“Amazing!” Five times I heard this word, during intermission and on the way down the stairs at the Wheeler Opera House. Abigail Washburn and the Sparrow Quartet were truly amazing, and more.
The Quartet is an episodic grouping of virtuoso performers spanning multiple categories. Bela Fleck, recognized as a modern banjoist without peer, provides the marquee name. But as the group’s title implies, it is Ms. Washburn who sets the musical tone. Still (barely) under 30, she brings a host of musical influences to this grouping – Christian, folk, bluegrass, 1930’s gospel, Chinese popular song, smoky jazz chanteuse, even some rock tinges.
The Sparrow Quartet recalls the “supergroups” of rock’s heyday, in the 60s and 70s. Cream and CSNY are prime examples. Aggregations of master musicians and songwriters, they were meant to be greater than the sum of their legendary parts, but in most cases just served as showcases for the individual talents, with little melding or exponential performance.
This group features maestros of the cello, fiddle, and banjo. Fleck, of course, is generally recognized as the world’s premier banjo artist. He is what you might get if you merged Earl Scruggs and Andres Segovia. Fleck, like Segovia, has single handedly popularized the genre of classical banjo. But he is equally adept and adored as a master of traditional and modern bluegrass, jazz, and even African, or World, banjo music.
Ben Sollee, the cellist, and Casey Driessan, on five-string violin, are both prodigies. Sollee, at 25, shows the result of both in depth classical training, and years spent in his family’s country and rock roots. Driessen, based in Nashville, is a premier sideman for bluegrass and country artists of all stripes. Steve Earle taped him at age 20 for one of his traditional projects; Bela Fleck asked him to join his bluegrass tour in 2007.
Abigail Washburn may be best known for her work with the all-girl bluegrass band “Uncle Earl”. But her influences clearly stretch far beyond traditional Appalachian Scots-Irish roots music. She was an East Asian scholar at Colorado College, and speaks Chinese fluently. She immersed herself in obscure gospel recordings from the 30’s, and other “found artists” who exist only from faded tapes made decades ago. And, she’s not above borrowing from the Beatles, Tom Waits, or Allison Krauss. Her haunting whispery strains recall the Cowboy Junkies’ Margo Timmins. But then she vaults into a trembling falsetto, or belts with the ease of Heart’s Ann Wilson. And then she plops a set of Chinese lyrics into a tune which defies description, although elements of traditional Chinese music, bluegrass, and experimental jazz fusion all appear, fed by the discipline of the classical roots all four quartet members possess.
All this would sound dry and esoteric, were it not for the Quartet’s commitment to both professionalism, and leaps into artistic beauty. They are not into the melding of influences and shattering of conventions for academic interest. Rather, they possess a clear musical vision, which extends beyond all the genres they encompass. They hear and feel their music, and want so much to share it, that they insist on tight performance, swelling emotively or playing softly as needed.
Fleck’s virtuoso precision, Sollee’s searing harmonies, Driessen’s foot stomping fiddle, and Washburn’s gentle, eerie, and liquid vocals are all displayed not as individual prowess, but as a fluid and tightly controlled venture into a unique musical place. They are not without their playful sides, though. Smiles, banter with the audience, and use of both the violin and cello as mimics of fret based instruments spice the show. Often, there are six different amazing musical elements going on at once, and it’s hard to know where to look or listen.
The men are dressed in black shirts and pants, with creamy white full silk ties; Abigail features a fluffy black and white shoulderless dress, wide red belt, and below the knee tights. They sit like a traditional string quartet, with viola and violin replaced by two banjos(!). Bela, as the elder statesman, remains fairly calm (strangely so, given the speed and strength of his solos), but the younger members bounce and flirt, and generally demonstrate their transportation by their own music.
Several songs demonstrate how their genre mashing not only produces a unique music, but also serves to incorporate their varied musical heritages. “Great Big Wall in China” was introduced as a “Woody Guthrie folk melody merged with the opera ‘Turandot’”. And then Abigail proceeded to sing in Chinese. Their encore piece, the Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” featured not only Sollee doing the original cello solo, but Fleck and Washburn on the banjos, riffing way past anything George Harrison or John Lennon could have imagined. Meanwhile, Driessan used his fiddle to provide the driving beat in place of Ringo and Paul, but filled with both bluegrass and classical string quartet nuance. Finally, a prolonged instrumental was positively medieval, evoking a blue-faced Mel Gibson wildly roaming the 13th century Scottish moors of “Braveheart”. (Talk about Scot/Irish roots music!)
These people are artists, in the highest sense of the word: they have a unique vision, don’t compromise on their performance, and leave the audience slack jawed at the result. If you are ever within 100 miles of the Sparrow Quartet, go see them.