Although Vancouver Island MusicFest is five months away, their concert series continues at with Don Ross and Brooke Miller.
On March 11, the duo will take to the stage, showcasing the legendary solo guitarist alongside one of Canada's finest new songwriters.
Don Ross has been touring the world long enough now to have become an influence on a generation of guitarists and other musicians.
He feels fortunate to have grown up sheltered from the influence of too many other acoustic guitarists, as it had made it easier for him to focus on the composing and playing of music, rather than focusing on technique-based pyrotechnics.
That said, Ross has still managed to be the only player to win first place twice at the national fingerstyle guitar championship (1988 and 1996). He has released over a dozen solo albums as well as collaborative cds with Andy Mckee and Men of Steel (Beppe Gambetta, Dan Crary, Tony Mcmanus and Ross).
Born in Montreal to a Scottish immigrant father and a mi'kmaq Aboriginal mother, Ross has been touring full-time since 1989.
In 2006 he released a live cd entitled Live in Your Head and he released The Thing That Came from Somewhere with Andy Mckee in January 2008.
His all-vocal cd, Any Colour, was released in April 2009 and his most recent all-solo-guitar cd, Breakfast for Dogs, was released in november 2010 on Candyrat Records.
Hailing from Prince Edward Island, Miller's abilities as a singer-songwriter and guitarist have been showcased across North America, Japan, and Europe over the past several years.
Her first recording, Lending an Hourglass, was released in 2003. Recognized and signed by Sony Music publishing in New York, Miller released her second cd, You Can See Everything, in 2007.
She counts Ricki Lee Jones, The Police, Bruce Cockburn, Tom Waits and Lenny Breau as influences on her style, which is characterized by smoky vocals and impeccable fingerstyle guitar work.
Winner of the 2007 Colleen Peterson songwriting award (conferred by the Ontario Council of Folk Festivals), Miller is destined for recognition as one of Canada's strongest new crop of writers of acoustic music.
In 2010, Miller released Shake It Off on the Candyrat label.
2011 sees the launch of Miller's new self-titled CD/LP which finds her playing both electric and acoustic guitars. She performs regularly across Canada, the United States, Japan and Germany.
For more information, visit http://www.donrossandbrookemiller.com/home.html
Ticket for the concert are $15, and are available at The Cumberland Hotel. Doors are at 7 p.m., with the show at 8 p.m. For more information, call 250-336-8844.
— Vancouver Island MusicFest