PUTNEY — Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present a midwinter dance party featuring The Gaslight Tinkers and The Bluebird Orchestra on Friday, Feb. 10, at 7:30 p.m.
The Gaslight Tinkers' blend of African, Caribbean, funk, reggae, and Latin rhythms creates a joyously danceable sound around a core of traditional roots, New England old time, and Celtic fiddle music, merging boundless positive energy with melody and song, according to a news release. Audrey Knuth (fiddle), Jopey Fitzpatrick (drums), Garrett Sawyer (bass), and Peter Siegel (guitar) create “the genre-bending future of the music of the past,” according to the release.
Since its formation in 2012, the band has lit up the East Coast, the West Coast, and the Caribbean, headlining clubs, dances, and major festivals. The band was born when seasoned musicians of the traditional folk, Caribbean, old time, Celtic, and rock scenes gathered to craft a sound that brought world traditions together.
Collectively, members of the band have played and recorded with world renowned artists like calypso king Kurt Allen, The Trinidad band Atlantic, Pete Seeger, Michael Daves, Noel Paul Stookey, Judy Collins, John Cohen, Dar Williams, and Senegalese hip-hop band Gokh-Bi System.
Donald Saaf (guitar, vocals) and Matthew Sharff (bass, vocals) formed The Bluebird Orchestra in 2010 from the roots of the Bluebird Marionette Theatre. With Paul Mctaggart on drums and Rick Contino on pedal steel, the band released its first CD of original music in 2011, and added Riley Goodmote (trombone, mandolin) to the lineup in 2014.