Ben Hunter and Joe Seamons entertained at Sisters Folk Festival

Seattle-based artists Ben Hunter and Joe Seamons' performances were highlighted by storytelling that brought a unique experience to the audience. The music they play is inspired by early 20th century American folk and novelty songs.

"I have met a lot of folks that share my love for stories - mainly stories that revolve around songs and music traditions," Seamons said. "Songs are made for singing, dancing, and playing. But I've found they can also create a lens through which we can better understand our present and past. My love of American roots culture drives everything I do, and my mission is to spread awareness and appreciation of the music and stories that define my country's heritage."

Seamons was raised in a house built by his parents in the backwoods of northwestern Oregon. He was exposed to local folk music of sawmill workers, loggers and fisherman whose music reflected the aspect of the region.

Hunter was born in South Africa and raised in Phoenix, Arizona, and is a classically trained violinist who studied music around the world.

These two musicians, raised poles apart, discovered their love of music coincided.

"We met when I was attending a festival," Seamons told The Nugget. "We both performed in separate bands, so I asked him to bring his band down to Portland to play with my band.

"Our bands would occasionally do shows together and then one day Ben joined my band and we toured the country for a couple of years," Seamons added. "Then we discovered that we had the same desires to play music together, teach youth together and work as community activists."

Joe moved to Seattle to begin working full time with Ben Hunter as traveling songsters and educators.

Hunter and Seamons bounce from fiddle and banjo performing early jazz and folk song to acoustic blues and gospel songs.

Seamons is devoted to Northwest American folk music, and he is the executive producer of the 2017 Smithsonian Folkways album, "Roll Columbia: Woody Guthrie's 26 Northwest Songs."

"Guthrie was a big influence for me," Seamons said. "But I got to Guthrie through being a Bob Dylan fanatic, who's influence was Guthrie. Guthrie attracted me because he spoke up for what he believed in and fought honestly for justice."

Although Hunter was trained on the violin, he grew up listening to Motown.

"That was a big influence for me growing up with my mom," Hunter conveyed. "We went on a lot of road trips and listened to a lot of Motown. But many other musicians influenced me such as Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson."

The duo taught at the annual Americana Song Academy at Caldera the week before Sisters Folk Festival and last year, before the festival was cancelled due to wildfire smoke.

"Our experience being in Sisters is teaching at the song academy," Seamons said. "We observed an amazing job being done at developing young musicians as singers and songwriters to just write great songs. And I'm delighted that there is such a strong program here with an amazing dedication to the craft of songwriting, which is inspiring."

After moving to Seattle, Hunter founded a nonprofit, Community Arts Create, to break down social barriers through community arts activities. The Rhapsody Project was then established, with the goal to strengthen communities through song and spread the gospel of folk and blues music.

Hunter and Seamons' music is a part of the Rhapsody Project, which is an integration of performance and teaching through public events and school workshops. The project is designed to bring together people across generational and cultural divides through music.

Seamons said, "Along with the Rhapsody Project instructors Ben Hunter, Tina Dietz and Cameron Armstrong, I work to educate and involve people in American roots culture through classes, residencies, concerts and a scholarship program."

Back in Seattle, Seamons and Hunter teach after-school classes twice a week and present workshops under the umbrella of the Rhapsody Project around the country.

"We do monthly jam sessions where young people come in and play music together and a monthly concert series where the young people can experience all the amazing musicians that we are lucky to know," added Seamons.

Audiences walked away from Hunter and Seamons' performances inspired to learn more of their own history and engage more deeply with their communities.