THE 802 TOUR

Saturday 1:00 PM at the Bijou Theatre
802 Tour

In August 2008, The 802 Tour – named after Vermont’s only area code, curiously enough – made its way up and down the American coasts (with a couple stops in Canada). Featuring Green Mountain State natives Sam Amidon, Doveman, and Nico Muhly, joined by violist extraordinaire Nadia Sirota – the shows were collaborative efforts with each musician assisting the others in livening up each others’ songs in a casual atmosphere.

A typical performance went something like this:
Sam would perform a set of folk ballads interspersed with the occasional Melville reading and some liturgical dance, accompanied by Thomas with guest plinks by Nico. The microphone would then be passed to Thomas, who whispered some lamp-rock, gently expiring into the microphone, while Sam, Nico, and Nadia strummed and plinked and tapped and generally tried to liven things up. Finally, Nico performed a selection of his compositions, with help from Sam, Thomas, and favored drinking buddy and violist Nadia, culminating in “The Only Tune,” a piece that Nico wrote for Sam, and that he, Sam, Thomas, and Nadia premiered in 2007 at Carnegie Hall.

Those lucky enough to witness these shows walked away supremely moved with minds blown…and to this day can be found muttering things like “the best show I’ve ever seen” under their breath when they think no one’s listening.

Pulling these four amazing musicians together for an encore has proven to be quite a feat.  It’s happened once since that tour – in September 2009 when the Wordless Music series presented a performance at Columbia University’s Miller Theatre.   Now, as perhaps the ultimate testimony to our mission to blend together the worlds of classical, popular, and traditional music, The 802 Tour will once again come to life at Big Ears 2010.