Stephanie Bettman and Luke Halpin, better known as the folk duo “Bettman & Halpin” will be performing at the Haugh Performing Arts Center on Sunday, Jan. 31.(photo courtesy of bettmanandhalpin.com)
Bettman & Halpin, a folk music duo, will be playing at the Haugh Performing Arts Center on January 31st.
Stephanie Bettman the songwriter, and Luke Halpin are the vocalists of the group, which has been touring since 2008.
Bettman plays the fiddle and Halpin plays a variety of instruments including the mandolin, guitar, and banjo.
The two have released four studio albums, the third being “Diamond” released January 2014, as well as a recent Christmas record on Dec. 1.
Over the course of their years of touring, Bettman & Halpin developed a tradition of telling the origins of their songs at their live performances. There were a number of songs that have been influenced by the volunteer work that they have done at an orphanage in Denver, Colorado.
“The story of our songs has become just important as the songs,” Halpin said.
Telling the stories make the songs more personal for both them and the audience. “It enriches the meaning and it enriches the context,” Bettman said. For Bettman & Halpin, the audience creates the experience as well.
“They bring their energy and we bring ours. You never know what’s going to happen at a live show,” said Bettman.
The band’s ultimate goal is “world domination,” Halpin jokingly said. “We’re really proud of the messages behind our songs, so really, we want to reach out.”
“We want to get in touch with as many people as we can reach,” said Bettman.
The two simultaneously said that people should listen to their music because, “it will make them feel good.”
Sunday’s performance will be one of the first times they will be backed by a full band onstage. They will be performing new material at the HPAC as well as playing fan favorites. Some of the fan favorites include their songs “Fiddler’s Bend” and the instrumental song, “Button Willow.”
They will be playing two brand new songs on Sunday, one is a poppy love song, which is different for Bettman since she usually writes about deeper matters and the second song is about the Trail of Tears.
“It’s something that they haven’t seen before and I really think they’re going to dig it,” Bettman said.
“Our songs are eclectic. I don’t have an interest in writing the same song more than once,” Bettman said, hinting that audiences can expect to hear different styles of songs throughout their show.
“We’re really looking forward to this. We’ve been wanting to play at the Haugh for a long time,” Halpin said.
Information about the band and album playlists can be found: here.
