Lend a Helping Hand on Sunday, Dec. 2 to Aid Arboretum

ESPERANCE, NY (11/20/2007)(readMedia)-- The Landis Arboretum will share in the rewards of a musical event presented by The Helping Hands Benefit Concert Series on Sunday, Dec. 2. Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem will be the featured artists at the 3 p.m. concert at the Schoharie United Presbyterian Church, Schoharie. Suggested donations: $10/adults, $5 for students and seniors, and $25/families.

Helping Hands Concert Series The Helping Hands Concert series is an entertainment mainstay in the Schoharie Valley and is spearheaded by Rockin’ Reverend Rick Hill, Pastor, Schoharie United Presbyterian Church, a well-known and respected Capital region musician, participant at the recent Lape Day celebration at Landis, and longtime supporter of the Arboretum. The Helping Hands Benefit Concert series is sponsored by the Schoharie County Presbyterian Churches. The Helping Hands events are always well promoted by Schoharie County music icon Sonny Ochs, sister of legendary Phil Ochs – and well attended.

The legendary Sonny Ochs offers her perspective in the upcoming concert: “I had the pleasure of seeing them at Boston Folk Festival and at Ontario Council of Folk Festivals where they did a formal showcase presentation. There are very few Americans invited to be in the Canadian showcases, so that is an indication of how entertaining this group is!”

So, what's a daisy mayhem? The Signature Sounds website answers that question with dispatch: Wicked percussion, sublime lead singing, great harmonies, sparkling original songs and a deep repertoire. Four people who share an irresistible chemistry on stage. A young, hip, crackerjack string band in love with American music. The Boston Globe described their music as "neo old-timey with cosmopolitan splashes of contemporary pop and jazz." …This is a band that picks up what's lying around -- from tin cans to traditional music -- and creates something new.

All of roots music is a stage for daisy mayhem, and this four-piece string band loves nothing more than choreographing a jubilant mix of traditional, original, and contemporary sounds. With Arbo's bewitching alto at the helm, stunning vocal harmonies, a 100% recycled drum set, fiddle, guitar, and bass, daisy mayhem "has a grand knack for pumping new blood into old music" (The Boston Globe). [Imagine, for example, a pre-civil war song from the Georgia Sea Islands sung over a New Orleans-style groove. Or, an old Irish fiddle tune with new lyrics, capped with a solo on a South American box drum. A Sondheim tune done jug band style? An original Unitarian funk gospel song? You begin to get the idea.] With influences from Doc Watson to Django Reinhardt, from Ghanaian drumming to the funky Meters, and from Fiddlin' John Carson to Bob Dylan, Daisy Mayhem celebrates America's rich musical past and brings it into the present with good humor, impeccable musicianship, powerful songwriting, and a clear love of playing together. Here are four musicians who pick up what's lying around from tin cans to old songs and wry observations of modern life and create something new.

Rani Arbo is the fiddler, lead singer, and founder of daisy mayhem. With a bewitching, expressive alto that is equal parts choir girl, flirty teenager, and world-weary woman, she navigates swing tunes, funky call-and-response songs, and ballads with unusual honesty and ease. Steeped in thirty years of choral singing, Arbo also spent years with a honkytonk band, a Balkan rock band, and folk-bluegrass band Salamander Crossing. A cellist by training, her swampy, self-taught fiddling draws from swing, blues, and old-time music. On stage, Arbo brings a rich life¬ as a 15-year veteran performer, breast cancer survivor, mother, and songwriter into humble and compelling performances. Arbo also has toured and recorded with Joan Baez, John McCutcheon and many others.

Andrew Kinsey began his musical life as the youngest bagpiper in his town. Since then, he has taken up the slightly more socially acceptable double bass, with frequent regressions to the ukulele and banjo. Arbo's singing partner for over fifteen years, his rich, compelling baritone, generous spirit, and rock-solid bass playing keep Daisy Mayhem glued together. Kinsey's musical and humorous sensibilities inspired the band's debut CD, Cocktail Swing, which romps through vintage country, swing and jazz chestnuts.

Scott Kessel was once a regular (albeit unusually talented) kit drummer but in Daisy Mayhem he pilots the unforgettable "Drumship Enterprise," a recycled drum kit comprised of a cardboard box, cat food tins, a Danish butter cookie tin, and a suitcase. Riveting to watch (especially during solos), Kessel mixes up American rock and pop beats with African, Afro-Cuban, New Orleans, and South American rhythms to create the foundation of Daisy Mayhem's unmistakable groove.

Anand Nayak fell for the guitar as a teenager and has been a lost cause ever since, exploring music and instruments from all over the world. A powerful singer and songwriter with a rare gift for arranging and a gutsy guitar style that draws from a century's worth of jazz, funk, blues and folk masters, Nayak's work features prominently on Daisy Mayhem's second record, Gambling Eden. Along with Kessel, he is the band's enthusiastic pilot through challenging genre crossings. Nayak is also a recording engineer and producer and performs in a folk duo with his wife Polly Fiveash.

For more information about the featured artists, logon to http://www.raniarbo.com/ or listen to tracks from their 2007 CD, Big Old Life at http://www.raniarbo.com/recordings.html.

Speaking on behalf of the Arboretum, executive director Thom O'Connor suggests that everyone in search of a stimulating Sunday afternoon would do well to "mark their calendar, tell their friends, and if they are unable to attend, to please send good checks! Let’s fill the sanctuary with playfulness and joy – worthy of our care for the environment and support for Landis, the Capital Region's Arboretum."

For more information, call the legendary Sonny Ochs at 827-4953, the Church at 518-295-8931, or Ms. Vicki Hazzard at the Arboretum at 518-875-6935. Please note that this is an afternoon concert.

Since 1995, Signature Sounds Recordings (http://www.signaturesounds.com/onlinestore/about.cfm) has released more than 50 albums of singer-songwriter, Americana and modern folk music. Signature Sounds Recordings are distributed exclusively in the U.S. by Koch Entertainment. The Signature Sounds Recording Studio was founded in 1982 by Mark Thayer. It has become the studio of choice for many performers in the acoustic and jazz music worlds.] Website information used with permission.

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