The Susan Werner Trip plays in Fallon on May 24.
Named Best Contemporary Folk Artist, Susan Werner is a daring, innovative performer who weaves old and new together to create fresh genres when existing ones don’t suit her muse.
The Susan Werner Trio, who will perform at the Oats Park Arts Center’s Barkley Theater on March 24, infuses traditional styles with a decidedly modernist world view on both genre classics as well as a beehive of contemporary concerns.
Individual tickets are $17 members and $20 for nonmembers. To purchase tickets, call 775-423-1440 or email charts@phonewave.net. Tickets are also available at Jeff’s Copy Express and ITT@Naval Air Station Fallon. All seats are reserved.
The box office, Art Bar and galleries open at 7 with her performance at 8 p.m.
Not only will she perform that evening, she also will be part of the Conversation with the Artist program earlier in the day as she discusses Songwriting in the 21st Century at 3 p.m., also at the Oats Park Art Center. This presentation is free.
Werner has had a storied career with her recent album release, “An American in Havana,” which features songs written by her during two trips to Cuba in 2015 and 2016. She is the second artist to present a flavor of Cuba, the first being Adonis Puentes, who appeared at the Barkley Theater in November.
Werner, who grew up in Iowa and became interested in music at a very young age, received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa, and after she moved to Philadelphia, she earned a master’s degree in voice from Temple University.
She was destined to become a musician, though. Werner performed in Philadelphia, Boston and New York City and became a part of the folk scene of the early 1990s. From 1993 to 2001 she recorded five albums — all in the folk genre — and eventually moved to Chicago. Werner’s sixth album, “I Can’t Be New,” recorded in 2004, included original material in the vein of Tin Pan Alley, cabaret, and early jazz torch songs.
Her seventh album focused on religious themes, her eight on gospel, jazz and folk and her ninth on pop music. “Hayseed,” a concept album about “farms, farmers, and the people who love them,” was released five years ago.
Werner also wrote the music and lyrics for a musical based on the film “Bull Durham,” which premiered in Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre on Sept. 3, 2014.
Artist’s reception: An artist’s reception for Kevin Bell is nearing at the Churchill Arts Council Saturday with a talk and reception from 5-7 p.m. It’s recommended to arrive about a half hour early.
Bell’s exhibit in the E.L. Wiegand Gallery ends March 24 and consists of painting of the new American West is and titled “Contingent Lands: Place in the Contemporary West.”