A Hawk And A Hacksaw is Jeremy Barnes and Heather Trost from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Informed by their travels and adventures around the world, their sound is a fantastical and emotive mix of Eastern European folk, gypsy song, klezmer, Mexican fanfare and gorgeous cinematic flourishes, with flashes of classic songwriting. Blending eastern and western sensibilities, both poetical and socially conscious, bucolic and urban, AHAAH are a rare band, steeped in tradition yet plotting their own idiosyncratic course, not so much breaking from musical history as singing its essential values in wholly new forms.
For this very special Contemporary Music Network tour, Jeremy and Heather have taken in a group of four adventurous musicians from Hungary and one from the UK (collectively known as The Hun Hangár Ensemble) to present their music at its most ambitious and uproarious. Featuring bagpipes, clarinet, saxophone, taragoto, trumpet, drums, accordion, upright bass, viola and violin, the show will include stunning new music, re-workings of traditional Hungarian and Balkan folk songs, and material from AHAAH's back catalogue. These are modern day troubadours whose beguiling compositions will combine ancient folk song, subtle global commentary, and allusions to marching tunes, jazz and modern composition. If 'purity is a myth', this is a beautiful and new reality. With a similar approach to Brazil's Tropicalia movement, or George Harrison’s forays into the Indian subcontinent, AHAAH have seamlessly synthesized an armful of world musics and counter-cultural influences into an irresistible and otherworldly whole.
Line up:
Jeremy Barnes (accordion, drums, vocals)
Heather Trost (violin, glockenspiel, vocals)
Bela Agoston (Hungarian bagpipes, clarinet, alto saxophone, taragoto, viola)
Zsolt Kurtosi (upright bass, accordion)
Ferenc Kovács (trumpet, violin)
Balázs Unger (cymbalom)
