UPPER LAKE, Calif. – In the first of its annual “Concerts with Conversation” series, the Tallman Hotel in Upper Lake will host two informal concerts by bluegrass guitarists Rob Ickes and Jim Hurst in the Meeting House next to the hotel at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 10, and Tuesday, Dec. 11.

Originally scheduled for one evening only, the Tuesday show sold out early and a second event was subsequently arranged.

“We are fortunate to be able to schedule this world class duo for a stop in Lake County,” said Tallman owner Bernie Butcher. “We had more than a little help from our friends Pat and Debbie Ickes. Pat is Rob Ickes’ older brother and a mean banjo player himself with his band Bound to Ride.”

A Northern California native, Ickes moved to Nashville in 1992 and joined Blue Highway, the highly esteemed bluegrass band, as a founding member in 1994.

He is recognized as one of the most innovative Dobro players on the scene today, contributing signature technique and greatly expanding the boundaries of the instrument's sonic and stylistic territory.

Ickes won the International Bluegrass Music Association's Dobro Player of the Year award for a record-setting eleventh time in 2009. He is the most recognized instrumentalist in the history of the IBMA awards.

Hurst also is a multi IBMA award-winner. His vocal talents, multi-instrumentalist abilities and well-rounded stylings make him one of the most sought after musicians in Nashville. In addition to his own recordings, Hurst has supported the recording sessions of some of the best artists in country and bluegrass music.

One critic who saw Ickes and Hurst perform together in Nashville commented that “their ability to follow each other through an unannounced maze of spaghetti-like improvisation is beyond normal human capability.” Good videos of the two playing together are available on YouTube.

Subject to limited availability, tickets for these shows at $25 plus tax may be purchased by calling the Tallman Hotel at 707-275-2244, Extension 0.