Pickin’ and fiddlin’ band plays at Norfolk Library

NORFOLK — As part of its Music Among Neighbors concert series, the Norfolk Library hosted The Banjo Babies on Saturday, April 1. The bluegrass band out of New York City rocked the house and had the sold-out crowd stomping and swinging to upbeat tunes.

Led by Ella Vorenberg on lead vocals, the group performed a 16-track set list plus an encore by popular demand in just their second show as a band.

The Banjo Babies first formed in October 2022 after meeting during a jam session at Mona’s Bar in Manhattan.

“We started playing together in the fall. In New York there’s a bluegrass jam every Monday night. I’ve been going there for years, Sam has been going for years, and I met these guys who were new on the scene. They asked if we wanted to be in a band and I said ‘sure!’ This is our second show so it’s still pretty new,” said Vorenberg.

In addition to Vorenberg, the band consisted of Sam Dallas on bass, Tom Gause on fiddle, Sam Chester on banjo, David Chernack on guitar, and Jackson Earles on mandolin. Their set list included traditional bluegrass songs like “Home of the Red Fox” and “Blue Virginia Blues,” as well as country numbers like “John Deere Tractor” and “Sin Wagon.”

For a relatively new group, they seamlessly complemented one another as they performed into a single microphone. The players stepped in and out of center stage on cue to highlight the technical skills of each performer during their instrumental solo sections.