The Wiyos (Special Event)

Vaudevillian Ragtime Blues, Hillbilly Swing and Old Time CountryTHE WIYOS play and compose Old-Timey American music inspired by the early American musical idioms of the 1920s and ?30s. Gleefully subverting genre distinctions, their music comes from a time before commercial formatting separated blues from country, ragtime from gospel, and swing from hillbilly.?With an instrumentation of washboard/harmonica/kazoo, resonator guitar/banjo, Dobro/steel guitar, upright bass and four harmony vocals, THE WIYOS? live performance transports audiences back to an era before TV and mass?media were the main sources of entertainment. Their sound is reminiscent of days?gone?by when live bands could be heard both on the radio and at community dances, juke joints, and house parties. With infectious exuberance and theatrical skill, they create a visual spectacle in the tradition of vaudeville?esque performers such as Fats Waller, the Hoosier Hotshots and Uncle Dave Macon. Their on?stage physical comedy recalls the silent films of Laurel & Hardy, Keaton and Chaplin. ?THE WIYOS took their name from the toughest gang to prowl the streets of old New York (The Whyos, circa 1890). Like the traveling bands of the depression era, they have taken to the road full?time, touring extensively in the USA, Canada, France, The Netherlands and The United Kingdom. Playing at venues such as the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage, Don Quixote?s Music Hall and festivals such as Floydfest, Walnut Valley Festival and Hiawatha Traditional Music Festival, THE WIYOS unique charisma transcends typical social boundaries. They appeal to everyone from hipsters to seasoned music connoisseurs, from children to bikers. Everywhere they play, THE WIYOS charm and amuse audiences with their exuberant style of old?timey music, passionately carrying this rich musical heritage into the 21st century.Reserve a spot for these wonderful entertainers in the intimate house-concert settting. Give a call or drop an e-mail to Marv and Kathy Reitz at 301-670-6716 or email reitz (at)verizon.net.