Listen In!
"Music on Malphrus" is an acoustic listening room located in Bluffton, SC, dedicated to hosting live performances. This intimate venue welcomes folk musicians and singer-songwriters, offering them a platform to connect with a family-friendly audience. The space emphasizes authentic and heartfelt musical expressions, celebrating the rich tradition of folk music and storytelling. Its intimate ambiance ensures a unique and personal connection between the artists and their audience, making it a gem in Bluffton's cultural scene.
Tickets are $25 . Ticket purchase is available below or cash/credit at the door. We recommend reserving your seat by booking online below.
"Music on Malphrus" performances are held at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Lowcountry, located at 110 Malphrus Road in Bluffton, South Carolina. Although the venue is a UU church, the performances have no religious affiliation and are solely for entertainment and to enjoy live music. Doors for the event open at 6:30 p.m., and the live music commences at 7:00 p.m.
Yes! There are refreshments available.
Due to circumstances beyond our control, this show is cancelled.
Check out Lilli's performance of 'O, let your light shine bright'
Rupert Wates was born in London and studied at Oxford University. He has been a full time songwriter since the late 1990s, when he signed a publishing contract with Eaton Music Limited. In fall 2006 he came to the US. He is now based in New York City and Colorado. Since coming to the US, he has won more than 50 songwriting and performing awards.
His music is an eclectic mix of acoustic, melodic art/folk, with flavors of jazz, vaudeville and cabaret. He has released twelve solo CDs. They have received outstanding reviews in the international online press and tracks from them have been played on radio all over the world.
Despite Wates' British background, and underpinning the universality of his music's appeal, Folk And Acoustic Music Exchange has called him "a prime figure in American music'' (www.acousticmusic.com) and goes on: "This is one gifted sonofabitch... If you're not hip to this guy yet you're missing out."
https://rupertwatesmusic.com/
Modern-folk duo Friction Farm, is a husband and wife team of traveling troubadours. Aidan Quinn and Christine Stay, combine storytelling, social commentary and humor to create songs of everyday life, local heroes, and quirky observations. “infectiously hummable tunes” – New Times Magazine Miami FL
They have toured internationally, been Kerrville New Folk Finalists, Falcon Ridge Emerging Artists, and South Florida Folk Festival Songwriter winners. Friction Farm’s latest songs are inspired by witnessing the collision of strong political polarity with personal kindness, the intersection of fragility and breathtaking beauty. From ballads to anthems each song is filled with harmony and hope. “intricate harmonies which are reminiscent of 1960s classics with a modern twist” – Sun Journal New Bern NC He’s from Berkeley CA, she’s from Woodstock NY.
When not touring Aidan enjoys woodworking and Christine bakes. They have a big garden and a small orchard at the sustainable home they designed and built in South Carolina. “They were utterly charming. Their well-written songs cover a wide gamut and their delivery is spot on. They should be much better known." Rich Warren, Host WFMT’s Folk Stage and Midnight Special
https://frictionfarm.com/
Zoë plays vintage jazz, swing, world beat grooves, folk and funk on anything from the piano to the spoons! Originally from the UK, she now calls Cape Cod, her home. She's traveled to over 70 countries picking up musical grooves and stories along the way, released ten albums of original material, toured with Judy Collins, the Indigo Girls, Richie Havens, and Nanci Griffiths. She was signed to Judy Collins’ Wildflower record label, and Putumayo records, she has won numerous songwriting awards and her songs have appeared on Broadway, in documentaries, movie soundtracks and in commercials. She’s currently recording her 11th album of original songs and working on a new one woman musical which she plans to tour.
"A masterful combination of song, performance and artistry with a contagiously positive attitude and free spirit." Bay Guardian, SF
“Equal parts musician and story teller, she is blessed with the uncanny ability to uncover the extraordinary beauty in the seemingly ordinary.” Boston Globe
https://zoelewis.com/
"Brooks Williams is one of those select few 'how on earth does he do it" (Fatea) He moves effortlessly between blues, country and folk. He is a master songwriter who has honed his craft on the road and in front of audiences at home and abroad for 33 years.
“Frank Delandry,” one of Brooks’ songs, about a New Orleans guitar player, is an audience favourite. His song interpretations are inspired, too. Take “King Of California,” for example, which is one of the most requested songs in his concerts. And you can always count on a blistering instrumental or two each show to remind you why he is listed in the Top 100 Acoustic Guitarists. Statesboro Georgia-born, now living in Cambridge UK, Brooks Williams is
admired by both listeners and fellow musicians alike. With over 32 recordings to his name, and countless concert and festival appearances, both solo and with one of his many collaborations, since 1990 he has been a leading light
on the acoustic music scene.
“It is pure talent, hard work and relentless touring which has brought him to the pinnacle of his career.” Blues In Britain
https://brookswilliams.com/
“No Fuss and Feathers distills the very best of four talented musicians and creates an entirely original, polished, engaging entity... beautiful singing, gorgeous harmonies, sophisticated instrumentation, and infectious humor. I loved every minute. ” - Barbara Shiller, President, CT Folk
NO FUSS AND FEATHERS is the “heck-of-a-good-time” collaboration hatched by CAROLANN SOLEBELLO, KARYN OLIVER, CATHERINE MILES, and JAY MAFALE. Shaken or stirred, NFF serves up a dynamic, cohesive cocktail of delicious harmonies, infectious rhythm, and spontaneous hilarity — with award-winning songwriting always at center stage. Individually, the four are nationally touring performers who have charted at the top of Folk and Americana radio and appeared at some of the nation’s most respected festivals. Collectively, they are an incorrigible bunch of musical co-conspirators bent on giving their audience an unforgettable show. Laughter and showmanship, along with warm friendship and camaraderie, make the audience part of the performance, so each NFF show is a unique and unforgettable concert experience.
"The four versatile singer-songwriters swapped instruments and sang with pristine harmonies buttressed by confident musicianship. The accessible performers filled the space between songs with teasing banter, much as they do when getting together in one another’s homes." - David Sepulveda, New Haven Independent
https://nofussandfeathers.com/
Matt Nakoa is an award-winning songwriter, singer, and multi-instrumentalist. A modern troubadour, he makes his home on the highways and concert stages of America and appears regularly with folk music icon Tom Rush. The Boston Globe says of Nakoa, “On the ivories, (think of) a hot-handed phenom who can go from Chopin to beer-drenched honkytonk in one set …On guitar, a Jack Johnson-esque singer-songwriter…between his piano chops, charismatic stage presence, and heartfelt originals on guitar…he drops jaws.”
2012 and 2014 saw the release of his first solo albums, garnering multiple songwriting awards, including a win at Kerrville Folk Festivalʼs new folk competition. Nakoaʼs newest album, Casting Shadows, is a spellbinding blend of pop, soul, and classical influences and tells a story of childhood dreams crashing headlong into a grownup reality. The Ark of Music magazine proclaims, “What we have here is a truly encouraging sign of what pop could once again become …”
Long before I ever sang songs, I wrote piano music. Antique Dances is a special selection of original works that I dusted off and polished up during my COVID lockdown retreat. They have an old-world sound and are based on old-world dance forms. Sometimes, when modern life feels too fast and loud, it’s good to escape to distant times and places.
https://mattnakoa.com/
David Jacobs-Strain and Bob Beach are a multigenerational, bicoastal duo who have been performing together since 2010. They currently perform between 70 and 100 shows a year on both east and west coasts, delighting and bewildering roots music lovers. “Have you ever seen anything like this before?” Wait. Just wait until you see them live.
David Jacobs-Strain and Bob Beach sit side-by-side on the stage. A Pogreba guitar, built by the man who built the cannon Hunter S. Thompson was shot out of, sits loosely in David’s hands. Bob adjusts the distance to his 1940’s RCA microphone then leans over the box propped open at his side and grabs 2 harmonicas. They are calm. Poised. The crowd has no idea what they are in for next. https://davidjacobs-strain.com/
To watch Jacob Johnson play guitar is to watch someone do what he was born to do. Johnson glides up and down the fretboard with total confidence in a way that reminds one of Leo Kottke, barely looking at the instrument as he weaves delicate, dazzling melody lines with the occasional percussive thump on the strings. His sense of melody is a strong as his virtuosic playing, and his songwriting reveals a modestly bemused look at the world.
Johnson began playing when he was 10 years old, thanks primarily to his grandmother. She taught him the first three or four chords he ever learned and said, Jacob, if all you ever learn on the guitar is these three or four chords, you will always be able to pick up a guitar and play songs for people.
After that initial introduction, Johnson progressed quickly through his teen years. There was a period of a couple of years where he went from zero to 60. He started out listening to Johnny Cash and then got into the old rockabilly like Carl Perkins and Gene Vincent, then it was the blues and Stevie Ray Vaughan, Clapton, and Hendrix. By the time he was 18 or 19 he started getting into Phil Keaggy and Michael Hedges, who he consider the Jimi Hendrix of the acoustic guitar. He was one of the first players who got into two-handed tapping, alternate tuning, that kind of stuff. At a certain point he decided to focus on the acoustic guitar because there was just something about it. It seemed like this was the instrument that was going to give him his voice; that would allow him to develop his singing and songwriting in a way that his electric playing didn’t.
https://www.jacobjohnsontunes.com/
Rod is one of the club headliners of the 80s “New Folk” scene and co-founder of the Greenwich Village Folk Festival. Rod’s songs have been recorded by Shawn Colvin, Jonathan Edwards, Joe Jencks, and dozens of Ren-Fair bands, including 21 songs in the Fast Folk/Smithsonian collection. He lives in south Florida, where he’s been named Best Local Acoustic Artist (New Times) and Distinguished Faculty Member in Florida Atlantic University’s LLS program. His 14th and newest album, "Rants And Romance" was #5 on the Folk Alliance’s Folk DJs chart in July 2023 and the most-played cd on the national Folkmusicnotebook.com.
https://www.rodmacdonald.com/
Tickets $25 at the door (unless otherwise noted) – General Admission
Doors open 6:30p.m.
Show at 7:00p.m.
At The Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Lowcountry
110 Malphrus Road, Bluffton, SC, 843-837-3330
www.uulowcountry.org;
info: MusicOnMalphrus@gmail.com
uucl.office@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/MusicOnMalphrus
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Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Lowcountry