25th Anniversary Concert Photos
Pictures from TPT’s 25th Anniversary.
Pictures taken by TJ Jensen.
Worth the Wait
Billy McLaughlin’s new book “Road to Reinvention” will soon to be available—first online and then at a bookstore near you. In it Billy describes his journey from being one of Billboard’s youngest rising stars to his sudden fall from fame when the onset of dystonia ripped away his career. It also explores his ultimate return to stage to as the successful presenter and musician he is today. Billy described, “The purpose of ‘Road to Reinvention’ is to share with people the experience of how it felt and what I learned as I worked my way through some of my darkest moments. Also, I want to share the exhilaration that even an unwanted experience like I had can provide. My challenge with dystonia was both the worst and the best thing that happened to me. I can say this now that I can look back upon my journey. I want others, especially those who have just begun theirs to know the infinite possibilities for discovery and joy that await them. I want them to have the encouragement and evidence they need to pursue what may be one of the most worthwhile endeavors of their lives.”
Billy’s journey to reinvention was brought about by an unexpected event that dramatically changed his life and set him on a new course for self-discovery. For some, like Billy, a sudden health crisis may be the event that triggers a new journey. For others, it may be the loss of a career, finances, relationship or a combination of factors. At other times, the journey may be one that is long awaited or anticipated—an unfulfilled dream or desire that requires a deliberate change in direction if it to be achieved. Regardless of the motivation, whether the journey is planned or unplanned, those who travel it will encounter similar thoughts, feelings and questions. “In many ways, ‘Road to Reinvention’ is intended to serve as a roadmap that will help readers maneuver through the challenges they face on their own journey as well as to recognize the milestones of their achievement,” Billy explained.
Those readers who are familiar with Billy McLaughlin will gain an even deeper understanding of and appreciation for the journey Billy has taken to bring his music back to the stage. The heart and soul of Billy’s music has a story attached, which will add new dimension to his well-known arrangements. In the same way that Billy’s music lifts your heart, reading “Road to Reinvention” will inspire your imagination and awaken your sense of purpose and adventure.
Originally planned for a September release, “Road to Reinvention” is currently in production. Billy says, “It may a little longer than originally anticipated to complete the editing and work within the publisher’s schedule.” In the meantime, if you’d like to reserve your copy of “Road to Reinvention” please sign up here.
Buffalo High School
Billy will be joining the Buffalo High School community on Thursday, January 24, 2013 for a concert in their Performing Arts Center. Tickets are available at the Buffalo Book store and at the BHS Activity Center.
Finding Community through Music of the Season
Like an overnight snowfall, the holiday season has swept into our lives once again. Retailers have wasted no time in “decking the halls” and setting the stage for the most giving time of year. Out come the trees, trinkets and Christmas tunes. Everywhere you go, you hear “Silent Night,” “White Christmas” and “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” along with every Christmas song ever written, it seems. After the thousandth time of hearing a song, any song, your brain feels like it’s had enough. And yet, there’s more to those old Christmas melodies than a few familiar phrases and sounds. They carry with them memories, feelings and a sense of something bigger than our selves and momentary worries. They bring us together.
The unifying power of music is something that forever amazes me, whether I am performing to people down the road, across the country or across the ocean. Often my audience and I begin as strangers, but by the end of our time together the music we have shared has brought us closer in spirit and friendship. It’s music’s expression of oneness and love that keeps me connected no matter how far my journey, no matter how much time I spend on the road. Music’s ability to cross the barriers of language, culture and position is what deepens my purpose and strengthens my resolve to share it with as many people as I can. Of the many examples of this that I have experienced, none has been more remarkable than my journey with Accenture to India. Although my audience and I were from different cultures and different lands, we shared a very similar love for music. No matter where I go, as long as I bring my music, I find myself among friends.
It’s the thought of friendship that I encourage you to consider when you hear a familiar Christmas refrain for the two-thousandth time. The tune that holds your holiday memories is likely to hold the memories of many if not all the people who share the same space, whether it happens to be your place of work or your favorite shopping mall. Every former stranger in the room now shares a little something in common with you. They may be singing along, humming the melody softly to themselves, tapping their toes or watching their children dancing and skipping down the aisles. If you look closely, you can’t help but notice how the simple melody has softened their hearts and connected their souls.
As fond as I am of Christmas music, I do empathize with those whose tolerance is tried after hearing the same set of music repeatedly over and over from early November through Christmas Eve. Personally, I find it gratifying to experiment with traditional melodies, add variations and reinvent them so that they become fresh, appealing and provide a new experience for listeners. In the process, I have been fortunate to work with some exceptionally gifted musicians who have created their own unique sounds. One of these artists is my friend, Rhett Butler.
Rhett is a guitarist from Texas who became well known for playing two guitars at once. He also happens to play finger-style guitar (playing the notes on the neck of the guitar) in his own intricate style. Like me, Rhett has a passion for making a difference in people lives, especially when it comes to healing. Having lost his brother to a rare form of cancer, Rhett has become the CEO of a development-stage biotech company that is working on an implantable cancer vaccine device. In addition to sharing a passion for finger-style guitar, we both enjoy traditional holiday music. A few years ago, Rhett and I produced a guitar collection titled “Holiday Open House.” The CD is a fusion of both of our individual arrangements and recordings of traditional holiday tunes; the same music that we’ve grown up with, but with a new style. If you’d like, you can listen to a number here.
For the past 10 years, I have toured with an ensemble of internationally recognized award-winning instrumentalists and vocalists who join together during the holiday season as the group SimpleGifts. Combining violin, Celtic whistle and bagpipes, piano, acoustic guitar and percussion with three-part female vocals, SimpleGifts brings a modern, yet classical sound to old-world Christmas music. It’s difficult to describe in words just what creates the SimpleGifts style, so I will share with you a video from one of our recent concerts. (Learn more about SimpleGifts here.)
Although Christmas music is prone to being overused and even abused over the holiday season, at the heart of it, there is still much to treasure. In our own small way, my friends and I have made an effort to hold Christmas music in a very special place so that it can be experienced and enjoyed again in a new light. For all the good and pleasure it brings, I believe that we as artists and listeners can uphold the wonder of holiday music now and for generations to come.
10th Anniversary Holiday Tour
Media Notice
IMMEDIATE NOTICE
Photos Available Online at www.SimpleGiftsMusic.net/press-photos
Contact: Martin Keller, Media Savant Communications Co.
10th ANNIVERSARY FOR RARE MINNESOTA ACOUSTIC ENSEMBLE AT THE HEART OF CHRISTMAS
SIMPLEGIFTS 2012 CONCERT SERIES ANNOUNCED, FEATURING ANGELIC VOCAL HARMONIES BEAUTIFULLY BLENDED WITH VIOLIN, GUITAR, PIANO AND PERCUSSION; HOLIDAY TOUR INCLUDES 10 TWIN CITIES METRO AREA AND 5 OUTSTATE CONCERT EVENTS
TWIN CITIES — What’s rare and worth celebrating at Christmas this year? The peaceful sounds of traditional Christmas carols and hymns sung in angelic three-part harmonies and played on acoustic instruments — and the 10th year anniversary of SimpleGifts (www.simplegiftsmusic.net).
The lovely six-piece ensemble with four Christmas albums over 10 years — and also featuring Billy McLaughlin — is playing 10 dates in the metro area and five concerts outstate this season, running from November 23 to December 23, 2012. SEE SCHEDULE BELOW.
Of all the bustling musical fare offered every holiday season, SimpleGifts stays closet to the heart of Christmas by avoiding commercial and pop holiday repertoire, a trademark of this award-winning group. The 2012 holiday concert season features music from all four SimpleGifts CDs, including Joy to the World, O Come All Ye Faithful, The Cherry Tree Carol, Wexford Carol and their most stunning original piece, the a cappella composition Oh Mary.
METRO AREA:
- November 23: Bloomington Center for the Arts
- November 30: Three Crows (Delano)
- December-7-8 St. Stephan Lutheran Church (Bloomington)
- December 15: St. Michael/Albertville High School of Fine Arts Auditorium
- December 18: Lakeville Area Arts Center
- December 20,21,22, 23: Marine-on-St. Croix Town Hall
OUTSTATE AREA:
- November 29: Newhall Auditorium, Shatluck St. Mary’s School (Fairbault)
- December 1: Crossings at Carnegie (Zumbrota)
- December 13: Historic Paramount Theatre (Austin)
- December 14: Memorial Auditorium (Worthington)
- December 19: Sacred Heart Music Center (Duluth)
As the holidays approach, the 2012 SimpleGifts Holiday Concert Tour includes your location.
PLEASE SEE THE SIMPLEGIFTS WEBSITE FOR TICKET PRICES AND TIMES FOR EACH CONCERT: http://www.simplegiftsmusic.net/concerts.html
Simple Gifts concerts feature music from the group’s four acclaimed albums:
- 2010 — The Star Carol
- 2009 —A Small Town Christmas
- 2007 — Of Shepherds & Angels
- 2002 — A Simple Gift
- Video Sample of SimpleGifts in Concert: http://simplegiftsmusic.net/samples.html
- Sample the simplistic richness of the SimpleGifts Christmas:
Songbook: http://simplegiftsmusic.net/samples.html
10th Annual Holiday Season
There is nothing ordinary about the arrangements this inspired team of musicians delivers both in the studio and in concert. Seen by more than 20,000 live audience members last season, the special group continues to grow in popularity throughout the Upper Midwest and has successfully transitioned from their early days in coffeehouses and small listening rooms to prestigious performing art centers and larger churches.
About Simple Gifts
SimpleGifts is made up of internationally recognized award-winning instrumentalists and vocalists with impressive resumes:
Billy McLaughlin (acoustic guitar/producer) is recognized internationally as a composer and virtuoso performer. He is a 5-time MN Music Award winner and 3-time NACA National Campus Entertainer of the Year (jazz/acoustic) with Billboard Top-Ten Chart experience. He recently made a remarkable comeback from a devastating neuro-muscular disorder called focal dystonia as captured in the award-winning documentary Changing Keys seen throughout MN on PBS. He is the 2010 AAN Public Leadership in Neurology Award-winner whose previous recipients include Michael J. Fox, Julie Andrews and Paul Allen.
Karen Paurus (vocals) is a MN Music Award winner for Best Female Vocalist and has been featured on Prairie Home Companion. She is a regular at the Fitzgerald Theater “Stage Sessions” and has been heard on MPR, Cities 97, Radio K and stations around the nation. She is a composer and recording artist whose latest CD Passion, Prayer and Poison is available on iTunes and CDBaby.
Laura McKenzie (Celtic whistles/bagpipes) With ardent mastery, Laura performs music from Ireland, Scotland, Central France, Galicia, Cape Breton and Minnesota on a splendid array of wind-powered instruments and voice. She has received an abundance of honors and awards in traditional music, including being selected for the original Cherish the Ladies series, featuring noted women in Irish music in America; recognition as a Master Folk Artist by the Minnesota State Arts Board; an Archibald Bush Foundation Fellowship in Traditional and Ethnic Performing Arts; and most recently, winner of a 2012-2013 McKnight Artists Fellowship for Performing Musicians. She can be heard on a multitude of recordings and on several documentaries.
Heather Garborg (vocals/piano/violin) was born into a musical family in Bloomington, MN and grew up participating in competitions on both piano and violin. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from St. Olaf College and recently returned from Nashville where she expanded her songwriting and recording credits. She is very active in the music ministry at Woodland Hills Church in the Twin Cities.
Carin Vagle (vocals/melodica) grew up performing music in a Minneapolis family with parents who were recording artists and touring musicians. Her study of healing voice led her to India and Brazil and she currently practices and teaches Yogic vocal techniques in the Twin Cities. Her first solo CD will be released soon.
Billy “O” Oehrlein (percussion) has shared the stage with everyone from The Oak Ridge Boys and Marie Osmond to Randy Travis and Alabama. He began performing on drums, percussion, and vocals in his teen years and has been a professional musician ever since touring nationally and across Europe. He decorates each song with his very own style of playing that he calls “ornamental-percussion”. Can you tell he’s having fun?
To schedule an advance interview — or an advance performance if possible — please contact Martin Keller, Media Savant Communications Co., 612-729-8585, kelmart@aol.com
25th Anniversary Concert
Minneapolis, MN —
February 15, 2013
25th Anniversary Concert
“Come and enjoy guitarist and composer Billy McLaughlin with his special guests the Eclectric String Quartet at the O’Shaughnessy as he astounds audiences with the complex, rhythmic, music that he re-taught to himself against all odds. Billy had been playing for twenty years before being diagnosed with Focal Dystonia, an incurable neuromuscular disease that rendered him unable to play his own music. By 2002, he thought his career was over. But in 2006, he began doing the unthinkable–relearning his songs left handed. Now, McLaughlin is once again astonishing audiences with both his story and his music.”
-TPT
Click here to view photos from event.
Billy’s Book – Road To Reinvention
Coming soon,
a new book by Billy McLaughlin…
“Road to Reinvention: Reflections on Having, Losing and Receiving Infinitely More”
RESERVE YOUR COPY… Sign up today.
Travel with Billy on an unbelievable journey as he shares insights from being one of Billboard’s top-ranking performers to his overnight fall from fame as dystonia derails his musical career to his amazing return to the stage, where he proves that you must never give up on your dreams, no matter what.
This book is especially for you if…
- You’ve faced life challenges, whether in your career, health, money or relationships
- You are ready to push the limits of your potential, but not certain where start
- You are seeking inspiration for pursuing your highest goal or dream.
Gain strength and guidance from someone who’s triumphed over the impossible.
Despite overwhelming odds, Billy maintains a perspective of love, understanding and even humor as he captures some of the most dramatic moments of his life in words. With an unrelenting spirit and clear sense of self identity, he proves that it is possible to achieve new heights in the face of defeat. Through it all he remains humble and deeply grateful for the adventure. RESERVE YOUR COPY…
Billy’s heading back to Mobile!
Check out this incredible venue at http://www.thefrogpondatbluemoonfarm.com/
Blue Moon Farm presents… Billy McLaughlin and Roman Street. Billy will head back to Mobile, Al for a November 11th concert at The Frog Pond at Blue Moon Farms.
CBS News – The Early Show interviews Billy
CBS News – The Early Show with Jeff Glor
CBS producer Bob Kozberg from the Los Angeles office filmed and interviewed Billy and members of the audience at a recent concert in La Jolla, CA. Early Show anchorman Jeff Glor then flew to Minneapolis from New York to interview Billy one on one about a week later. The story will be airing nationally and focuses on overcoming adversity and Billy’s determination to regain his music and improve awareness of dystonia. As soon as CBS sets a date for airing the story we will post it on Billy’s homepage and send out an e-blast notification. Thank you CBS and especially Bob and Jeff for their part in getting Billy’s story out for the first time on network television!
Watch the full CBS story with Jeff Glor here.
Notes from Billy’s Travels
Billy McLaughlin performed for the Apple Specialists Marketing Coop (ASMC) Fall Conference October 16. Billy is pictured here with ASMC Executive Director Kevin Langdon.
On October 18, Billy was back in Minnesota presenting at the “Impairment without Disability” conference, which was held at Mayo Clinic.
Dr. Les Kertay, a clinical psychologist and writer, reported on Billy’s presentation at the conference at Mayo. Read Dr. Kertay’s article about Billy, “A Fortune Cookie – Friday’s Life Lesson.”
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Latest News
2023 Christmas Tour Wrap!December 30, 2023 - 1:57 pm
20th Anniversary Christmas Tour Dates Announced!August 25, 2023 - 8:45 pm
Billy’s 70s Rock Band Reunion – Paradox – At The Parkway September 24th, 2023!August 15, 2023 - 1:52 pm