By Mark Bialczak
LPL Communications Specialist
With Thanksgiving on the horizon, said Dan Duggan, giving thanks will be a natural theme for the third installment of the Pranksters, Fiddlers, Dulcimers and Harpers Fall Concert Series come 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 19, in the Liverpool Public Library’s Carman Community Room.
So he and wife Peggy Lynn will offer folk sounds to fit that mood, with Duggan playing the hammered dulcimer that has brought him worldwide fame through the decades, and Lynn performing on guitar, concertina, piano and singing. Duggan plays guitar and contribute vocals, too.
It’s also a good time for optimistic songs, Duggan said in a recent phone conversation.
“This year, mostly all of our songs of hope have been in the forefront, really,” he said. “Things in the world are crazy.“
Music lovers might also expect a piece or two about the women’s suffrage movement.
“Peggy is known worldwide for women’s suffrage, and this is the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in New York state,” Duggan said. “We’ve been part of a play based on Peggy’s work in suffrage, with nine people in it.” Indeed, “Old Songs,” produced by Andy Spence, has been performed throughout Central New York.
Duggan considers himself fortunate to make his living through music, with live shows, recordings and technical work guiding others at his Esperance Productions company based in Red Creek.
“This is all I’ve done,” he said with both pride and a hint of humility.
In 2009, Duggan had to defeat a case of tongue cancer.
“I’ve been doing great,” he said. “I had a little set back a few years ago, but I got through it and I’m back playing all the time. I’m a lucky guy.”
The event is free.
“I think library concerts are wonderful,” Duggan said. “They tap into the bases of the community.”
The final show of the series features a festive holiday performance by the Salt City Harpers at 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 18.
The series is presented with The Liverpool Is the Place Committee and made possible by a grant secured by Senator John A. DeFrancisco.
