PineCone & NC Museum of Art present An Evening with Patty Griffin & Special Guest Buddy Miller

April 14, 2010 - PRLog -- PineCone is pleased to announce a partnership with the North Carolina Museum of Art. This summer, the two organizations are co-presenting An Evening with Patty Griffin and Special Guest Buddy Miller on Wednesday, June 2.

These award-winning singer-songwriters have teamed up to showcase a new album inspired by their love of gospel music. It's a collection of gorgeous, soul-stirring songs called "Downtown Church," which was released in January 2010 and has won raves from critics across the country. Griffin and Miller are revered for their songwriting gifts, and Miller is one of Nashville's most sought after instrumentalists and producers. Both musicians have been honored by the Americana Music Association (AMA) – Griffin received the organization’s highest honor, Artist of the Year, in 2007; Miller received Instrumentalist of the Year in 2008, and Alison Krauss and Robert Plant presented the award to him, having recently toured with him during part of their “Raising Sand” tour.

Both Griffin’s and Miller’s songs have been covered by many, but nothing compares to the experience of hearing these brilliant artists perform in the intimate setting of the Museum Park Theater. The concert begins at 8 p.m. at the Museum’s outdoor Park Theater. Reserved tickets and general admission tickets are available; tickets go on sale on April 16 to PineCone and NC Art Museum members and on April 23 to the general public.

"Downtown Church" was recorded in a Presbyterian church in downtown Nashville. It’s not just any Presbyterian church, though. The Downtown Presbyterian Church on 5th Avenue N in Nashville was built in 1849 (the third home for a congregation whose members included President Andrew Jackson). It is a spectacular building, designed in the Egyptian Revival style by the architect William Strickland, and during the Civil War, was used as a hospital for Union soldiers. The sanctuary has history, everywhere one turns.

“It’s the wildest looking thing, and it sounded beautiful,” Miller says. “So I thought it couldn’t hurt to ask. The pastor said, ‘We’re Presbyterians, we’re very efficient, we only need it once a week.’” Miller, too, is efficient; Downtown Church was cut live over the first week of January 2009, with Griffin singing from the pulpit.

“I wanted to do it in a church,” Griffin says, the wonder still in her voice nearly a year later. “I didn’t expect Buddy to find such a church. I was thinking, nice little church out in the country, one of those buildings they rent out for music videos. And Buddy got this place. Wow! What a church.”

Reserved tickets for this event are $30; general admission tickets are only $20. PineCone members and NC Museum of Art members can purchase tickets at reduced rates - $25 for reserved tickets and $15 for general admission. Tickets will be on sale through the NC Museum of Art Box Office (919-715-5923). For more information, visit www.pinecone.org or www.ncartmuseum.org.

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PineCone—the Piedmont Council of Traditional Music, is a private, nonprofit, charitable membership organization dedicated to preserving, presenting and promoting traditional music, dance and other folk performing arts.