Friday, January 10, 7 PM: From Eugene to Helene: A Hurricane Benefit Concert, at Unity of the Valley
Performers: Midnight45, Halie Loren, Andrei Andreev, Danger Gently, Laura Kemp, Larry Pattis, plus special guests.
Tickets: $25 general admission, (limited $75 seats includes preferred seating, dessert reception) https://bendticket.com/events/eugene-to-helene-fundraiser-for-appalachian-hurricane-relief-1-10-2025 or at the door (Folks, Tsunami is not selling tickets for this one. We otherwise offer our full support in promoting this fun(d)raiser).
*all proceeds benefit Western North Carolina Hurricane Helene Relief Silent auction, snacks, chair massage in lobby. Larry Pattis guitar playing at reception.
“If you can't go to the concert, you can still help by donating directly to the GoFundMe to benefit BelovedAsheville: https://gofund.me/b4c7924b We are currently at about $6000 of a $10,000 goal”
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Please join us for a community musical project to benefit victims of Hurricane Helene. With ongoing needs that will take years of support to rebuild, this evening brings Eugene, Appalachian, and International music greats together for an unforgettable night of diverse music at the gorgeous and intimate Unity of the Valley Sanctuary.
Among the musicians are one of Russia's most legendary and accomplished musicians, Award Winning International phenom Halie Loren, Midnight45 as one of the great new bands in national bluegrass, an old timey all star band, and Eugene's most accomplished songwriter Laura Kemp.
Please see below for musician biographies:
Andrei Andreev
Saint-Saëns international music competition - DIAMOND prize for performing Beethoven sonata no. 4 and PLATINUM prize for Andrei's first symphony. Grand-Prix in the International piano competition “PIANO/FORTE” in Saint-Petersburg (Russia), 2020.
1st prize in the Viva-Music International competition in Moscow (Russia). As the award Andrei was assigned to perform in the Carnegie Hall in June of 2021.
1st prize in The Way to Master a Skill International Piano Competition in Moscow.
2nd prize in the second Europe-Asia International Piano Competition.
2nd prize in the International Competition developed for the Centennial Anniversary of the Saratov State Conservatory, the Silver Medal in the Seattle International Piano Festival and Competition and others.
Midnight45
If you love the glass-shattering power of high tenor bluegrass voices and perfect harmonies, look no further than Midnight45. This powerhouse band features some of the most outstanding vocal and instrumental prowess you will hear in the Western US. Based in Central and Western Oregon, Midnight45 specializes in bluesy vocal-based deep-groove bluegrass music with a solid traditional approach. They perform traditional & contemporary bluegrass, featuring original material as well as traditional country duets. Each member of M45 is a veteran musician, having played in some of the finest bluegrass bands on the west coast, and it has long been a dream of the Adkins to join forces with Jered to form this Northwest supergroup.
Halie Loren
Halie Loren is an international, award-winning jazz singer/songwriter. She brings a fresh and original perspective to time-honored musical paths, channeling her innate understanding of connectedness across musical boundaries to forge bonds with diverse audiences in North America, Asia, and Europe. Her multi-genre and multi-lingual musical blend across her ten albums to-date has earned several national and international awards in multiple genres as well as significant critical and chart success along the way, with her albums consistently reaching #1 on the Billboard Japan, iTunes (Canada and Japan) and Amazon jazz charts.
An award-winning songwriter since her early teens, Halie began garnering international acclaim as a recording artist when her debut jazz album They Oughta Write a Song was named the Best Vocal Jazz Album of the year at the 2009 JPF Independent Music Awards. She was subsequently signed for distribution in Asia by JVC/Victor Entertainment and in North America with Canadian-based jazz label Justin Time Records. Loren's accolades in more recent years include an Independent Music Award for her original song “Thirsty” in 2011, a Best Vocal Jazz Album 2012 award in Japan’s Jazz Critique Magazine for her album Heart First, (which also reached #1 on Canada’s iTunes Jazz chart), and a total of four Billboard #1 albums on Japan’s jazz charts since 2013. Her video for “Noah”, the 2nd single from her 2018 release From the Wild Sky album produced by UK tour-de-force Troy Miller (Amy Winehouse, Gregory Porter, Diana Ross), won an Emmy in 2019 for Best Music Video as presented by The National Academy Of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) Southeast Chapter.
Laura Kemp Trio. With Jeremy Wegner and Sean Peterson
Laura Kemp is an award winning singer-songwriter who has been captivating audiences for over three decades. Accompanying herself primarily on guitar and harmonica, her eclectic musical interests span anything from folk to bluegrass to jazz to kirtan. She has produced seven studio and two live albums and is currently at work on her next recording of original songs.
Danger Gently
Hailing from the hills of Western North Carolina, Darin Gentry is the embodiment of traditional Appalachian music rooted firmly in the old time masters on fiddle and banjo. Listening to Darin, you are immediately transported to another era and mesmerized by his soulful renditions of the music on which he was raised. Darin was mentored early on by the legendary West Virginia musician Dwight Diller, until his passing in 2023. Twenty years ago, Diller claimed that Darin is “in my opinion one of the best under-thirty clawhammer banjo players today.” He is that much better today. Centered firmly around the authentic grooves of Darin’s fiddle playing, Danger Gently will have you on your feet dancing away. Danger Gently includes many of the best players in Central Oregon, and will be joined on Jan 10 by Joe Ellingson, Dale Adkins and Suzanne Adkins.”
Larry Pattis
Named one of the "Top 10 Best Acoustic Music Artists of the Decade" by the International Acoustic Music Awards, Larry Pattis has been a featured headline performer at such illustrious venues as the Montreal International Jazz Festival and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Millennium Stage in Washington DC.
Niki Leeman
After more than three decades of performing and songwriting, Niki released his long-awaited first CD in 2009, “Love, Death and Resurrection”, a collection of haunting, soulful, and enchanting songs and stories. Niki has long had a reputation for thought provoking lyrical poetry and metaphor – these songs will capture you, heart and soul, and remain with you long after your first listen. Niki counts some of the finest musicians and songwriters in the United States amongst his friends, many of whom lent their talents to this recording, which was produced by award winning singer/songwriter Keith Greeninger, and features performances by Keith, Ellis Paul, and Louise Taylor, to name a few.
Jim Kloss, founder of the legendary Whole Wheat Radio had this to say: "If I had only 5 CDs to take with me, out of the thousands of independent music CDs we've aired, this would be one of them.
“If you can't go to the concert, you can still help by donating directly to the GoFundMe to benefit BelovedAsheville: https://gofund.me/b4c7924b We are currently at about $6000 of a $10,000 goal”
Mike Meyer, Host, LCSW, CADCI, QMHP, SJS
and broadcasting in Oregon with 2 shows (Island Earth Radio and Hearts and Bones) on these stations: KOCF-Veneta, KEPW-Eugene, KBOO-Portland, KYAC-Mill City, KQUA-Roseburg, KMUZ-Salem, KXCR-Florence, and in Colorado KRFC Fort Collins