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Musical Background

I have a long musical history, starting with classical piano as a child. I took up folk guitar in college, and then banjo and fiddle during the folk revival of the 60's. I was inspired by the Berkeley Folk Music Festival which took place during that era and which brought to the West Coast some of the great traditional musicians of the 20th Century, such as Tommy Jarrell, Roscoe Holcomb, Mississippi John Hurt, Sam and Kirk McGee and countless others.

In the 70s and 80s I made several pilgrimages to the East Coast and Appalachians and visited the homes of Tommy Jarrell, Franklin George, Burl Hammons, Oscar Wright and other great American musicians. I attended Fox Hollow, Philadelphia Folk Festival, Festival of the Smokies, Pipestem, Galax, and other East Coast hotbeds of bluegrass and old-timey music.

Back home I did occasional solo performing and also played with music friends such as Jim Newberry and Greg and Jere Canote until they deserted the Bay Area for Seattle.

Around 1975 I became involved with my good friend Peter Tommerup in a seasonal Christmas and New Year's production ("The Holly and the Ivy") involving beautiful but little known songs of the the British Isles. For this production I took up accordion, a very popular instrument in the British Isles and on the Continent. We sang songs in 4 part harmony and did a traditional Mummer's Play involving a sword dance. The musical part of this performance was recently revived at the Blue Rock Shoot Cafe in Saratoga.

This period was followed by many trips to France and attendance at some great French folk music and dance festivals, such as Grand Bal de l'Europe, Rencontre Internationale de l'Accordeon Diatonique, and Rencontre des Luthiers at St. Chartiers. Intensive studying of French music and dance led me further into accordion playing, hurdy-gurdy and French cornemuse (bagpipes).

Please call  (650) 493-0693 for rates and information, or email: gary@gybmusic.com