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Years ago I regularly made the pilgrimage to Buttermilk Hill in Belgrade to enjoy the "good, homestyle fun" of the Buttermilk Hill Festival — an annual seat-of-the-pants, do-it-for-fun, we're-all-just-one-big-singing-laughing-hanging-out family affair orchestrated by John and Ellen Gawler. Back then, the girls mostly ran the snack concession and ran around generally. Then they grew up. And given the fertile musical family soil they grew up in, it's no wonder at all that they wound up where they are today — a musical family that exudes the funnest, most infectious, most wonderful amalgam of everything folk-ish.
John and Ellen Gawler and their daughters Molly, Edith, and Elsie, and joined by Bennett Konesni, bring you an assortment of old and new sounds from many folk traditions. They accompany interweaving family harmonies with fiddles, banjo, wooden banjo, cello, guitar, ukulele and piano as well as a few surprises.
Whether they are crooning a poignant ballad or delivering a rollicking fiddle tune, their unique arrangements are especially engaging and often go along with anecdotes of historical or humorous content.
Although the Gawlers may be best known for their extensive collection of dance tunes in the Scots-Irish and French Canadian traditions, their repertoire may include a gutsy ‘ Sweet Honey in the Rock’ a capella worksong or an amusing ode to everyday life.
With their infectious spirit and sparkling musicianship, and with the recent cds Golden Thread and Lilting Merrily to their credit, the Gawlers have earned a beloved place in the delighted hearts of varied audiences across the Northeast.
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