"The
music Huebner made with banjo-player Sharon Martinson sounded as
gentle, humble and organic as you would expect from a band with such a
name. They are aptly compared to Gillian Welch and David Rawlings. Both
Huebner and Martinson are superb players with an instinctive command of
timing. Their voices are tuneful in that Harry Smith Anthology kind of
way; while their songs are close cousins to bluegrass music, the cello
gives Aaron Copland-esque weight to the skittering banjo sound and
envelopes it in a fluidity rare in traditional folk."
- Linda
Ray, Tucson Weekly, Dec. 2011
"With a background in classical
music, the Littlest Birds offer a decidedly sophisticated brand of folk
music. But the California-based cello and banjo duo is hardly stuffy.
Think instrumental virtuosity balanced by a breezy, backwoods soul,
music that is both intellectually stimulating and emotionally
soothing." -Seven Days,
Vermont's Independent Voice, Oct. 2011
"...a
lovely sound that embraces listeners simultaneously with the familiar
and the new." -Folk Alley Newsletter, August,
2011
The
Littlest Birds are a
touring cello and banjo duo that are establishing themselves on a
national scale as folk and old time music
artists. Coming from a small mountain town in the Eastern
Sierra of California, they've been reaching out on long tours, playing
35 shows across 10 Western States in 2010, and this past
Fall 2011,
traveling around
the entire country playing 53 shows across 16 states including several
concert series and national radio programs. To date, they've
performed more than 150 shows together in less than two years and not
missed a single engagement.
Both classically trained musicians, (Dave
on the Cello and Sharon on the French Horn before she took up the
banjo), they bring an excellent
feel to the music, combined with a fantastic energy and
sound. Truly the marriage of the two best instruments ever
made.
You'll find music to dance to, music to relax to,
music
to holler along with, and music that may even make you cry with it's
beauty and tenderness. The warmth and depth of sound created
by
the cello and banjo arrangement will surprise and delight you as it
blends with their smooth vocal harmonies.
We also recommend viewing "Reuben's
Train" and "Lost in This Canyon"
from the same afternoon at Lake Mary along Donner Summit. Special
Thanks to Zander Riggs for filming our lil' backporch jam. Also check
out our past webcasts, and motion pictures page for more.
FREE MUSIC - 11/8/2011 we performed on the
legendary radio program The Blue Plate Special on
WDVX in Knoxville, Tennessee. Listen/Download
11/9/2011 we performed on the internet broadcasting
program 11 O'Clock Rock in Knoxville, Tennessee, and
the entire program can be viewed at the station's website
http://www.knoxivi.com/eleven_o_clock_rock,
just scroll back through their programs till you get to our cute lil'
picture (they're archive by date 11/9/11) or you can view selected
clips on our Motion/Pictures page.
Sound
Reinforcement:
We tour with a small PA, and a variety of microphones, stands, and
cables to accomodate different sound reinforcement environments.
We are also very comfortable with un-amplified acoustic
performances in small spaces, house concerts, or outdoor weddings.
David
Huebner, cello - David
spent his entire childhood studying classical cello, beginning at the
age of 7. In 8th grade he was accepted to Crossroads School
for
Arts and Sciences on a music scholarship. Years of music
competitions, performing in and with orchestras (youngest member of The
Debut Orchestra) and chamber groups, a trip to perform at The White
House with the Crossroads Chamber Orchestra, and even being principal
cellist for two Disney Channel TV broadcasts of the Disney Young
Musicians Symphony Orchestra, one of which was at the Ambassador
Auditorium, and the other at the Hollywood Bowl.
The accolades piled up and weighed down on him until, at the
age
of 17, and considered one of the best cellists for his age, he gave it
up entirely to pursue a life in the mountains of the Sierra Nevada of
California. He has a rebellious spirit to say the least.
For awhile thereafter his life mostly consisted of adventure --
backpacking or ski touring for long periods of time, travels to Baja,
Mexico for months of surfing, and three winters spent caretaking a
resort completely snowed-in eight months out of the year. Think Walden
blended with a dash of The Shining. It was during
those three winters that he rediscovered music in his own way, learning
to play the guitar and beginning to write his own songs. The
songwriting inspiration exploded and he has since recorded 22 official
tracks spread over two solo CDs (Dave's Solo
Folk'n Cello Experiement, on iTunes),
and has performed and recorded several others with a variety of local
bands.
About three years ago he brought the cello back out of the closet and
discovered that he could jam and have fun playing bluegrass and rock'n
roll, and all of this has turned him into a very busy performer in his
small town of Mammoth Lakes, California. In just a few years he's
helped form multiple bands, two of which (Old
Coyote Moon and Sweetwater String Band) have
performed at all the major area venues including the main stage at one
of the more prestigious festivals in California, The
Millpond Music Festival in Bishop, CA. He has also
had the chance to "sit-in" and perform with such bands as The Trespassers,
The
String Slingers, The
Brothers Comatose, and City Folk.
David first met Sharon Martinson at their friend Marshall’s
cabin in the
woods, jamming with several other area musicians. Her first response
upon hearing him sing an original song was, “I want to sing
with
you.” It took a couple years for timing and circumstance to
provide, but they have been performing steadily now as The Littlest
Birds for going on two years, building their fan base and inspiring
audiences at every show. And as Sharon noticed some two years
ago, their voices blend
together beautifully.
Probably one of the better cellists you will ever get to see and
hear, with a pile of quality original songs in a variety of
styles, complemented by a unique and powerful voice, David is certain
to become a well known musician in the coming years. He has
been
performing almost exclusively in a small, remote area of California,
and is only now beginning to tour and perform around the country.
He is also a professional photographer and published writer.
Visit his personal website hub at http://www.backofbeyond.org
Sharon
Martinson, banjo - Hailing
from the mountains of Wyoming,
Sharon has over 20 years of classical performances and competitions on
the French horn under her belt. No one would suspect that a gift from
her grandfather would twist her musical path. The old banjo sat for
years under her bed in a cardboard box while she pursued her graduate
degree. It wasn’t until the last year of her PhD that she
heard clawhammer banjo (thank you Bruce Molskey) and was inspired to
pick up the instrument and start teaching herself a few songs. At the
suggestion of Ken Perlman, she met with Carolyn Parrot in NH and began
to learn frailing techniques and old-time tunes.
Sharon completed her
dissertation and left Dartmouth in 2007 to work in Corvallis, OR on a
climate change project. Carolyn put Sharon in touch with musician
friends, including Seth Kimmel, in Eugene, OR, who turned out to be not
only a friend, but also an excellent luthier. At one point, when
Sharon’s banjo was in the shop (“grandpa”
is a late 1800’s Washburn banjo), she borrowed a fretless
banjo that Seth had made. Later, Sharon and Seth designed a fretless
banjo made only of maple, rosewood & copper. In November 2008,
‘fretless’ was finished; fretless is now
Sharon’s preferred banjo for double-D tuning.
Sharon moved to Mammoth Lakes, California in 2008 to continue research
through UC, Santa Cruz, living part-time on the coast, and part time in
the mountains. It was summer 2008 when she met David Huebner, as well
as other musicians in Mammoth Lakes and began performing as a guest
with several local bands. During 2008/2009 Sharon played with the
Rolling Cultivators (UCSC farm band), and began to play regularly with
Kathy Hilimire (fiddle). Sharon and Kathy (Sittin’on the
Fence) have played weekly for the last three years for the Farmers
Market
in Mammoth Lakes. Sharon was also an original member of the Santa Cruz
group, Fretless, which played an eclectic mix of
Turkish-Sephardic-Arabic music. In early 2009 in Santa Cruz, Sharon met
and became close friends with Luke Abbott, who also influenced her
old-time style, and was instrumental in convincing Sharon to sing.
At a
Tim Eriksen concert in January 2010 Sharon met and befriended Josh
Michael, who introduced Sharon to both Paul Hostetter and Jody Stecher,
the former who worked extensively on the old Washburn banjo, and the
later who became and is currently Sharon’s music mentor and
teacher. A fateful February tonsillectomy left Sharon at home with time
to play her banjos (no singing) and an extended visit from her mountain
friend, David Huebner (who was staying with Sharon to enjoy some epic
surfing). Sharon and Dave played music together and set the
foundational stones for what would become a tight, lasting musical
relationship. Sharon’s unique frailing allows the
banjo’s melodic, sometimes haunting nature to dance between
harmonics from David’s cello, and together, their voices
blend with chilling and inspiring clarity.
Thanks
For Visiting!
copyright - 2011 - all rights reserved
Migrations - new!
Debut
