Our Performers 

Returning for their fourth Holiday Cabaret, the Speak Easy Prohibition Band will be joined this year by guest powerhouse vocalist Samirah Evans, a VT transplant hailing from New Orleans! The all-star band is a collaboration of Upper Valley talent, with Bob Merrill on piano, Tim Gilmore on drums, Michael Zsoldos on saxophone, Dave Ellis on trumpet, and Peter Concilio on bass The lively sextet will take attendees back to the Roaring 20s with jazzy holiday tunes for kicking up heels and turning across the dance floor.

BarnArts vocalists will round out the musical offerings with familiar holiday songs under the direction of Michael Zsoldos.

Featured Performers Bios

Bob Merrill has played and performed on piano for more than 50 years. He has been the composer and accompanist for the Dartmouth Film Society's silent films, and in 1999 was presented with an award for playing his fiftieth film. He has produced music for both commercial video and film, and is featured on several albums.

Drummer and percussionist Tim Gilmore teaches at Plymouth State University, St. Paul School, and Interplay Jazz and Arts. An active clinician with Adventures in Jazz, his credits include performances at Blue Note in NYC and appearances with a number of artists including Shelia Jordan, Tower of Power, Richie Cole, Stanley Clarke, Pete Seeger, and Shawn Colvin.

Saxophonist Michael Zsoldos frequents the BarnArts stage as a choir conductor, music director, and musician. Michael is a senior lecturer in jazz and classical saxophone and music theory at Dartmouth College, and he is on the teaching faculties of the Vermont Jazz Center in Brattleboro and Interplay Jazz and Arts.

Trumpeter Dave Ellis is a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music. He has performed with the Oratorio Society of Washington D.C., Vermont Symphony, Clark Terry, Phil Woods, and Sam Rivers. He has conducted jazz festivals at Plymouth State and Hart Colleges and directed Barbary Coast Jazz Ensemble at Dartmouth College. He is the president of Ellis Music.

Bassist Peter Concilio studied with composer/arranger Don DeFala. He has produced concerts for Maynard Ferguson, The Heath Brothers, Dizzy Gillespie, and a variety of other artists, and was the artistic director of Hartland, Vermont's Jazz Fest during its five year run. He is the creator of the Speak Easy Prohibition Band.

Samirah Evans is a dynamic and soulful jazz and blues vocalist. A regular at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival for 15 years, she relocated to Brattleboro after Katrina. She’s made a home in southern Vermont and regularly tours the Northeast with her bands and teaches at Williams College and her home studio.