Brother Spellbinder veers off the beaten track with plaintive vocals, unusual arrangements, and a variety of textures. Incorporating elements of folk, eastern European, classical and rock, the music moves from rousing and infectious to dreamy and fragile. Lyrics flow from the uncensored mythical realm of the human psyche to the here and now of human experience. Brother Spellbinder aims to enchant in the age of disenchantment.
An inter-generational band, Brother Spellbinder is the vision of Alzara Getz. As the daughter of rock drummer, Dave Getz, original drummer of Big Brother & The Holding Co. (Janis Joplin), she developed a taste for passionate music worn on the sleeve. Her day job as a social worker and deep interest in how people heal - or not - is a source of inspiration for songwriting. After years of singing with a variety of bay area bands, she decided it was time to lead her own. She formed Brother Spellbinder with guitarist Jamie Wilson. Wilson was an early graduate from San Francisco’s School of the Arts High School and counters Alzara's dulcet voice with a dollop of gristle in his vocals and a rhythm guitar that resonates with an earthy om.
Two rotating cellists round out the lower registers with rich velvet tones: Rice masters graduate Gabriel Beistline, a regular with The Santa Rosa Symphony, Merced Symphony and many others, and Helena Tietze, daughter of a choir director and organist, an accomplished pianist/keyboardist, and a singer/songwriter herself. The higher registers are shared by lead guitarist Sean Griffin with soulful and sensual riffs and violinist Steve Bollhoefer with playful and plaintive melodies. Drummer Steve La Porta steers the songs with creative marches, world beats and joyful vibrations.
Brother Spellbinder enjoys playing in a variety of settings and configurations. They can play raw, unplugged and in small configurations or as the full sextet with a wall of sound. They also perform with multi-media projection using found footage, vintage films and other ambient montages that Alzara and Jamie create.
An inter-generational band, Brother Spellbinder is the vision of Alzara Getz. As the daughter of rock drummer, Dave Getz, original drummer of Big Brother & The Holding Co. (Janis Joplin), she developed a taste for passionate music worn on the sleeve. Her day job as a social worker and deep interest in how people heal - or not - is a source of inspiration for songwriting. After years of singing with a variety of bay area bands, she decided it was time to lead her own. She formed Brother Spellbinder with guitarist Jamie Wilson. Wilson was an early graduate from San Francisco’s School of the Arts High School and counters Alzara's dulcet voice with a dollop of gristle in his vocals and a rhythm guitar that resonates with an earthy om.
Two rotating cellists round out the lower registers with rich velvet tones: Rice masters graduate Gabriel Beistline, a regular with The Santa Rosa Symphony, Merced Symphony and many others, and Helena Tietze, daughter of a choir director and organist, an accomplished pianist/keyboardist, and a singer/songwriter herself. The higher registers are shared by lead guitarist Sean Griffin with soulful and sensual riffs and violinist Steve Bollhoefer with playful and plaintive melodies. Drummer Steve La Porta steers the songs with creative marches, world beats and joyful vibrations.
Brother Spellbinder enjoys playing in a variety of settings and configurations. They can play raw, unplugged and in small configurations or as the full sextet with a wall of sound. They also perform with multi-media projection using found footage, vintage films and other ambient montages that Alzara and Jamie create.
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