Coming Home...to Dornan's

We had two sold out shows at our local acoustic listening venue. There was a sweet vibe and it felt like a grand finale homecoming to the incredible year we have had. So many people are celebrating with us and we love to share the joy. Looking back on the year that started with performing on A Prairie Home Companion and playing at MerleFest and that ended with singing at the Kennedy Center and then these packed shows at Dornan's - we feel so grateful. We are filled with so many fun memories and funny ones too. Our mailing list has expanded, sales are steady from the Internet, we are being played on new radio stations....it's been wonderful. Our Coming Home album was named one of the Top 5 Folk Albums on Cdbaby.com and our Christmas album was an editor's pick too. Thank you everyone and enjoy the sweetness of the holiday season.

A few blocks from The White House...

Picture this: We're in the Nation's Capital and we're singing Will You Walk With Me and Coming Home in the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. There are more chandeliers than we can count and the place is covered in red carpet. It feels so regal. WOW! There are hundreds and hundreds of people who have never heard us before. We're pouring our hearts out and taking deep breaths to be in the present moment. There is a symphony from across the world rehearsing next door and Cate Blanchett is starring in a play when we're done. How did we find ourselves here? It feels surreal but it also feels so right and so good! What a night.

Around the ol' Home Place

It always feels good to go home. The deep woods, the twisting roads, so many memories. The Sibley clan so warm and welcoming and good humored. We played in two new places and were pleasantly relieved with the turnouts for our shows in West Hartford and in Ridgefield. Last year our friend and musician Rani Arbo gave us a great list of good Folk venues in Connecticut and these were two of the best! Long running concert series and nice listening venues. Family members were spotted around in the audiences but many new faces taking in our brand of folk, our personal songs, our connection with the land from Connecticut to Wyoming. Listening to our stories of how we met and how we took a wild ride to this music. We hear Winter calling back in Wyoming but it feels good to be home for a visit.

The Kindness of Strangers (Pacific NW continued...)

Hello friends!
October flew by as we traveled around and enjoyed Washington and Oregon then headed home by plane and by car. We were reminded once again at the amazing joys that come from doing what we do. Granted it isn't always easy being away from home so much but the experiences are one of a kind. Pete says we get to see the best in people, the generosity and warmth of a community, every time we play. Every time we say yes to something (like staying with a family who just days before were strangers to us) we open ourselves to their generosity and care and good company. Thanks to all our hosts (old and new friends) and for all the meals, the clean beds and the extra special care. We loved Seattle's Phinney Ridge neighborhood, Bainbridge Island's quiet charm, Portland's fun audience (and our favorite new market New Seasons!), and the packed house tucked in amidst the tree farm in Chehalis. We have come back to Wyoming with lots of pictures and memories and a bellies full of apples. Most of all the beautiful feeling that comes from being on the receiving end of the kindness of strangers. Here we are in Washngton with our friends, Liz and Ryan.

Small Towns / Big Hearts

St. Maries, Idaho and Cashmere, Washington. We were shown the greatest hospitality and Leah had some great babysitters too! The apples were fresh picked from the tree by our fly rod making, banjo picking host. That was hard to top until we arrived in Leavenworth, Washington (which happens to be a Bavarian Village?!) and our host was a guitar collecting, wine making, recording engineer. The food, the wine, the company and the music has been a balm as we were feeling pangs of road weariness. We are exploring the Northwest and soaking in the sights of the water now. The shows have been just perfect with great turnouts and those amazing pauses in between the last note and the clapping...

Thanks to Cathy Britschgi LaPlante for taking these videos at the St Maries concert: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gh58Ixn3ob4, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYmDl3C2Ezk

Four Corners Festival Bliss

Wow. Another grand year in Pagosa Springs at the Four Corners Folk Festival. Each year seems to top the one before. The setting is amazing, the hospitality is top notch and the music - oh the music - is just total bliss. From the pizazz of The Wiyos to the nostalgic sound of The Quebe Sisters to the class of The Greencards to the spirit of Sara Watkins (wait, we haven't even gotten to the MVP's like Darrell Scott and Tim O'Brien) - I just can't fit in all the music here that soothed our souls. We're just so glad we got to be a part of it. Thanks to Casey Driessen and the Wiyos for sitting in Friday evening (wow!) and to Bryn Davies, Carol Young and Shannon Whitworth for creating a Sunday afternoon "angel band" with Anne. We feel at home in Pagosa now and everyone treats us like family. Love to you all!

Targhee Bluegrass Camp

What an inspiring week at the Targhee Bluegrass Camp: The music, the mountains, and the people. We led some vocal workshops, performed with the other instructors (thank you Casey Driessen, Tony Trischka, Brian Wicklund, Tyler Grant, Eric Thorin and Ben Winship - you guys are amazing!) and had our musical batteries recharged. The night we returned home from Targhee, Anne began working on a new song.

The Targhee Bluegrass Festival was wonderful too. We enjoyed our set on Sunday and our local musical guest, Thomas Sneed (who brings the sunshine with him wherever he goes). Leah happily played in the rain (and slipped in the mud) in her ladybug raingear with her Grandma, Aunts, Uncles and cousins.

August is flying by and the weather is trying to fast forward to Fall but we're enjoying every minute of it (or resting when things are quiet).

The Beautiful NorthWest

Just returned home from a sweet homecoming at the Bluewaters Bluegrass Festival. This is a well kept secret outside of the NorthWest! Folks listened in this grove of trees like they were in an outdoor cathedral. We discovered the beautiful spots in Spokane along the riverfront and Leah loved the 100-year-old Carousel. We loved the Huckleberries Natural Food Store and all the home cooked meals. Last stop was beautiful Coeur D'Alene in the Idaho Panhandle and we had the most loving Grandma to take care of our daughter while we played for 250 people in the community church. What continues to bring joy to us at these events are the hosts - they are kind, hardworking people who love music so much. There is also all the fans in attendance, they seem grateful and excited to listen. Summer is so abundant!

Summer Update

Hello friends!

Pete and I are still celebrating the "Prairie Home Companion" event and our "Coming Home" CD release everyday with fan e-mails and people approaching us at concerts. Thank you for your excitement - it is very inspiring! We’d love your continued feedback on the new album. How does it compare to our previous albums? Which are your favorite songs?

Pete and I had a bustling July, and August is proving to be very much the same! Last month we had the good fortune to perform at the Big Horn and Beartrap music festivals in Wyoming, followed by RockyGrass and Fiddles, Vittles & Vino in Colorado. This weekend we’re headed off to Spokane, WA for the Blue Waters Bluegrass Festival. Later this month is our home-turf favorite, Targhee Bluegrass Festival in Alta, WY. Come join us at Blue Waters and/or Targhee! Please sign up for our newsletter, too, so we can keep you posted on events upcoming.

Happy summertime to all!
Anne