JOHN SHERMAN & RANDY CLEPPER | PRESS KIT

John Sherman and Randy Clepper are two acclaimed performers of Irish traditional music from central Ohio.  Both are consummate multi-instrumentalists, and together they perform arranged Irish and Celtic tunes on fingerstyle guitar, bouzouki, and tenor banjo.  John and Randy’s latest recording, “Finally Tuned”, has been described as "a fine and finely tuned album that is intricate in its arrangement and delivery" (TradConnect.com, Ireland) and was ranked in the top 10 in three instrumental and traditional album categories in 2013 by Folk Festival, WDCB Public Radio, Chicago. John and Randy were featured as Official Showcase Artists at the 2017 Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA) in Montreat, NC, Quad Showcase Artists at the 2014 Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) in New York and as Performance Lane Showcase Artists at Folk Alliance Regional Midwest (FARM) in 2013.  Regular performers for over a decade at the Dublin Irish Festival, Dublin, Ohio, they have appeared on WYSO’s Dear Green Place and are frequently featured on WCBE’s Toss the Feathers.

Professional Showcases:

2017 Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA) Official Showcase Artists 
2014 Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) Quad Showcase Artists  
2013 Folk Alliance Regional Midwest (FARM) Performance Lane Artists
2012 North American Irish and Celtic Festival Organizers (NAICFO) Conference

CD "Finally Tuned"

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Press

"#3 Top Fave Instrumental Albums of 2013 ("Finally Tuned")
#2 Top Fave Traditional Albums of 2013 ("Finally Tuned")
#10 Top Fave Instrumentals of 2013" ("Behind the Haystack / ...", album "Finally Tuned")

- Lilli KuzmaFolk Festival on 90.9FM WDCB Public Radio, Chicago
 

"I loved the album, I’m a huge fan of both bouzouki and banjo and the duo here play both sensitively and with great authority."

"The bouzouki isn’t simply restricted to a thundering accompaniment and Clepper’s style is a fine one to try if you are new to the zouk. The tenor banjo playing is direct and forthright, as they say in the USA, Sherman owns the music."

"As anyone who has heard Irish music in Ohio knows, it is high calibre without being high velocity, and Clepper and Sherman hit the target every time in this album."
Seán Laffey - Editor, Irish Music Magazine, Dublin, Ireland    Read full review


"a remarkably accomplished recording."
"exquisite delivery with plenty in the way of texture and emotion."
"a fine and finely tuned album that is intricate in its arrangement and delivery"
"It's a couple of musicians sitting down playing some technically challenging tunes that are firmly rooted in traditional music."
Tony Lawless - TradConnect.com, Ireland    Read full reviews

External links to source articles: Interviews (audio):

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