BIOGRAPHY
Phoenix Calling
By far the freshest and most enjoyable duo to appear on the coast for
years, Phoenix Calling (a.k.a. Ian Hoffman and Anthony Phipps) comprises
a unique combination of violin and 12 string guitar. They entertain
the crowds everywhere they go with a wide variety of music, ranging
from the latest hits by bands such as Matchbox 20, Train, and The Whitlams,
to some of the most favorite songs of all time, with classics from the
likes of Pink Floyd, Van Morrison, INXS and The Eagles. They will even
throw in a bit of good ‘ol Rock and Roll, or Country if that’s
what your heart desires. The best things to do is to check out their
sample song list, and you’ll see for yourself that there’s
something for everyone, no matter what age group.
Ian Hoffman is originally from Sydney, and first moved to the Gold
Coast in 1993. He has performed in many venues around Australia and
New Zealand, and in 1993, won a Gold Guitar in New Zealand for songwriting.
He was better known on the Gold Coast as a regular musician for many
years at The British Arms at Mariners Cove, before other work commitments
forced him to ‘hang up his spurs’ for a while.
Anthony is a local music teacher who is also from Sydney, but comes
from a very different musical background. Anthony’s voice is classical
and opera trained, and his list of achievements would be enough to make
any mum proud, including winning many eisteddfods, singing with the
Ten Tenor’s and even signing solo at the Sydney Opera House. On
top of this, Anthony is also an accomplished violin player, adding his
own style to some great songs. Just wait till you hear Dueling Banjos
and The Devil Went Down To Georgia…. They’re great!!!!
So why are Phoenix Calling shows so popular???? Well, the answer
is really quite simple. When you head out for a ‘night on the
town’, the bottom line is, that the majority of us just wanna
have fun, and that’s what their show is all about. Playing songs
that everybody knows, and that everybody can join in and song-a-long
with, and most importantly, making it entertaining and fun. And speaking
of fun, Ian was also the 2002 winner of the ‘legends of laughter’
competition held at the Gold Coast Arts Centre Comedy Club.
Whether you are looking for music for a pub, club, corporate function,
wedding, social, birthday, or just any old excuse to have a party, then
if you’ve read this far, you should already know who to call.
