With a mother who taught violin lessons and a dad who played classic rock guitar, "we had these two worlds collide, and somehow we all landed in the middle with the folk music," Jenni Hunt said Tuesday via telephone. She and her six siblings were packing their RV in Chesapeake, Virginia, to head west for concerts in Missouri, Denver, and on Saturday, the Bayfield Performing Arts Center.
The Hunts will be one of the inaugural performances of Music in the Mountains, a classical music festival in Durango with some contemporary shows, as well. "Music was always part of our lives," she said. "I never had a day without it."
She plays the violin and sings lead vocals, along with twin sister Jessi on viola and banjo. Brothers Josh on guitar, Jonathan on keys, Jordan on drums, Justin on bass and Jamison on mandolin round out the septet.
The result is richly-layered melodies and harmonies with snappy lyrics.
People think it's hard to perform and travel with siblings, but actually, it's in the song-writing process where they sometimes butt heads, Jenni Hunt said.
"We have a lot of patience, forgiveness and grace," she said. Ultimately, by the time every song "gets through seven filters, it's a better product in the end," she added.
They'll be playing songs from the new album, "Darlin' Oh Darlin'" which features a picture of their grandparents on the cover.
"It's a collection of songs about life and commitment to family," she said. One single, "Illuminate," and part of a second, "Along the Way," are available on their website, www.thehuntsmusic.com.
They've played in the Denver area before and are looking forward to returning to Colorado.
"Our music has taken us to all different parts of the country," she said, explaining that social media allows them to play at almost-impromptu "pop-up" shows and house parties, acoustic sets where they take requests and talk with their fans. They'll perform a few of those en route to Colorado.
"We're looking forward to playing there," she said of the Performing Arts Center, adjacent to Bayfield High School.
