2004 Programs and Events

American Musicians Hancoff and Wachter Thrill Lao Students (Oct. 9, 2004)

Musicians Steve Hancoff, left, and Buddy Wachter, perform at the ambassador's residence during their visit to Laos.

Two truly spectacular American musicians, Steve Hancoff, steel-string guitar, and Buddy Wachter, banjo, had Lao and international audiences tapping their toes in time with the music at two concerts at the residence of U.S. Ambassador Patricia M. Haslach and the Lao National Cultural Hall. About 1,500 Embassy invitees and the general public attended the concert at the cultural hall. Hancoff and Wachter, two consummate musicians, played the type of “feel good” music that is usually associated with the banjo, an instrument that many in the audience heard for the first time in their lives. In addition, the musicians explained the context of each song in the history of American music and social life, giving their audiences an informative as well as enjoyable evening.

Buddy Wachter is acknowledged as the most influential four-string banjoist of his generation. The New York Times noted that, "Bud Wachter has elevated America’s premier folk instrument, the banjo, to the concert stage with unprecedented virtuosity and an amazing repertoire that ranges from jazz to pop to the classics."

Steve Hancoff is also acknowledged as one of the greatest American performers on the steel-string guitar. As the Washington Post noted, "In the hands of steel string guitar virtuoso Steven Hancoff, the guitar is more orchestra than instrument. Steven Hancoff proves there is no limit to what can be done with an acoustic guitar in the hands of a master."

Since 1993, Wachter and Hancoff have performed together as Artistic Ambassadors, representing the United States in tours throughout South America, South Asia, and the Middle East. In their current tour to China, Japan, Malaysia, and Laos, they are once again Artistic Ambassadors sponsored by the U.S. State Department.

At their concert in Vientiane, Wachter and Hancoff presented music by some of the greatest composers of American jazz, pop and folk music, including Stephen Foster, John Phillips Sousa, Scott Joplin, Jelly-Roll Morton, King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, and Duke Ellington.

Their performance at the Lao National Cultural Hall was co-sponsored by the Lao Ministry of Information and Culture.