A great pick for the weekend
The Jacob Jolliff Band returns for a new live concert event, “The Jacob Jolliff Band: Mandolin Mysteries Tour” at the Newport Performing Arts Center this Sunday, June 30.
One of the country’s premier contemporary mandolinists, Jolliff has assembled a quartet of spectacular musicians, bringing their genre-busting fresh take on finger-picking bluegrass and vocal harmonies for one performance only.
“It will be great to welcome them back!” Oregon Coast Council for the Arts Executive Director Jason Holland said. “Last summer’s performance was very well received, and completely sold out. We’re thrilled and honored that they’re returning to Nye Beach. If you missed them last year, this is your chance to catch this unique and mesmerizing sound.”
At age 18, Jolliff was awarded a full scholarship to the Berklee College of Music, where he studied under the late mandolin great John McGann. In 2008, Jolliff joined the New England-based roots music band Joy Kills Sorrow. They spent the next few years touring extensively throughout the US, Canada and Europe. Despite the hectic tour schedule, Jolliff still managed to graduate from college in 2011. The following year he went on to win the National Mandolin Championship.
In 2014, Joy Kills Sorrow went on an indefinite hiatus after three records, hundreds of shows and thousands of miles in a 15-passenger van. Almost immediately, Jolliff was contacted by the progressive bluegrass jam group Yonder Mountain String Band. He toured and played with them until the end of 2019, releasing three albums in the process.
Jolliff’s current focus is The Jacob Jolliff Band, an ensemble of virtuosic pickers playing his original instrumentals and showcasing his vocals. Together, the group has released two albums, “Instrumentals Vol. 1” in 2018 and “The Jacob Jolliff Band” in 2022.
The show begins at 2:30 pm. Tickets are $35. The Newport Performing Arts Center is located at 777 W Olive Street. For more information, go to coastarts.org or call 541-265-2787.