The Sam Hill Duo, consisting of guitarist Sam Hill and flutist Laura Osborn, will be performing from noon to 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 31, on Music at Noon, the Pasadena Presbyterian Church’s free-to-watch virtual series.
The Sam Hill Duo plays instrumental arrangements of Celtic and American folksongs, using traditional and non-traditional variations.
In their repertoire, Sam Hill and Laura Osborn have mimicked an out-of-tune string band recording from the 1920s, used a Celtic ballad accompanied by a Delta Blues guitar-style, and harmonized an American work-song a la Ravel. This experimental approach to musical arrangements results in a convergence of melodies and grooves that feels bluesy, delicate, or jazzy.
Sam Hill plays guitar in the American finger-style guitar tradition. He does the arrangements of folk music from America and the British Isles that the duo plays. Hill has also recorded three duets with the uniquely talented Susan Craig Winsberg for his CD “Beauty, Despair and Fun.”
Osborn, originally from Colorado, has performed nationally as a soloist and ensemble musician and in the recording studio. She currently performs with several groups in the Los Angeles area and as a solo artist, showing a versatility in classical and improvised music matched by a singular tone and fluid phrasing that are a hallmark of her performances.
Ocborn has earned degrees in music from USC, the New England Conservatory, and UCLA. She has been a student of James Walker, Roger Stevens, Ran Blake, and Kenny Burrell. At present, she is conducting research for a dissertation on rhythm and musical expression in American old-time music.
Music at Noon is live on the Friends of Music at PPC’s YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/channel/
For more information, call (626) 793-2191 or visit www.ppcmusic.org/music-at-
