Contributed Photo: The Brothers Four folk music group will perform at the David M. Player Center for the Arts on Wednesday, Feb. 9. The show is part of the Gila Valley Art Council’s season.
Contributed Article By Tom Green/Gila Valley Arts Council
SAFFORD – The Gila Valley Arts Council is proud to present the iconic folk music group, The Brothers Four, on Wednesday, on Feb. 9, starting at 7 p.m. at the David M. Player Center for the Arts on the campus of Safford High School.
Now in their 60th year of performing and recording, The Brothers Four continue to delight millions of fans worldwide with their smooth, musical sounds. Folk songs from America, Ireland, Scotland, Africa, Japan, and China round out a repertoire of acoustic tunes old and new.
Since the early 1960s, The Brothers Four have played thousands of college concerts, sung for U.S. presidents at the White House, appeared at countless Community Concerts, performed with symphony orchestras and jazz stars, and toured dozens of foreign countries. They are truly “America’s Musical Ambassadors to the World.”
Musical million-sellers for The Brothers Four include such releases as “Greenfields”, “Seven Daffodils”, “Try to Remember”, “Across the Wide Missouri” Their hit recording of “The Green Leaves of Summer” from the motion picture “The Alamo” was nominated for an Academy Award and they performed the song at the awards presentation for the network telecast.
The Brothers Four were global pioneers in the musical movement which came to be known as the “folk revival”, and of the few groups from those times still performing today, they remain one of the best known and most popular. Their all-acoustic presentation consists of guitars, banjo, upright bass, and of course the trademark rich blend of their four voices. An evening with this quartet is an unforgettable time of pure, acoustic music and entertainment.
The full-time lineup of The Brothers Four — as solid as ever — includes Mike McCoy, Karl Olsen, Mark Pearson, and Bob Flick.
Mike McCoy is a veteran folk performer and singer/songwriter. He is a native of Washington State has performed with The Brothers Four on special recording projects and occasional stage presentations since the late 1960s. He joined the Brothers Four full-time in 2004.
Washington native Karl Olsen is a folk performer, choral director, writer, and arranger. Karl is the latest addition to the group having joined in 2008, blending his sparkling vocal and guitar skills smoothly into the sound of The Brothers Four.
Washington State’s Mark Pearson is a guitarist, banjo player extraordinaire, and singer/songwriter who has been a strong and consistent part of the Group’s signature sound since he originally joined in the late 1960s.
Bob Flick is a Founding Member of the Brothers Four. He is a Seattle native, bass player, group leader, and singer/songwriter.
Tickets are currently on sale at Richards Music, 928-428-2442, online at www.saffordcenterforthearts.com or at the door. Adult ticket prices are only $10 or $15 and are all reserved seating. GVAC is proud to offer special prices for children and students for only $5.
The GVAC Fine Arts concert series is member-supported. We graciously thank many of you, our individual donors who join as supporting members every year giving out of their personal pockets. Membership can range from as little as $25, but every dollar is spent on the cost of bringing the artists here to not only perform a concert but also to spend an extra day or two working with our school children with music workshops and school performances. This school residency and public performance project were made possible by funding received from the Arizona Commission on the Arts, WESTAF (The Western States Arts Federation), and the National Endowment for the Arts. GVAC is also very grateful for the support received from the United Way of Graham and Greenlee Counties, Freeport McMoRan Corporation, The Flinn Foundation, and the Arizona Community Foundation of the Gila Valley. For any further information, please call Tom Green, at 928-428-0081.
