Free virtual Harmony House Concerts presents Curtis & Loretta, acclaimed multi-instrumentalists and songwriters
By Harmony House Concerts
Aug 31, 2020
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“Loretta's almost operatic alto and Curtis' rich tenor form a lush, polished and varied vocal blend. The pair's instrumental interplay is equally compelling, with Loretta's harp textures dancing in and around Curtis' deft guitar and mandolin lines." ~ Dirty Linen

On Sunday, September 13, '20, 3-5 pm CDT, Harmony House Concerts is thrilled to welcome you to attend one of Curtis & Loretta's free virtual concerts performed in their home in Minnesota, rather than here in our rural NE Texas abode.   Please join us in their Zoom Room at 2:30 (30 mins. prior to the concert) where they have prepared space especially for us all to experience being together with them and one another while being in the comfort of our own homes on our computers.

Here's all you have to do to attend:  Send Loretta an email at loretta@curtisandloretta.com to be included in the event, giving her your name and email address.  Then, before this special gig, she'll send you the Zoom link, Zoom ID, and Password (if needed) and any helpful instructions to join the fun.  It's that simple!!  This invitation is open to anyone, so please notify your friends and family about this opportunity to brighten your day. 

Curtis and Loretta have performed here several times in the past, and each time we have been delighted with both their talents as musicians and with their warm, genuine kindness for others.  The first time we hosted them, I had just suddenly heard from Terri Hendrix that she would have to cancel her usual January concert at HHC due to a family medical crisis.  I immediately contacted the late Michael Terry (who scheduled the shows for Uncle Calvin's Coffeehouse in Dallas) to see if he knew of someone who would be touring in the area. 

Michael said, "I hear that Curtis and Loretta from Minneapolis are touring in Texas about that time, and you can't go wrong booking them.  They have a great fan base and will bring a plethora of instruments to Harmony House." 

I immediately called Loretta, expecting to leave a message.  Not so!  She picked up and we had a fantastic phone conversation in which she accepted the date for the house concert I needed to fill!!   (More about Curtis & Loretta below.)

This is a free concert.  Donations are gratefully accepted, but not expected. They have been ‘sheltering at home’ in downtown Minneapolis since mid-March. Their live concerts had to be cancelled, but they have been surviving this storm with online gigs and donations.  If you are able and do want to make a donation, it can be made either before, during or after the concert in one of the following ways:

More about Curtis and Loretta:

Curtis & Loretta’s music comes straight from the heart.   The husband and wife duo’s extraordinary harmonies and proficiency on a parade of stringed instruments create an alluring frame for their poignant original songs and traditional pieces from America and the British Isles.  The current menagerie includes mandocello, folk harp, guitars, clawhammer banjo, ukulele, and mandolin, plus a bit of kazoo, harmonica, and shakers. Curtis’ down-home sense of humor and Loretta’s theater background engage the audience in an experience that runs the gamut of rolling with laughter to holding back tears, with plenty of side-trips in between.  In usual times, they rack up countless miles each year, crisscrossing the country to deliver their own unique brand of folk singer/songwriter music.

They received Arts Tour Minnesota Grants in 2018 and 2010, and an Artist Initiative Grant in 2015, all from the MN State Arts Board, and were named Best Acoustic Performers of the Twin Cities by City Pages in 2002.  They have been on the South Dakota Arts Council Touring Arts roster since 2011. Their CDs have appeared on “Top Albums of the Year” at folkradio.org, and they’ve received several nominations for “Best Acoustic Folk Artist” for the Minnesota Music Awards.  They’ve released nine CDs, and shared billings with such luminaries as Pete Seeger, Arlo Guthrie, Holly Near, Vassar Clements, Claudia Schmidt, and many more!  Curtis Teague and Loretta Simonet were married (to each other!) in 1987 and live in Minneapolis.

Their latest CD, When There is Good to be Done,  has won them acclaim all over the world. In these perilous times, it is musicians like Curtis and Loretta who remind us of the difference a person can make. This recording is made up of 12 songs Loretta wrote about real people who overcame great challenges in their lives. It's the culmination of a year long project through an Artist Initiative grant that Loretta was awarded, from the Minnesota State Arts Board.

“There's something that transcends their talents on a variety of stringed instruments, their finely interwoven vocal harmonies, and their ability to make traditional folk tunes—mostly from the British Isles—shimmer with fresh vitality. That secret ingredient is at the core of Loretta's songwriting. (Curtis ain't no slouch on that score either.) With a journalist's eye for detail and a knack for tugging at heartstrings while cutting to the quick of an issue, she writes riveting songs. . ."

~ Rick Mason, The A List, City Pages (Minneapolis)

Also see www.curtisandloretta.com where you can listen to songs or see videos from their Facebook or on YouTube.  Other sites to check out:  Harmony House Concerts Group on Facebook (where you can join to receive posts, links to videos for each artist hosted, one-page flyers for each concert, and more) and www.WildscapeAcres.com at the Harmony House Concert page/link.  We want to keep you safe; yet Scott and I don’t want to lose touch with you or deprive you of our great 2020 line-up of artists.