Dirty Cello brings nothing serious and a whole lot of fun

Published 1:30 am Monday, June 17, 2024

Music lovers will be flocking to the San Juan Community Theatre June 22 to listen to the barrier-breaking five-member San Francisco-based band Dirty Cello.

“All of the members of the band started out as classically trained musicians,” Dirty Cello’s frontman and cello player Rebecca Roudman told the Journal. “For myself, I started out with the usual route of heavy-duty cello lessons followed by college and then a career in professional orchestras. After a while, I wanted to do something where I could really let my hair down, and have more fun. That is why I formed Dirty Cello.”

Their music has been described as a mix of blues, rock and bluegrass. “we like to add that we do nothing that is classical, nothing that is serious, and we always have fun,” Roudman added.

When asked about how she started playing the cello, Roudman explained that her mom is a piano teacher. Her older sister played the violin so her mom offered her the harp. “[The harp] was too big to fit in the car, so next she offered me the cello, which I said yes to before knowing what it was.”

Today, she has been called “the Jimi Hendrix of the cello,” which is fitting as Hendrix has been an inspiration for her. When asked who a few of her inspirational musicians are, Roudman responded “My first answer is always Jimi Hendrix and I try to emulate his musicality mixed with a theatrical stage presence.” She added that she also loves the soloing of Stevie Ray Vaughn and Janis Joplin’s singing.

“Once I decided to pursue a path other than the usual orchestra career, I started experimenting with different types of music. There was a tango band, an Irish band, an electric gypsy band, and a few others,” Roudman said. “What really got things started was entering a competition that was a local talent show. It was a very small basement show and what I played was “Rock You Like a Hurricane” by the Scorpions. I did this with just a cello and a backing track and it was a big hit.”

That performance led to her playing on America’s Got Talent, “[America’s Got Talent] is a whole other story,” she said. Roudman then began playing as a duo with her husband, a flute-turned-guitar player. The couple grew in popularity and added the rest of the band.

This will be Dirty Cello’s third trip to the San Juans. The first time they played, they were invited by San Juan Island residents LuAnne and John Graves for a variety of shows. They returned for the county fair and are returning to playing at the San Juan Community Theater, Orcas Center’s Concert in the Park as well as the Lopez Theater.

Audience members can expect to hear “Purple Haze” by Jimi Hendrix, “The House of the Rising Sun,” and the band’s personal favorite original, “I May Not Be Perfect, But I’m Pretty Damn Good.” “When you come to one of our shows, we take audience requests, and if we know them, we’ll play them for you,” Roudman added “And if we don’t, we’ll come back in a year or two and play them then.”

The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for students. To buy tickets, or for more information, visit https://www.sjctheatre.org.