The Groanbox Boys are the Uk based trio, Cory Seznec, Michael Ward-Bergeman, and Paul Clifford. The Groanbox sound is a highly unique blend of roots music performed on accordion, acoustic guitar, banjo, harmonica, and myriad pieces of percussion, including a calabash (African gourd), yew tree log, and their self-made Freedom Boot. Their foot-stompin' sound features unconventional arrangements weaved together by tight vocal harmonies sung with raw intensity. Cory plays fingerstyle and flatpicking guitar, clawhammer, plectrum, and three-finger banjo, and blues harmonica. Michael plays the accordion, hammering out a deep, full bass and accompaniment with his left hand, and authentic melodic lines with his right. Paul bangs out deep, frenetic African and Latin rhythms that get people up and moving in no time. A typical Groanbox live performance weaves all of this into a tapestry of rich, distinct sound and unending energy.
About the Musicians:
Corentin "Cory" Seznec is a Franco-American musician born in France and raised both in Connecticut and on a family farm in Annapolis, Maryland. As a teenager, he discovered Mississippi John Hurt, Big Bill Broonzy, and Doc Watson records among his parents' dusty collection in the attic of their house, and it was then that a passion for pre-war blues, jazz, string and jug band music was born. Meanwhile, a multicultural household, extensive travels and musical encounters, and a passion for history exposed Cory to sounds from around the world, helping him to develop his own distinct style that reflects his broad interests. Some of his most memorable experiences in music include performing on Mississippi John Hurt's front porch in Mississippi and in a 13th century monastery in France. Cory received a masters degree in history from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and has a BA in history from John Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. In February 2007, Cory was selected to be the recipient of a 2007 Maryland State Arts Council Award for Music Composition. More information can be found on his website.
Michael Ward-Bergeman is a passionate performer, songwriter and
composer. His sensitive and creative approach to music making has led to
performances and collaborations with world-class musicians and composers from
across a wide range of genres. Michael's work has been featured in
compositions by the composer Osvaldo Golijov, including 2004's Grammy
nominated Ayre. Recent highlights have been performances with the
cellist Yo-Yo Ma, and working with Golijov and Francis Ford Coppola on the
soundtrack to his new movie, Youth Without Youth. In April 2007,
Michael premiered his composition Three Roads at Carnegie Hall. The
work was commissioned by the Carnegie Hall Corporation and written for the
vocalist Christina Courtin. He has recently been awarded the first commission
ever given by the Terezín Chamber Music Foundation for a work to be
written for the soprano Dawn Upshaw in 2008. Michael has brought his music
making to many venues around the globe - from the local pub to the Sydney
Opera House. He has performed on numerous recordings, on television, and on
several major motion picture soundtracks. Michael is a graduate of the
Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA. More information can be found on his
website.
Paul Clifford
is a skilled west coast Canadian drummer and multi-instrumentalist with a
gift for improvisation. A one-time recording and touring drummer for the
Canadiana band The Be Good Tanyas (Blue Horse, Chinatown), Paul has
played professionally in jazz, folk, blues, country, rock and latin bands;
worked as a percussionist, composer and actor and travelled widely to keep
his music fresh. Though formally beginning percussion studies in Malsapina
Jazz College [Vancouver Island], he continued with Bata Folkloric in Havana,
Cuba, and frequent pilgrimages to New Orleans soaking up the second-line,
with added study at the Banff centre for the Arts, participating in
Afrocubanismo 1997. Following intensive touring, and forever 4 tracking, Paul
switched gears and rented an old house in the middle of the Canadian prairies
to record a collection of song-stories. His solo album Rootballs
showcases wonderfully strange sounds and has caused certain radio presenters
to declare him totally original and mad. Rootballs is now distributed on
iTunes from Neverfoehl records/mp3 songmill.com. Paul's new creative home is
Muskie Studios in Kent UK, a reconditioned caravan equipped with the latest
old 4 track in the business. More information can be found on his website.
