Arts Humboldt’s coffee house series opened at the Humboldt Gallery on Feb. 4 with Humboldt staples Katie and Greg performing to a packed house.
The first coffee house ever was last year, but it was a one-off for 2014. This is essentially the first of the series that will include a host of other Humboldt talent.
“The gallery is perfect for cafes,” said Arts Humboldt president, Tanya Schuler. “It has a nice warm intimate setting and I think it makes the artists feel welcome, just like they’re in somebody’s house.”
Performers Katie Nichol and Greg Marquis agreed, saying they would perform at the venue again if they were asked.
“It’s nice. It sounds good in here,” Nichol said.
The two began performing a few years ago when Marquis was recording an album and thought it could use a keyboard player. Nichol is a friend of his daughters, so he approached her and she agreed to play on the album.
“Ever since then we sort of went, ‘This works,’” Marquis said.
The first few songs of the set featured Marquis and Nichol duetting with Marquis’s guitar providing the accompaniment. Marquis no doubt echoed some audience members’ thoughts by joking, “She’s not just going to sit there. She knows how to play that thing.”
Nichol went solo for a few songs, playing the keyboard to back up her pretty vocals.
The purpose of the coffee houses is twofold: the first is simple – Arts Humboldt is trying to promote the arts in Humboldt.
“We just felt there was a need in Humboldt to get something like this going. Get people out, make people aware of the arts, their local talent, getting people out and expressing themselves,” Schuler said.
The other is simple: to give local talent a leg up in getting noticed.
“It’s hard to be in the music business,” Schuler said. “It’s really hard to break into; it’s hard to get your name out there, so if you can start it at a local level through word of mouth, that’s what it is, that’s what Arts Humboldt tries to do.”
The next coffee house is at the Humboldt Gallery on March 25.
