Throw out the rules when the Billy Jonas Band hits the stage. It’s a musical conversation… a sonic celebration … a splendiferous gathering of old and young, because at a Billy Jonas Band show, the ensemble is… everyone!
Billy Jonas — performer, singer-songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist and educator — has perfected the art of the neo-tribal hootenanny around the globe: original songs performed with a generous dose of audience participation. Jonas uses his voice, guitar, and industrial re-percussion (homemade creations of buckets and barrels, keys and cans, bells and body percussion) to create a soul-spelunking, heart-healing, joy-filled journey of spirited music that is accessible to anyone and everyone, regardless of age or cultural background.
Recommended for: Grades K-3
Study Guide to come
Tickets
Contact theschaefercenter@appstate.edu, call 800-841-2787 or 828-262-4046, visit the box office at the Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts, or register online. Registration opens August 30.
Groups of 25+ people
$3/person
Groups of less than 25 people
$5/person
About Billy Jonas
Billy Jonas (vocals, guitar, re-percussion) developed his craft in the late 1980s as a founding member of the Oberlin College Big Bang Theory performance art collective. He refined things further in Chicago during monthly “Bangalong with Billy” shows at the No Exit Cafe, and subsequently in the 1990s as a co-founder (with Bill Melanson) of the funky folk duo The Billys. He currently goes hummin’ and strummin’ and bangin’ and sangin’ across North America, promulgating homemade “industrial re-percussion,” genre-bending “funky family folk,” and the participatory joy of “everybody’s in the band.”
Jonas has received numerous honors and awards, including an American Federation of Independent Musicians 1st place/Gold, multiple Parents’ Choice Golds, and a New York Times “Best” listing. Billy Jonas has shared stages with many renowned artists, including Alison Krauss, Peter Yarrow, Keb’ Mo’, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Kathy Mattea, Paul Winter, Michele Shocked, Justin Bieber, Ani DiFranco, David Wilcox, Richard Thompson, and Pete Seeger.
About Ashley Jo Farmer
Ashley Jo Farmer (vocals, re-percussion) adds an exciting vocal dimension to Billy’s music with creative, flawless harmonies. An awesome singer/songwriter and band leader in her own right with the Ashley Jo Farmer Band, she is quickly becoming a political firebrand and festival favorite.
About E’lon JD
E’lon JD (bass, vocals, re-percussion) is a bass player, songwriter, performer, and educator, and is the funky foundation of The Billy Jonas Band. With elements of soul, funk, jazz, and rock, he has shared the stage with Belà Fleck and Victor Wooten, and tours internationally with the progressive jazz fusion band Jonathan Scales Fourchestra.
About the Company
The Billy Jonas Band loves to engage and delight both young and adult audiences. Whether performing for adults, families, school groups, faith communities, or a mix, they strive for a musical excellence that inspires, entertains, and moves people literally and figuratively. With “wild winded word magic” (Dirty Linen Magazine), homemade “industrial re-percussion” instruments, exquisite three- and four-part vocal harmonies, plus guitar and bass, they love to create community through song and story. Their specialty: finding and pushing your “wonder” button.
Other: https://www.billyjonas.com/
