Thursday, April 26, 2012

Fiddler Molsky returns to Cornell for workshop

Bruce MolskyCover of Bruce MolskyAcclaimed fiddler Bruce Molsky, who started playing while studying engineering at Cornell University, will return to Ithaca Saturday for a pair of events sponsored by the Cornell Folk Song Society.

At 3 p.m. he'll host an old-time fiddle workshop in the Willard Straight Hall Music Room 411, and at 8 p.m. he'll play a concert at 165 McGraw Hall on the Cornell Arts Quad.

Widely considered the premier old-time fiddler, the Grammy-nominated musician is also outstanding on guitar, banjo and vocals. Molsky is most identified with Appalachian music, but over two decades he's absorbed and transmuted traditional music from many cultures into a unique sound.

Molsky has "a mystical awareness of how to bring out the new in something that is old," says multi-talented violinist, composer and music teacher Mark O'Connor. Whether performing solo or with such greats as Mike Seeger, Liz Carroll & John Doyle, Dirk Powell, Kevin Burke and Bill Frisell, Molsky is equally at home at Lincoln Center, the Smithsonian Folklife Festival and back-porch house concerts.

Concert tickets are $15 in advance and $17 at the door, with a $3 rebate for seniors, Cornell Folk Song Society members and teens. Tickets for Cornell students are $10 in advance and $12 at the door; the concert is free for children ages 12 and younger. Tickets are available at Ithaca Guitar Works, GreenStar Co-op Market, Autumn Leaves Bookstore and Bound for Glory, as well as online at www.cornellfolksong.org. For more information, call (607) 351-1845.

Molsky's fiddle workshop is limited to 25 students; pre-register to reserve a spot by e-mailing Laura Taylor at LBT1@ cornell.edu. The cost of the workshop is $15 for students and $25 for nonstudents, payable at the door. The cost of the workshop plus the concert is $20 for students and $35 for nonstudents.

Fiddler Molsky returns to Cornell for workshop | The Ithaca Journal | theithacajournal.com

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