Sam Reider and the Human Hands

About the Performance

Led by Latin Grammy-nominated accordionist, pianist, and composer Sam Reider, the Human Hands is a collective of innovative musicians exploring the crossroads of folk, jazz, and traditional music from around the world. Irresistible melodies, joyful improvisation and otherworldly sounds collide in what Songlines Magazine has dubbed a "mash-up of the Klezmatics, Quintette du Hot Club de France and the Punch Brothers.”

The Human Hands got their start playing late night sessions at well-known bars and music venues in Brooklyn. After releasing their debut record, Too Hot to Sleep, in 2018, they toured throughout the US, UK, and Europe appearing at premier venues and festivals like Jazz at Lincoln Center, Celtic Connections, and SFJAZZ and performing on PBS and the BBC.  New release The Golem and Other Tales, blends original work, clever narrative instrumentation, and tradition to expand the boundaries of instrumental folk music.

Ripon Arts League members will remember Sam Reider from his previous exciting performance for RAL: Sam performed on accordion and piano with Laurie Lewis, as one of the Men of Note in the 2022-2023 season, as did fellow band member, Mark Schatz.

About the Artists

Sam Reider - Piano & Accordion

Eddie Barbash - Alto Saxophone

Roy Williams - Guitar

Duncan Wickel - Violin

Mark Schatz - Double bass

Sam Reider – Piano and Accordion

Originally trained as a jazz pianist, Sam Reider has spent his career composing music and collaborating with roots, jazz, and classical artists. He has performed or recorded with artists such as Jon Batiste, Jorge Glem, Sierra Hull, Laurie Lewis, and Paquito d’Rivera.  His own, four star, original solo piano recording, Petrichor, made the Best of 2022 in Downbeat Magazine.

Sam’s devotion to cross-cultural collaboration informs his artistry. As a musical ambassador, for the U.S. Department of State, Sam traveled to China, South-East Asia, Estonia, Turkey and Azerbaijan, carrying his accordion on his back and performing with local artists. His Brooklyn-Cumaná album recorded with Jorge Glem was featured on NPR’s Tiny Desk series and nominated for Best Instrumental Album in the 2023 Latin GRAMMY Awards. His compositions delve into ancient Jewish legends and other musical influences in new Human Hands release, The Golem and other Tales. Sam finds time to create music for local ensembles - from the San Francisco Girl’s Chorus to the Del Sol Quartet – while teaching jazz, piano, and composition as a faculty member at Saint Mary’s College in Moraga.

Eddie Barbash – Alto Saxophone

Hailed by Jon Batiste as "one of the world’s most important saxophonists," Eddie Barbash was a founding member of the house band for the Late Show with Stephen Colbert and currently tours the world with Cory Wong and the Wongnotes. His unmistakable sound is featured on the Oscar and Grammy-winning soundtrack of Soul. He has performed at venues ranging from Carnegie Hall to Madison Square Garden to the Village Vanguard and has headlined both the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, and the Umbria Jazz Festival. Barbash's versatile sound has led him to collaborate with musicians in many styles. At 18, he joined the sextet of legendary jazz drummer Chico Hamilton and the quintet of emerging jazz star Jon Batiste. In his 20's he fell in love with American traditional music and began touring with bluegrass phenomenon Sierra Hull. In 2016 he performed a duet on national TV with Yo-Yo Ma and he now performs regularly with chamber choir Amor Artis.

Roy Williams - Guitar

Roy Williams, an American songwriter, guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, and recording artist, writes music with a curious ear and an open mind. From the classic pop tunes heard on the first cassette Roy owned — The Beatles’ Live at the BBC in 1963 — to the incomparable instrumental canon of Django Reinhart, Roy’s influences eclipse genre categorization, a trait that is reflected in the adventurous spirit of his own original songs. After growing up in Clark’s Green, Pennsylvania, in a musical house where Neil Young, Buffalo Springfield, and especially The Beatles were religion, Roy began playing gigs in nearby Scranton and soon moved to New York City to perform gypsy jazz with renowned guitarist Stephane Wrembel. Roy worked with Wrembel for four years and has toured throughout Central America, Asia, Africa, Europe and the U.S.

Duncan Wickel - Violin

Award-winning bowed-string instrumentalist, singer, writer, and inventor, Duncan Wickel is “…as persuasive in a traditional ballad as he is country fiddling or ripping through cascading classical flourishes or atonal double stops” (The Boston Globe). In 2016 Duncan performed in the Stay Human Band on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (CBS). His band, Rising Appalachia, was featured on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series. He has toured with major folk artists including IBMA guitarist of the year Molly Tuttle, Grammy nominees The Duhks, The Wood Brothers, Irish music greats John Doyle and Karan Casey. Known for his chameleon-like qualities on the fiddle, cello, and other stringed instruments, The Boston Phoenix said “with bowing, plucking, rubbing, and tickling, he could turn the violin into a whole orchestra.” Duncan has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Lincoln and Kennedy Centers, The Grand Ol’ Opry, and the famed Biblioteca Alexandria in Egypt. He has performed and taught in more than 22 countries spanning every continent on earth normally inhabited by humans (sorry, Antarctica).

Mark Schatz – Double bass

Twice named International Bluegrass Music Association’s Bass Player of the Year, Mark Schatz has toured and recorded with a stellar array of artists including Bela Fleck, Tony Rice, John Hartford, Tim O'Brien, acoustic innovators Nickel Creek, Claire Lynch, Bryan McDowell, and Sarah Jarosz. A longtime Musical Director for Maryland’s internationally acclaimed Footworks Percussive Dance Ensemble, Mark is always ready to cut loose with some clawhammer banjo, hambone, and Southern Appalachian clogging. This versatile multi-instrumentalist has two of his own solo recordings, Brand New Old Tyme Way and Steppin’ in the Boiler House on Rounder Records, featuring an eclectic blend of his original banjo compositions. Grit & Polish, his recent release with former ace-instrumentalist/singer, Bryan McDowell, is a pared-down burst of everything from old time to Bob Dylan. Mark resides in Berkley, California, teaching, recording, and composing, when he is not performing on tour. He last performed for Ripon Arts League in 2022 with Laurie Lewis and Men of Note.

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Photo credit: Gabriel Harber