artist + band collaborations
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:: LULLABY PROJECT | CARNEGIE HALL PARTNERSHIP
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:: YOUR SONG, YOUR STORY | CENTER FOR GRIEVING CHILDREN
:: MUSIC AND LITERACY | CHILDREN’S MUSEUM + THEATRE OF MAINE
artist + band collaborations
The Letters
Sorcha Cribben-Merrill + Jo Sorrell
During the cold Maine winter of 2009, jazz-infused harmonies met bluegrass roots in Jo’s small kitchen. Two years later Jo Sorrell and Sorcha Cribben-Merrill hit the road with spot-on vocal harmonies and groove driven, genre bending arrangements of original songs and select covers.
Weilding acoustic guitar and banjo, Sorcha “unveils a suite of musical styles that shows a wide-ranging songwriting ability…witty verses with smart rhymes” (Sam Pfeifle, Portland Pheonix) as Jo rolls her classical cello background into funky bluegrass chops a-la Crooked Still and Ben Sollee.
Performance highlights include: Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Emerging Artist showcase and opening for Leyla McCalla, celebrated Hatian-American cellist/singer, formerly of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, teaming up with pianist/electronic musician Kafari on rhythm bones.
Their live performances are moving and downright joyful.
THE LETTERS + KAFARI (TRIO)
From left: Jo Sorrell (cello), Kafari (rhythm bones), Sorcha (guitar)
This unique, fine-tuned trio combines Jo and Sorcha’s razor sharp vocal harmonies and folk-blues-leaning songs with pianist/electronic musician Kafari's intricate rhythm bones percussion.
Weilding acoustic guitar and banjo, Sorcha Cribben-Merrill “unveils a suite of musical styles that shows a wide-ranging songwriting ability…witty verses with smart rhymes” (Portland Pheonix) as Jo Sorrell rolls her classical cello background into funky bluegrass chops a la Crooked Still and Ben Sollee. Weaving these songs together are Kafari’s intricate rhythms.
Kafari's rhythm bones playing carries precision and improvisation from his classical piano training and powerful electronic compositions. Their live performance is a thing to behold and best experienced in intimate listening rooms. They have opened for celebrated Hatian-American cellist, multi-instrumentalist, and singer Leyla McCalla (formerly of the Grammy-award winning Caroline Chocolate Drops) at One Longfellow Square in Portland, Maine and captured hearts at house concerts.
Sorcha and Emilia
Sorcha Cribben-Merrill + Emilia Dahlin
What began as two seasoned songwriters showing up for weekly creative check-ins evolved into a fresh musical collaboration. Emilia Dahlin and Sorcha Cribben-Merrill join their jazz vocal harmonies with the poetry of folk music, while honoring vintage rhythms and their stylistic origins. Their songs unveil mesmerizing tales, charming vignettes, and raw bluesy grooves as they swap guitars, accordion, drums, and vocal improvisations.
Joining forces on stage, they embody what is possible when two musicians support each other through challenges of “going it alone” in the work of launching new projects, sustaining creative partnerships, and aligning their values with their work. Fueled by their Wednesday morning “creative accountability sessions,” removing barriers to their creative process made space for this special duo.
Emilia has toured through the U.S., Canada, Brazil and Europe. Known for memorable performances, Emilia garnered national awards from Telluride Troubadour, Winner of the Starbucks Music Makers Competition, Winner of Boston Music Conference Songwriting Competition, and the Great Waters Songwriting Contest.
Sorcha has opened for Grammy-nominated mandolinist Matt Flinner, folk music icon Tom Rush, and celebrated cellist/multi-instrumentalist Leyla McCalla (formerly of the Carolina Chocolate Drops). She has won over audiences at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival (Emerging Artist), Stone Mountain Arts Center in Brownfield, ME, and The State Theatre in Portland, ME.
If You Get Too Close
(Living Room SessionS)
Connor Garvey Band
Connor Garvey is an award-winning singer-songwriter from Portland, Maine, with the amiable presence of an entertainer, the lyrical depth of a poet, and the enchantment of a storyteller. Garvey leaves audiences uplifted and inspired through a positive message delivered in a way The Portland Press Herald says "proves you can be optimistic and self-aware without being boring."
This combination of songwriting and performance strength helped Garvey make his music scene start with numerous awards including being named winner of the Kerrville New Folk, Rocky Mountain Folks Fest, SolarFest, Wildflower Art and Music Festival and Maine Songwriters Association songwriting competitions, voted as Most Wanted artist at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, nominated for Best Male Performer in the New England Music Awards, and a top new singer songwriter by Sirius XM's The Coffeehouse. He has since gone on to perform around the country at many of the most notable folk/acoustic venues, festival stages, and teaching songwriting at some of the more distinguished song schools.
While the pandemic brought a sharp drop in live performances, Connor dedicated his time to finishing an acoustic EP in 2020 and a full length band album (Another End of a Year, Summer 2022 release). Both of these projects were recorded locally in Portland featuring some of the area's best gigging and recording artists. Connor has made a name for himself as a solo artist but this 2022 release, and the shows that accompany it, highlight the band that has been the backbone of Connor's albums since 2011 and closest musical collaborators. Audiences should expect the same dedication to the intimate song delivery but allow themselves the opportunity to get lost in the rhythms and textures that these exceptional musicians bring to the experience.
TWO SINGLES FROM “ANOTHER END OF THE YEAR” (7/21/22 RELEASE)
All These Things: co-written by Connor Garvey + Sorcha Cribben-Merrill
Water To The Well: by Connor Garvey
CONNOR GARVEY (lead vocal, acoustic guitar)
PETE MORSE (electric guitar)
COLIN WINSOR (bass)
DAN BOYDEN (drums)
with special guests BEN COSGROVE (keys) +
SORCHA CRIBBEN-MERRILL (harmony vocals)
organization collaborations
LULLABY PROJECT
carnegie hall partnership
“The Lullaby Project, a project of Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute, pairs new and expecting parents and caregivers with professional artists to write and sing personal lullabies for their babies, supporting maternal health, aiding childhood development, and strengthening the bond between parent and child. In New York City, the Lullaby Project reaches parents in healthcare settings, homeless shelters, high schools, and correctional settings. Extending across the country and around the world, the Lullaby Project enables partner organizations to support families in their own communities.”
— Carnegie Hall Website
LULLABY PROJECT — 317 MAIN COMMUNITY MUSIC CENTER, YARMOUTH, ME | WAYFINDER SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP
After several years with Bay Chamber, she initiated and co-created a new Lullaby Project partnership launch at 317 Main Community Music Center in Yarmouth, ME, via Wayfinder Schools. After a successful pilot year, they shifted online during the pandemic, allowing them to expand their reach to students throughout the state - including Washington County.
LULLABY PROJECT — BAY CHAMBER CONCERTS & MUSIC SCHOOL, ROCKPORT, ME | WAYFINDER SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP
Sorcha was invited to join the Lullaby Project at Bay Chamber Music School as the lead vocalist. They partnered with Wayfinder Schools’ Passages Program an in-home high school diploma program for new parents, to support new mothers, fathers, partners to write lullabies for their babies.
Sorcha (lead vocalist) joined four other musician/songwriters: Nate Martin (upright bass), Malcolm Brooks (acoustic guitar), John Mehrmann (piano, percussion, harmony vocal), April Reed-Cox (cello, harmony vocal). They recorded the songs in the Rockland Opera House, Rockland, Maine. Recorded and mixed by Jud Caswell.
317 Main’s Lullaby Project Team, 2020 - clockwise, from top left: Sorcha Cribben-Merrill, Alicia Phelps (program director), Jenny O’Connell, Monique Barrett, Jo Sorrell.
music performances for memory care
Sorcha holds her banjo while inviting folks to sing along at Fallbrook Woods, Portland, Maine, in the memory care unit.
Sorcha has been offering interactive performances for memory care and assisted living audiences for over a decade, throughout Southern Maine and beyond. She sings jazz standards, old-time classics, and some originals - accompanying herself on acoustic guitar, banjo, and ukulele. Occasionally she is joined by a special guest on percussion or vocals. The benefits of engaging in music for individuals living with dementia, and their families, are numerous.
SORCHA CRIBBEN-MERRILL SHARES THE HEALING POWER OF MUSIC WITH YOUNG AND OLD
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD feature by Ray Routhier (excerpt)
“During the hour that she played, Cribben-Merrill got about a dozen residents of the memory care unit moving and dancing, including several in wheelchairs who were spun and twirled by nurses.
‘It’s very unusual for most of them to be so engaged, but Sorcha makes eye contact with them and she makes them feel safe,’ said Susan Stadnicki, one of the nurses on duty while Cribben-Merrill played. ‘As a nurse, I love to see the way they react to her. I wish she was here more.’”
— Ray Routhier, Portland Press Herald
Portland Press Herald | Ray Routhier | Life + Culture Feature (Staff photos by Joel Page)