Pato Pato, a jazz/classical duo inspired by the rhythms and traditions of Brazil, will be the featured performer at the Francestown Academy Coffee house on Saturday, Feb. 7, at 6:30 p.m. in the Francestown Town Hall.
“It’s hard to categorize Pato Pato, but it is just amazing, gorgeous music, and we hope everyone will come to experience it,” said co-organizer Kate McClure. “I’m so excited for this band. They are new to us and I just love the music.”
Portsmouth-based Pato Pato is Adelyn Nelson, who is a piano instructor and collaborative pianist at Phillips Exeter Academy and the University of New Hampshire and the music director of the historic North Church of Portsmouth, and her partner, Dan Lorenz, who plays accordion, sete cordas (nylon seven-string guitar) and bandolim. Lorenz also teaches music at Timberlane Regional High School, directing Guitar Ensemble and Modern Band, in addition to assisting the grades 6 through 12 orchestra program. He also teaches guitar privately through the Seacoast Academy of Music.
According to Lorenz, the pair found a “musical intersection of their influences by the works of some of Brazil’s most beloved composers and their contemporaries,” including Guinga, Mônica Salmaso, Alessandro Penezzi, and Fábio Peron. Lorenz says the duo “have been fortunate enough to study with some of these influences.”
McClure came across the couple at Portsmouth Porchfest, where she and her husband had gone to see performers who had performed previously at the Francestown Academy Coffeehouse.
“I had been looking for both a classical guitarist and a Russian accordionist ever since David (Leard) and I took over running the coffeehouse,” McClure said. “Both those things had long been on my list for a long time, and then I came around a corner, and there was this young couple playing together, and she’s a classical guitarist, and he’s playing Russian accordion, and it was absolutely so beautiful.”
McClure says coming across Pato Pato “was like finding my holy grail.”
“When I saw in the Porchfest listing that they were Brazilian-inspired, I was excited to see it, but I expected maracas and sambas. To see Russian accordion and classical guitar together, it’s very rare. I couldn’t believe it; I was like ‘game on!'” McClure said. “What are the odds?”
McClure, who plays with a ukulele group, said she and co-organizer Leard are always on the lookout for types and genres of music they have never hosted before at the coffeehouse.
“There are so many different types and genres of music that we haven’t had yet. We are just always on the lookout for something we haven’t done yet. There is just so much out there,” McClure said. “New Hampshire has such a rich environment of music, and it is just a question of finding it; that’s part of the fun.”
Every Francestown Academy Coffeehouse features four other performers who play for about 20 minutes each before the featured artist takes the stage following intermission.
March’s coffeehouse features Cara, multi-instrumentalist band playing traditional Celtic and Irish music, in honor of St. Patrick’s Day, on March 7. In April, Antrim resident Andrew Koutroubas, cellist and founder of Silentwoods Ensemble, will perform solo.
Each month, the coffeehouse also features a visual artist. February’s show includes a display of the work of Mont Vernon illustrator Mary Rondeau.
Francestown Academy Coffeehouse performances are free and open to the public, with an $8 suggested donation at the door. Beverages and snacks are available. Doors open at 6:30, and introductions start at 7 p.m. Coffeehouses run the first Saturday night of every month from September to June.
The Francestown Academy Coffeehouse is not an “open mic” event. Musicians who are interested in playing at an upcoming Francestown Academy Coffeehouse can apply at francestowncoffeehouse.org.