Noam Pikelny & Friends at Stage One 07.03.12

Part Two of my Fairfield Theatre Company shoots: Noam Pikelny and Friends. This concert was the reason behind the whole assignment. I'd see the Punch Brothers at Town Hall and Clearwater Festival and I was dying to get a real camera in to take pictures. I was absolutely blown away by their combined talent as a band, and each member is a virtuoso on their own. Noam, or "Pickles" as his band mates call him, is one of the most talented banjo players that has ever lived. What's most impressive to me is how effortless he makes it look.

I know bluegrass isn't for everyone. I have an irrational fondness for banjos, but I'm not alone in this. When I talk to other people my age, they say the same thing. While I'm still contemplating this topic for another post, I have an idea of who's responsible:

When the Punch Brothers aren't touring as a unit, they break off into their side projects and play smaller venues. Guitarist Chris "Critter" Eldridge plays with Pikelny while Gabe Witcher plays with Chris Thile. I was much more relaxed the second time heading into Stage One. The lighting was more even, so I was able to dial down my ISO to 12,000.

One of the things I love about these musicians is how smoothly they play off of one another. Each member will watch the soloist intensely and add to it.

There were more than a few moments where Pickles grinned on stage. He's usually so serious and stoic.

Critter appreciating the round of applause during his solo. I was in awe of his skills on guitar. Few people can rock that hard at all, let alone on acoustic guitar.

Folk singer Aofie O'Donovan came out to sing a few songs with the guys.

It was a very different audience at the Tuesday night show. Stage One was packed, but everyone remained seated for the show. It was much easier for me to get clear shots. Stage One doesn't have a designated area for photographers besides aisles and the stadium seating doesn't give much of a height advantage.

Pickles' deep bass voice addressed the crowd multiple times throughout the night. Although the band leader, he doesn't sing. I caught a couple of big smiles as the guys bantered back and forth.

This shot was the one we used for the paper and one of my favorites of the night. I think it captures his effortless talent.

The next series literally cracked me up. If you've seen the Punch Brothers play before, you'll know that mandolinist Chris Thile makes all sorts of faces and bounces around the stage when he plays. I can't say for certain if that's what these faces are about, but it was a great moment of interaction.

 

The last shot is up there for one of my favorites that I've taken this year. I love being able to photograph moments like this.

Critter and Aofie shared lead vocals in a song. Although he sings back up in the Punch Brothers, I'm going to start a campaign for him to get lead vocals on at least one track on their next album.

Similar to the show at Town Hall, the band unplugged and stepped off the stage for the final song of the night, an Earl Scruggs cover. I quickly changed to my fastest lens and highest ISO because the only light on them was from the stage, behind them. Yes, the Canon 5D Mark III can shoot in the dark. Such an amazing camera! I was thrilled to be able to capture these images, still without a distracting flash. You can really see how small Stage One is.

Another one of my favorites.

And of course, Noam's shoes.

I had an absolute blast at this show. My musical tastes cover quite a lot of styles, but I think what I am drawn to more than anything is the amount of passion the musicians have. I hope that comes through in the pictures.

Photo of the Week: Week 27

It's moments like this where I can say without a doubt that I love my job. Noam and Chris were making faces at each other during their solos which resulted in this shot: just a couple of musicians having fun.

Noam Pikelny Teaser

I had an absolute blast last night, covering Noam Pikelny and Friends. It's killing me not being able to share those pictures with you just yet. The story prints on Thursday of next week and then there will be a staggering amount of concert pictures.

Stay tuned!

Clearwater Festival 06.16.12

The day after Keane, I attended the Clearwater Festival. It was my first festival experience. My main concerns were that it would be so crowded I wouldn't be able to get anywhere near the stage and that the sound would be horrible. Both of these fears were quickly assuaged. Although there were a lot of people, there was plenty to do and tons of space to do it. Everywhere you looked, there were people jamming, picking banjos, I even saw some kind of tin homemade guitar thing. There were plenty of activities for kids: sing alongs, bubble pools, giant chalk boards, an instrument "petting zoo" where everyone could experiment. There were shops selling art and locally made food. It was a really neat experience I was able to share with my brother, sister-in-law and niece.

I had to stop to take a picture of the dot art on these didgeridoos; flashbacks to my senior year of Art History.

We set up our blanket under the gorgeous willow tree by the Rainbow Stage. It didn't provide a whole lot of shade and I ended up with a nasty sunburn. I really need to follow the directions and reapply...

Grace modeling her mom's sunglasses.

I was excited to see the Punch Brothers perform again. I only brought along my point and shoot because the website for the festival said no SLRs were allowed. Foolishly, I followed the rules when almost everyone else there had an SLR. I would've loved to have tested out my new camera here. Bummer, but I pressed on anyway.

We were set up on the top of the hill, but I had to move closer for a few songs. How could I pass up another opportunity to shoot The Punch Brothers?

I'm trying to get better about shooting video. Here, Gabe Witcher is featured on vocals during the Levon Helm cover of Ophelia.

Critter singing!

Chris Thile rocking out on mandolin. Even after seeing him a couple months ago, I'm still blown away by his talent.

Apparently, you get better seats if you have a hover round. The group to the right of the stage was a little dance area. There was a roped off path right along side of the stage that I found enough of a space to stay for a few songs. I took it as a practice run for the potential "Three and Done" songs that concert photographers get at live shows.

The boys jamming.

This was the view from our spot, right under the willow tree. I was highly impressed with the sound at the festival. I didn't expect it to be so clear, especially for this kind of instrumentation, but Clearwater really knows what's going on.

And of course, out of the thousands of people there, Grace was featured. She is the most photogenic kid in the world; I'll take credit for teaching her that!

My final thoughts on a festival: I enjoyed the experience. It was really neat to be able to dance along with Grace to Rye Whiskey. Maybe it was too much to go to back to back concerts and fully appreciate them both. I think I'd rather stick to seeing a band play a full set alone, rather than see a bunch rush through a few songs. Don't get me wrong, I had a blast, but I just don't think festivals are my thing.