Loren & Mark at RiverStone Farm

MARK & LORENInternational Guitar Duo
Loren BarrigarGuitar & Vocals
Mark MazengarbGuitar & Backup Vocals

DePue-picnic promotion copy

Loren and Mark 

International Thumb Pickin’ Guitar Virtuosos

Sunday, August 16, 4:00 PM, RiverStone Farm, Foxburg, PA

Loren & Mark-Music in the Meadow

The Spectacular International Guitar Duo and Recording Artists Loren and Mark will perform Outdoors at scenic RiverStone Farm on Sunday, August 16 at 4:00 PM –  playing a concert of originals and arrangements of stunning guitar instrumentals, as well as vocal duets.  Virtuosic Thumb Picking Guitar Playing You’ll Long Remember!

Picnic

It’s going to be a Gorgeous Day!  Bring your Family and Friends – AND a picnic, cooler, lawn chairs or blanket for the grass, and have a golden afternoon at glorious RiverStone Farm.  It’s RAIN or SHINE – so plan for the day, no matter what.  Any issue with weather, we simply move inside to the H-Barn Arena.

Buy tickets here or call 724 659-3153 to reserve.   Adults $20, Students $5 and Children Under 6 Free.

Hailed by Tommy Emmanuel, Australian thumb-picking guitar virtuoso, as
“Fresh and Exiting… these guys ROCK!

Loren & Mark with Tommy Emmanuel

And you can rock out with them!  Influenced by Americana, Jazz, Country Western and Classical music, Loren and Mark’s unique style of guitar playing is largely built upon the thumb-picking techniques pioneered by guitar greats Merle Travis, Chet Atkins, and Jerry Reed.  Their songs feature Loren’s superb vocals with some beautiful harmonies from Mark.  The International GuitarDuo has toured extensively in the USA and in Europe, appearing last fall in Pittsburgh, opening for Tommy Emmanuel at the Byham.  Loren & Mark have several recordings and a rapidly growing fan base… soon to be extended in Foxburg!

The Concert is RAIN OR SHINE.  Adults $20, Students $5, and Children Under 6 Free. 

Loren & Mark
Loren and Mark’s live performances feature not only their spectacular technical grasp of the guitar, but also their outstanding musicality and ability to be spontaneously creative. The interaction between the two musicians is as much a feature of their shows as is the world-class guitar playing that they both display.

Guitar playing like you’ve never heard before in an outdoor concert at scenic and beautiful RiverStone Farm on Sunday, August 16 at 4:00 PM!  

Lore & Mark-Germany
Loren & Mark at Burg Eltz in Germany

Loren and Mark’s Concert

Music in the Meadow-Lorin & Mark

Loren and Mark’s live performances feature not only their spectacular technical grasp of the guitar, but also their outstanding musicality and ability to be spontaneously creative.  This video says it all!

Loren Barrigar and Mark Mazengarb share a unique musical chemistry and stage presence seldom found among musicians. Their diverse repertoire of original and arranged music consists of stunning guitar instrumentals as well as vocal duets, giving them wide appeal and strong audience connection. The interaction between the two musicians is as much a feature of their shows as is the world-class guitar playing that they both display.  Cover songs like Don’t Think Twice feature Loren’s superb vocals with some beautiful harmonies from Mark.

About Loren and Mark

Screen Shot 2015-04-18 at 4.40.12 PMLoren and Mark first met in 2005 when they spent a few days working with the great Tommy Emmanuel at Jorma Kaukonen’s Fur Peace Ranch guitar camp. Mark was a college kid, just completing his degree in classical guitar at the University of North Carolina; Loren was already a seasoned performer, but it was his first serious look at acoustic guitar. After the workshop, Mark visited Loren and they spent some time picking guitar – and picking each other’s brains.

1a9be6_6b7b71e96bb54ff8a9856f739c0678f3.jpg_srb_p_812_503_75_22_0.50_1.20_0.00_jpg_srb
Loren and Mark with Guitar Virtuoso, Tommy Emmanuel

In 2009 they met again in Nashville at the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society (CAAS) convention, an international gathering of hundreds of guitarists. That set the stage for the 2010 CAAS convention where they were on the schedule of performers. Though they were not originally listed to play on the big Saturday night finale, they were added to the show due to popular demand from those who heard them throughout the week.

Loren & Mark 3Loren and Mark’s varied repertoire of original and arranged music consists of stunning guitar duets as well as songs, giving them a wide appeal.

Their music is influenced by Bluegrass, Jazz and Western; their style of guitar playing is largely built upon the thumb-picking techniques pioneered by guitar greats Merle Travis, Chet Atkins and Jerry Reed, and their songs feature Lorens superb vocals and some beautiful  harmonies from Mark.

Loren & Mark-websafe

TOURING:  Loren Barrigar and Mark Mazengarb have toured extensively in both the USA and in Europe, and their fan base is rapidly expanding. They recorded their first album together the summer of 2011 which won a SAMMY (Syracuse Area Music Awards) for Best Album at the Northeast Music Industry Conference, and their second album Onward also won a SAMMY. The title track ‘Onward’ won first place at the International Acoustic Music Awards (IAMA) for Best Instrumental. Their most recent album is live from their 2013 tour of Europe.

Loren and Mark’s live performances feature not only their spectacular technical grasp of the guitar, but also their outstanding musicality and ability to be spontaneously creative. The interaction between the two musicians is as much a feature of their shows as is the world-class guitar playing that they both display.

Press About Loren and Mark

Article by Kevin Corbett of the Syracuse NewTimes – MUSIC/Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Pair of Aces

The transoceanic twosome of Loren Barrigar and Mark Mazengarb, now firmly established as one of the most popular acts in Central New York, have put many a mile behind them, making fans far and wide. The flattop wizards now face down the inevitable question of what they can do for an encore, delivering a forceful response on the tracks of their new independent CD – Onward.

While Loren and Mark, as they are billed on their new album, have established themselves as a premier acoustic act, playing nearly every theater, club, coffeehouse and festival in the area and many venues beyond, their reputation as a guitar duo may limit them, no matter how impeccable their playing. The versatility, evident from Onward’s first three songs, makes a case that this release will help them to engage a broader audience.

The rippling water lead on the esoteric title track, which is first up, flows with the finger- picking artistry that characterized their self- titled 2010 CD. But this time out, Onward, like its creators, travels many far-flung roads. While flawless fretwork will always be their calling card, they cut not only a widely varied trail of instrumentals, but also include a trio of tracks that feature Barrigar’s heartfelt vocals. The homegrown project also embodies the talents of seven local musicians, while half of the songs are written by area composers, including two by Barrigar and Mazengarb.

The follow-up track, Jerry Reed’s furious “Jerry’s Breakdown,” incorporates the tasteful brushwork of noted drummer Rob Spagnoletti and Barrigar’s heavy thumb to set a rollicking pace. The lead trilogy concludes with the CD’s first vocal, the haunting and melancholy “Wish I Could Fly.” It receives the full- band treatment, with Spagnoletti joined by steel guitar whiz George Newton, delicate harmony vocals delivered by Donna Colton and Sharon Allen, Barrigar on bass and Mazengarb doing triple duty on vocals, mandolin and an elegant lead guitar.
“Wish I Could Fly,” like the other pair of vocal numbers, was composed by local songwriter Austin Gravelding, but their common source isn’t evident as each stands on its own in, all three making a strong case for radio play.

The instrumentals are predictably powerful. “Halfway Home,” a tune composed by the duo’s mentor, Tommy Emmanuel, conjures wind-blown wheat fields and winding streams. The Barrigar-Mazengarb composition “Traveling Light,” featuring bassist Pat DeSalvo and cellist Gregory Wood, is light yet infectious.

In terms of the other two vocal numbers, “China Blue” is familiar in melody and theme, as a man recalls the penetrating eyes of a past love. Less original than Gravelding’s other songs, it compensates with a simple charm; after a couple of plays, it’s hard not to sing along with Barrigar’s easy-flowing singing. “Healing,” arranged by Mazengarb as a warm and reflective bluegrass song, is the richest lyrically, and instrumentally graceful, with the enormously talented Nick Piccinni’s lush banjo strokes layered over the duo’s guitars. Gravelding’s words are deeply inspirational, reminding that “hurting comes on faster than a freight train, healing comes along in its own time.”

Ironically, the most familiar track is the last, “Always On My Mind,” barely recognizable as the 1982 Willie Nelson hit without his famously ragged voice. In fact, it may take listeners a moment to recognize the graceful reading of the song’s beautiful melody, presented here as an understated instrumental.

Onward’s brief liner notes deliver the exciting news that this remarkable duo has made the commitment to a full-time career playing together. While their journey has already taken them well beyond their local stronghold, this new release strengthens their potential to continue to find welcoming fans anywhere they play, knowing that wherever they play they’ll be moving onward.