Trey Hensley and Rob Ickes, two acclaimed Nashville musicians, stopped by Redwood’s music room this past Wednesday, performing a set for the fifth, sixth and seventh period music classes.
Hensley (acoustic guitar) and Ickes’ (dobro) set consisted of original songs from their Grammy-nominated album “Before the Sun Goes Down,” covers from a diverse range of artists (Elton John, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Jimmy Martin), and an open-forum Q&A with Redwood students.
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Wednesday marked the first date on Hensley and Ickes’ tour across the United States. While most of the duo’s shows are in front of older audiences, Hensley explained it was a different experience performing in front of high schoolers.
“I’ve never done anything like this,” Hensley said. “It hasn’t been that long since I was in high school. This music was a big part of my life in high school, so hopefully we can pass this on to other people.”
Ickes, the 15-time Dobro Player of the Year voted by the International Bluegrass Music Association, came into contact with music teacher John Mattern through a family connection.
“I think [Mattern] is friends with my brother, who plays. I played on [Mattern’s] record a few years ago, so that’s how we met,” Ickes said.
Students were wowed by the duo’s cohesiveness, gasping in awe at Hensley’s fingerpicking and soloing, and at Ickes’ tasty licks and fills. Jesse Petersen, a junior guitar player in the Advanced Performance Workshop class, had high praise for the two musicians.
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“Of all of the awesome shows that have come here, that was definitely the best, as far as the skills [Ickes and Hensley] had. It was insane what they could do on their instruments,” Petersen said.
Ickes and Hensley are currently making waves in the Pacific Northwest, and perform Tuesday, May 10 at the Sallal Grange in North Bend, Wash.
“The last record was nominated for a Grammy, so we’re just gonna keep on doing this, and hopefully the rest of them will be nominated for Grammys,” Hensley said with a chuckle.
