Universal Light (Mike Gangloff, Jesse Sheppard & Kaily Schenker) + Elizabeth LaPrelle

Universal Light:

Universal Light is an idea. It is a musical process. It is Mike Gangloff (Pelt, Black Twig Pickers) on fiddle, Jesse Sheppard (Elkhorn, The Heavy Lidders) on guitar, and Kaily Schenker (Solar Hex) on cello.

Mike is a founder of the long-running improv drone unit Pelt and of quarter-century-and-counting old-time rowdies Black Twig Pickers. His fiddling with those bands and others, as well as recent solo recordings and tours in the USA and overseas, blends improvisation, original melodic composition, and a deep grounding in traditional Appalachian music. His most recent releases are the solo "Evening Measures" album (on which Kaily contributed cello to several songs) and the collaboration with Philadelphia-NYC guitar duo Elkhorn, "Shackamaxon Concert." A collaboration with UK guitarist C Joynes is to be released later this year, as is a new solo album (though again featuring Kaily on cello), "April is Passing."

Jesse is half of the band Elkhorn, an improvisational guitar duo with Drew Gardner, that has been playing since 2013. Over a slew of albums and tours, Elkhorn has ventured into countless psychedelic spaces, anchored by the churn of Jesse's acoustic 12-string guitar. Jesse's non-Elkhorn musical output includes a folk duo with his daughter, Eva, and playing electric bass in various rock combos. Besides "Shackamaxon Concert," Elkhorn recently released the albums "On the Whole Universe in All Directions," "Other Worlds" and "The Red Valley." He is also a filmmaker and was one of the organizers of the Thousand Incarnations of the Rose American Primitive guitar festival in Takoma Park, MD in 2018.

Kaily grew up playing classical cello but also nurtured heartfelt appreciation for the music of Nikki Sudden, Rowland S. Howard, Blixa Bargeld, and (the other side of a not-too-shiny coin) certain traditional singers and folk forms linked to her native Southwest Virginia. As Solar Hex, Kaily mixes solo cello improvisation with keening vocal laments accompanied by harmonium. She and Mike perform frequently as a duo and in larger ensembles around their homes in Virginia, as well as sometimes taking the music farther afield. Kaily's recent releases include the all-cello, all-instrumental "Tired Eyes" on the Torn Light label and the self-released "The Squirrel is a Pretty Thing."

Elizabeth LaPrelle:

Elizabeth LaPrelle is a scholar and singer of Appalachian Ballads from Rural Retreat, Virginia. She built her style and repertoire from mentors like Ginny Hawker and Sheila Kay Adams, research into archival recordings, and family and friends. She received her undergraduate degree from the College of William and Mary with a major in Southern Appalachian Traditional Performance, and now tours the US regularly both performing and teaching. She’s also a banjo-player, and a visual and interdisciplinary artist. She lives with her husband Brian Dolphin and their young son.