River Glen

Music in Middle Grey presents

An Evening of Pop-Folk, Americana, Old Country & Storytelling

River Glen and Michael Glenn with special guest James Nowak.

Come one, come all to Annesley in Markdale to experience From Iowa to Ontario; An Evening of Pop-Folk, Americana, Country, and Storytelling. This performance features songwriters Michael Glenn and River Glen, who are also father and son, as well as storyteller and poet, James Nowak. River, Michael, and James will take listeners on a musical journey through themes of love, heartbreak, healing, mystery, history, and maybe even a little hope. This performance will be family-friendly and appeal to listeners of all-ages.

River Glen was born at home alongside the Mississippi River in the Driftless Area of Dubuque, Iowa. He was homeschooled, primarily on music, beginning the Suzuki method on violin before he was three years old. River’s childhood was filled with adventures traveling the U.S. with his parents and siblings in their kinda-sorta folksy bluegrass band, The One Hat Band. From busking on street corners to playing the main stage at summer festivals, River earned his chops before losing all of his baby teeth. Over a decade later, while attending the University of Iowa, River got his heart broken for the first time; an experience that jump-started his path to becoming the prolific lyricist he is today.

River’s songwriting strikes a delicate balance of pop-appeal and lyrical substance. From wonderings about love, family, and belonging, to the celebration of death and loss as a natural part of life, River critiques modern pop-culture through the lens of familiar, traditional folk themes. Always with tasty grooves and clever rhymes. With over thirty years of experience performing, River Glen holds audiences with a comfortable confidence as he shares his original music, playfully blending elements of folk, pop, and rock. Every performance is an opportunity to showcase his proficiency in guitar, violin, and mandolin, alongside powerhouse vocals.

In 2017, River was named Fellow by the Iowa Arts Council for his original music. While serving in this honorary position, River began work on “As Above, So Below”, an album of original music featuring over one hundred and fifty singers/musicians, almost entirely from his home state of Iowa. “As Above, So Below” is set to release on May 1st, 2023 and will be accompanied by a state-wide tour across Iowa. More information about River’s original music, videos, etc…can be found at www.RiverGlenMusic.com.

Michael Glenn was a solo artist in the ’70’s and gave his first performances at open mics on the campus of Pacific Lutheran University in WA, USA. After graduating, Micheal returned to The Farmers’ Market in his hometown of Dubuque, IA with his guitar, and his future got locked in. He started a family band with his wife, The One Hat Band, which featured their five children and performed together for over 18 years. The family band busked at festivals in New York and Texas, across the Midwest and all around Iowa. The appeal of the family band was a slightly edgy, yet good-spirited with a sense of humor, proudly keeping folk, bluegrass, and americana music alive and healthy in Iowa.

Michael has taken the stories from those years and carried them forward under the name Broken Rubber Band. He continues to write original country, bluegrass, and blues songs, telling stories about his home, community, and history. www.michaelbreitbach.com.

James Nowak is a writer and a performing storyteller from Hillsburgh who now lives in Guelph. He studied furniture making at Sheridan College and medieval English at the University of Toronto. His poems have appeared in a few humble publications, and a long essay of his, ‘Between Home and Hell’, was published in Dark Mountain. If you are a lover of the English language then you'll love hearing James tell a story and recite a poem.