Davina Sowers and Michael Carvale of Davina & the Vagabonds.

Is it blues? Not exactly. Is it jazz? Not exactly. Is it Dixieland? Not exactly. Is it all of the above?

Exactly.

Davina & the Vagabonds are a marriage made in music-lovers' heaven: something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue. According to one write-up of their latest CD, they are a band "circa 1920-2008." Borrowing elements of Big Band, jazz, blues and even 60s pop music, DATV plays covers and original tunes that have ear-catching melodies and an American Bandstand beat-you-can-dance-to, always with a dizzying artistry and a disarming wry wit.

By chance, members of the St. Marys Blues Guild caught the act while in Memphis for the International Blues Challenge in February, 2009. It was a lucky accident. Within minutes, they were giving each other thumbs-up approval with one thought in mind - bringing DATV to St. Marys.

Davina & the Vagabonds are that rare combination of study and instinct. The band members are trained musicians, graduates of fine arts schools and music educators in their own right, who clearly have a feel for the music that can't be expressed on paper. But anyone who has heard them play has felt it, too.

Davina Sowers came to Minnesota from Key West in February, 2005. An accomplished classical pianist who started playing at age five, Sowers put together an act that almost immediately began sharing stages with the likes of Little Feat, Buddy Guy, Elvin Bishop and Joe Bonamassa. She's been called "the hardest-working blueswoman in frigid Minnesota."

Upright-bass-playing Michael Carvale, who came to Minnesota to study at the McNally School of Music as a guitar player, now plays in a guitarless band. He's played all over North America and in Europe with various bands and has been inducted into the Minnesota Rock & Roll/Country Hall of Fame.

Dan Olson started drumming as a ten-year-old. He has a bachelor of arts degree in jazz performance from the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York City.

In demand as a studio trumpeter and music arranger, Zach Lozier is a graduate of the Milwaukee High School of the Arts and the University of Minnesota music programs. He's studied under many music luminaries, including Wynton Marsalis.

Scott Agster is a music teacher in Minnesota who practices what he teaches by playing his trombone in numerous international music festivals. He too is a composer and arranger.

Put them together, and they form an extremely expert and entertaining act. As a result, Davina and the Vagabonds are a busy band, with bookings averaging every other day through the summer of 2009 as of this writing (mid-March).

Be there for Davina & the Vagabonds first-ever Ohio performance, 5:00 pm Sunday, Sept. 6, at the 2009 Riverside Bluesfest.
 

Discography:
Year	Title	Label
2008	Live at The Times
2007	Under Lock and Key
2006	Songs From Thomas Avenue