Tonglen Tunes: FSAF American Roots Artists

Join us for an unforgettable evening of contemporary and traditional roots music featuring Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival American Roots artists Stepwise, Ryan Bowers, and Emily Anderson. 

Emily Anderson
Like stumbling into a rose garden on a trek through the arctic, listeners of Emily Anderson’s
music find themselves helplessly lifted into a world so hauntingly familiar, and yet so
enchantingly curious. Alaska grown and LA based, Anderson has recently released a
sophomore record, “Salt & Water”. Her single “Gold” was featured in a national Miller Lite
campaign and a number of her works have been featured in video games (Calico, The Stars
Between Us). Her poignant lyrics and intimate indie soundscapes are akin to Regina Spektor
ruminating over coffee with Phoebe Bridgers. Emily is an educator and performer with a passion
for making music fun and accessible. She teaches private lessons in songwriting, ukulele, and
voice and loves helping students reach their musical goals.

Ryan Bowers

Ryan Bowers is a bassist, singer/songwriter, and music educator from Fairbanks, Alaska. He
started singing as a child, started playing for dances at 13, and got his first bass at 17. Since
then, he has been in a list of bands which includes Slightly Askew, Ice Jam, Outbound, Lost
Dog Stringband, The Xtra-Tuffs, Eel House, Rock Bottom Stompers, The Norris Bowers Band,
and Ryan Bowers and the Brain Trust. He studied voice at UAF, bass and songwriting at
Berklee College of Music, and graduated from UAF with a BA in Music. He has toured and
recorded with many groups, and just released his first solo album Sweet Calamity, recorded and
mixed in Fairbanks at 10th Planet Studio.

Ryan has experience in a wide variety of styles, including bluegrass, old-time, country, folk,
contra dance, rock, indie, jazz, pop, and chamber music. He has taught music camps,
workshops, and lessons since 2008, and taught at Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival in 2016 and
2017. He is currently acting as an American Roots Music Coordinator for the Fairbanks Summer
Arts Festival, and as President of the Fairbanks Folk Fest Board of Directors. Ryan likes his
pancakes with yogurt instead of syrup, and eats his cereal dry.

Stepwise
Stepwise is a traditional Celtic folk band consisting of Liam Lewis (mandolin, guitar, fiddle,
voice) and Olivia Breidenthal (fiddle and voice). They perform a mixture of traditional Irish
songs with tight vocal harmonies and traditional Irish tune sets. Olivia is a practitioner of the
Galway fiddle style with influences including Kevin Burke, the Kane Sisters, and Liz Carroll.
Together, their instrumental arrangements feature intricate twin fiddles or groovy rhythm
guitar fit for a traditional Ceili or the discerning ears of an Irish-enthusiast audience.