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PRESS RELEASE
January 1, 2016
Contact: Stephanie Bettman, (323) 791-7763
Popular Acoustic “Americana” Duo to Perform in Southern California:
Dates in Malibu and Glendora
The extraordinary acoustic music duo Bettman and Halpin are bringing their inimitable talents to Southern California for two concerts in late January. Americana folk duo Bettman & Halpin (made up of singer/fiddler Stephanie Bettman and multi-instrumentalist Luke Halpin) will be bringing their full band to Southern California. The full band includes Phil Norman on cello and Carl Sorensen on percussion.
They will be performing at the Smothers Theatre of Pepperdine University’s Wengler Center for the Arts in Malibu on January 28 and at Citrus College’s Haugh Center for the Performing Arts in Glendora on January 31. Audiences that have caught their earlier concerts in the Los Angeles area rave about the duo and those who haven’t yet seen and heard them on stage are likely to sing their praises as well.
Critics throughout the country have heaped praise on Bettman, a singer with an angelic voice and a magical touch with the fiddle and her musical partner, the guitar/mandolin virtuoso Halpin. Their concert performances and recordings have drawn favorable comparisons to the likes of Joan Baez, Emmylou Harris and Alison Krauss and her band known as Union Station, all of them world-renown musical artists. On stage, Bettman and Halpin exude a warm and joyous personality in interpreting their original songs and meticulous musical arrangements.
“We’re very excited about these upcoming concerts in Southern California,” says Bettman. “We love coming back to Los Angeles where it all began for us.” Bettman and Halpin, who have lived in Colorado for the last five years, tour throughout the country, but their professional roots are here in Southern California.
“We’re playing bigger and bigger venues," says Bettman.“And we’re so grateful for the support of our audience, as well as presenters in the area, who help us keep growing.We’re really looking forward to coming back to Southern California again.”
Luke Halpin adds,“We’re particularly pleased that we are able to bring our other band members to Pepperdine University and Citrus College. Both Phil and Carl complement ourmusicbeautifully, and it’s fun to get to share that with our fans.”
“They are both amazing musicians who add a great deal to our performances,” says Halpin.“Phil is classically-trained and really into jazz too, so he brings a certain sophistication to the music and Carl is just a magical percussionist. He brings everything up a notch, plus he’s fun to watch! I think audiences are in for quite a treat with these shows."
“Our audiences who come to see us will typically get a range of experiences,”says Bettman. “From foot-tapping, head bobbing fun songs, to songs that make you stop and think, or feel loss or love”.“We typically get comments that folks laughed, and they cried.” Halpin adds“There’s a kind of healing that gets reflected inour music. We seem to connect with audiences on several levels, it can be really special - for us and them.”
As is often the case with versatile and somewhat eclectic musicians, critics and audiences can be hard-pressed to categorize the music of Bettman and Halpin. The duo call what they do “Americana.” Some call it folk music. “Well, we’re acoustic, that’s for sure, but we don’t worry about labels much,” says Bettman, an innovative fiddler and a singer who brings passion and occasional whimsical humor to her vocal stylings. “We just try to make good music and we invite the people to come along.” Most of the duo’s songs are originals. Bettman is principal writer of the songs.
Some songs in their vast repertoire are unabashedly foot-stomping bluegrass-tinged tunes that seem to make audiences beam with joy and practically dance in their seats. Some songs are haunting explorations of love and loss. Some offer reflections about the understated magic and mystery of seemingly quotidian struggles in everyday life.
Acknowledging the growing following for the duo (the word has been spread in part by an intimate documentary film about them titled “It All Comes Back to Love”), Bettman observes, “We’re not quite famous yet, but there are some indications that we’re getting there.” With a laugh, she adds, “Maybe we should print tee shirts that say: ‘We’re Almost Famous.’ We really are grateful for the apparently growing appreciation by the public for our music.”
Says Luke Halpin: “For those who haven’t seen us perform, we hope they’ll come to a concert and then have their heads explode with appreciation for the songs we sing and the way we play them.”
More information can be obtained on websites for Citrus College and Pepperdine University as well as the official Bettman & Halpin website: www.haughpac.com and www.arts.pepperdine.edu. And www.bettmanandhalpin.com.
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