GUILFORD — Under the maple trees at the Historic Springs Farm, 49 Carpenter Hill Rd., in Guilford Center, Bard Owl, the acoustic duo of T. Breeze Verdant and Annie Landenberger, present a concert to benefit Loaves and Fishes Community Kitchen in Brattleboro, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 12.
Bard Owl's playlist includes jazz, ballads, blues, sweet and slow tunes - new, old, original, and familiar. According to the artists' website, "Verdant's sound, honed over 50 years, is driven by complex guitar rhythms matched by his stomp box beats and fully-ranged vocals.
"At age 3 he started singing Little Richard and Elvis interspersed with military tunes while lying in bed at night," as written on the duo's website. "He has since dropped the military songs and allows others to sleep. An intuitive musician, he only plays music that he feels."
Landenberger has been singing since age 6 when she regaled her parents' dinner guests with a litany of Mitch Miller favorites. To Bard Owl she adds percussion and her voice, which has been heard widely for decades in a range of styles and in musical theater.
Folklore scholar, athlete, and circus performer, Montana Miller says of Bard Owl, "Annie and Breeze are the kind of singers who, like other artists we grew up singing along with, know how to embrace and gather an audience into the warmth and generous spirit of their music. Their love for each other permeates every song; humble and heartfelt melodies invite us to join in and it's healing just to listen."
Storyteller Mary Wallace Collins will perform between sets. Wallace is a veteran storyteller who has performed at story slams around New England.
Loaves and Fishes, the beneficiary of event proceeds, started in 1984 at Brattleboro's Centre Congregational Church. Joining Bridget's Kitchen of St. Michael's Catholic Church, Agape Church, and Trinity Lutheran to serve meals to the hungry, St. Michael's Episcopal supports this ministry by providing volunteers, funding, and food, coordinated by Ruth Tilghman.
Operating on Tuesdays and Fridays, Loaves and Fishes serves food to unhoused persons and a few meals to drop-ins from the community. They deliver 200 meals each day, while others receive basic grocery bags as well as fresh vegetables, meats, and frozen foods.
Concert-goers are invited to picnic before and during the concert with friends and family on the Farm's lawn. Suggested admission is $10 to $20, with no one turned away. Children are admitted free.
There is limited parking at the farm for anyone who needs close-in access. Otherwise, parking is available off Carpenter Hill Road, at the library, on the lower field, or at Playscape. Some chairs are available; concert goers are encouraged to bring blankets and low chairs. For more information, visit springsfarmvt.com, bardowlmusic.com, or stmichaels-vt.org/loaves-and-fishes.
This The Arts item was submitted to The Commons.