Hermit Woods Winery will host two nights of music this week including Randy Roos Hall of Mirrors Tour and the Monthly Songwriter Series by Katie Dobbins Music. 

The next Songwriter Round-Up show takes place on Wednesday, Dec. 27, featuring New Americana artist Katie Dobbins, Boston area folk-country artist Maddi Ryan, and New Hampshire soulful-folk artist Ericka Cushing.

This lineup is sure to produce an evening of great original music and dynamic entertainment that you won’t want to miss. A complimentary wine tasting will begin at 5:30 p.m., Loft seating opens at 6 p.m., and music runs from 7 to  8:30 p.m. Patrons can further enhance their evening by selecting from a menu of tasty items available from the Hermit Woods kitchen. Tickets can be purchased in advance at hermitwoodswinery.com/the-loft or in-person at the Winery.

This is the last show of the year from the partnership between Katie Dobbins Music and Hermit Woods Winery & Eatery, which has brought a new monthly music series titled Songwriter Round-Up to the Lakes Region. Held in the region’s premier listening room, The Loft located on the second floor of the Winery, audience members can enjoy the original music of talented singer-songwriters from the New England area and beyond. At each show three artists share their songs and stories in a unique in-the-round style performance. Two different songwriters are featured alongside host performer Katie Dobbins.

Winery owner Bob Manley is thrilled to host the monthly Songwriter Round-Up series saying, “We’ve invested a great deal into The Loft’s architecture, design, and listening room experience. We’re proud of the incredible community of world renowned musicians and supportive patrons we’ve been able to grow so far and are looking forward to continuing to expand our efforts to local independent artists.”  

Dobbins, who previously hosted this series in the Boston area, is grateful to be able to bring it to her New Hampshire community.

“It’s about creating unique shows that leave people feeling like they’ve experienced something powerful and different,” Dobbins said. “For me, performing is about connecting. Listening rooms offer a special way for artists to connect with the audience.” 

Hermit Woods Winery & Eatery is known for its contributions to the greater Meredith and Lakes Region communities. Their desire to bring incredible talent and unique enriching experiences to small town Meredith makes them one-of-a-kind. With their creative dishes, delicious wines, and heart for collaboration and community development, they are a business and venue worth checking out.

Similarly, award-winning artist Katie Dobbins is an entrepreneur herself and is passionate about creating new opportunities. Dobbins is excited to be presenting this new series and, as someone who also cares deeply about community, it seems her partnership with Hermit Woods is, dare we say, the perfect pairing.

Songwriter Round-Up is a monthly series, with shows featuring host Katie Dobbins and two additional guest artists on the last Wednesday of every month. Tickets are $10 - $15 at hermitwoods.com. 

More music

On Thursday, Dec. 28, Randy Roos will return to The Loft at Hermit Woods for the second time.  Roos currently serves on the guitar faculty at Berklee College of Music and has delivered numerous musical scores for TV, including Scientific American Frontiers and NOVA, among others.

The Hall of Mirrors features long-time acquaintances and bandmates Steve Hunt on piano, Tim Gilmore on drums, Mike Rossi on bass, and Dave Kobrenski on Fulani flute, ngoni, and percussion. Together, they will deliver music with minimal predetermined structure, but each piece exhibits a level of coherence and groove that belies that degree of freedom. These musicians have played together in a wide variety of environments, and a form of telepathy has developed that has led to what is probably best described as ‘spontaneous composition’ rather than ‘free jazz’.

Hall of Mirrors’ emphasis is on color, texture, and feeling and sometimes a meditative atmosphere, which were captured in two volumes of music, available at Amazon and most streaming outlets.