Community News

Jay Ungar and Molly Mason take to the National Stage at the Oswego Music Hall on Saturday, March 7 at 7:30 p.m.

Doors open at 7 p.m. The wheelchair accessible venue is the McCrobie Civic Center, 41 Lake Street in Oswego.

He was a Bronx kid. She grew up in Washington State. He was raised on pop music of the 1940s and ’50s. She had a fondness for traditional fiddle music and ’30s and ’40s popular tunes. He hung out in Greenwich Village coffeehouses and roamed North Carolina and Tennessee in search of traditional players. She played clubs and colleges on the West Coast and took a liking to the jazzy sound of the Swing Era. Since joining forces—both artistically and romantically, Jay Ungar and Molly Mason have become one of the most celebrated duos on the American acoustic music scene.

These extraordinary musicians won international acclaim after Ken Burns’ The Civil War hit the airwaves. Their performance of Jay’s haunting composition Ashokan Farewell — the musical hallmark of the PBS series — left a lasting impression on everyone who tuned in. The soundtrack won a Grammy and Ashokan Farewell was nominated for an Emmy.

Jay & Molly are masters of music and storytelling who generously share their lives and their music with audiences. There are so many moments and strands to savor in the course of the evening!

Jay’s fiddling is brimming with playfulness, drama, soulfulness and technical verve, as he explores the many musical styles and idioms that he has internalized and made his own. Molly’s total mastery and inventiveness on piano and guitar is always spot-on, as she supports the tunes and follows the flow of the melody. Her rich and expressive vocals along with the resonant strains of Jay’s violin, reveal the deep emotions that flow in the duo’s veins.

On radio and television, Jay and Molly have appeared on CBS Good Morning, The Rosie O’Donnell Show, All Things Considered, A Prairie Home Companion, and the BBC’s Transatlantic Sessions. And they have no shortage of future musical projects.

Quite the odyssey for the West Coast girl and the kid from the Bronx.

For more information visit http://jayandmolly.com/ or view a video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRyMH_4PO3Y&feature=youtu.be.

Concert tickets are $20 ($17 advance sale). Children 16 and under are half price, students are $10, and under 5 free. Purchase tickets at any Saturday concert, on the web or at the river’s end bookstore, 19 West Bridge Street in Oswego. Find more information online at https://www.oswegomusichall.org/ or email: OCPAoswego@gmail.com.

The season continues on March 21, when the wildly popular foursome, RPR on the 21st. The Cadleys lead off the spring season on April 4 followed by Heather Pierson Acoustic Trio on April 18 and the Ruddy Well Band on May 2. The program year wraps up on May 16th with a Finale featuring winner of the 8th season of The Voice, Sawyer Fredericks.

For a complete performance schedule visit the website or pick up an event calendar or poster from the lobby in the McCrobie Civic Center or from the river’s end bookstore.

The Music Hall is a non-profit organization that has been run entirely by volunteers from its inception in 1978. Volunteers can earn admission to shows through various tasks— from running the sound board to making popcorn. Students can also earn credit for community service.

Concerts are made possible in part with funding by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.