By Lindsey Pizzica Rotolo

Acoustic guitar players have a tendency to fade into the background. Not the case with Switch Factory, a local acoustic duo comprised of pediatrician Jason Perkel on guitar and vocals and private wealth manager Nat Worden on guitar, harmonica and vocals.

At a recent gig at Bohemian Pizza & Ditto Bar in Litchfield, the robust crowd of bar-goers was on their feet through the entire set, smiling ear-to-ear as they soaked in the duo’s crisp vocals and spot-on harmonies. Perkel and Worden’s ability to connect with the assembled crowd, briefly chatting with the audience between songs, resulted in an animated, yet intimate atmosphere. Tunes ranged from soulful ballads like Neil Young’s “Pocahontas” and Hank Williams’ “Lost Highway”, to Bobby Charles’ raucous “Down South in New Orleans” and Bob Dylan’s “Quinn the Eskimo”.

The duo met in 2010 at a party in Litchfield and quickly realized their taste in music was “eerily similar”, with a shared passion for improvisational playing and traditional folk, blues and roots music.

Weeks later, they both attended one of Levon Helm’s legendary Midnight Rambles (Helm hosted numerous “rambles” in his Woodstock, NY barn to raise money for treatment of the cancer that ultimately took his life). Perkel and Worden started playing together shortly thereafter, holding weekly jam sessions in Perkel’s wife’s studio space in the old Switch Factory in Bantam and in Worden’s barn in Litchfield during warmer weather.

Perkel, who has played in bands for almost 30 years said, “The first time Nat and I played together, we did ten songs right off the bat. I knew right away it was going to work.” Worden, who began formal music instruction in his early teens, has played and recorded music with numerous friends over the years, but didn’t perform much publicly until meeting Perkel.

“Jason and I really click musically in a way that is hard to find for any amateur musician—especially guys with careers and families and all that,” said Worden. “There’s nothing better than playing live shows for an audience of enthusiastic listeners. We just have a lot of fun playing, and people of all ages and all walks of life seem to enjoy listening. As long as that’s the case, we’ll keep doing it.”

In a span of only two years, the collaboration has resulted in the addition of over 100 cover songs to their lineup. The duo is starting to experiment with original songs as well.

The name “Switch Factory” was hard to come by, but paying homage to our area’s industrial history seemed right in line with their love of the folk music of the people—work songs, spirituals and classic fiddle tunes that have been passed down over the ages from back porches and barn dances in Appalachia to the masters of rock and roll, like Elvis Presley, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Grateful Dead.

“Our music is a vestige to the past, kind of timeless—and it always seems to come back around in cycles,” said Perkel. “If you listen to what’s going on in music right now, with the rise of the Internet, the fall of major labels, the focus on live performances and the explosion of music festivals, it seems like we might be on the cusp of a new folk revival.”

Perkel has been a pediatrician at Torrington-Winsted Pediactrics for 13 years and lives in Goshen with his wife, artist Jessica Jane Perkel and daughters Sophie and Lillian. Worden lives in Litchfield with his wife Sarah and two young sons, Gus and Sam. In addition to working for Clear Harbor Asset Management, Worden is a prolific journalist whose writing has been published in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, TheStreet.com and Litchfield Magazine.

Switch Factory’s calendar of local gigs, including an August 3 Norfolk performance, as well as booking information can be found on their Web site, www.switchfactory.com.