Twenty performers, four stages, one night: Songwriter Bonanza comes to the PIT

From Facebook Live to the stages of the Peoples Improv Theatre, 20 local singer-songwriters gather for one night only to showcase their talents. 

On Jan. 12, the third Songwriter Bonanza will take place at the PIT in Chapel Hill from 3 to 7 p.m. 

This event is hosted by musical duo Neville’s Quarter. The duo consists of guitar player and mandolin player, Brian Moyer, and violin, piano and mandolin player, Lex Headley.  

While Moyer and Headley both have musical backgrounds, they come from different experiences that led them to Neville’s Quarter.

“I've been writing words since I was a teenager,” Moyer said.  “When I was 20, I decided to pick up the guitar to accompany myself with some of the words that I had been writing. I've been writing songs since, I'd say about 18 years now.”

Headley has been a musician for many years but did not begin songwriting until later in her career. 

“I actually entered college as a music major, but I never got into songwriting seriously until after I graduated college,” Headley said. "It’s more recent for me, a little less than 10 years.” 

Neville’s Quarter hosts a weekly Facebook Live show every Wednesday at 6 p.m. The Songwriter Bonanza event showcases the artists who have collaborated with the duo on their show.  

Karen Novy is one of the artists performing at the Bonanza on Sunday. This will be Novy’s first time performing at the Bonanza, but she has been a songwriter and pianist for over 30 years, and she has been performing her work for 25 years.

“I just started writing songs to sort of deal with emotional stuff and because I was a piano player," Novy said. "Then I realized that I loved songwriting so much that I better be able to sing my own songs. I started taking voice lessons and getting that together and became a singer-songwriter.”

Neville’s Quarter is not only hosting the event but will also be performing. There will be two artists performing every 20 minutes throughout the night. This event features multiple styles to satisfy any listener's preference. 

“If you don't like what you're hearing in one room, go onto the next room, or you can just hang out in the lobby talk with people, and meet some of the songwriters," Headley said.

Moyer said he hopes that this event is successful for songwriters and audiences alike. 

“For the people performing they get to meet a lot of their fellow songwriters and we hope for a lot of collaboration through that,” Moyer said. “From an audience perspective, we hope that people will hear songs that stick with them and that they will continue to listen to in the future.” 

@c_heaton726

 arts@dailytarheel.com