The Wires in Concert
Mineral Area Council on the Arts presents The Wires in concert, February 18, at 7:00 p.m. at Long Memorial Hall, 110 West Columbia Street in Farmington.
Laurel Morgan Parks, violinist, and Sascha Groschang, cellist, make up the The Wires – an alternative string duo of fun ladies residing in the Kansas City area who write their own tunes.
Laurel Morgan Parks has performed with artists such as Sarah McLaughlan, Disturbed, Amy Grant, Josh Groban and Evanescence. Her music is signed to two record labels: Second Nature Recordings (USA) and Arctic Rodeo (Germany). In addition to traveling through Europe with the Americana band “In the Pines,” Parks has toured all over Asia with the Mantovani Pops Orchestra. She has recorded strings for Hulu and Universal Pictures in addition to laying string tracks for countless bands and corporate clients.
Laurel’s heart lies in composing music. She is passionate about creating interesting melodies that go to unpredictable, yet listenable places. She writes, records and concertizes with “The Wires.” She also co-writes music for the alternative Indie-folk band “Of Tree.” Parks also owns and teaches “Drunken Fiddles” – a workshop for adult beginners who want to learn to play the fiddle with a twist. She is the founder of the online music school “Fiddle Life,” which teaches fiddle and cello to adults at the beginner and intermediate levels.
Sascha Groschang has performed extensively across the United States and Asia. She has appeared at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall numerous times, and gave her solo debut recital at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall in 2009. She has been a soloist and lecturer at the Thailand International Composition Festival, performed for the King of Malaysia with the Kuala Lumpur International Festival Orchestra, and traveled all across China on two tours with the Mantovani Pops Orchestra. She has shared the stage with artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Michael Bublé, Peter Gabriel, Josh Groban, Sarah Mclachlan and has extensive recording experience, including sessions for NBC, Atlantic and Rhino Records.
Groschang holds performance degrees from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory and Mannes College of Music in New York City, with further studies in chamber music at The Juilliard School and traditional styles from the Folk Alliance International Workshops.
The term “alternative” accurately describes the music of The Wires. Rooted in traditional violin and cello training and performance, Laurel and Sascha offer something of a different music possibility without being inaccessible. The music is original, yet there is an air of familiarity about it. The tunes such as “Bahktia”, “Native” and “Alexander’s Mill” keep the listener engaged through interesting rhythms, pleasant melodies, and musical form through melody and tempo changes. Scottye Adkins, MACOA’s Executive Director, expounded on the choice to invite The Wires to the Parkland, “I have been listening to their music for about a year. It somehow transports me to an epic saga of historical adventure yet with a taste of modernity. These ladies bring chamber music with a twist. Hearing them perform in person will be an experience we will not soon forget.”
Tickets for The Wires concert are $8.
Mineral Area Council on the Arts presents the performance with public support from the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency.