Ravinia 2026 Issue 6

THEO LAWRENCE Paris-born and Texas-based, eo Lawrence channels the spirit of each of his homes with timeless style and soul. While growing up an ocean away, Lawrence fell in love with the songs of classic American artists like Charlie Rich, Burt Bacharach, Carole King, Dan Penn, and Lee Hazlewood—in uences that built a world where French Riviera ourish meets the Ameri- can motor lodge pool. Beginning his career with a band of like-minded collaborators— ibault Ripault, Bastien Cabezon, Olivier Viscat, and Julien Bouyssou—Lawrence found early success releasing albums from Bordeaux, France, but felt a growing pull towards the land of Doug Sahm, Ray Price, Jim Reeves and Willie Nelson. “We could play one show a month in France,” recalls Lawrence. “In America, we could play every day.” Settling in Austin (and embracing that original mission statement), Lawrence has quickly become one of the most compelling new voices in American roots music. On a recent trip to Chicago to record with Alex Hall at Re- liable Recorders (JD McPherson, Nick Lowe), Lawrence approached the sessions with a fo- cus on feel and uidity over chasing perfection. “ ere were zero rehearsals with the band,” he remembers. “ ey didn’t hear any of the songs. I’d just play the chords, and it was understood.” at philosophy is a credit to Lawrence as both bandleader and songwriter, and to the musi- cians surrounding him: Ripault on guitar, Hall on drums, bassist Billy Horton (Charley Crock- ett, Nick Waterhouse, Jimmie Vaughan), and Joe Roddy of Austin’s psych-Saharan-cumbia trio e Point on piano. Whether wrapped in lush strings and horns, driven by a sun-soaked groove, or stripped back to the emotional core, Lawrence’s songs create a world of intimate mo- ments that speak to love in all its forms: found, lost, and lingering. His music carries the ro- mance of old Hollywood, the warmth of soul and country, and the elegance of classic pop, where the passing of time is something to savor. eo Lawrence is making his Ravinia debut. THE CLEMENTS BROTHERS e Clements Brothers are George and Charles Clements, identical twins from New England. ey’ve been playing and writing music togeth- er for as long as they can remember and e Clements Brothers marks their rst project to- gether since playing in the internationally tour- ing grass-roots Lonely Heartstring Band, with whom they put out two albums on Rounder Re- cords. With roots, rock, bluegrass, jazz, and clas- sical in uences, George (on guitar) and Charles (on bass) aim to capture their singer-songwriter sensibilities in a unique blended voice, at once enthralling and intimate, groovy and serene. eir rst album, Dandelion Breeze , was re- leased in on Plow Man Records, and their sophomore record is set to be released this fall. e duo is a fusion of each brother’s unique mu- sical journey—recently, George could be found playing the role of Paul Simon in the national tour of e Simon and Garfunkel Story while Charles could o en be found in the bass section of the Boston Symphony Orchestra—and the result is music all its own, lled with vocal har- monies, instrumental virtuosity, and a genuine love of song. e Clements Brothers are making their Ravinia debut. Your Shopping Begins Here. Festival Shop Each purchase supports Ravinia and our Reach Teach Play® programs. OR SHOP ONLINE AT SHOP.RAVINIA.ORG LOCATED INSIDE THEDINING PAVILION RAVINIA.ORG • RAVINIAMAGAZINE 73 JOANNAEDMISON(LAWRENCE);LBICHAN(CLEMENTS)