SHSMO Center for Missouri Studies
605 Elm St.
Columbia, Mo.
Violet Vonder Haar and Phylshawn Johnson are no strangers to the performance world. Combined, they have over fifty years of experience. They met in 2010 when Violet hired Phylshawn to play on a solo project. Soon after, they fell in love, got married, and started the band Violet and the Undercurrents. The band promptly started touring the Midwest and beyond, eventually as far as the west coast, bringing their original folk rock to people from all walks of life. It’s hard to pin down what kind of music Violet & Phylshawn make together. Their years of experience and influence let their sound shape shift to whatever the milieu demands, be it folk, soul, rock, experimental, or even spoken word. The two make music the same way they work, love and live: with open minds and hearts filled with gratitude for each moment.
When not performing, Violet & Phylshawn use their passions and their belief in the power of music to cultivate community and education. In the summer of 2022, they opened the Compass Music Center, a community music center that hosts music lessons, classes, workshops, concerts, camps and more. They also both run full-time private lesson studios teaching guitar, ukulele, voice, piano and drums, located within the Compass Music Center. Violet also currently serves as the Director of Music Ministry at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Columbia, where Phylshawn is also the sound technician.
The Saturday concert is free and open to the public!