Loren and Mark
Elbridge, New York, United States | SELF
Music
Press
New Zealand’s Mark Mazengarb and Elbridge’s Loren Barrigar create a musical marriage of guitar greatness
The key to many great musical acts is balance. Not just how the instruments or singers complement each other but how the backgrounds, experiences, inspiration and personalities of the performers blend and harmonize. The transoceanic pairing of guitarists Loren Barrigar and Mark Mazengarb is a perfect balance: two fast friends brought together by their love for the music they play, each the perfect counterpoint to the other.
Just back from Nashville, Elbridge native Barrigar and New Zealander Mazengarb are the headliners for the American Festival this weekend at Kellish Hill Farm, 3192 Pompey Center Road, Manlius. While in Music City, they performed a high-profile, main-stage show at the prestigious 27th annual Chet Atkins Appreciation Society convention, a Mecca for finger pickers from around the world. Fittingly, it was that event that cemented the bond between these two gifted players, leading to a solid partnership that most recently produced an acclaimed CD, recorded at Sub- Cat Studios, and this summer’s whirlwind tour of the Northeast, part of the three months the duo will spend together while Mazengarb visits the States.
Since first being introduced by famed guitarist Tommy Emmanuel in 2005, they’ve regularly renewed acquaintances in Tennessee. “Mark and I were able to keep in touch and in 2008 and 2009 we were able to meet up in Nashville at the Chet Atkins convention,” Barrigar explains in a phone call from Nashville. “The Chet Atkins thing has definitely helped launch the excitement and the contacts for some of these shows that we have now. We actually have a booth at the festival this year. We have a nice presence there, a four-color banner, the new CD.”
The duo’s trip north will keep them plenty busy playing shows and promoting their selftitled CD, released in May. “We’re just trying to make as much racket as we can and turn as many heads,” Barrigar says, “then hopefully latch on with somebody as an opening act. In the meantime we’re just doing our own thing, too. We’re doing concerts in seven states this summer.”
The current tour is a treat for Mazengarb, who amazingly found his perfect musical partner nearly 9,000 miles from home. “It’s like anything in life,” Mazengarb philosophizes. “There’s certain people that you cook with more than others. With Loren and I, from the start, we just seemed to cook straight away. We just randomly do the same thing at the same time, we just think along the same wavelengths. It’s just one of those rare things. I travel across from the other side of the world because I love it so much.”
Barrigar, whose maturity and experience come after an amazing career starting as a child prodigy in a very musical, upstate New York family, finds his strong connection with Mazengarb—the young, city kid from Down Under who earned a degree in classical guitar performance as the only musically gifted member of his family—hard to explain, but thoroughly exhilarating. “When we play, there’s something else happening and we don’t really know what that is,” Barrigar concedes. “It’s something that makes people happy and it certainly makes him and I happy. It’s something we can’t put our finger on, but it’s there and we sure do enjoy it.”
That natural creative process made recording sessions last July for the duo’s CD flow very smoothly. “We came off the Nashville thing and on the way back we got lots of calls to perform and we went out and performed every night,” Barrigar recalls. “But we stopped at the studio for a couple of three-hour sessions in the morning, which might not be the best time when you’re running ragged, but we laid down the tracks for this and that was it. We both listened back and it’s very seldom that you’re really happy with a recording, but SubCat did a great job. Derek Yackel engineered the sessions. Other than tweaking a couple songs that we produced up a little bit with some percussion, another rhythm track, we just kind of left it like it was.”
- Syracuse New Times
"They create a brilliant stereo sound of two fine guitarists. I listened to their cd from front to end... pretty amazing." - Lloyd Mains, 5 time grammy winner - N/A
"these guys play stunningly great guitar duets" - Bob Evans, National Fingerstyle champion. - N/A
Discography
"Loren Barrigar & Mark Mazengarb" - Debut album released in 2011. Was awarded a SAMMY music award for 'best americana cd'.
Photos
Bio
Loren and Mark share a unique musical chemistry seldom found among musicians. Their live performances feature not only their spectacular technical grasp of the guitar, but also their outstanding musicality and ability to be spontaneously creative. The interaction between the two musicians is as much a feature of their shows as is the world-class guitar playing that they both display
The international duo is comprised of Mark Mazengarb from New Zealand, and Loren Barrigar from central New York. Their varied repertoire of original and arranged music consists of stunning guitar duets as well as songs, giving them wide appeal. Their music is influenced by Bluegrass, Jazz, and Old-time/Country; their style of guitar playing is largely built upon the thumb-picking techniques pioneered by guitar greats Merle Travis, Chet Atkins and Jerry Reed, and their songs feature Loren’s superb vocals and some beautiful harmonies from Mark.
Loren and Mark have headlined guitar festivals in both the USA and Europe and their fan base is rapidly increasing. In the short time the pair have been together, they have attracted the attention of several notable industry artists which has seen them perform with guitar sensation Tommy Emmanuel and record with 5-time Grammy winner Lloyd Maines.
“These guys play stunning guitar duets” – Bob Evans, National Fingerstyle Champion.
“Fresh and exciting…” – Tommy Emmanuel, Australian Guitar Sensation.
“They create a brilliant stereo sound of two fine guitarists. I listened to their cd from front to end…pretty amazing.” – Lloyd Maines, 5 time Grammy Award Winner.
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