Listen In!

Here's everything you need to know about Music on Malphrus.

"Music on Malphrus" is an acoustic listening room located in Bluffton, SC, dedicated to hosting live performances. This intimate venue welcomes folk musicians and singer-songwriters, offering them a platform to connect with a family-friendly audience. The space emphasizes authentic and heartfelt musical expressions, celebrating the rich tradition of folk music and storytelling. Its intimate ambiance ensures a unique and personal connection between the artists and their audience, making it a gem in Bluffton's cultural scene.

​Tickets are $25 . Ticket purchase is available below or cash/credit at the door. We recommend reserving your seat by booking online below. 

"Music on Malphrus" performances are held at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Lowcountry, located at 110 Malphrus Road in Bluffton, South Carolina. Although the venue is a UU church, the performances have no religious affiliation and are solely for entertainment and to enjoy live music. Doors for the event open at 6:30 p.m., and the live music commences at 7:00 p.m.

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Yes! There are refreshments available.

Join Us For the 2023 - 2024 Season!
Friday, April 19, 2024 - Jacob Johnson

To watch Jacob Johnson play guitar is to watch someone do what he was born to do. Johnson glides up and down the fretboard with total confidence in a way that reminds one of Leo Kottke, barely looking at the instrument as he weaves delicate, dazzling melody lines with the occasional percussive thump on the strings. His sense of melody is a strong as his virtuosic playing, and his songwriting reveals a modestly bemused look at the world.

Johnson began playing when he was 10 years old, thanks primarily to his grandmother. She taught him the first three or four chords he ever learned and said,  Jacob, if all you ever learn on the guitar is these three or four chords, you will always be able to pick up a guitar and play songs for people.  

After that initial introduction, Johnson progressed quickly through his teen years. There was a period of a couple of years where he went from zero to 60. He started out listening to Johnny Cash and then got into the old rockabilly like Carl Perkins and Gene Vincent, then it was the blues and Stevie Ray Vaughan, Clapton, and Hendrix. By the time he was 18 or 19 he started getting into Phil Keaggy and Michael Hedges, who he consider the Jimi Hendrix of the acoustic guitar.  He was one of the first players who got into two-handed tapping, alternate tuning, that kind of stuff. At a certain point he decided to focus on the acoustic guitar because there was just something about it. It seemed like this was the instrument that was going to give him his voice; that would allow him to develop his singing and songwriting in a way that his electric playing didn’t.  

https://www.jacobjohnsontunes.com/ 

Purchase Tickets Here
Saturday, May 4 - The Levins

The contemporary harmony-driven folk duo, The Levins ( leVINNS) offers lyrically-rich acoustic music that is warm and uplifting without skating over life's complexities. From harmony in voice to harmony for humanity, husband and wife duo, The Levins, uplift and unite with unflinchingly feel-good folk-pop, infectious musicality, sharp songwriting skills, and a unique approach to vocal harmonies that is both soulful and unexpected.

The Levins have garnered prime accolades and acclaim for boldly uncompromising and heartfelt music. Select highlights include ranking on Folk and Roots DJ charts, nabbing Top 10 positions and landing on multiple DJ yearly Top 10 song and album lists. Their songs bridge genres and communities, offering them opportunities to perform at The Parliament of World Religions and co-produce an original full-scale musical theater/Euro-Circus production in San Francisco, based on their album, "My Friend Hafiz,: which is inspired by Daniel Ladinsky's poetic renditions. 

harmony-driven acoustic duo known for their sun-splashed, peace infused songwriting that "underscores the positive messages of love, peace and self-awareness. Each tune serves as another stepping stone toward a better day & a richer life." Tom Staudter. 

  www.thelevinsmusic.com

Purchase Tickets Here
Saturday, May 18 - Shanna in a Dress

Shanna in a Dress is your quirky best friend who refuses to wear pants. She says what everyone has felt but no one else will say and you'll get an uncensored journey of clever humor and heartbreak, extreme candor, and a hefty side of entertainment at her shows. This witty wordsmith is known for taking you on an emotional roller coaster, sometimes within the same song. Think John Prine mixed with Ingrid Michaelson with a twist of Phoebe Buffay from Friends all wrapped up in a sweet voice accented by guitar, piano, and ukulele. She's as real as it gets, as anyone who follows her on FB or Instagram knows. 

Shanna started her career at the University of Virginia, fell in love with Boulder, Colorado, and now keeps her fun music flowing out of Nashville unless she's touring the US or Europe. You can't get the same Shanna in a Dress show twice with her spontaneous banter and playful stage presence. She manages to teeter the line masterfully of taking on complex subject matters with smart, bold, and yet accessible lyrics. Her charisma and boldly honest songs are full of interesting language and wordplay and delight audiences of all ages. 

https://www.shannainadress.com/home

Purchase Tickets Here
Saturday, June 8th, 2024 - Rod MacDonald

Rod is one of the club headliners of the 80s “New Folk” scene and co-founder of the Greenwich Village Folk Festival. Rod’s songs have been recorded by Shawn Colvin, Jonathan Edwards, Joe Jencks, and dozens of Ren-Fair bands, including 21 songs in the Fast Folk/Smithsonian collection. He lives in south Florida, where he’s been named Best Local Acoustic Artist (New Times) and Distinguished Faculty Member in Florida Atlantic University’s LLS program. His 14th and newest album, "Rants And Romance" was #5 on the Folk Alliance’s Folk DJs chart in July 2023 and the most-played cd on the national Folkmusicnotebook.com.

https://www.rodmacdonald.com/

 

Purchase Tickets Here
See You There!
Be sure to reserve your ticket by clicking one of the links above!

Tickets $25 at the door (unless otherwise noted) – General Admission
Doors open 6:30p.m.
Show at 7:00p.m.

At The Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Lowcountry
110 Malphrus Road, Bluffton, SC, 843-837-3330
www.uulowcountry.org;
info: MusicOnMalphrus@gmail.com
uucl.office@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/MusicOnMalphrus