For the first show of her Velvet Revolutions residency at Berlin, beloved recording artist Pieta Brown offers a night of fan-favorite songs performed with an exquisite small string ensemble. Bassist Liz Draper and fiddler Sara Pajunen—who are known for their solo and collaborative works and musical prowess—move fluidly and openly between genres, as Brown’s songs often do. Expect stories, traditional string arrangements, and poetic experimental stylings. For fans of Adrianne Lenker, Esperanza Spalding, and Madeleine Peyroux.

Liz Draper opens the evening with a special solo set.

Band Members:
Pieta Brown - Acoustic Guitars/Piano/Vocals
Liz Draper - Acoustic Bass
Sara Pajunen - Violin/Finnish Fiddle

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Hailed as a “self-styled poetess, folk goddess, and country waif” by the BBC, Pieta Brown first came to international prominence with the release of her self-titled debut in 2002. Since then, she has released multiple critically acclaimed albums, EPs, and singles. Bon Iver mastermind Justin Vernon has called her album “Paradise Outlaw” his “favorite recording made at our studio.” Brown has toured worldwide with artists such as John Prine, Amos Lee, Brandi Carlile, J.J. Cale, Ani DiFranco, Mavis Staples, and Calexico, and she has co-written and/or sung on releases by Calexico, Amos Lee, Howe Gelb, and Iris DeMent.

Brown’s most recent album, Freeway, was co-produced by Sean Carey (S. Carey, Bon Iver) and earned widespread critical acclaim from NPR Music, Stereogum, Billboard, FLOOD, Paste, American Songwriter, Folk Alley, and Relix. She followed Freeway with the experimental single “Follow You” and an EP/digital triptych collaboration called We Are Not Machines, which featured Ani DiFranco, S. Carey, Holland Andrews, and Jen Wassner.

In 2022, Brown further expanded her musical prowess by recording and releasing an album of original cinematic instrumentals, The Less I Needed The Better I Felt, under the moniker Sylvee & The Sea. This album featured John Convertino (Calexico), Don Was, and CJ Carmerieri (CARM). She also co-produced Iris DeMent’s most recent album, Workin’ On A World, which was praised by Rolling Stone and the New York Times. Along the way, she has also earned accolades for her talents in soundtrack design, videography, and photography. Continually revealing new layers as a songwriter, singer, musician, producer, actor, and visual artist, Brown is being recognized as a true multi-hyphenate and one of modern Americana’s true gems.

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Bassist Liz Draper has played with everyone from Sub Pop's Grammy-nominated slowcore band Low to the Balkan folk group Orkestar Bez Ime, Righteous Babe artist Pieta Brown, Grammy Award-winning Okee Dokee Brothers, and Smithsonian recording artist folk troubadour Charlie Parr. Draper grew up playing jazz and has a degree in classical bass performance. Her improvising led her to Brooklyn's SIM (School for Improvised Music 2003). Draper is a 2019 Giant Steps Fellow (San Francisco). She is a 2021 American Composers Forum awardee for her solo work, which can be described as "classicaldoomfolkjazz." Draper is currently touring with two-time Grammy-nominated songwriter Iris DeMent.