Thursday, June 23, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Amaryllis 35 Concert a Blast (from the past)
A good time was had by all at the Amaryllis 35 Year Anniversary Reunion Concert held on June 9 at Orchard View Community Auditorium. We were so happy to see so many of our friends and fans (both new and long-time) in the audience. Visiting with them during the intermission and after the show was wonderful.
The band was introduced by veteran area broadcaster and patron of the arts (especially music) Buck Matthews. By his account, during the nine year run of his groundbreaking local morning TV talk show he featured Ruth (both Tetzlaff and Bloomquist) eleven times. Several of those occassions were with Max Bloomquist and Steve Reeths as Amaryllis.
We were able to share some of that old video with the audience and they seemed to enjoy it a lot. We were much younger when it was shot and so were they.
Here are a few photos of the evening's proceedings:
Buck Matthews introduces the band and reminisces about our appearences on his show.
Classic Amaryllis!
Max Bloomquist, Ruth Bloomquist, Steve Reeths
"The String Section"
Sue Kittredge-violin, Peggy Smith-viola, and Max Bloomquist-bass
add that special something as Ruth sings Steve's song Lonely Lullabyes.
Encore!
A cappella number "Mister Moon"
Sue Kittredge (left) adds her vocal to the mix.
Photos by Tom Willi.
The band was introduced by veteran area broadcaster and patron of the arts (especially music) Buck Matthews. By his account, during the nine year run of his groundbreaking local morning TV talk show he featured Ruth (both Tetzlaff and Bloomquist) eleven times. Several of those occassions were with Max Bloomquist and Steve Reeths as Amaryllis.
We were able to share some of that old video with the audience and they seemed to enjoy it a lot. We were much younger when it was shot and so were they.
Here are a few photos of the evening's proceedings:
Buck Matthews introduces the band and reminisces about our appearences on his show.
Classic Amaryllis!Max Bloomquist, Ruth Bloomquist, Steve Reeths
"The String Section"Sue Kittredge-violin, Peggy Smith-viola, and Max Bloomquist-bass
add that special something as Ruth sings Steve's song Lonely Lullabyes.
Encore!A cappella number "Mister Moon"
Sue Kittredge (left) adds her vocal to the mix.
Photos by Tom Willi.
For the success of the show we owe a debt of thanks to Orchard View Community Education, Doug Wood, Bruce Haase, Mikael Narramore, and a host of others.
Friday, June 3, 2011
AMARYLLIS 35th Anniversary Concert
We're celebrating 35 years of friendship and musical collaboration. The band, AMARYLLIS, consisting of Ruth Tetzlaff, Steve Reeths, and Max Bloomquist played its first show in June of 1976 and played and toured together for nearly 20 years. The Reunion and Anniversary Concert is June 9, 2011 and Orchard View Community Auditorium, 16 North Quarterline, Muskegon MI. Call ahead 231-760-1350 Monday-Friday for tickets.
Here's a bit of history of the band:
Amaryllis was born in June of 1976 when Ruth Tetzlaff, Steve Reeths, and Max Bloomquist appeared together at the Grand Rapids (MI) Festival Of The Arts. That day began a 19 year string of appearances on club and festival stages that neither they nor their fans will ever forget. After honing their skills in local clubs, the trio hit the road in 1979 for a stint at a ski resort in the mountains of Wyoming, and before long had played stages in Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Kentucky as well. Yet, they always returned home to Michigan and their faithful early fans for extended periods of local performances while holding down various day jobs. The band released two recordings, the self-titled Amaryllis (now available on CD) and the live Raw Asparagus (now out of print).
The trio became a quartet when fiddler Sue Kittredge joined the band, broadening the sound with her fiddle and voice and brightening the stage with her infectious smile. This was the Amaryllis that showed its mettle in the bluegrass band competition at New York’s Winterhawk Festival in the 90’s, and continued to wow audiences all over western and northern Michigan.
In order to pursue various individual musical interests and career goals, the band eventually had to discontinue performing together on a regular basis. Ruth and Max Bloomquist have continued to perform as a duo and with other musicians as well, achieving regional success and even gaining international radio play in folk and bluegrass music. Steve and Sue, also happily married, have continued to play as a duo and in various successful bands and recording projects including “The Kittredge-Reeths Band” and “Square One” and their current project “Coconut Radio.”
The two couples have remained fast friends and occasional musical collaborators. Most notably, Amaryllis came back together for an appearance at the 2006 Bluegrass On The Bayou Festival in Baton Rouge, LA, and Steve and Sue were instrumental (in both senses of the word) in the recording of Ruth’s third CD, One Day Ain’t Enough (2006). That CD hit the folk radio chart in April 2007.
The Facebook Event for the 35th Anniversary Concert is posted, and the band will be doing radio promotion in Muskegon live on Friday June 3 at 4:30 pm on NewsTalk 1090 AM, and will also be featured on WGVU Radio's Shelley Irwin Show .
Here's a link to a video from our last little get together:
Amaryllis: Don't Let the Moon get In Your Eyes
Here's a bit of history of the band:
Amaryllis was born in June of 1976 when Ruth Tetzlaff, Steve Reeths, and Max Bloomquist appeared together at the Grand Rapids (MI) Festival Of The Arts. That day began a 19 year string of appearances on club and festival stages that neither they nor their fans will ever forget. After honing their skills in local clubs, the trio hit the road in 1979 for a stint at a ski resort in the mountains of Wyoming, and before long had played stages in Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Kentucky as well. Yet, they always returned home to Michigan and their faithful early fans for extended periods of local performances while holding down various day jobs. The band released two recordings, the self-titled Amaryllis (now available on CD) and the live Raw Asparagus (now out of print).
The trio became a quartet when fiddler Sue Kittredge joined the band, broadening the sound with her fiddle and voice and brightening the stage with her infectious smile. This was the Amaryllis that showed its mettle in the bluegrass band competition at New York’s Winterhawk Festival in the 90’s, and continued to wow audiences all over western and northern Michigan.
In order to pursue various individual musical interests and career goals, the band eventually had to discontinue performing together on a regular basis. Ruth and Max Bloomquist have continued to perform as a duo and with other musicians as well, achieving regional success and even gaining international radio play in folk and bluegrass music. Steve and Sue, also happily married, have continued to play as a duo and in various successful bands and recording projects including “The Kittredge-Reeths Band” and “Square One” and their current project “Coconut Radio.”
The two couples have remained fast friends and occasional musical collaborators. Most notably, Amaryllis came back together for an appearance at the 2006 Bluegrass On The Bayou Festival in Baton Rouge, LA, and Steve and Sue were instrumental (in both senses of the word) in the recording of Ruth’s third CD, One Day Ain’t Enough (2006). That CD hit the folk radio chart in April 2007.
The Facebook Event for the 35th Anniversary Concert is posted, and the band will be doing radio promotion in Muskegon live on Friday June 3 at 4:30 pm on NewsTalk 1090 AM, and will also be featured on WGVU Radio's Shelley Irwin Show .
Here's a link to a video from our last little get together:
Amaryllis: Don't Let the Moon get In Your Eyes
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