Our Songwriter’s Showcase shines a light on the region’s hidden musical gems.
Join us for our second HVBH Songwriters’ Showcase, the place to discover—or rediscover—what we love about the Hudson Valley: Original music exquisitely performed by the artists themselves.
Our March showcase features three distinctive performers: the infectious folk tunes of David Ray, the avant-garde flute and computer-generated imagery of Cougars Are Cats Too and This.Xor.That, and the Spanish classical guitar-styled tunes of Ed Horan. Each will perform a 20-30 minute set. One ticket for all. Refreshments available for purchase.
We offer flex ticket pricing for this program: $10 to $25 here or at the door.
Songwriter performances take place on our stage four times a year. Our remaining 2025 dates are: Saturday, June 21; Saturday, Sept. 20; and Friday, Dec. 5. Put the dates on your calendar and come support Hudson Valley music! If you are interested in being featured at a future showcase, please send an inquiry to amy@hvbooksforhumanity.com.
David Ray
A former New York City cab driver, bartender, bouncer, and actor, David Ray’s award-winning songs have been described as “cinematic.”
They’ve been sung by artists as varied as Grammy-winner Shawn Colvin and Dove Award winner Kathy Troccoli, and recorded by producers from Arif Mardin (Aretha Franklin) to Ric Wake (Whitney Houston).
Along with Lyle Lovett, Richie Havens, Julie Gold (From a Distance) and others, his early Fast Folk recordings are now part of the permanent collection at the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage.
As a performer, he’s shared the stage with Roger McGuinn, Shawn Colvin, John Leventhal, Dave Alvin, Lucy Kaplanski, Marshall Crenshaw, Joan Osborne, Paula Poundstone, Cliff Eberhardt, Maia Sharp, Mark Ford, KJ Denhert, Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks, and many more.
His latest album, and the title song, "So I Run," produced by Andy Stack (Yola, Girl from the North Country), featuring CMHOF inductee Cindy Cashdollar and an all-star ensemble, has already received multiple awards (2022 HOFA International Song Contest, 2022 International Song Contest (ISC), and the 2023 Shiner/VEVA Collect Song Contest).
Cougars Are Cats Too & This.Xor.That
Cougars Are Cats Too (Katarina Hoeger) and This.Xor.That (Jessica Stringham) are a live coding audio-visual duo who met as students in California and reconnected over their performing practices in NYC.
Westchester based Cougars Are Cats Too creates an entire sonic experience, from a rhythm to harmonies and melodies, through a combination of sampling her flute, looping samples, and manipulating them with code on her computer. Boston based This.Xor.That uses Murrelet, software they designed themselves and manipulate with a controller, to generate visuals in the form of shapes and colors to accompany the sounds.
The artists have performed together in various NYC venues independently and as a duo. Cougars Are Cats Too has performed in Maine. This.Xor.That has performed in Boston. Both artists are making a Westchester live coding debut performance with this concert.
Ed Horan
While traveling in Spain, Ed was put under a spell by the beautiful melodic strains of gypsy flamenco music, in this trancelike state, he was set upon by a band of gypsies and robbed. Vowing revenge, he has studied their musical forms for a number of years – hoping to weave a few spells of his own…