Bringing together a rich variety of local musicians, young and old, into a two-hour show is the plan for this year’s Gold Street Music concert series, which starts at 7.30pm on Saturday at Holy Trinity Church.
The series began about 20 years ago, but this is the second year after a hiatus that began in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, said Riley Woodford, a longtime musician who will perform a solo set as well as host the premiere. He said that, in collaboration with two other series organizers, he contacted a wide variety of local musicians in an attempt to put together the season’s full schedule ahead of time.
“I contacted probably 40 or 50 people and figured out who would be interested and what months would work best,” he said. “And then I tried to fill each night so that the performances complemented each other. I didn’t want to have all solo singer-songwriters one night, all bluegrass bands another night. Some people were available in January but not in December or thereabouts. And there were some people I really wanted to get, so I let them choose which month would be best.”
Each night of the month-long series, which runs through March, will feature five 20-minute sets from different musicians. Woodford said he plans to perform five songs, including several originals, during his solo set on Saturday.
“One of the things about this place that’s really cool is that everything is acoustic,” he said. “There’s no sound system or anything like that. So it’s a chance for me to play different guitars instead of having one on that I have to stay in at night.”
Other performers include Stacey and Guy “Ziggy” Unziker, performing as the duo Thistle & Myth, with Woodford saying both have long musical ties to Juneau, through family and other groups, who are now a pair performing together.
“I knew they played together and that they were both good musicians,” he said. “So I just asked them and they said ‘sure, we’d love to do it.’ And they were some of the first people I talked to this summer.
A trio known as The Flukes – featuring Dylan Hulbert, Quinton Woolman Morgan and Callahan Croteau – is also planned. Woodford said that along with the Unzickers, part of the reason he turned to the trio was their youth.
“I really wanted to find younger musicians,” he said. “Guy and Stacey are 20 years old. And the Flukes are all 20 years old I think. There are a lot of established musicians who we know are good, but there are a lot of people coming up who are really good but haven’t been heard much.”
Among the voices on the tryout is Mike Gamble, whom Woodford said he first met about 25 years ago, who will play with Caleb Wiley. And the duo A Felicidade, made up of Heather Mountcastle and Luke Weld, will offer a different sound.
“Luke is a pianist who plays all kinds of music in many different configurations,” Woodford said. “He also accompanies a lot of people. And he was working with Heather down at the Crystal Saloon doing a bossa nova thing. And she sings in Portuguese and Spanish as well as English. I went down one night this summer and saw them and they were great.
Know & Go
What: Golden Street Music Concert Series 2023
WHO: Five 20-minute sets by musicians from Juneau. Performers are Riley Woodford; Thistle & Myth (Ziggy & Stacey); The Flukes (with Dylan Hulbert, Quinton Woolman Morgan and Callahan Croteau); Mike Gamble with Caleb Wiley; Felicidade (Heather Mountcastle with Luke Weld).
When: 7:30am-9:30pm, Saturday, November 4.
Where: Holy Trinity Church, Fourth and Golden Streets.
Tickets: $5 donation at the door or bring goodies for the intermission breakfast table.
Others: Additional concert dates: December 12, January 6, February 4, March 2.
• Contact Mark Sabatini at [email protected] or (907) 957-2306.