Two San Diego Folk Heritage newcomers to perform in Poway

Two folk music duos will make their first appearances in Poway on Friday night as part of San Diego Folk Heritage’s concert series.

Los Angeles-based Joselyn & Don along with San Diego-based Thirds Apart will perform in the concert that starts at 7:30 p.m. in Old Poway Park’s Templars Hall.

Married couple Joselyn Wilkinson and Don Barrozo, Montana natives who met over two decades ago in Los Angeles, will take the stage first. They will mostly perform songs from their upcoming album, “Lost and Found Highway,” set for release on Oct. 3.

However, show attendees can be the first to own it, as Wilkinson said they will bring copies to sell as early releases. Those who want a sneak peek can listen to three singles already out on various streaming platforms.

“It explores our dual identities of growing up in small towns in Montana and our creative lives in Los Angeles,” Wilkinson said of the album. “We are always returning, redefining how we relate to both places.”

“It is our personal reminiscences,” Barrozo added.

“Working the Hi-Line” shares his father’s immigrant story of coming from the Philippines to work on Montana’s Northern Hi-Line Railroad while also being a band leader who performed at clubs in Great Falls, Montana.

“We are celebrating one person’s immigration story from the many contributions that counted,” Wilkinson said.

Some of their other music focuses on topics such as environmental issues and social causes, Barrozo said.

“It harkens back to traditional folk music, but with a modern sound due to our unique approach,” he said.

The Poway concert is the beginning of their fall tour that will take the couple throughout California and up the West Coast, concluding in Vancouver, Washington.

“We’re thrilled,” Wilkinson said of their first-time performing through San Diego Folk Heritage. She said they have only performed in San Diego County once before. That was last December as part of the Escondido Public Library’s free concert series.

Their original music features finger-picked guitar, tenor ukulele and percussion along with vocals. For the Poway concert Barrozo will be on acoustic guitar while Wilkinson will be on tenor ukulele.

“We are lifelong musicians who have played different genres of music,” Wilkinson said.

She grew up in Montana doing music, theater and dance. Her family moved to LA before her senior year, which she completed at Hollywood High. It was while studying at the University of California, Los Angeles that Wilkinson said she became “very interested in roots music from around the world.”

That exploration took her to West Africa for a year, where she studied traditional music, and she founded the women’s global fusion band, ADAAWE, with whom she toured for 20 years. She also released two albums of original music during this time.

“I’ve always been a singer-songwriter at heart,” Wilkinson said.

Barrozo attributed his early introduction to music to his father. While his formal music training was on the trumpet, he is self-taught on several other instruments that were at his home growing up, including acoustic and electric guitars. He majored in music at the University of Northern Colorado and was a member of The Blue Devils, a world champion drum and bugle corps in Concord, California.

While focused on music in college, Barrozo was also interested in the film industry, so he minored in fine arts. Realizing music often does not provide financial stability, Barrozo said he moved to California for film work. That led to him becoming a film editor for “The Simpsons,” working on the animated show since its inception 37 seasons ago.

He now has 777 episodes to his credit. His IMDb bio credits also include 60 episodes of the TV series “Chip ‘n’ Dale Rescue Rangers, seven episodes of “The Maxx” and 18 episodes of “Futurama,” among other projects.

Seven years ago the couple merged their separate music careers to perform as Joselyn & Don. As a duo they released their first album “Soar” in 2020 and the EP “Seeds & Bones” in 2022. Their music has been played by more than 250 radio stations worldwide, according to their bio.

Their musical influences are from soul, rock and jazz. In addition to his father, Barrozo mentioned Jim Croce, James Taylor, Neil Diamond and John Denver. Wilkinson added Joni Mitchell, Bonnie Raitt, Bob Marley and Aretha Franklin.

Playing the second half of the concert will be Thirds Apart, a duo featuring Richard Chagnon and Doug Presnell. They are relatively new to the San Diego folk music scene, presenting original songs that range from humorous to nostalgic and thought-provoking.

Chagnon, a 34-year Poway resident who moved to Alpine two years ago, said he met Presnell over a decade ago when he was a choir director and vocal teacher at San Diego Mesa College. At the time, Presnell was a Mesa College student after serving 20 years in the Navy. Though not intending to study music, Presnell joined Mesa’s choir, which led him to changing his academic focus and majoring in music at San Diego State University.

In contrast, Chagnon had earned his bachelor’s degree in music education from the University of Connecticut, masters in choral conducting from the University of California, Irvine and his doctorate in choral conducting from Arizona State University. He taught music for 34 years, retiring seven years ago.

It was not until in his 50s that Chagnon, now 68, started writing music.

“A number of my songs are very relatable for people that age or older,” Chagnon said. “They … get the humor involved.”

For example, his “Before I’m 64” is a response to The Beatles’ “When I’m 64.” Chagnon said he was 10 when he first heard the tune and thought 64 was “so old.” But once he reached 63 ½, his perspective had changed. “I realized that is not so old,” he said.

His music also includes social commentary, but in a humorous way, similar to the style of comedian and social critic George Carlin, he said.

“My wife, Jill, and I went to the Moab Folk Festival and the majority of the audience had gray hair, but the performers were 30-somethings singing about the angst of their 20s and 30s,” he said. “I was thinking, as a 60-year-old I am done with that. They need to have us singing songs for the gray hair (crowd).”

He added, “Some (of my songs) are nostalgic for the days when my children were toddlers or lament not being as young anymore. I use humor in many songs and those tend to poke fun at the stereotypical behavior of older people, such as forgetting things, needing naps, etc. Some are social commentary reflecting on human behavior.”

Around seven years ago Chagnon said he paired up with another singer, but after a few years they parted ways. Knowing their voices would blend due to their choral and classical music training, about two years ago he asked Presnell if he would like to form a duo.

“We don’t use the vocal quality associated with classical vocal music, but some of the vocal techniques we do apply (in folk music), which enhances our blend and phrasing,” Chagnon said.

Thirds Apart has mostly performed living room concerts at Chagnon’s Alpine home for audiences of around 20 invited guests. Friday’s concert will be the duo’s biggest audience, he said.

They will mostly perform original pieces inspired by Chagnon’s experiences or his observations of others’ experiences. There will also likely be at least one cover, John Gorka’s “People My Age,” Chagnon said.

Tickets for the Joselyn & Don and Thirds Apart concert are $25 for general admission, $20 for SDFH members and free for youths 17 and under. Buy in advance at ticketweb.com (there is a small online fee) or at the door.

The concert will start at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 12 in Templars Hall in Old Poway Park, 14134 Midland Road. For details, visit sdfolkheritage.org.