Singer-songwriter Ritter teams with classical violinist

By John Benson

The singer-songwriter is looking forward to returning to Northeast Ohio.

111But what is more germane to Ritter, who spent his formative years battling Ohio winters and rainy days, is the U.K. climate that seemingly fits into his songwriting mind-set.

“Yeah, it’s very cold and gray here, so it’s depressive as possible,” Ritter laughed. The Idaho native said the weather reminds him of the Buckeye State, which he still misses. Actually, he said he longs for the Northeast Ohio microbrew scene, including the potent Great Lakes Brewing Company’s Christmas Ale.

“We were on tour in Ohio this last year on the day it came out and it was trouble,” Ritter said. “I don’t know if I’ll get any of that now.”

Refraining from drinking potent beer before playing a live show is not the only sign of maturity Ritter is displaying these days. He’s on tour with his longtime family friend and Grammy Award-winning violinist Hilary Hahn.

Together, the duo performs a program of original and traditional works that juxtapose Ritter’s singer-songwriter style with Hahn’s classical solo violin talents. Ritter and Hahn are scheduled to perform April 11 at the Cleveland Institute of Music’s Kulas Hall.

“We always talked about how cool it would be to play shows together like this because I think both of us want to see if we could really push people’s expectations of what a show could be,” Ritter said. “We both knew there were a lot of times when classical musicians have played rock clubs and stuff like that, but it was a new kind of thing for someone like me to play these classical venues for classical audiences.”

Something else Ritter is getting used to is following a program, which includes solo performances from both artists, as well as duets. One song that truly epitomizes the crossing of genres for Ritter is his original “The Oak Tree King,” which is adapted from a Franz Schubert piece.

“He wrote these amazing pop songs, it’s like only four minutes long, and it’s just beautifully done,” Ritter said. “So I was excited to see if I could do it, write an English version of that same story using some of the same elements.”

Catering to the classical realm, the unique pairing has proven both successful to audiences and humorous for the artists themselves. Apparently many of the classical music venues aren’t quite sure what the Hahn/Ritter show is about, with a few advertising the guitar-playing folk artist as a pianist.

“It’s funny because they have less of an understanding of what it is than I do,” Ritter said. “I don’t play piano. I barely know how to play guitar.”

What he may lack in guitar skills Ritter more than makes up for in his songwriting and presentation. Beginning with his 1999 self-titled, self-released debut and going all the way to his most recent studio effort, 2007’s “The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter,” critics have been kind, with numerous comparisons to Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen being thrown around.

Considering these icons are Ritter’s heroes, and to be mentioned in the same sentence with them he said blows his mind, the singer-songwriter does his best to stay focused on his future.

“I’ve never been shy about my influences – Johnny Cash, Dylan and Springsteen – so it’s a huge deal to me, but I definitely feel like I have my own road to walk,” Ritter said. “And right now, I’m just a kid in a candy store.”