WFDD Triad Arts Archive: Laurelyn Dossett

Triad Arts with David Ford

Laurelyn Dossett

November 23, 2011

As one half of the original roots music band Polecat Creek, singer/songwriter Laurelyn Dossett has appeared on NPR’s Prairie Home Companion. Bluegrass Unlimited calls the band's music “an immaculate example of contemporary folk music brimming with exhilaration and originality.” Now Laurelyn is teaming up with NC Symphony fulfilling her commission by the group to compose a song cycle for voice, string band and orchestra. On November 25 and 26th she’ll be in Raleigh to premiere The Gathering: A Winter’s Tale in Six Songs with the symphony. She’ll be joined on stage with a team of award-winning bandmates including Grammy award-winning Carolina Chocolate Drops singer Rhiannon Giddens, mandolinist and Elvis Costello recording artist Mike Compton, and multi-instrumentalist and Old Time master musician Joe Newberry. Then on December 6 at 8:0pm Laurelyn and her string band will bring a paired down version of The Gathering to Greensboro with a concert at Triad Stage. Also on that program music from Beautiful Star: An Appalachian Nativity. Laurelyn Dossett has written songs for Levon Helm’s Grammy award-winning album Dirt Farmer, and the Grammy winning Carolina Chocolate Drops. She’s also written music for acclaimed Triad stage productions, and in 2010 Laurelyn premiered renowned American composer Kenneth Frazelle’s song cycle “Songs in the Rearview Mirror”