The Karen Strid Trio features Karen Strid-Chadwick on piano; Dale Curtis on flugelhorn, and Scott Bartlett on percussion. They are joined by guest vocalist Jonah Hopton.Scott Bartlett studied percussion performance, ethnomusicology (MA, Univ. Hawai’i), and museum studies. Since 2020 he has been the executive director of Homer Council on the Arts, where, among other duties, he oversees HCOA’s touring performance series. Scott is a multi-percussionist with occasional forays into ‘ukulele and double bass. He stays active in various Homer area music projects including the Kenai Peninsula Orchestra, Pier One Theatre pit orchestras, KP Brass Band, Banned, and with three young musicians at home.Dale Curtis is a retired music educator and band director who lives in Ketchikan. He has spent most of his life playing professionally with bands throughout Alaska including the Sitka Fine Arts Camp Faculty Big Band, Sitka Jazz Festival Big Band, UAA Jazz bands, Princess Cruises showbands, and the US Air Force Band of the Pacific. He was a member of the 82nd Airborne Division band from 1969-1971. Dale has performed with Mike Vax, Bobby Shew, Dianne Reeves, Lionel Hampton and Frank DiSalvo at Indian Wells Resort Hotel in Palm Springs California. The album Bridge To Nowhere by the Dale Curtís Quintet was recorded in 2011 with NYC musicians at Tony Bennet Studios.Karen Strid-Chadwick is a retired professor (of 40 years) of Jazz Studies at UAA. She coordinated and produced all UAA Jazz Week festivals and the UAA Jazz Week Benefit Concerts series. Karen had the distinction of studying with the late, great John “Wendy“ Williamson, trombonist and pianist. She performs with many jazz Anchorage and Homer musicians.Guest vocalist Jonah Hopton is a tenor and composer who graduated from the world-renowned San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

Courtney Tatellgaq Rose Griechen is an artist and musician originally from Pilot Point in Bristol Bay, now based in Anchorage. Their music is inspired by the honesty in small moments and memories, in the mundane, and life experiences expressed through a rhythm bari uke and an indie folk twist. Currently working on a solo project called Albatross and looking to release an EP in 2025, Courtney also plays with a four piece folk rock band, Murmur. Murmur began in 2019 and spent the last few years playing festivals and venues around Alaska, briefly touring with the Screaming Females in early 2023, and recording their first album.

Dr. Bill White is a classical guitarist and composer based in Homer, Alaska. Originally from Nampa, Idaho, Bill has appeared as soloist and chamber musician across the country and has released two albums: Moderno non Troppo, a selection of modern-but-not-too-modern works for solo guitar, and Echoes, a collection of works for viola and guitar recorded with his wife Elizabeth. As a composer, Bill’s works focus on texture and processes, often for large ensembles of similar instruments.

“Eras” A musical journey with local musicians Karen Strid, piano, Bill White, guitar, Elizabeth White, viola and vocalists: Sunrose Olsen, Teddy Handley, Dave Welty, Britny Bradshaw, Jim Anderson, Madi Gilbert, Jody Gaines, Emily Riedel, Eston YoungbloodIn Homer, where the road ends and the cosmos meets the sea, The Cosmic Warblers have gathered: A dedicated flock of locals who count living in this artsy village as one of our greatest blessings in life. As a bunch of Alaska-loving Birds with classically trained voices, we are honored to share a diverse program with our beloved community that features many of the musical Eras: Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Twentieth Century, and Contemporary.

The Shake City String Band is a folk band based in Anchorage, Alaska specializing in symphonic folk fusion. Their journey began with a shared passion for music and desire to create something unique. Committed to providing an unforgettable experience that celebrates the rich history and diversity of folk music, they bend and blend genres, both with reimagined arrangements and group-written originals.

Alyssa Payne is a New York–based composer, performer, and storyteller whose music finds humor in heartbreak and hope in exhaustion. With a grand piano as her co-star, Payne blends sharp wit, emotional honesty, and theatrical flair into songs that feel both hilariously specific and universally human. Her work—ranging from her viral “YouTube Tuesdays” to sold-out shows at Joe’s Pub—blurs the line between stand-up comedy and musical confession. Drawing comparisons to Sara Bareilles, Bo Burnham, and Rachel Bloom, Payne captures the modern artist’s chaos with biting humor and surprising tenderness. Whether she’s singing about burnout, bad mentors, or falling in love at the wrong time, her music reminds audiences to laugh, cry, and—above all—keep writing.Alyssa Payne’s one-woman musical Extra Crispy—a comedic exploration of burnout and artistic survival—has garnered over 9 million views online and sold out multiple performances at Joe’s Pub in New York City. Payne is the composer and lyricist of The F Word, a coming-of-age musical about the foster care system, currently in development with Goodspeed. Her recent credits include composing Broadway’s Never Been More Alive, a commissioned Tony Awards opening number for Theatrely, and a collaboration with Mattel. A graduate of The Boston Conservatory at Berklee and a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, Payne has built a devoted following of over 300,000 across social platforms by doing what she does best—finding humor in heartbreak and music in the mess of being human.

“I am an Astoria, Queens-based musician, audio engineer, and educator who grew up singing hymns and Americana in a Catholic folk choir. My original music promotes peace and justice while exploring the intersections of mysticism through nature, stewardship in community, and hope in the midst of grief. I believe in communal song as a form of healing, protest, and mobilization. I believe in music and technology as a means of empowering women, girls, and gender expansive youth and adults. This demographic, historically excluded from audio engineering spaces and mentorship, uniquely benefits from the skills of composition, recording, processing, and amplifying, as these are all ways to tell our stories wider and raise our voices louder.”

Jenny Baker was raised on alfalfa bluegrass and lava rock in Bend, Oregon. Choir robes and playing festivals with The Colored Pencils in the late 90s only fueled the fire. She released her first album in 2003, was voted Bend’s Best Musician in 2004, and released a full-band 5 song EP in 2005. Since she moved to Alaska in 2005, she has played at the Fireweed Festival, Trapper Creek Bluegrass, Anchorage Folk Festival, Salmon Stock, and most recently Concert on the Lawn, Salmon Jam and Chickenstock. She played with the B52’s tribute band, the B-49s in 2018-2019 and spent the last six years momming. She booked herself a mini-tour this summer and is ready for her arctic coastal soul to fall back home to Homer.

After meeting by chance at the 2009 Classical Singer Competition in Chicago, Jonah Hopton and Anayana White have built a life and musical partnership, now rooted in Homer, Alaska with their two young children. The program features a rich medley of standards, art songs, opera, original compositions, and ancestral Gaelic favorites, delivered with artistry, heart, and unforgettable chemistry.Jonah Hopton is a tenor and composer who graduated from the world-renowned San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Lyrical soprano, Anayana White is a Portland State University alumna. With over 15 years of shared performance experience, they share a magical evening of music and song.

Chris Needham is a Homer, Alaska singer‑songwriter known for his resonant voice, casual intensity, and clear storytelling. Armed with a semi‑hollow electric guitar and a looping pedal, he layers rhythm and melody to give both original songs and familiar folk‑rock favorites a fresh, hometown feel. His shows play like relaxed conversations: a few chords, a true tale, and a chorus everyone can sing along with. He’s as quick with a gear tip or a joke as with a tune.