Thede | Feldmann (Folk Songs)

Anyone who goes to a concert by the duo Thede | Feldmann (formerly the Gsus Brothers) will be amazed time and again, and will certainly go home surprised and thoroughly rewarded. With artistic brilliance, the two musicians breathe new life into an old, often misunderstood and underrated genre: Beni Feldmann and Steffen Thede perform German and Low German folk songs. With delicate, expressive guitar sounds, a rhythmically captivating, virtuoso 5-string banjo and their two-part harmonies, they bring the spirit of the times, the worldview and the hopes and dreams of people from bygone eras into the present.

Centuries-old lyrics and songs seem more relevant than ever, thrilling and enchanting the audience, sweeping them along and sometimes even moving them to tears. Thede | Feldmann express a longing for folk music as it has never been heard before. With a mischievous flair, they traverse the social strata, becoming a mirror to them - not least through colourful anecdotes about the origins and history of the pieces they perform, as well as wordplay and humour.

Steffen Thede is a 5-string banjo virtuoso and music teacher from Cologne. He performs in various cross-genre bands and has made a name for himself on the European bluegrass scene with his distinctive playing style.

Born and raised in Schleswig-Holstein on the North Sea coast, he initially toured various countries and continents in his youth as a bassist with the rock band Goldmouth. Inspired by his music school teacher, he discovered the five-string banjo, which has been at the heart of his work ever since. Since successfully completing his music education degree at the University of Bielefeld in 2022, he has also been working as a banjo teacher.

In the duo Thede | Feldmann, he returns to his musical roots and performs German and Low German folk songs in an original style.

Beni Feldmann, from Freiburg, is a singer-songwriter, singer and guitarist. He has been touring the stages of Germany and neighbouring regions for more than 20 years - both as a solo artist and as part of various groups across a range of genres.

Feldmann grew up in the Münsterland and Ruhr regions as part of a large family, whose living folk song tradition of communal singing and oral transmission shaped him from an early age. As a young man, he learnt to play the electric bass and guitar and was active for several years in both a metal band and an Irish folk band.

In 2011, Feldmann released his first solo album; he moved to Freiburg im Breisgau and has since been working as a freelance artist and session musician.

In the duo Thede | Feldmann, he is able to blend his love of classical singing and his passion for acoustic music within the familiar waters of the folk song repertoire.

www.thede-feldmann.de

Photo: Leonard Kötters

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