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Kathleen Parks, Her Fiddle, Charm and Chops: The Right Notes in the Right Places

10Feb

By John BarryNo Comments

Features, Music

Kathleen Parks, Her Fiddle, Charm and Chops: The Right Notes in the Right Places

Kathleen Parks, with fiddle, performs Jan. 29, 2026, at White Lake Studios in Albany, NY. From left, guitarist Arthur Terembula; bassist Dan Bui; Parks; and guitar and pedal steel player Alex Formento. Photo by Will Hahn. By John W. Barry Her charm, her chops and the way fiddle player, guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Kathleen Parks commands a room is mesmerizing. But even more compelling is the relationship that binds her creative spirit to her instruments—which can be summed up in one line. Kathleen Parks plays the right note at the right time—over and over and over and over. Parks and her band recently dazzled an invite-only audience at White Lake Studios in Albany, NY, for a performance that maintained the thrust of a locomotive, the nuance of devotio...

moe. celebrates 35 years of Friendship, Music and Survival

The band moe., left to right, Jim Loughlin, Nate Wilson, Chuck Garvey, Rob Derhak, Al Schnier and Vinnie Amico. Photo by Jamie Howard. By John W. Barry The band moe. two days after Christmas will return to a city in upstate New York for a homecoming performance and banner way to close out the ensemble’s 35th year of making music together as an improvisational collective of inquisitive, creative and funny guys. Asked about that which lies at the heart of moe.’s endurance, drummer Vinnie Amico fired back with a hilarious quip and a laugh. “Stupidity,” he said. “No,” he continued, bringing the conversation back on track. “We really enjoy making music, playing it, playing together, being together, continuing to write good tunes. And at this point, we don’t know how ...

Welcome to the ILYIT Tour, brought to you by grandson

As much as I love going the distance (literally) for my favorite artists, I was so relieved to see that grandson was bringing his ILYIT tour to Albany's Empire Underground. This summer marked my fourth time seeing grandson live–and if I’m honest, he simply keeps getting better and better. From intimate picnicky acoustic sets to massive state fair stages and every size club in between, there isn’t a single environment where grandson’s music doesn’t fit. With the European leg of this tour currently underway, I figured now might be a good time to talk a bit about what to expect from a grandson gig. “This is our first-ever concert in Albany…” Before we get into the details about this particular stop on the ILYIT tour, I want to address a very good point that grandson made ...