I saw a notice for a Crooked Still concert the other day, and the photo did not appear to include cellist Rushad Eggleston. I finally got around to checking the Crooked Still web site and found that Rushad is, indeed, leaving Crooked Still, one of my favorite folk/bluegrass/alternative bands, initially because of Rushad. Their last concert with Rushad is November 18 in Northampton, Mass.
Rushad, according to the Boston Herald, has moved to the West Coast, but neither Boston-based Crooked Still nor the newspaper offer additional information. From his MySpace page, it looks like Rushad's and his new group is called the But, Wizards?, with Nico Georis and Gabriel Cazes. Judging from the photos, these two areas wacky as Rushad. I have to admit Rushad can be too wacky for me, but he contributed so much music and personality to Crooked Still.
The future of Crooked Still looks rosy, though, even Rushadless. The band is adding two new members, cellist Tristan Clarridge, 21, and fiddler Brittany Haas, 20, (sister of cellist Natalie Haas). Clarridge plays multiple instruments, won the Grand National Fiddle Champion four times, and has played with Darol Anger's Republic of Strings, as has Haas. Haas is a well-known fiddler who has amazing played with numerous groups. She is also studying ecology and evolutionary biology at Princeton. Impressive, especially for such young'uns!
Showing posts with label Crooked Still. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Crooked Still. Show all posts
Monday, November 12, 2007
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Grey Fox Cellists: Rushad Eggleston
Other than me :-), there will be two cellists that I know of at the Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival: Rushad Eggleston, who plays with Crooked Still and other bands, and Ben Sollee, who plays with Abigail Washburn, Bela Fleck, and Casey Driesen in the Sparrow Quartet. More on Ben Sollee later.
I met Rushad Eggleston at the first Grey Fox festival I went to two years ago. He and a bass player were doing a workshop called the Low and Lonesome Sound. I had already signed up to go to the Maine Fiddle Camp where he was teaching cello, so I went over and introduced myself and my daughter, who also went to the Maine Fiddle Camp with me. This is one of the things I like about Grey Fox: being able to talk to the musicians.
His workshop was outstanding, his cello playing inventive and ear-catching. He has great musical credentials: first string player to receive a full scholarship to Berklee School of Music in Boston (a jazz and rock orientation, and studied with Eugene Friesen, another of my favorite improvisational cellists.) He seemed a little shy.
I missed his performance on the main stage, that year with Darol Anger's Republic of Strings, because I had to do the "instrument petting zoo" in that time slot. But I had him as a teacher for almost a full week at Maine Fiddle Camp with about a dozen other cellists of all levels. He's not shy; he is crazy, and his teaching method is all his own. He yells out rhythms, he jumps around, he tells stories using only funny sound effects with his cello, he sings. He taught accompaniment techniques more than tunes. "What's the point of learning another tune in fiddle camp when you could be learning techniques you can use on all tunes." Makes sense to me.
But, when I took a break from cello to join one of the fiddle groups and suggested I use one of his chops and grooves techniques, the fiddle teacher said "No, his techniques are not suitable for traditional fiddle groups." So I learned another tune on the fiddle instead. And I didn't really try his accompaniment techniques with our fiddle group at home, thinking I would get the same reaction here. (Now I know they would be receptive, but need to work out some accompaniments before plunging in.)
We all had an individual 15-minute lesson with Rushad. He taught me a tune because I wanted him to teach me how to learn by ear. I didn't do all that well. I remember him saying, "It's an A! It's an open A!" when I couldn't tell which note to play next. :-) But, in that 15 minutes I did learn "Cluck Old Hen" and a chord-chopping accompaniment to it. And I have a tape of the lesson.
Rushad was a pied piper among the many kids at camp, being one himself, running around with them, playing games with them. There were faculty concerts every night at fiddle camp, and his improvisational cello playing/accompanying was always a hit. Rushad and his friends also play in Band of Snee, which is Rushad at his craziest, singing fast-paced, complicated lyrics about a Dr. Seuss-like land while playing the cello at a frenetic pace, often with the kids and a few stray adults singing along.
I saw him again at Grey Fox last year, this time playing with Crooked Still, a band I love. They take the old traditional fiddle tunes and infuse new life, rhythm, and jubilation into them. And without a fiddle! Members play cello, banjo, bass, and vocal/guitar. Creative and energetic. He also did a workshop, this time including Aoife O'Donovan, Crooked Still's vocalist.
This year, Crooked Still has two performances, and I am looking forward to hearing them.
I couldn't decide on one YouTube video, so here are three:
A relatively calm "Ecstasy"
An energetic "Mountain Jumper" (a Band of Snee tune)
And an interesting "Come on in My Kitchen" with Rushad on an elevated platform and wearing his more usual wild and crazy clothing.
I met Rushad Eggleston at the first Grey Fox festival I went to two years ago. He and a bass player were doing a workshop called the Low and Lonesome Sound. I had already signed up to go to the Maine Fiddle Camp where he was teaching cello, so I went over and introduced myself and my daughter, who also went to the Maine Fiddle Camp with me. This is one of the things I like about Grey Fox: being able to talk to the musicians.
His workshop was outstanding, his cello playing inventive and ear-catching. He has great musical credentials: first string player to receive a full scholarship to Berklee School of Music in Boston (a jazz and rock orientation, and studied with Eugene Friesen, another of my favorite improvisational cellists.) He seemed a little shy.
I missed his performance on the main stage, that year with Darol Anger's Republic of Strings, because I had to do the "instrument petting zoo" in that time slot. But I had him as a teacher for almost a full week at Maine Fiddle Camp with about a dozen other cellists of all levels. He's not shy; he is crazy, and his teaching method is all his own. He yells out rhythms, he jumps around, he tells stories using only funny sound effects with his cello, he sings. He taught accompaniment techniques more than tunes. "What's the point of learning another tune in fiddle camp when you could be learning techniques you can use on all tunes." Makes sense to me.
But, when I took a break from cello to join one of the fiddle groups and suggested I use one of his chops and grooves techniques, the fiddle teacher said "No, his techniques are not suitable for traditional fiddle groups." So I learned another tune on the fiddle instead. And I didn't really try his accompaniment techniques with our fiddle group at home, thinking I would get the same reaction here. (Now I know they would be receptive, but need to work out some accompaniments before plunging in.)
We all had an individual 15-minute lesson with Rushad. He taught me a tune because I wanted him to teach me how to learn by ear. I didn't do all that well. I remember him saying, "It's an A! It's an open A!" when I couldn't tell which note to play next. :-) But, in that 15 minutes I did learn "Cluck Old Hen" and a chord-chopping accompaniment to it. And I have a tape of the lesson.
Rushad was a pied piper among the many kids at camp, being one himself, running around with them, playing games with them. There were faculty concerts every night at fiddle camp, and his improvisational cello playing/accompanying was always a hit. Rushad and his friends also play in Band of Snee, which is Rushad at his craziest, singing fast-paced, complicated lyrics about a Dr. Seuss-like land while playing the cello at a frenetic pace, often with the kids and a few stray adults singing along.
I saw him again at Grey Fox last year, this time playing with Crooked Still, a band I love. They take the old traditional fiddle tunes and infuse new life, rhythm, and jubilation into them. And without a fiddle! Members play cello, banjo, bass, and vocal/guitar. Creative and energetic. He also did a workshop, this time including Aoife O'Donovan, Crooked Still's vocalist.
This year, Crooked Still has two performances, and I am looking forward to hearing them.
I couldn't decide on one YouTube video, so here are three:
A relatively calm "Ecstasy"
An energetic "Mountain Jumper" (a Band of Snee tune)
And an interesting "Come on in My Kitchen" with Rushad on an elevated platform and wearing his more usual wild and crazy clothing.
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