”
That sound will be heard Friday night at the Vacaville Museum. There, the Music in the Museum series continues with local bluegrass ensemble Matt & George and their Pleasant Valley Boys (spoiler alert: they're not all boys).
In a brief phone interview Tuesday, mandolin player Matt Dudman said the appeal of bluegrass is its all-American authenticity.
“From the top of my head, I think it's about the purity of acoustic music in general and creating something truly beautiful,” said Dudman, 56, a recording engineer from Dixon.
“We play acoustic instruments and sing,” he added. “This is real American music. It was invented right here in America.”
Dudman, who teaches recording at Solano Community College, said the ensemble has been formed for 18 years, using the traditional method of performing with a single microphone.
Other members include George Goodell, 69, of Davis, on banjo; Jenny Lynn Williams (45), Dudman's wife, guitar. Woodland resident Mark “Cousin Rainwater” Eagleton (50) plays bass. And — Dudman said, “helped out” with Friday’s show — Stockton resident Shane Kullback was on fiddle. And everyone shares vocal duties.
Explaining how Eagleton received his nickname, he said, “It was a combination of the names of famous bluegrass bassists.”
Dudman and other members host weddings, corporate events and parties throughout Northern California, including regular appearances at the Dixon Rumtown Festival and the Grass Valley Father's Day Festival.
The Pleasant Valley Boys have appeared on ABC affiliate KXTV in Sacramento, the International Bluegrass Music Association's Fun Fest in Kentucky, the Abita Opry in Louisiana, and the International Bluegrass Music Museum's River of Music in Kentucky.・I also played at the party. They also brought bluegrass to other countries such as France and Vietnam.
Dudman taught business classes with his wife Jenny in Hai Phong in northern Vietnam, and of course played music, he said.
A YouTube video on the group's website (www.pleasantvalleyboys.com) provides a glimpse of the band's instrumental and vocal styles in their performance of four gospel songs. “A Voice From On High'', “To a Cross on a Lonely Dark Hill'', “To a Cross on a Lonely Dark Hill'', “Feel it in your Soul'', “I'm on a Journey''.
Sarah Olsen-Menon, director of the Back Avenue Museum, a historic center for Solano County, praised the group's abilities in a press statement, saying audiences were treated to a “fast-paced, entertaining musical show” like no other. He added that there is hope. Solano area.
“Their passion for bluegrass music aligns perfectly with our commitment to celebrating cultural heritage and artistic expression,” she said.
Olsen-Menon said the concert is part of the museum's continued efforts to promote community engagement and appreciation of the arts. Before and after the show, attendees will have the opportunity to enjoy museum exhibits and explore Solano County's history, she added in a prepared statement.
For all to see, the evening will be filled with expert musical talent, tight harmonies, and captivating bluegrass arrangements, including Olsen-Menon's performance.
And like all bluegrass and the so-called “mountain music” of Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys, the sound of Matt & George and the Pleasant Valley Boys defied everything modern and high-tech. and has nothing to do with our 21st. -The disposable culture of the century.
- if you go
what: “Music in the Museum” series
and: Matt and George and the Pleasant Valley Boys
when: Friday 7pm
where: Vacaville Museum,
213 Back Avenue
ticket: $35
online: www.vacavillemuseum.org
phone: (707) 447-4513