Lucy Kaplansky was an up-and-coming folksinger in New York City’s ’80s and ’90s Village music scene, but after a few years she dropped out of music to pursue a doctorate in psychology and eventually opened a successful practice in the city. However, she never quit singing and was often pulled back into the studio by friends like Nanci Griffith, Suzanne Vega, John Gorka, and Shawn Colvin to add her trademark harmonies to their albums. In 1973 Shawn Colvin finally convinced her to go into the studio to record an album all her own and this stunning recording (produced by Shawn Colvin) is “The Tide” which was the very first “Hot Pick” on the “newly-debuted” Americana radio chart. Before long Kaplansky found herself very much in demand and touring so heavily that something had to give and it was the psychology career. She has never looked back. The Associated Press lauds Kaplansky: “Clearly among the largest talents on the acoustic scene today.”

Kaplansky’s newest CD, “Over the Hills” was the number 1 most played album on 153 folk radio stations this past March when it was released. It is her most personal recording to date with a stunning range of material, from stories about family, those who have gone and those who will follow. This is Lucy’s reflection upon her times. Lucy’s last CD, “The Red Thread” is also a celebration of home and family. The poignant songs on this album were written during these turbulent times and were inspired by Lucy’s close witnessing of the events from her home in New York City following the 9/11 attacks. In addition to the profound effects on Lucy’s life on that tragic day in 2001, she has also been transformed into a different kind of songwriter due to the adoption of her daughter, Molly, from China.

As well as being a solo performer, Kaplansky has collaborated with fellow folk artists Dar Williams and Richard Shindell as part of the group “Cry, Cry, Cry.” Lucy and Richard still perform together frequently. However, the release of “Cry, Cry, Cry” was a real turning point in all of their careers — the recorded effort of their loving tribute to fellow singer-songwriters like Greg Brown, Robert Earl Keen, and Julie Miller was one of the CD highlights of the ’90s.

Natalia Zukerman

The me&thee is delighted to present Natalia Zukerman as the opening act for this show. The daughter of violinist/conductor Pinchas Zukerman and flutist/writer Eugenia Zukerman, Natalia grew up in Manhattan immersed in classical music. Performing live — and experiencing what she calls the life of a “wandering gypsy” — seems to be a family tradition: her sister Arianna is an opera singer, and her paternal grandfather played clarinet in klezmer bands in Poland and later Israel. But after receiving the requisite training early on, Natalia realized her first instrument — the violin — was not taking her where she really wanted to go. “I couldn’t match what I heard (in my ears), physically,” she recalls. “The sound I produced drove me out of my mind.” Nor did she feel at home in the world of classical concerts and recitals: “I didn’t like getting dressed up and sitting in silence, rehearsing and playing the same piece the same way, over and over again,” she says. Zukerman then discovered the folk music scene and she’s got three folk albums to her name. She continues to travel around the world, spreading her own special kind of music.

Natalia Zukerman photo © Marjorie Amon Photography.com

 
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New York songwriter Lucy Kaplansky is becoming the troubador laureate of modern city folk.  The Boston Globe

It was easy to predict stardom for her. The New York Times

Natalia Zukerman comes from a family of noted classical musicians (her mother, Eugenia, is a flutist; her father, Pinchas, is a violinist; and her sister, Arianna, is an opera singer), but she has chosen to forsake grand performance halls for a dusty resophonic slide guitar in small clubs. She has nimble fingers capable of picking upward of thirty notes per measure, and when she sings she can switch from scat to swoon in the course of a glissando.  The New Yorker