Phina Phipia and Matt Sircely on Sunday afternoon

On Sunday April 3, at 2pm, Palindrome Hall will feature a very serious duo performance by two esteemed songwriters and instrumentalists: Phina Pipia on sousaphone and guitar, and Matt Sircely on mandolins and stringed instruments. This concert was scheduled to not fall on April Fools Day, because this will be an extremely intricate performance with little stage banter, absolutely no jokes.

There will be a suggested donation of $10-$20 for folks who wish to support the performers. The Eaglemount Winery Tasting Room, adjacent to the Palindrome, will be open from 12-5pm. All ages are allowed outside of the tasting room.

Hailed as “charming as hell,” by the Montreal Gazette and “terrific,” by the New York Times; as a tuba player, Phina Pipia is a driving force behind several west coast bands, and her songwriting weaves captivating lyrics, unexpected imagery, and unforgettable melodies. With a background as a professional dancer, Phina worked in New York City with choreographers Julian Barnett and Cori Kresge. While on the East Coast, she co-founded the production company, Generation Goat Rocket, staging original musicals at lower Manhattan’s Horse Trade Theaters. After returning west, she began performing as one half of the double sousaphone duo, The Pipia Sisters, and toured with the mentalism show, The Psychic Dynasty. Phina released her first solo album and its companion songbook, Outside of the Movies in 2020, and her new album, Normal Times – which interweaves electronic beats, brass melodies, and vocals – is scheduled for release in November. Her solo theater show, Ha Ha Da Vinci was developed in residence at the Centrum Foundation, and will debut in San Diego this summer. Phina holds a BFA in Dance Performance from the Conservatory of Dance at Purchase College. She is currently a student at Bellevue College, where she studies tuba and double bass under Bill Park and Kelsey Mines. Phina’s work can be found at phinapipia.com

Matt Sircely also toured with Chautauqua as accompanist for the legendary Faith Petric, the “Fort Knox of Folk Music”. Matt grew up listening to records, writing songs, and tuning into the late Gene Shay’s legendary Folk Show on Philly radio. Years later, Shay called Sircely “a great songwriter.” He studied mandolin with Barry Mitterfhoff in the NYC region before moving west, later filling in for his on tours with the Klezmer Mountain Boys. For several years, Sircely assisted at the Mandolin Symposium in California and met many of the world’s greatest mandolinists: Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones described Matt as a “nice guy, great player.” Danny Barnes produced Matt’s first recording of original songs in 2015, Humdinger Process, and the two friends released a duo live recording in 2014. Recently, Sircely was honored to record alongside mandolin master David Grisman, who appeared as a guest on the most recent Hot Club Sandwich release, No Pressure. Reviewing the record, No Depression described Sircely’s songs as “timeless”. Over the years, Sircely has taught at festivals and workshops across North America and academic settings including Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle. Matt’s most recent mandolin workshop was at the 2021 Subdued Stringband Jamboree. Hear songs and see more at mattsircely.com