This Friday at Brauer House is the last chance to catch Chicago’s own Henhouse Prowlers in Chicago for a long time!
Not only does the band tour constantly, putting on shows in the U.S. and Europe with their own brand of “straight-laced, tight-knit, barn-burning bluegrass” (Sound Fuse), but they also travel the world as Bluegrass Ambassadors, bringing those shows to places where traditional American music has never been. With over 175 shows a year, the quartet has toured over 25 countries in an effort to promote cultural understanding and empathy.
The Prowlers started working as cultural ambassadors for the State Department in 2013 and subsequently founded their own nonprofit, Bluegrass Ambassadors. The Ambassadors’ work is inspired by their many travels, connections, and experiences with people and cultures around the globe. Their mission is to educate and inspire through the cultural exchange of music. Through the Bluegrass Ambassadors organization, the Henhouse Prowlers play shows and teach workshops that blend global folk music traditions with cultural awareness and understanding.Â
As part of their travels, the Bluegrass Ambassadors learn and perform tunes from the cultures they visit and integrate them into their repertoire. It makes for a show that is based both in traditional bluegrass and traditional music of Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, with the Prowlers’ own unique stamp.
Catch them performing their version of Kenyan tune “Sura Yako (Sauti Sol)” here:
Learn more about the Bluegrass Ambassadors here: