New Prairie Home Companion host Chris Thile announced Wednesday the members of the show’s new house band, which includes two members of his band Punch Brothers.
Bassist Paul Kowert and guitarist Chris Eldridge, two of the five members of Punch Brothers, are in the band. Thile plays mandolin in the Punch Brothers. Other musicians in the PHC band are fiddler Brittany Haas of rootsy trio Haas Kowert Tice, a band that also includes Kowert; and drummer Ted Poor, who has performed with Andrew Bird and other musicians. Singer-songwriter Sarah Jarosz and Aoife O’Donovan, the lead singer for bluegrass band Crooked Still, will perform as duet partners.
Rich Dworsky will stay on as pianist and music director. He has been a regular on the show since 1986.
Thile replaces Garrison Keillor as the full-time host of PHC starting Oct. 15.
It is odd that the article says “Rich Dworsky will stay on as pianist and music director.” while the youtube video leaves that out altogether.