An evening with Voss & Osborne is a kind of musical adventure, carried along by the dynamic interplay of two great artists at the top of their game.
Voss has all of America in her singing. Every performance includes powerful readings of great contemporary and original songs, as well as rare and classic gems of blues, folk, and popular song, from Hoagy Carmichael to the Beatles, from Randy Newman to Bessie Smith. She is often compared to the legendary mid-Twentieth-Century French singer and icon Edith Piaf.
Her own songs draw on all these traditions, and have been covered by such great folk artists as Rosalie Sorrels, Chuck Pyle, Jody Stecher and Kate Brislin, and the late Dave Van Ronk. Many of her songs, with their well-crafted lyrics and flowing, singable melodies, have the ring of instant classics.
Since 1976, Voss has performed and recorded with the consummate piano artist Hoyle Osborne. Osborne is the perfect match to Voss in the subtlety and authority of his musicianship. His gorgeous, often intricate accompaniments provide a rich setting to embrace Voss?s voice and guitar. Osborne also became known for his solo ragtime piano stints at The Diamond Belle Saloon in Durango, Colo., for many years.
Osborne?s disc of piano music, Panazon, was hailed by Max Morath, the dean of ragtime piano players, as ?A hot-then-subtle mix of sturdy ragtime and dancing Latin themes.? The CD includes a couple of Hoyle's original pieces which were award winners in the Scott Joplin International Ragtime Foundation?s composition contest.
Voss and Osborne met and formed their partnership in the San Francisco Bay Area. They now live in New Mexico. They have played concerts and festivals across the United States, in Canada, and overseas, and have appeared on the national radio programs Fresh Air, All Things Considered, Mountain Stage, West Coast Live, and World Caf?.
