The Next Chapter

"Feeling momentarily tired? Try this alternative: Give a listen to 'The Way or the Road.' The Next Chapter serves a healthy shot of musical energy. . . a rich mix of tunes from several musical traditions--Celtic, old time and bluegrass (that) race along a track faster than a bullet train, (and) the engineers who run this train are members of the same family--Jeanne Page on hammer dulcimer, Shane Page on guitar and bodhran, son Adam Page on mandolin and Irish bouzouki and daughter Laurel on fiddle." - David Steinberg, Albuquerque Journal

Imagine the driving clack of Irish step dancing combined with whirligig finger-picking, and you get an idea of this band’s approach to music. It’s tonal sparkle that flirts with frenzy. But not to worry: Just when your aural circuits seem ready to blow, they toss you a breather in the form of a mountain ballad or two. Then, once again, it’s off to the races.

The members of the band – Jeanne and Shane Page and their children, Adam and Laurel – are warm and witty…they are also, it seems, endlessly talented...

Most listeners don’t know their Celtic from their Old Time from their Bluegrass. But even ignorance is bliss when it comes to The Next Chapter’s music. When the last note fades, the listener can’t help but feel a tiny sense of loss. But take heart. Chances are very good that this family will just keep fiddling around.

- Janice Myers, Mirage Magazine

"How do Celtic reels, bluegrass and traditional American fiddle tunes all meld into something even more high energy and contemporary? The Next Chapter knows how to accomplish just that. The four member band--the Page family--blazes through both traditional songs and their original music with a metabolic rate many would envy." - Albuquerque: The Magazine

The Next Chapter, like a number of folk groups in the United States, plays in a category loosely called Americana. Very loosely.
    Jeanne Page, one of the members of the Albuquerque-based band, thinks the category describes its mixed styles of music and it also is a handy umbrella name that refers to a certain sound.
    "Americana really has to do with acoustic music and roots-based music," Page said. "It is definitely traditional."
    The Next Chapter crosses over into bluegrass and Celtic music but it is neither a Celtic nor a bluegrass band.
    The band will be in concert Saturday, Feb. 18 at the Historic Old San Ysidro Church in Corrales. The concert is part of the Music in Corrales series.
    Page plays the hammer dulcimer, an instrument associated with folk music of Appalachia. With her in the band are her husband, Shane, who plays guitar, bass and, when needed, the bodhran, an Irish frame drum.
    Their son, Adam, plays the mandolin and bouzouki. And their daughter, Laurel, is on fiddle.
    Jeanne Page and her husband had been playing as a duo for years without giving themselves a name to light up a marquee.
    Adam Page came up with the name of The Next Chapter, a book reference that's a natural link to the family's last name.
    "One of the things that's influencing our music is my daughter's emphasis on the fiddle." Jeanne Page said.
    "(My son), Adam is responsible for most of the original music and he's been writing a lot of new and exciting pieces, both vocal and instrumental music."
    The band, Page said, is already getting national recognition. The title cut of its recent CD, "The Way or the Road," is on a new compilation from Shut Eye Records called "The United State of Americana," due out this year.
    Apart from the band, Page said she's well-regarded in the hammer dulcimer world because of her books for the Mel Bay publishing company. She has written titles on hammer dulcimer chords, hammer dulcimer arrangements and on Scottish and Irish songbooks for the instrument. Coming out this year are her books for dulcimer and bluegrass, a collection of wedding music and year-round holiday music.
- Albuquerque Journal

See entire feature article in "Dulcimer Players News: The Journal for Hammered and Fretted Dulcimer Enthusiasts;" Volume. 28, No. 4 November 2002 - January 2003. - Dulcimer Player News, Jan. 2003

"Mel Bay's series of instructional music books has gone a long way in filling the void with two new books, not only for hammered dulcimer players, but for dulcimer players interested in Celtic music: Scottish Songbook for Hammered Dulcimer and Irish Songbook for Hammered Dulcimer. . . Jeanne Page has done a marvelous job of arranging each piece. . . these are certainly valuable additions to the dulcimer player's library, especially for the price."
For complete review see Rambles.net: A Cultural Arts Magazine
www.rambles.net/index.html - Rambles.net

"The latest release from this talented family band displays their excellent instrumental, vocal and compositional skills..." - Dulcimer Players News Magazine

This family band, The Next Chapter, made up of Jeanne and Shane Page, and their children Adam and Laurel, (have) a totally different approach to America's musical heritage...wait until you hear this gifted family at work. Well, they don't consider it work. They consider music fun, just as it should be. This CD is full of that fun, it is excellently done, well mixed and mastered, and a soothing alternative to what is being offered as music in today's commercial music business. The family specializes in some incredibly beautiful instrumentals. The family presents a very nice blending of traditional folk music as we know it, stirring in some Celtic, Appalachian old-time, and even some bluegrass to perk it right up. Please do take them home with you in the form of their CD which I promise you will enjoy through and through. Lest I forget, Adam is the songwriter in this family, he is sensitive, gifted, sensible, and writes about things we all think about. - National Traditional Country Music Association

On stage and at home, the members of The Next Chapter family band know a thing or two about harmony...(Their) uptempo drive is evident in the band's first release (The Way or the Road). The album is a hearty serving of Americana, comprised of old-time, contemporary, instrumental and vocal songs.
It showcases nostalgic Celtic melodies, delicate instrumentals, catchy songwriting, bluegrass duels and unorthodox interplay between Adam's mandolin and his mother's hammered dulcimer. - Todd Lovato, Albuquerque Journal

"The Next Chapter from Albuquerque, New Mexico, is aptly named as it is full of Pages, Shane Page, Jeanne Page, Laurel Page, and Adam Page. Yes, it is a family band, let by parents Shane and Jeanne. The distinguishing sound of The Next Chapter is the hammered dulcimer. Jeanne is not only a renowned player, but has written several instructional books for the dulcimer. Everyone in the band plays a variety of instruments, guitar, mandolin, fiddle, bass, bodhran, and bouzouki, are passed around, but few bands include the hammered dulcimer. The band plays many traditional tunes, covers from contemporaries like Chris Thile and Michelle Shocked while twenty two year old Adam is the most prolific songwriter in the family. Adam wrote the title track to the new disc, "The Way Or the Road," an up tempo tune that begins with a dark modal rhythm on guitar and mandolin that gradually accelerates as Adam urgently steps into the vocals. A quick Celtic theme runs through the breakneck instrumental that is absolutely "In The Zone." Mother Jeanne not only plays the dulcimer but she shines as a songwriter and singer on her composition, "Sing Me the Songs." When she gets to nailing the hammered dulcimer the bands sound is taken to another level combining traditions and cultures from around the world as The Next Chapter moves toward an orchestral capacity. With the superb acoustics in the auditorium at the Pavilion the dulcimer should be mind blowing.
Dave Bowman - The Scene Magazine