Turning Tides Music: Ticketing
Sprig of That, September 10, 2026
Maple Landing, 246 Ivanhoe Ave, Eugene, OR
Sprig of That is a tabla, fiddle, cello, and guitar quartet playing a hearty Midwest-raised and globally inspired acoustic stew. Pushed by producer Jayme Stone, the band stakes new sonic terrain for itself on Foragers, their upcoming full-length featuring guest appearances by Sierra Hull, Olov Johansson (Väsen), Simon Chrisman, Rohith Jayaraman, and Wes Corbett (who produced their 2023 release bloom).
Formed in Minneapolis, MN in 2018, the group has played legendary venues from Portland’s Old Church Minneapolis’ Cedar Cultural Center and NYC’s Rockwood Music Hall; warmed up stages for artists like Chris Eldridge/Kristen Andriessen, the Andrew Marlin String Band, and Charlie Parr; performed at festivals like Pickathon and Blue Ox; and collaborated with organizations like Carnegie Hall and Minnesota Public Radio to give educational workshops across the country.
D-Squared in Concert, October 11, 2026
83339 Green Bluff Dr, Creswell, OR
MUSIC THAT CONNECTS TO THE LAND
We are Don Charles and Deb Gessner, D-Squared. Residing in the central mountains of Arizona, we live with long vistas beneath high Western skies. Our music can be sparse and dry, and it can refresh like a cool desert rain. We write songs for the willows, hymns for the canyons, and cowboy pagan spirituals for a big sky full of dumb stars.
WHAT MAKES US SPECIAL
D-Squared weaves a tonal fabric of poignant lyrics, earth-rooted melodies and stark, hypnotic rhythms. When Deb’s beguilingly voice meets Don’s dark baritone the effect can be mesmerizing. We are natural storytellers and attending a show is akin to joining a gathering of friends around the kitchen table.
MULTI-INSTRUMENTALISTS
The blending of harp and guitar in delicate counterpoint, and the use of other traditional folk instruments (accordions, banjo, concertina, and mandola) leads the listener through a lyrical landscape that bears witness to darkness and danger, but offers redemption and hope in return.
OUR INSPIRATION
Don’s musical influences include Leonard Cohen, John Stewart, Bert Jansch, Trapezoid, Metamora, and old-timey American folk music. Deb cites Eric Satie, French dance music, Irish airs, and ancient traditional melodies as influences.
Bryan Bowers, October 15, 2026
Unity of the Valley, 3912 Dillard Rd, Eugene, OR
For more than five decades, Bryan Bowers has been to the autoharp what Earl Scruggs was to the five-string banjo. He presents instrumental virtuosity combined with warmth, eloquence, expression, and professionalism. From his rather unglamorous beginning as a street singer, Bryan has become a major artist on the traditional music circuit. He has redefined the autoharp and is also well known as a singer-songwriter with a dynamic and outgoing personality as well as an uncanny ability to enchant a crowd.
Born in Yorktown, Virginia, Bryan was raised in New Bohemia, near Petersburg. As a child, he would tag along with the field workers and railroad track liners known as “gandy dancers,” and learned to sing old call-and-answer songs. He recalls, “The music I heard while working in the fields was mesmerizing. And, I’d see the gandy dancers coming down the tracks, setting the rails and getting their ties straight. You’ve heard that song that goes ‘Whup Boys, Can’t you line ’em? Chack a lack. Whup Boys, can’t you line ’em?’ Well ‘Whup Boys’ was the call the leader would sing. ‘Chack a lack’ was the bounce back of the hammer after falling on the pin. I just thought that music was something that everyone did. It was years later that I realized what I’d been raised around.”
Bryan attended Randolph Macon College in Ashland. While there, he attended a jug band party in Richmond, where he saw a fellow student playing “Shady Grove” on the autoharp. That student handed the instrument over to Bryan and instructed him to place his hand on the bar, close his eyes, and strum with the other hand. The very next day, Bryan went out and purchased his own autoharp.
His creativity and skill on the autoharp have earned him inductions into Frets Magazine’s “First Gallery of the Greats,” as well as the honor of being the first living musician inducted into the Autoharp Hall of Fame (after Maybelle Carter, Kilby Snow, and Sara Carter). With the Bryan Bowers Band, he has teamed up with two multi-talented musicians—Virginia’s world class multi-instrumentalist, Danny Knicely, and New England-based singer and multi-instrumentalist, Geoff Goodhue. The trio recently released the critically-acclaimed album, Woodland Dream, which bluegrass legend Sam Bush gushed over: “While mainly a vocal group, their instrumental blend features Bryan in a new light we haven’t heard before. He is playing mandocello, guitar, and of course autoharp, blending with Danny on mandolin, mandocello and guitar and Geoff joining on guitar and mandolin, both being masterful musicians themselves. Be it instrumentals, song, or a cappella vocal trios, this music is from the heart, done for all the right reasons… simply put, it’s obvious these guys love playing and singing together.”
Newberry and Verch, October 23, 2026
Coburg Commons, 91193 N Willamette St, Coburg, OR
Growing up, Joe Newberry and April Verch absorbed traditions of home and hearth – in his Missouri Ozarks and her Ottawa Valley of Canada. Although they are on the road much of the year, the two musicians are fond of saying that they are rarely homesick, because their music means they always have a bit of home with them wherever they go.
Joe Newberry comes from a family of singers and dancers. He took up the guitar and banjo as a boy and learned fiddle tunes from great Missouri fiddlers. April Verch grew up listening to her Dad’s country band play for dances in the Ottawa Valley. She started step dancing at age three and fiddling at age six. In a Newberry & Verch show, delighted audiences see first-hand the roots of their music, their love of performing, and their strong musical connection. Original songs join timeless classics. Stories warm the heart, and give audiences a chance to understand where the music comes from. Lively fiddle and banjo numbers combine with traditional dance steps to illustrate happy times when people made their own fun.
Known around the world for his clawhammer banjo playing, Newberry is also a powerful guitarist, singer and songwriter. The Gibson Brothers’ version of his song “Singing As We Rise,” won an IBMA “Gospel Recorded Performance” Award. With Eric Gibson, he shared an IBMA “Song of the Year” Award for “They Called It Music.” A longtime guest on A Prairie Home Companion, he was a featured singer on the Transatlantic Sessions 2016 tour of the U.K., and at the Transatlantic Session’s debut at Merlefest in 2017. Also a sought-after instructor, he plays and teaches at festivals and workshops in North America and abroad.
Before launching her professional career, Verch was the first woman to win both the Canadian Grand Masters and Canadian Open Fiddling Championships. Since 2000, she has toured the world with the April Verch Band, and also in a duo with her husband, Cody Walters, performing in 19 different countries. She has recorded 18 albums, receiving JUNO, Canadian Folk Music and Independent Music nominations and awards for several of those releases. She has also released an instructional stepdance DVD, a book of original fiddle tunes, and a Canadian Fiddle tune teaching method for Mel Bay. Verch was one of 6 fiddlers who represented the Canadian fiddle tradition to the world at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, as part of a segment called “Fiddle Nation” featured in the Opening Ceremonies.
Whether it is the power of two voices lifted in harmony, or the sound of traditional tunes calling people to get up and move, these two masters of tradition put on an unforgettable show. And, when their feet kick up the dust in perfect rhythm and those two voices become one, Newberry & Verch help remind folks why this music existed in the first place.
Jeffrey Martin and Sam Weber, November 7, 2026
Unity of the Valley, 3912 Dillard Rd, Eugene, OR
Portland, Oregon folk artist Jeffrey Martin has announced his first-ever live album, Alive July 25, 2025, which is set to release on February 20, 2026 via Fluff & Gravy Records (Anna Tivel, Margo Cilker, Kassi Valazza). The album was recorded at Portland’s The Showdown and presents an unabridged take of the night exactly as it unfolded — whatever mistakes may have occurred, whatever musical wanderings — in the hopes that the magic of the live show could be captured in an honest way.
Of Alive July 25, 2025, Martin offers, “The live show will always mean more to me than any studio recordings. Every night is different and will never exist again. The character of the room, the energy of the crowd, the moments between songs, wherever my mind and heart and voice are at – it all mixes together to create something new and ephemeral each night. I wanted to capture a single show, no edits, no reordering of songs, no compiling of takes from multiple shows. A record of a night in a documentary sense. I was so lucky to have Sam Weber join me on guitar. The best recordings are the ones where you forget you are recording, and Sam’s brilliant playing made me forget entirely.”
Sam Weber is a musician known for his distinctive style that blends elements of folk, rock, and Americana. He is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist who has gained recognition for his emotive vocals and intricate guitar playing. Weber’s music often features thoughtful lyrics and a blend of contemporary and traditional musical influences, making him a unique figure in the indie music scene.
His career is marked by a series of album releases, live performances, and collaborations with other artists. Weber’s work has been appreciated for its craftsmanship and the emotional depth of his songwriting. As with many musicians in the indie genre, his music tends to evolve over time, reflecting personal experiences and artistic growth.
John McCutcheon, November 14, 2026
Unity of the Valley, 3912 Dillard Rd, Eugene, OR
“John McCutcheon is not only one of the best musicians in the USA, but also a great singer, songwriter, and song leader. And not just incidentally, he is committed to helping hard-working people everywhere to organize and push this world in a better direction.”
— Pete Seeger
“The most impressive instrumentalist I’ve ever heard.”
— Johnny Cash
No one remembers when the neighbors started calling the McCutcheons to complain about the loud singing from young John’s bedroom. It didn’t seem to do much good, though. For, after a shaky, lopsided battle between piano lessons and baseball (he was a mediocre pianist and an all-star catcher), he had “found his voice” thanks to a cheap mail-order guitar and a used book of chords.
From such inauspicious beginnings, John McCutcheon has emerged as one of our most respected and loved folksingers. As an instrumentalist, he is a master of a dozen different traditional instruments, most notably the rare and beautiful hammer dulcimer. His songwriting has been hailed by critics and singers around the globe. His thirty recordings have garnered every imaginable honor including seven Grammy nominations. He has produced over twenty albums of other artists, from traditional fiddlers to contemporary singer-songwriters to educational and documentary works. His books and instructional materials have introduced budding players to the joys of their own musicality. And his commitment to grassroots political organizations has put him on the front lines of many of the issues important to communities and workers.
But it is in live performance that John feels most at home. It is what has brought his music into the lives and homes of one of the broadest audiences any folk musician has ever enjoyed. People of every generation and background seem to feel at home in a concert hall when John McCutcheon takes the stage, with what critics describe as “little feats of magic,” “breathtaking in their ease and grace…,” and “like a conversation with an illuminating old friend.”
Whether in print, on record, or on stage, few people communicate with the versatility, charm, wit or pure talent of John McCutcheon.
Robbie Fulks, November 19, 2026
Coburg Commons, 91193 N Willamette St, Coburg, OR
“It’s time to make a change,” Robbie Fulks declares at the start of Now Then, his second album on Nashville’s Compass Records. This statement is familiar to anyone who follows this critically acclaimed and GRAMMY-nominated singer-songwriter’s career. Since emerging in the 1990s as a pioneer of today’s Americana movement, Fulks has consistently explored different sounds, genres, and themes across 16 albums, performing on stages from the Grand Ole Opry and Late Night with Conan O’Brien to the Hollywood Bowl and Jimmy Kimmel Live with Steve Martin, Alison Brown, and Tim O’Brien.
Throughout his career, Fulks has collaborated with some of music’s most distinguished artists, including Lucinda Williams, jazz violinist Jenny Scheinman, bluegrass pioneers Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Alison Brown, and Sierra Hull, singer Kelly Willis, NRBQ’s Al Anderson, and steel guitarist Lloyd Green. Now Then expands this circle with contributions from Scheinman, drummers Pete Thomas (Elvis Costello) and Jay Bellerose (Aimee Mann, Robert Plant, Alison Krauss), bassist Paul Bryan (Aimee Mann, Jeff Parker), keyboardist Wayne Horvitz (John Zorn, Bill Frisell), guitarists Duke Levine (Bonnie Raitt, Peter Wolf) and Kevin Barry (Jackson Browne, Rosanne Cash), and accordionist Pepe Carlos (La Santa Cecilia), among many others. As an ensemble, they craft intertwined musical textures that drive each song’s rhythm, highlight their personalities, and add depth.
Along the way, Fulks gained recognition for his instrumental virtuosity and powerful songwriting. Artists like Sam Bush, Andrew Bird, John Cowan, the Old 97’s, and Hiss Golden Messenger have covered his songs, and he has released full albums reinterpreting the works of Michael Jackson and Bob Dylan, along with two collections of unreleased songs and rarities totaling 103 tracks. His creative ventures include an unhinged 2013 collaboration with the punk legends The Mekons, productions of albums by alt-country songwriters Brennen Leigh and Dallas Wayne, and a fiery duo with rockabilly pioneer Linda Gail Lewis. Fulks also performs with comic improvisers; he is a regular at Second City’s holiday fundraisers and has shared the stage with talents like Michael McKean, Tina Fey, Bob Odenkirk, and Fred Armisen.
Steve Poltz, January 31, 2027
Unity of the Valley, 3912 Dillard Rd, Eugene, OR
Steve Poltz was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia (Canada) but has lived most of his life in Southern California. He is a dual citizen – Canada/USA – but has often said that, “should a hostage situation arise, I become conveniently Canadian.”
Over the course of his life he’s met Elvis Presley (who hugged his sister for far too long), trick or treated at Liberace’s house (each finger had a diamond ring), was Bob Hope’s favourite altar boy (according to him), pissed off David Cassidy and can count some of the world’s coolest people as fans.
In 20 years since his full-length solo debut, One Left Shoe, Steve Poltz blessed the world’s ears with thirteen solo records, spanning the acclaimed 2010 Dreamhouse and most recently, Shine On in 2019. NPR summed it up best, “Critics and fans alike now regard Poltz as a talented and prolific songwriter.”
Evoking themes of “hope, love, contemplation, celebration of Wednesday, pharmacists, and the fact that windows are not inanimate objects and they sometimes have conversations with each other,” Shine On represents Steve at his most inspired and insightful. The opener and title track pairs a delicate vocal with lithely plucked acoustic strings as he urges everyone to, “Shine on, shine on.”
As good as his albums are, Steve Poltz positively owns a crowd when he’s on stage. His shows are the stuff of legend. He can take an unsuspecting audience from laughter to tears and back again in the space of a single song. He is a master of improvisational songwriting and works without a set list to be free to react instantly to the mood of a room.
He has toured Australia over 20 times and graced just about every festival there is to play.
Holly Near, featuring Tammy Hall, Jan Martenelli, and special guests Emma’s Revolution, February 25, 2027
Unity of the Valley, 3912 Dillard Rd, Eugene, OR
After 50 years of bold work, Holly Near is still one of the most consistent and well informed voices for change. Her work is loving, challenging, funny, thought-provoking, and remains rooted in the global community. As an outspoken singer and ambassador for peace, Holly brings a unique integration of world consciousness and self-evaluation, always growing and sharing experience humbly and boldly.
Holly is known for the anthemic quality of some of her songs. As a songwriter she takes up the challenge of turning big concepts into small, personal stories. In response to the slaughter of the students at Kent State, she wrote It Could Have Been Me. And following the assassinations of Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk in San Francisco, she penned Singing For Our Lives, which has become an anthem for the LGBTQ community and appears in the Unitarian Church hymnal. The chilling disappearance of people in Chile under the Pinochet dictatorship brought forth Hay Una Mujer Desaparecida to commemorate the women who had “been disappeared.”
In 2019, Near began a website project called Because of a Song, an online historic archive that documents some of the influential artists that rose from the feminist lesbian music scene in Oakland, California. The site can be viewed at www.becauseofasong.com.
A recipient of dozens of awards from organizations such as the ACLU and the National Organization of Women, Holly was one of Ms Magazine’s Women of the Year recipients and has been nominated for Grammys as well as the Legends of Women’s Music Award.
Known for fearless, truth-telling lyrics and melodies you can’t resist singing, Emma’s Revolution is the award-winning activist duo of Pat Humphries & Sandy O, whose songs have been praised by Pete Seeger, covered by Holly Near, featured on NPR’s All Things Considered and Pacifica’s Democracy Now! and sung around the world.
Special guests will perform on Emma’s Revolution’s songs and, this year, Emma’s Revolution will also perform on their guests’ songs. The concert is a fundraiser for the feature documentary being made by award-winning independent filmmaker, Tom Weidlinger, about the duo, their songs and their decades of work on the frontlines of peace and social justice movements.