Skip to main content

Quebe Sisters bring old-school Texas flair to York


The sisters will play at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in York

The Quebe Sisters are in their 20s, but fiddle and sing old-school Texas country tunes.

And when they pull into York for their concert on May 1, they won't be sitting out in a shiny, stretched-out tour bus -- just a 15-passenger van, with enough room for their band, instruments and bags.

And they're fine with that.

"Those tour buses, they'll kill you," sister Hulda Quebe (said like "maybe") said. "A lot of bands have to do that these days; they're cheaper."

Like their music, doing things the old way is also a lot of fun. Between the three sisters, band members and tour manager, there's plenty of drivers, Hulda said.

The three fiddling sisters -- Hulda, Grace and Sophia -- play at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of York as part of the Susquehanna Folk Music Society concert series.

Click here to watch The Quebe Sisters perform "It's a Sin to Tell a Lie"

It's a return visit for the Texas sisters, who first played at the same venue in 2014, Hulda said.

The gig is part of an east coast tour; they will be in Sellersville the night before, and the next stop after York is in Vermont. But the day after the York date is a day off.

"We'll probably hang out in York, sleep in a little bit," Hulda said. "Maybe find a nice restaurant in town."

Sisters' style

Hulda describes the Quebe Sisters' musical style as Americana, a genre that mixes numerous styles, including country, folk, bluegrass and blues.

Still, the genre allows for a lot of room to move and grow musically, she said.

"You can be really unique, but still be within the genre," Hulda said. "Whatever we play has a Texas flair to it and a southern sound."

The sisters, all in their 20s now, got into Texas-style fiddling when they were 7, 10, and 12, respectively, she said. Later, they started competing in contest and playing shows.

The sisters have numerous influences -- including Willie Nelson, and also Bob Wills, known as "The King of Western Swing" -- not only for their sound, but longevity and impact, she said.

"We kind of want to do the same thing, take our instrumentation, put our own stamp on it and leave a mark on the music world," Hulda said.

The sisters also sing three-part harmony vocals, and have band-mates who play acoustic guitar and stand-up bass, she said.

Next record

The Quebe Sisters have released three records so far - 2003's "Texas Fiddlers", "Timeless" in 2007 and "Every Which-A-Way" two years ago, and now are currently working on a fourth, Hulda said.

"We're new at songwriting," she said. "So we're trying to read books about our favorite songwriters; studying them and how they did it."

Hulda said she hoped the new effort would be a mix of originals and cover tunes.

As far as gaining massive popularity by having their songs on the radio, Hulda said it's not really a goal for the sisters.

"If major popularity happens, it happens ... I think our goal is to be really happy with our art," and to make others happy, she said.

If you go

Who: The Quebe Sisters

What: Americana music concert, featuring three fiddles, three-part harmony, guitar and bass.

When: 7:30 p.m., Sun., May 1.

Where: Unitarian Universalist Congregation of York, 925 S. George St., York

Tickets: $25 general admission; $22 Susquehanna Folk Music Society members; $10 students, ages 3 to 22. For advance tickets, click here.