Bluegrass, Country, Folk Music Outdoors at Dahmen Barn, August 4, 2012

On Saturday, August 4, 2012, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., the band Hotwire will play bluegrass, country and folk music outdoors at Artisans at the Dahmen Barn in Uniontown. If weather dictates, the performance will be moved indoors.

The group includes champion musicians and has a resonant voice blend accompanied by guitars, mandolins and bass. Admission is $10 at the door; kids under 12 are free.

Dave Hunt is a two-time Utah State flat-picking champion on both guitar and mandolin. He has placed 2nd on fiddle. Dave’s uncanny ability to duplicate complex Doc Watson licks on guitar is a showstopper. His pleasant tenor voice occasionally takes the lead, and provides the foundation for Hotwire’s harmonies.

Hotwire's lead singer, Dale Fisk, toured the western U.S. with a country-rock band in the 1970s. He plays guitar and mandolin. He has placed 3rd In Idaho’s Old Time Fiddler’s flat-picking competition on mandolin. His clear voice has the versatility to range from a high lonesome sound reminiscent of Vince Gill all the way down to more resonant tones of singers like Johnny Cash.

Dennis Maggard plays banjo, guitar, mandolin and bass. He has taken first place in Idaho’s Old Time Fiddler’s state flat-picking competition on guitar. Dennis’s deep bass voice gives Hotwire’s occasional four-part harmonies its rich tone.

For the past eight years Helen Smith has played bluegrass bass in the states of Idaho, Washington and Montana. She provides that rhythmic glue that binds a bluegrass band together. She also plays guitar and provides the high harmonies that give Hotwire its clear, resonant vocal blend.

The Hotwire band keeps a busy performance schedule. It was a real challenge to fit them into the Barn's calendar.

Their 2011 gigs included:
Mount St. Helens Bluegrass Festival--Toledo, WA
Art on the Green--Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
Bluegrass on the Greenbelt--Idaho Falls, Idaho
Council Mountain Music Festival--Council, Idaho (Headline act) Weiser Old Time Fiddle Contest and Festival—Weiser, Idaho Grangeville Arts Concert Series—Grangeville, Idaho Kooskia Opera House – Kooskia, Idaho (sold out, standing ovation) Bluegrass in the Barn, Nampa, Idaho (packed house)

Artisans at the Dahmen Barn is just off highway 195 in Uniontown in the big white barn behind the famous iron wheel fence. The non-profit creativity center is open Thursday through Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm. There is no daily admission fee and the facility is fully ADA compliant. Information: www.artisanbarn.org or 509-229-3414.