PLEASE NOTE: THE DATE FOR THIS CONCERT IS NOW FEBRUARY 22!!!

Eccentric Acoustic is a trio featuring Ruth Williams on mandolin, Sandy Stehling on guitar, and Scott Emmons on bass. They perform a wide variety of music, ranging from swing era jazz and country blues to more contemporary country, folk, and Americana. Ruth Williams started singing harmony while doing the family dishes with her sister. She currently sings with Milwaukee’s Bel Canto Chorus. Ruth forsook the autoharp for the mandolin some years ago and has been a stalwart member of the Milwaukee Mandolin Orchestra for more than twenty years.Sandy Stehling began playing guitar as a way to avoid studying while attending UW-Madison. His transcript shows the success of this strategy. The lively folk music scene on campus at the time was a major influence. He has been heard playing as a soloist and in various groups in the Milwaukee area for many years. Scott Emmons, a multi-instrumentalist, is dean of the UW-Milwaukee Peck School of the Arts. He performs in a classical guitar quartet, plays mando-cello in the Milwaukee Mandolin Orchestra, and is the director of the New Horizons Band in Waukesha. Ruth and Sandy have been making music together since they first met some thirty years ago. They have played with Scott informally in various musical gatherings in the Milwaukee area, and have enjoyed collaborating with Scott seriously for the past five years. The process of combining three individuals’ musical tastes into an ensemble repertoire yields the serious fun that is Eccentric Acoustic.

Paul Smith & Andy Jehly come from very different musical backgrounds. Paul’s most significant musical influences are 1960’s psychedelic and folk rock, including the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Arlo Guthrie, Jorma Kaukonen, the Beatles, Larry Campbell, the Byrds, and Buffalo Springfield. Andy’s are old traditional folk, R&B, and country, including Pete Seeger, Doc Watson, Hank Williams, Merle Haggard, Aretha Franklin, and Otis Redding. What they share is a passion for music with history, great harmonies, and evocative lyrics.

Smith & Binder Jazz offers a tasteful selection of jazz and pop standards and Jazz Manouche tunes.  Steve (vocals, guitar) and Linda (violin and mandolin) create a vintage, yet updated and accessible blend of music that will please discriminating ears.  

Steve Smith is a Milwaukee born and raised singer/songwriter who has performed a variety of musical styles ranging from folk/rock to choral music to jazz and pop standards.  His smooth and resonant vocal style is ideal for performing classic jazz tunes made popular by great singers, such as Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole and Joe Williams.  As a guitarist, Steve has lately been working on perfecting his technique as a swing rhythm guitarist to accompany his vocals.  He is particularly interested in learning and performing the music of jazz guitar legend Django Reinhardt.

Linda Binder performs actively in Milwaukee and Chicago on both violin and mandolin.  After working as a violinist with the Omaha Symphony, and continuing to pursue orchestral and chamber music work and study in NYC, she took a left turn into the world of improvisation.  These days she's enjoying playing jazz, free improvisation, and other contemporary styles as well as indulging her interest in Brazilian Choro music.

Carol Lee Hopkins has been a respected member of the Milwaukee acoustic music community for many years. Her heartfelt vocals have enhanced recordings by Larry Penn, Barb & Tom Webber, and, most prominently, her husband Jym Mooney and the popular band The Moxie Chicks.

Backing up Carol Lee on guitar (and writing the songs!), Brett Kemnitz has been writing and singing wonderfully crafted songs for decades. Living in the heart of the city, he has been a guiding light for The Coffee House from the beginning, and has been an inspiration and support for Milwaukee's folk scene.

Joining in on dobro is Andy Jehly, whose musical loves are old traditional folk, R&B, and country, including Pete Seeger, Doc Watson, Hank Williams, Merle Haggard, Aretha Franklin, and Otis Redding. She has a passion for music with great harmonies and evocative lyrics.

Inspired by the winds of Lake Michigan, Green Sails sets an entertaining course of rousing tunes and delightful melodies fueled by Amy Otis-Wilborn's Irish fiddle and Sandy Weisto's guitar and vocals. Their performances offer Irish/Celtic luscious melodies and rousing dance tunes as well as delightful songs, intriguing stories, and engaging opportunities for audience participation. Their name, Green Sails, represents "Green" for Irish music as well as ecological sustainability and "Sails" for the winds that are the spirit Celtic sailing tales and tunes. They can be found performing at local Farmer's Markets and various Irish themed events including Milwaukee Irish Fest.

Opening is Jim Winston, a native Milwaukee singer songwriter, living in Bay View. He has appeared in holiday and benefit concerts and faithfully participated in the “Play Music on the Porch” international event each August for the past 7 years. Winston’s music could be categorized as finger-style, but does not fit a particular mold. Influenced by blues, bluegrass, classical, folk, jazz, and world music, it incorporates a wide range of styles, and includes old standbys, original songs and musical inventions.