What's New

August 2023 


 
 
 Ruth and Max Bloomquist  
 
 

 

Hi!

We wanted to get this out a bit early as August feels like it starts early for us.
 
On Saturday July 29 we are excited to play a 12 noon set at the Tamarack Music Festival in Morley Michigan. A new experience for us, this smallish festival looks like a lot of fun.
 
Then the FIRST WEEKEND OF AUGUST starts with an outdoor concert at the Log Cabin Stage in Kaleva, MI (7:00). Then on Saturday Aug. 5 we play a private party that we have played before that is always a good time. Then on Sunday August 6 we play a concert at the beautiful Muskegon Victorian Garden/Phoenix Continuum (2:00). (This one is always fun. Don't forget your chairs.)
 
On Wednesday August 9 (after two days off) we travel up to Traverse City to play an outdoor concert (7:00) at the Peninsula Community Library out on the Old Mission Peninsula. Bring chairs and maybe a picnic. In case of rain we move indoors.
 
On Tuesday August 15 at 8:00 eastern we will join two other acts in a Zoom concert for Music My Mother Would Not Like. These promoter/broadcasters do a great job of showcasing music you might not but perhaps should hear every day.
 
On Saturday August 19 we provide music for the semi-private Smith Bayou Chili Cookout. (If you know, you know.)
 
We finish up the month on August 25 with a 7:00 concert at the White River Light Station in Whitehall,MI. This is a beautiful location at the lighthouse on the channel between White Lake and Lake Michigan and a great way for us to finish the last full month of summer.
 
Where did the time go?
 
All the details can be found at our website: <https://ruthbloomquist.com/schedule>
 
Thanks! We hope you can find time to come out and hang out with us.
Ruth and Max
 
 
 

In Like a Lion? 

What can we say about early March in Western Michigan? Some days are sunny while others are far from it, and we never know what form the precipitation might take. We have just returned from a lovely getaway visiting good friends and sharing music in a warmer climate, but we are happy to be home.

We look forward to presenting our music this month in three locations. One is a Sunday morning gathering local to us. One is in the Chicago area, and one is near to Detroit. We look forward to them all, and hope that you might join us at one if you are so inclined. Here they are. Details are in the links below.
Sun Mar 12 2023  10:00a C3 Spiritual Community  Grand Haven, MI
 
Tue Mar 21 2023  7:00p Oak Park Public Library  Oak Park, IL
 
Fri Mar 24 2023  8:00p Trinity House Theatre  Livonia, MI
 
 
Also, we have some very nice events scheduled for the coming summer and hoping for more. Our complete schedule is published on our website< https://ruthbloomquist.com/schedule> AND our music is available for physical sale or download at <https://ruthbloomquist.com/listen-and-purchase-music> 
 
 
Meanwhile, if we have no other pressing commitments on a Saturday night you will likely find us live-streaming from home via our Facebook page @RuthandMaxBloomquistMusic. Please do follow us there for updates.
 
Your support means the world to us. 
 
Thanks.
Ruth and Max

 

February 2023 news from Ruth & Max 

It's February 3, so more than 10% of the month is behind us already. The biggest news is that we have started the recording process for a collection of new songs. There is no release date as yet, as there's still a lot of work to do, but we promise to keep you posted as progress is made.

It really is exciting and satisfying to have this project underway. We have one live in-person show this month: We are truly excited to be appearing at the Ark in Ann Arbor with Annie and Rod Capps and Robin and Jenny Bienemann for the annual "My Folky Valentine" show on Valentine's Day February 14. Please see our schedule for the details. https://ruthbloomquist.com/schedule. While you're there you can see what else we have on tap and start making plans to see us in the future.

Meanwhile, we have continued with our Saturday night live-streaming concerts on Facebook on any Saturday that we are not otherwise engaged. At this point, we plan on Feb. 4, 11, and 18.  Stay tuned for what might be up in March.

All the best,

Ruth and Max

Photo by Bruce Robey

Welcome January 2023 

It's the first day of 2023, and we hope that it finds you well and happy, and that the New Year takes you to where you would like to be. 

We have three in-person shows this month, and we hope that you will consider attending if you are anywhere near: January 14 is Winter Wheat, the one-day winter version of the Wheatland Music Festival. https://www.wheatlandmusic.org/winterwheat/  We have played Winter Wheat several times in the past and it is always a great time. Two stages going from 1:30 PM and long into the night held at the Intersection in Grand Rapids, MI. Our set starts at 2:50 PM.  The next day, January 15, we play a concert at the First Presbyterian Church of Grand Haven as part of their Community Artist and Speaker Series. It's open to the public, and there's more information here: https://fpgh.org/event/community-artist-series-events/  Then on Friday, January 20 we will be at an iconic folk music venue The Two Way Street Coffee House in Downers Grove, IL. https://twowaystreet.org  The show starts at 8:00 Central Time, and if you're anywhere near we would love to see you there. Three live in-person shows: Grand Rapids, Grand Haven, ChicagoLand. Please join us if you can. 

All the best for the New Year. 

Ruth and Max

December 2022 

HI Folks! It seems that we have one busy week in December and it happens early in the month, so we want to let you know what's going on and encourage you to come see us in person if you're anywhere near. Here's the schedule for our (as far as we know) last in-person appearances for the year 2022:

Sunday December 4 - Grand Haven, MI. C3 Spiritual Community. Usually just 3 or 4 songs that may or may not go along with the topic of discussion of the morning. 

Wednesday December 7 - Chelsea, MI. ON THE TRACKS Songwriter Showcase(at The Chelsea Depot) A co-bill with another duo The Lucky Nows. It's all about our original songs and how they came to be.

Saturday December 10 - Whitehall, MI. The Playhouse At White Lake. We love to play this wonderful theater, and it's our first time back in over three years. The concert theme will be Changing Of the Seasons, and yes, there will be Holiday songs to go with that theme. 

Also please remember to check our Facebook page <@RuthandMaxBloomquistMusic> for events in our Live From Home live-stream series.

Thanks for reading. Thanks for your support.

We wish you the Happiest of Holidays. Ruth and Max

November 2022 

It's NOVEMBER?! We missed updating you in October. We were busy, but not with much that you could actually engage with. For the first half of the month we were visiting our friends in France. Suffice it to say we had a wonderful and restful time with not a lot of sightseeing and plenty of time with our dear friends there.

Then, almost as soon as we got back home, we packed up again and went to the annual gathering of the Folk Alliance Region Midwest -FARM- near Chicago. Here's a photo from one of our showcases.It was a long weekend of making music, hearing music, seeing old friends, and making new connections. 

We have one (sort of) public in-person appearance in November. On Saturday November 12 we will be playing for Back To Live Music Pop-Up Concerts in Grand Haven, Michigan.

Then in December we have (so far) two opportunities: 

December 7 On the Tracks Showcase at the Historic Chelsea Depot, Chelsea, MI https://www.onthetrackschelsea.com

December 10 In Concert at the Playhouse of Whitelake, Whitehall, MI http://theplayhouseatwhitelake.org

Check our schedule for details here: https://ruthbloomquist.com/schedule

 

Thanks for reading. Thanks for your support.

Ruth and Max

 

September 2022 

SEPTEMBER 2022 is here. It may be the end of meteorological summer, but there is still some mighty fine weather to come. We look forward to getting outside as the air starts to cool, breathing deep, and watching the colors change. Some travel is in the offing for us as we visit dear far away friends we have not seen for nearly three years. We hope to post some photos and video of those travels. Music will surely be made.

Before we go we do have one show that we want you to be aware of especially if you're in the West Michigan area. On Saturday night September 10 we will be at the very wonderful and soon to be closing venue Seven Steps Up in Springlake, Michigan. Please do join us if you can for this bittersweet goodbye to our friends there and to one of our favorite stages to play anywhere. Here's where to get your tickets: https://sevenstepsup.com/event_registration/221 Enjoy it all friends, as we enter those months that end in R.

Ruth and Max

Spring is springing 

How'd it get to be April 6 already? We hope you're doing fine as we pass through Michigan's false Spring into the real thing. The lilies of the valley, day lilies, and daffodils are showing their little green heads, so things are looking up. 

Out biggest news is that April 23 will be our 100th Saturday night livestream concert from home. We've been doing them since March 28, 2020 skipping the occasional Saturday that allowed us to play somewhere for a live audience (usually outdoors). We still don't know just how we'll celebrate this milestone, but it'll be fun. Meanwhile, if you'd like to view a recent one, here's a link: https://fb.watch/cdqN-Lvhqf/ 

As usual lately, we don't have a lot happening in the "live in person" area this month, but we will carry on. Easter Sunday we return to C3 - West Michigan's Inclusive Spiritual Connection in Grand Haven. We always enjoy their Sunday gatherings even though it's only a few songs. 

May 7 we will be in concert at the Chrystal Theater in Chrystal River, Michigan. We are excited to be making this road trip to the western edge of Michigan's Upper Peninsula to share our music. 

Thanks! 

Ruth and Max

March Music 

It’s March 2022. Yesterday was nearly a shirt sleeve day. Most of the snow is gone from our yard. More snow is predicted to fall soon. We’re not complaining (yet) because yesterday’s temps in the 60s felt mighty good. We’re looking forward to getting out of the house a bit more as the weather warms up, and we have a few concerts on the calendar already. 

In the meantime, we plan to continue our Saturday night “Live From Home” series whenever we are not live in person on a stage somewhere else. Follow our Facebook page to get notices of these and other events: https://www.facebook.com/RuthAndMaxBloomquistMusic/ 

THIS MONTH 

Sunday March 13 5:00 EST we will be swapping songs on ZOOM with our friends February Sky.   A virtual in the round concert with February Sky and Ruth & Max Bloomquist. TO BE BROADCAST VIA ZOOM. You must register to attend. Here is the registration link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYpcuigpzguGtat2d0mbr5JGuINm59niDai  After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. 

Thursday March 24 7:00 EST Ruth joins host Andy Baker in the round with Nicholas James Thomasma live on stage for a Songwriter Showcase at the Black River Tavern in South Haven MI. More info:  https://fb.me/e/1hOY3RG5t 

Watch for more dates as the weather warms and check our schedule often. https://ruthbloomquist.com/schedule 

Thanks for reading and caring. We couldn’t do it without folks like you. 

Ruth and Max