Write a commentI have been fortunate enough to have interviewed some very interesting people since I've been writing for iHeartOswego.com the past few years.
From nationally touring musicians like Leslie Mendelson, Adam Ezra and Alice Howe & Freebo to local artists like John McConnell and Cam Caruso - it has been great being able to share some insights into the creative process and love of performing each artist brings to the stage.
With this in mind, I was eagerly looking forward to my recent conversation with bluegrass legend Tony Trischka who is bringing his Earl Jam - A Tribute to Earl Scruggs show to the Oswego Music Hall on Saturday evening, April 12th. After making our introductions Tony began by telling me, "I've been to Oswego before. In fact, I almost died there once!"
Tony Trischka was raised in Syracuse and lived there until he was in his early twenties. He recalled, "It was in January back in the late 1960s, and we'd been seeing pictures on television of the ice mounds and caves on Lake Ontario in Oswego. We drove up there to check it out, and out past the university I decided to walk out onto the ice."
The retired fire chief in me was taken aback, having seen how tragically such incidents often end. Trischka continued, "The farther out I went, the more the ice was moving up and down with the waves. Fortunately, my friend was able to help me back onto solid ground, but I remember that day well!"
We are all fortunate that Trischka survived that brush with mortality, and went on to become one of the great bluegrass musicians of our time. He has recorded more than a dozen solo albums and performed on at least that many others. He has toured all over the world in his more than sixty years of playing the banjo.
"I started performing in 1964 and began playing full time around 1970, playing with area groups like the Down City Ramblers and 'sports-rock' group Country Granola," he said. Trischka then played with groups such as Breakfast Special and The Monroe Doctrine for several years, and began releasing well-regarded solo albums. He also formed his own group, Skyline.
As the years progressed, Trischka began to work on music for Broadway Shows such as Driving Miss Daisy and The Robber Bridegroom. In more recent years, he appeared on NPR shows A Prairie Home Companion and Mountain Stage, and even recorded a special for PBS, "Give Me The Banjo."
Trischka's album Double Banjo Bluegrass Spectacular received a Grammy nomination, and won him the International Bluegrass Music Association's Banjo Player of the Year Award in 2008. He has worked or recorded with greats Earl Scruggs, Bela Fleck, Steve Martin (whose Grammy nominated album Trischka produced) and Paul McCartney.
His most recent release is 2024's Earl Jam, on which Trischka is joined by bluegrass luminaries such as Billy Strings, Sierra Farrell and The Gibson Brothers. The album pays tribute to the legacy of famed banjo player Earl Scruggs. "Whether or not you're a banjo player, if you play bluegrass, you're influenced by Earl Scruggs. So it was easy to get world class players involved," Trischka said.
When we spoke in early April, Trischka told me he would be traveling to Nashville to work on mixing for a second album recorded during the Earl Jam sessions. "We laid down twenty seven tracks, and put out fifteen on the album," he said. "We've got another twelve that we hope to have out later this year."
In the meantime, Trischka said he keeps busy teaching at the Berklee School of Music in Boston, and he also has offered online banjo lessons for more than fifteen years. He has also written more than a dozen instructional books.
For his Oswego Music Hall performance, Trischka said he will be joined by musicians Michael Davies, Casey Driessen, and Jared Engel. "I am lucky to be friends with several great musicians," Trischka said. "As we line up these shows, I see who's available, and we all get together and have a great time."
Tony Trischka's Earl Jam - A Tribute to Earl Scruggs begins at 7:30 pm this coming Saturday, April 12th at the Oswego Music Hall. Located inside the historic McCrobie Civic Center at 41 Lake Street in Oswego, the Music Hall is a wheelchair accessible venue. Tickets are available online at OswegoMusicHall.org or in person at The River's End Bookstore in downtown Oswego.
I'm sure that Tony Trischka's visit to Oswego will be remembered for the amazing musicianship and timeless songs that will be performed. At the same time, I'm thankful that the lake ice has all melted before he arrives. There's no point in tempting fate a second time!
