Gordie Tentrees and Jaxon Haldane

Gordie Tentrees and Jaxon Haldane are 2023 International Acoustic Music Award winners who have performed together as a duo since their stage debut in 2014 in Beaumont, Texas, though they first met in 2005 at Fred Eaglesmith Picnic in Ontario. Gordie Tentrees, born in Hamilton, Ontario, overcame a difficult childhood bouncing through foster homes to become a three-time Golden Glove boxing champion before finding his voice in music and performing over 3000 concerts worldwide. Jaxon Haldane from Manitoba was bandleader and banjo player for D Rangers, producing records for his indie label Dollartone, and had a close relationship with musical hero Willie P Bennett, recording Willie's last record Sharpen The Plow before Bennett's 2008 passing. Haldane founded the Willie P Bennett Legacy site as tribute. Together, their music draws from a century of North American music traditions and is rooted in truth, social justice, and the human condition. Armed with an arsenal of instruments including fiddle-saw, harmonica, resonator, cigar box guitars, foot percussion, acoustic guitar, banjo, and mandolin, they have performed over 1000 concerts in 11 countries. Their performances blend virtuosic musicianship with storytelling that addresses contemporary issues through the lens of folk tradition, creating shows that are both musically impressive and socially conscious.

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