Holiday For Fiddles (& More!)
Friday, December 4th
Presented by Milt & Chris Carter and Johnson Appraisal
This is the fifth annual renewal of a musical partnership combining instrumental and vocal talents recognized across the region.
The featured instrumentalists include:
Owen DeJong and Tom Schaefer - Fiddles
Dr. CJ Kocher – Saxophone
Boyd Bristow, Mike Connor, and Brian Bonde – Guitar and Vocals
Kaija Bonde – Vocals
Al Remund – Drums and Vocals
Larry Rohrer – Bass and Vocals
Owen DeJong received his master’s degree in Violin Performance from the University of South Dakota. His musical roots are traced to a family string quintet that included his 3 brothers and sister in performance. He played professionally with the Red Willow Band and the Traveling Band before returning to South Dakota to teach high school and later as program director and classical music host for South Dakota Public Broadcasting.
Dr. Tom Schaefer was a founding member of the regional bluegrass band “The Rocky Mountain Oysters while completing his medical degree. Throughout his career as an anesthesiologist, he was a highly sought-after fiddle player in the Minneapolis Folk Music scene. He is even more in demand since his retirement from the operating theater and plays throughout the twin cities and upper Midwest.
Dr. C J. Kocher is Professor of Saxophone and Jazz Studies at the University of South Dakota. He regularly performs with the South Dakota Symphony and Sioux City Symphony. As a jazz performer, Kocher regularly plays with his own quartet, the Okoboji Jazzed Up Big Band, and has toured Japan three times, playing lead alto with the Billy Vaughn Orchestra (big band). Other musical credits include Al Jarreau, Mercedes Ellington, the Temptations, the Les Brown Orchestra, and the Jimmy Dorsey Big Band.
Boyd Bristow is a prominent singer, songwriter, and guitarist who has been a mainstay of the South Dakota music scene since the 1960s. His music beautifully blends folk, rhythm and blues, country, gospel, and rock and roll. Boyd has performed as a solo artist and as a core member of several well-known regional bands and currently plays with East of Westreville and The Shamrockers. He was a founding member of the “South Dakota Acoustic Christmas” series and has been inducted into the South Dakota Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Mike Connor is also a South Dakota Rock and Roll Hall of Famer through his career as a highly influential guitarist and songwriter and major contributor to the Sioux Falls music scene since the 1960s. He began playing at age 12 and joined rock band bands from the X-Men, Those of Us, and Kid Sparrow.
Brian and Kaija Bonde are a prominent musical and theatrical husband-and-wife duo and are highly recognized figures in the regional arts community, known for their performances, theater production, and advocacy for bringing quality musical entertainment to rural areas. Musically, Kaija was featured in the long running musical “Always Patsy Cline”, the duo was picked as a finalist in the duet competition and played on A Prairie Home Companion and founded the group East of Westreville.
Larry Rohrer is a career bass player and has been a part-time musician since age 14 when he began performing weekends with a country music dance band in Sioux Falls. Since he has been a long-time member of The Poker Alice Band and Public Domain Tune Band. He remained and advocate of music and fine arts through his broadcasting career in Sioux Falls and with South Dakota Public Broadcasting.
Al Remund’s musical resume starts with a high school rock group in his hometown of Milbank and extends to Nashville where he toured with singer/songwriter Dickey Lee and performed in the rehearsal band of the Everly Brothers. More recently, Al has been a long-time member of the Poker Alice Band and Public Domian Tune Band.