While she’s best known for her smart and emotive original lyrics, Kristin got her start in traditional music – she played guitar and fiddle with the groundbreaking stringband Uncle Earl (w/ Abigail Washburn, Rayna Gellert & KC Groves) and danced with the Appalachian clogging ensemble Footworks. She first turned her attention to songwriting with the “folk noir” vocal trio Sometymes Why (w/ Aoife O’Donovan & Ruth Ungar) where her bandmates lovingly dubbed her “the mistress of metaphor”. Kristin has a knack for writing songs that explore the darkest corners of the human experience with a gently deceptive simplicity that rewards close listening.

An explorer at heart, Kristin has made her way to Nashville via New York City, Maryland, the Canadian arctic, Cape Breton Island, Montreal and her native Portland, Oregon (in reverse order). When called upon to do so, Kristin calls a great square dance.

Born into a family of artists, Mai started playing cello at age 9, and by 15 she was writing her own songs on guitar. After graduating from UC Santa Cruz, she moved back home to Los Angeles and became a founding member of indie folk-pop band, Raining Jane. The harmony-rich foursome toured heavily, putting 200,000 miles on their van and trailer, and were a support act for Sara Bareilles. They’ve released several albums and been involved in a multitude of music & community projects over the past 20+ years.

Mai wears many hats as a musician–from band member and session player, to writer, teacher, and solo artist. She has received songwriting awards from the Kerrville, Telluride, and Rocky Mountain Folks Festivals. As a cellist, she has played on over 100 records, including Leonard Cohen’s final album, You Want It Darker. Mai has worked with many artists, such as Jason Mraz, Sara Bareilles, Adam Cohen, Willy Porter, Lee DeWyze. Collaborating with Mraz as a writer and band member, Mai has co-written hits such as “I Feel Like Dancing” (2023), “Have It All” (2018), “Love Someone” (2014), and “A Beautiful Mess” (2008). She has toured the world, playing stages from coffee shops to Royal Albert Hall, and she’s performed live on many TV shows, including The Today Show, The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel, Ellen, and American Idol.

Mai is driven by a love of songwriting and a desire to support others in the creative process. In 2010 she helped start Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls Los Angeles, a non-profit dedicated to empowering girls and gender-expansive youth through music. She teaches songwriting there and serves as Art Director. She has also led songwriting workshops at the Song School in Colorado, Rain City Rock in Seattle, and The Americana Song Academy in Oregon. Mai has also worked with the American Music Abroad Program through the U.S. Department of State, facilitating songwriting workshops and cultural exchange with groups in Pakistan and Zimbabwe.

Whether performing, writing, or mentoring, Mai brings a combination of strength, vulnerability, and wisdom to her work. Her songs often speak of the pursuit of finding the light inside the dark–a theme magnified in her own life when she became a breast cancer survivor. Writing and touring between chemo treatments, Mai learned first-hand that music is medicine. She does inspirational speaking engagements and is currently writing a memoir, hoping her story will encourage others on their creative paths.

An experienced and adept producer and arranger, she has recorded her own demos as well as producing records for many indie artists and songwriters. Her most recent gig as chair of the songwriting department at the Berklee College of Music ended this year; she currently is building a youth songwriting program at the Blue Bear School in San Francisco, serving on several non-profit boards, and enjoying the California sunshine.

When the pandemic changed the world, Hunt, like all touring artists, was taken off the road. Feeling for the community of artists she had met over 15 years of touring, she realized that it would be beneficial for professional artists and music dabblers alike to experience community through dedication to the study of music.

She started a movement for people to “point their minds to practicing” during the lockdown. The result was 27 online courses serving over 200 students and offered 33 musicians gigs in 18 months.

She has also developed a program to help parents to Plant The Seeds of Music in their homes and communities called ukulele sprouts (ukulelesprouts.com).

“The most impressive instrumentalist I’ve ever heard.”
— Johnny Cash

From such inauspicious beginnings, John McCutcheon has emerged as one of our most respected and loved folksingers. As an instrumentalist, he is a master of a dozen different traditional instruments, most notably the rare and beautiful hammer dulcimer. His songwriting has been hailed by critics and singers around the globe. His thirty recordings have garnered every imaginable honor including seven Grammy nominations. He has produced over twenty albums of other artists, from traditional fiddlers to contemporary singer-songwriters to educational and documentary works. His books and instructional materials have introduced budding players to the joys of their own musicality. And his commitment to grassroots political organizations has put him on the front lines of many of the issues important to communities and workers.

Even before graduating summa cum laude from Minnesota’s St. John’s University, this Wisconsin native literally “headed for the hills,” forgoing a college lecture hall for the classroom of the eastern Kentucky coal camps, union halls, country churches, and square dance halls. His apprenticeship to many of the legendary figures of Appalachian music imbedded a love of not only home-made music, but a sense of community and rootedness. The result is music…whether traditional or from his huge catalog of original songs…with the profound mark of place, family, and strength. It also created a storytelling style that has been compared to Will Rogers and Garrison Keillor.

The Washington Post described John as folk music’s “Rustic Renaissance Man,” a moniker flawed only by its understatement. “Calling John McCutcheon a ‘folksinger’ is like saying Deion Sanders is just a football player…” (Dallas Morning News). Besides his usual circuit of major concert halls and theaters, John is equally at home in an elementary school auditorium, a festival stage or at a farm rally. He is a whirlwind of energy packing five lifetimes into one. In the past few years alone he has headlined over a dozen different festivals in North America (including repeated performances at the National Storytelling Festival), recorded an original composition for Virginia Public Television involving over 500 musicians, toured Australia for the sixth time, toured Chile in support of a women’s health initiative, appeared in a Woody Guthrie tribute concert in New York City, gave a featured concert at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, taught performance art skills at a North Carolina college, given symphony pops concerts across America, served as President of the fastest-growing Local in the Musicians Union and performed a special concert at the National Baseball Hall of Fame. This is all in his “spare time.” His “real job,” he’s quick to point out, is father to two grown sons.

But it is in live performance that John feels most at home. It is what has brought his music into the lives and homes of one of the broadest audiences any folk musician has ever enjoyed. People of every generation and background seem to feel at home in a concert hall when John McCutcheon takes the stage, with what critics describe as “little feats of magic,” “breathtaking in their ease and grace…,” and “like a conversation with an illuminating old friend.”

Whether in print, on record, or on stage, few people communicate with the versatility, charm, wit or pure talent of John McCutcheon.

He has filmed a series of lectures and masterclasses, available through Songwork.com and has written over 50 articles for various magazines and blogs. Pat continues to present songwriting clinics across the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK. Several of his students have won Grammys, including John Mayer and Gillian Welch.

PatPattison.com | Instructional Materials

The resulting album is called Stardust & Satellites [Red House / Compass Records].

“I just make stuff up,” he exclaims, quipping, “it sounded good to say that.” Steve is the sort of prolific writer and collaborator who downplays what seems like a non-stop geyser of creativity. “I have no rhyme or reason for what I do. It’s all magic. I go by instinct. It just felt right, so I went with it.”

He’s written more songs than the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, and Stephen Foster combined—somewhere north of 3,500 compositions thanks in no small part to his army of 80,000 kid co-writers as well as his many adult collaborators. Artists including Sissy Spacek, Raul Malo, Darrell Scott, Cracker, Corey Harris, Jesse Winchester and many others have recorded his songs.

At this stage of his life, he’s committed to inspiring the creativity of others through his songwriting workshops as well as through Kid Pan Alley. A few of the places he’s taught include Rocky Mountain Song School (26 years), Utah Song School, New Song Academy, Swannanoa Gathering, Augusta Workshop, Hollyhock, Kerrville, NSAI, Berklee College of Music, and he will be co-founding a new annual Songschool in Italy in October.

Her blend of grassroots pop has won her accolades from Merlefest to Telluride and now the GRAMMYs with three songs on Sierra Ferrell’s GRAMMY-winning album Trail of Flowers, including winner of the Best American Roots Song “American Dreaming” and co-writes on Molly Tuttle’s GRAMMY-winning albums Crooked Tree and City of Gold.

Recent years have found Melody releasing her first solo music in a decade, stepping into her own as a songwriter and artist and finding magic in queer collaboration. Whether teaching at music camps or playing Newport Folk Fest and the Kennedy Center with her Grateful Dead drag band BERTHA, Melody is ready to ride whatever cosmic creative waves the universe sends her way.

Benyo brings an array of musical experiences and expertise to the table giving your next project the utmost amount of options and creative control.

With an electric taste in music, Benyo has worked with a variety of artists including Parachute, Sheppard, Baker Grace (Bitter’s Kiss), The Aces, Alberta Cross, Through Fire, Vusi Mahlasela, Caro Emerald, Lisa Loeb, Mumiy Troll, KIDFORCE, Sean Kelly, Corey Robinson, Kings & Queens, Shanna O’Brien, Steve Reid (Rippingtons/Supertramp), The Starfolk, and Owen Danoff.

Music production aside, Benyo is no stranger to the audio-post production world having worked on and assisted with sound FX, Foley, and audio editing for TV shows such as NBC’s Minute to Win It, Spike TV’s Deadliest Warriors, and Gene Simmons Family Jewels. Benyo has also been credited for Foley and FX spotting/editing for films like Serial Buddies (Christopher Lloyd, Beth Behrs), The Lake Effect and Le Fling.

He is a three-time winner of the American Songwriter Magazine Lyric Contest. He also has published several books of poetry and prose. As a performer, he is known for his guitar virtuosity, soaring voice and lyrics that are funny, topical, inspirational and thought provoking.

Ron coached Carrie Underwood for her role as Maria in NBC’s Sound of Music Live, and coached pop singer, Vanessa Carlton, through her 10-week run of Beautiful— the Carole King Musical at the Sondheim Theater on Broadway in NY, where she played the role of Carole. He has walked the red carpet at award shows with Alison Krauss, Jessica Chastain, Michael Shannon and with Wynonna Judd at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Norway. Ron has been seen and heard on Entertainment Tonight, The Voice, Oprah Network, and BBC’s Simply Classics radio show.

In addition to vocal coaching, he was also cast as an actor in episode 5 of George and Tammy, and later cast in a film directed by Michael Shannon called Eric LaRue. Ron was also asked to compose a song for the scene in which he was cast.

In Ron’s early career, he was signed to a recording contract by Aretha Franklin’s producer, H.B. Barnum, and became a teen star in Tiger Beat Magazine. Paramount commissioned him to write songs for the TV series, Bad News Bears, and he also wrote a couple of top 10 disco hits on RCA in Australia. He was awarded a Lifetime Mentor Award by the Nashville Jazz Workshop in 2010. In 2021 he was a winner in the Nashville Parent Magazine and awarded “Best Music Instruction.”

In 2016 the National Association of Teachers of Singing honored him with a multi-page tribute, celebrating Ron and his work with singers for international “World Voice Day.” He has written many articles on singing that have been published by the National Association of Teachers of Singing as well as the Voice Council Magazine in London, where he served 2 terms as Artist in Residence.

He coaches singers in all genres. Ron works with all the record labels producing vocals in the studio, and preparing major artists for concert tours, special television appearances, and new recordings. He is a voting member of the Grammy Foundation and the CMA’s. He is also a producer, studio pianist, and a jazz pianist with a resident gig at Char Restaurant and Bar at Green Hills in Nashville, TN. Check out his website for more information and celebrity quotes about Ron’s work:

www.ronbrowningmusic.com.

A classically trained musician turned indie innovator, Sarah discovered her unique musical voice after a life-changing moment at Bonnaroo, realizing that the cello could sing as freely as her own voice. Since then, she has toured nationally and internationally, releasing music, and shared the stage and writing room with notable Grammy-winning and nominated songwriters including Dan Navarro, Richard Leigh, Tim Johnson, Melissa Fuller, and Georgia Miles. Her song “Tequila” was recognized by the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) as one of their Top 40 Songs, marking her as an emerging voice to watch.

Sarah’s entrepreneurial spirit shines through her community-building work. She is the founder of Cellotree Arts Presents, a thriving East Nashville house concert series that has quickly gained national acclaim. Each September during AmericanaFest week, the series transforms her and her partner Andy Beckey’s home into a creative haven — hosting nearly 100 artists across five days of music, connection, and magic.

In addition to her life as a performer, Sarah empowers fellow musicians through her company Tunedough® (currently under construction getting a facelift), offering one-on-one artist consultations and workshops that simplify the complexities of royalty collection and music business management. Having ridden the roller coaster of the music business she’s done and seen a little bit of it all having been mostly an independent artist crafter her own career as well as being signed to a record deal. Her engaging teaching style has earned her invitations to speak at major events year after year such as the Rocky Mountain Song School, Opelika Songwriter Festival, and the Gunnison Valley Music Association, where she helps artists understand their income streams, manage their careers, and build sustainable creative lives.

Ellis’ annual closing set on the Wildflower Stage is the last day of Folks Festival. Ellis is available for mentoring sessions and is interested in helping others to find their mission and artistic voice.

EllisDelaney.com

Terri is a jane-of-all-trades, acting as vocal producer with Ellis in the studio and on-hand co-writer when needed, and teaching classes on time management, work/life balance, and nervous system regulation. Terri is known for her passionate commitment to helping artists reach their full potential and she is available for mentoring sessions during Song School.

Relationalskillbuilding.com

Bonnie has been a studio voice teacher for 25 years at schools such as Drew University, Princeton Theological Seminary and University of Colorado-Boulder, where she taught vocal pedagogy and played a key role in the expansion of the Musicians’ Wellness Program. Dr. Draina holds MM and DMA degrees in voice performance and pedagogy from Westminster Choir College and University of Colorado - Boulder. She is the 2013 recipient of the prestigious Van Lawrence Fellowship, which allowed her to further her study of muscle tension dysphonia and other voice disorders.

A classically-trained soprano with eclectic tastes, Dr. Draina has premiered and previewed works by composers such as Lee Hoiby, John B. Hedges, Carter Pann and Laurie Altman, and has a repertoire of several hundred songs, chamber works and operatic and oratorio roles in nine languages. Some of her favorite collaborations include the world premiere of Sayaka Ishiguro’s Hushaby Songs with pianist Mutsumi Moteki and performances of music of Appalachia with hammered dulcimer expert Lucille Reilly. Bonnie retired from public performance in 2011 following her diagnosis with a vocal disorder.

Dr. Draina has worked in the arts in various capacities, including development for the New York Philharmonic, costuming at the Bucks County Playhouse, and opera direction with Rocky Mountain Center for Musical Arts. Over the years, she has played instruments ranging from piano to sousaphone with marching, jazz and rock bands.

Bonnie Draina’s clear understanding of the challenges facing performing artists, comprehensive knowledge of human anatomy and engaging presence combine to make her a popular and effective teacher. She lives in Carbondale CO with her husband Matt, a solar professional and rock star, and their son.

After graduating he joined the Seldom Scene with whom he received a Grammy nomination in 2007. In 2005 he founded the critically acclaimed bluegrass band The Infamous Stringdusters. At the 2007 International Bluegrass Music Association awards Eldridge and his Stringdusters bandmates won Emerging artist of the Year, Song of the Year, and Album of the Year for their debut album, Fork in the Road.

Meanwhile, in 2005 he had caught the attention of mandolinist Chris Thile, who enlisted him, along with banjoist Noam Pikelny, violinist Gabe Witcher, bassist Greg Garrison (and later, bassist Paul Kowert) to start working on an ambitious side project. Soon after they decided to focus all of their collective energies into band and Punch Brothers was born. The band has since released 6 critically acclaimed albums, won a Grammy for Best Folk Album in 2018 and toured the world.

Eldridge also plays in a duo with guitarist Julian Lage. They have released 2 full length records and an EP. Their most recent, Mount Royal, was nominated for a Grammy for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album in 2017.

In addition, Chris Eldridge has worked with a diverse cast of musical luminaries including Paul Simon, Renée Fleming, John Paul Jones, Marcus Mumford, Justin Timberlake, T-Bone Burnett, Jon Brion, Fiona Apple, The War and Treaty, Jerry Douglas, I’m With Her, and Del McCoury.

In 2019, Eldridge was named Instrumentalist of the Year by the Americana Music Association.

Eldridge was the house guitarist on the public radio show, Live From Here (formerly known as A Prairie Home Companion), from 2016-2020. He is currently Visiting Associate Professor of Contemporary American Acoustic Music at Oberlin College.

Rebecca is a national touring artist with 27 years of experience on the road performing for audiences ranging from 1 to 2 ½ million people. Along with being a prolific songwriter, she is also a published author of two books, and a fine artist with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.

Rebecca’s music is about liberation. Her agile voice traverses a four-octave range. KUNC describes her voice as “knock-you-to-your-knees.” The Daily Camera describes her music as “shining…with lush harmonies,” and Westword Magazine says, “Her songs hit like little earthquakes!” While her range is impressive, it’s the expression in her voice that rivets attention. She sings with both a simple storytelling purity along with a gritty blues prowess. Her voice pours from an inner spring, flowing with lilting tenderness to fully liberated, unbridled release.

Rebecca’s performances include Opryland, Red Rocks Amphitheater, and BBC Radio and Television, Kerrville Folk Festival, Falcon Ridge Folk Festival and Planet Bluegrass’s own Rocky Mountain Folks Festival. Sanctuary, her most recent single released in 2020 was a semifinalist in the International Songwriting Competition ISC. Her songs have charted at #1 on the National Folk DJ Charts, #4 on the National Americana charts, and multiple times top 40 on the National Americana/Country charts.

“I am delighted to assist people in breaking down inner barriers, freeing themselves to live in the bullseye of their dreams.”

RebeccaFolsom.com

Vance’s newest album, “The Mother Of Trouble”, features Grammy winner Lori McKenna on background vocals, Juno award recipient and Bonnie Raitt Grammy hit song co-writer Joey Landreth on guitars, and master mandolinist Joe K. Walsh, among others.

Gilbert has recorded 14 albums to date, including 5 for Philo/Rounder Records. He’s been the opener of choice for artists as varied as Arlo Guthrie, Anita Baker, The Milk Carton Kids, and Southside Johnny, and the mid 2000s found Gilbert opening 150+ shows for comic legend George Carlin!

He’s currently the regular opener for Mad About You/Stranger Things star Paul Reiser’s stand-up shows, and he maintains his own busy acoustic music touring schedule. He even has a tune on a Grammy-nominated children’s album. How rounded is that?

The Arthur Lee Land TRIO is crushing it live and gearing up for a new original studio album. The TRIO’s unique Grateful Dead Tribute: Twang Is Dead has been a festival favorite. On top of all that, Arthur has been bringing his melodic guitar skills touring with String Cheese Incident’s keyboardist’s solo project the Kyle Hollingsworth’s Band, as well as the Elephant Revival family side projects featuring Daniel Rodriguez and Bonnie Paine that also became folk rock icon Donovan’s band for a headline festival slot in 2016. Other fun projects find him teaming up with Brain McRae’s gogoLab and Tyler Grant’s band Grant Farm for the “GRANTful Dead Revue.” Arthur’s Art of Live-Looping Educational Outreach Programs have reached 50,000+ students in 27 states and he’s been an advocate for Reframing ADHD as the gift of the “HUNTER” Brain Wiring. Arthur has been a member of the Song School instructor staff since 2003.

ArthurLeeLand.com | GreatAmericanTaxi.com | ArtOfLiveLooping.com

Pamela’s songs have received the Grand Prize in the SongDoor International Songwriting Competition, as well as Honorable Mentions in the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival Songwriter Contest and American Songwriter Magazine Lyric Contest. Pamela has performed at venues ranging from The Bitter End in NYC to The Hotel Utah in San Francisco, and has opened for artists including Lisa Loeb and Danielle Ate The Sandwich. Her all-female backing band creates a dynamic and memorable live experience, featuring Mary Claxton on drums, Adrienne Osborn on bass, Amanda Morin on electric guitar, and Kate Farmer and Lyla Yaner on vocals.

Pamela’s most recent project is a 5-song acoustic EP with award-winning songwriter, audio engineer and producer Kyle Donovan. The latest single from the EP, “They’re Not You,” is available now on all platforms.

His songs provoke a reflective state of mind, while his mastery of language and wry humor often evoke a twist of a smile or out-loud laughter, at the same time always delivering an emotional punch.

In 2019, drawn by its scenic majesty and lack of humidity, Mark abandoned his deep southern roots and relocated to Colorado to partake of and participate in the area’s remarkable acoustic music scene.

With an impressive body of original work and a few carefully curated covers, Mark steps forward into the role of a performer with a spirit of adventure and a desire to have an impact on those willing to listen.

Bill schedules 4 30-minute mentor sessions per day at the Folks Festival Song School for all students, concentrating on the particular needs of each student, and also excels teaching right hand guitar technique (featuring 3 finger Travis picking style, and muting techniques). Bill also provides 13 page workshop pamphlets for each student he works with in his attempt to fill each student’s musical tool chests with as much information as possible!

Bill has been on the instructor staff at Song School in Lyons since 2008, and he has taught at the Kerrville Folk Festival in Texas for over a decade. He is also available to host workshops across the country at other music festivals like at the Montrose Music Festival in South Dakota, and the Boulder Hootenanny in Ward, CO. He also leads the song circles at the Big Orange Tarp (the BOT) at Planet Bluegrass during Song School and the Folks Festival.

Justin has toured with John Gorka and David Wilcox, as well as opened for some of the finest singer/songwriters on the acoustic music scene, including Shawn Colvin, Martin Sexton, Willy Porter and Darrell Scott.

Equally, his guitar playing has earned him shared stages with some of the greatest fingerstyle players, such as Tommy Emmanuel, Andy McKee, Billy McLaughlin and Pat Donohue. Justin’s self-produced and fan-funded album, Now You Know, was voted as one of the Top 100 Folk Albums of 2011, and has had songs featured on TV. “Fans of Leo Kottke or Michael Hedges will find themselves right at home with [Roth’s] intricate guitar work…beautifully written lyrics.” - San Francisco Art Magazine.

He also is a lead songwriter with Kid Pan Alley writing songs with kids in schools, a creator of YouTube guitar tutorials and transcriptions for viral music phenom, Jacob Collier, as well as an online teacher for TrueFire.com, JamPlay.com and GuitarPlayback.com. Find out more at: justinroth.com/teaching. Justin has attended Song School every year since 1997 and been an instructor since 2003.

Her debut album Robot was released in May 2022 and she has graced the stage at Rocky Mountain Folks Fest, Kerrville Folk Festival, Black Bear AmericanaFest, and more. She recently relocated to Nashville and is maintaining every ounce of her Colorado hippie soul among all the country cowboy boots. Shanna is obsessed with neuroscience and mindset tools and brings that toolbox to the songwriting students she mentors to bring the encouragement that all her insecure artist friends need to KEEP CREATING!

Bonnie and Taylor also record as Everybody Loves An Outlaw, a co-writing project with producer Robbie Nevil. Their song “I See Red” was featured in the Netflix film 365 Days and went viral, racking up more than 400 million streams and earning RIAA platinum certification. The success led the duo to sign with Columbia Records, which re-released the single in 2020.

Bonnie is a founding member of the Colorado string supergroup Big Richard, an all-women quartet known for tight vocal harmonies, string virtuosity, and fiddle-driven arrangements. She plays mandolin and guitar and sings in the band. Since exploding onto the scene in 2021, Big Richard has toured nationally and performed on PBS’ The Cavern Sessions and NPR’s World Cafe. They’ve also played Telluride Bluegrass Festival, DelFest, Bourbon and Beyond, and Jam Cruise, and rang in New Year’s Eve at the Ryman in Nashville. The band is currently touring behind their second full-length album, Pet.

Bonnie is also one third of the Silo Sisters, a songwriter trio with Phoebe Hunt and Melody Walker. The three came together in 2023 while teaching at The Song School. They first drew a wide audience with their viral original song “The Missing Stair,” an anthem for survivors of abuse that blends unflinching songwriting, roots picking, and healing harmonies.

Known for her rich voice and dynamic stage presence, Moira has collaborated with some of the most celebrated names in music, including Tune-Yards, Eric Whitacre, Chris Thile, Hilary Hahn, and Morten Lauridsen. As a member of Tune-Yards, she has performed on major platforms such as Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and the UK’s Later… with Jools Holland. Recently, she performed & recorded for Chris Thile’s project ‘Attention!’ and Laurie Anderson’s ARK.

Each release since her debut more personal, more crafted, her voice deepening with intimacy and authority. The critics followed with increasing notice. 2009’s “The Killer In Me” had NPR likening her to a younger Lucinda. 2013’s “How To Sleep In A Stormy Boat,” a song cycle conversation with Shakespeare’s characters, brought her national recognition with a feature on NPR’s “All Things Considered” and acclaim from famed rock critic Dave Marsh.

Her most recent release, 2015’s “That Kind Of Girl,” was lauded by The New York Times’s Jon Pareles and marked her 4th appearance on “Mountain Stage”. Judy Collins has recorded her songs, as well as the late Memphis Hall of Fame member Sid Selvidge and other folk and jazz artists. Just recently she released a trio record with Amber Rubarth and UK-based Emily Barker called Applewood Road, which got 5 star reviews in England including The Sunday London Times writing “a flawless set that has to be the most haunting release of the past year”.

But all this is not what she had planned. After graduating from Amherst College with a dual degree in English and Theater, she moved to NYC to study acting at The National Shakespeare Conservatory, fully intending on a career as a playwright, director and actress. She spent a few years doing just that: a member of a few classical repertory companies, a founding Artistic Director of Off-Off Broadway’s Five Points Theater Company – until a borrowed guitar and a spectacular break up led to her penning her first few songs. It was only a few years later that a demo of hers was brought to the attention of Judy Collins who was in search of talent for a fledgling record label.

Amy has taught performance and songwriting at Rocky Mountain Folks Fest Song School for over a decade and been on staff at The Kerrville Folk Festival Song School, Swannanoa Gathering, Sister’s Folk Festival & Americana Academy, Berklee College of Music (Summer Session), her own Songs From The Well Writing Retreats and is honored to work with Songwriting With Soldiers.

AmySpeace.com

Stone is an integrator. He loves a through line. Whether it’s quilting together verses from an anthology of time-worn ballads, identifying the next bright constellation in the career of an artist he’s coaching, or weaving a unifying thread through a collection of songs he’s producing—Stone loves to look closely enough at things to see their intrinsic beauty and interconnectedness.

Stone is a searchlight. He has made albums like the Lomax Project, which re-imagines songs collected by American folklorist Alan Lomax; Room of Wonders, a collection of folk dances from around the globe; Folklife, which plants the seeds of folk songs in modern soil; and AWake, a stargazing indie-pop album exploring the white-hot core of love and loss. Stone is known for sharing stories of the people and places behind the songs—a 13th century Bambara queen, the rutted roads of eastern Kentucky, a symphony inside a lightbulb, the Sea Island coastline. These narratives help situate the songs in their wider cultural, spiritual and ecological contexts.

Stone is a field worker. With support from a Chalmers Arts Fellowship, he spent three months in Mali, West Africa studying with kora and n’goni players, making field recordings, and investigating the banjo’s African roots. He sat in with Toumani Diabate’s famed Symmetric Orchestra and played with griots, buskers and elders—under baobab trees, at the confluence of the Niger and Bani Rivers, and as part of an all-night ceremony in the Dogon’s sandstone cliffs. He returned home to make the Juno award-winning album, Africa to Appalachia, a polyrhythmic tale of two continents in collaboration with Mansa Sissoko. Stone has done folk song research at the Library of Congress, Smithsonian Folkways and the Folkways Alive Center.

Stone is a synthesizer. He has long balanced his commitment to music with complementary practices. His study of yoga, zen, Alexander Technique, Feldenkrais and Pilates are integral to both his own work and the way he holds space for the artists he coaches and produces. As a producer, his curiosity, inquisitiveness and capacity for deep listening are matched by a strong aesthetic sense, wide-ranging studio skills and love of collaboration. He regularly co-writes with other songwriters, always looking to create a new lexicon and harmonic language.

Stone is an educator. He has been on faculty at the Silk Road Global Musician Workshop, Rockygrass Academy, Rocky Mountain Song School, Sierra Fiddle Camp, Banjo Summit and more. Fellow musicians frequently seek Stone’s advice, keen to discover how he crafts a career that hews closely to his creative vision while finding success in the world. He mentors artists through organizations like WOMEX, APAP and OneBeat and led the Artist Accelerator program at Folk Alliance. He coaches artists 1-on-1 and co-founded an online course that teaches “businesscraft to musicmakers” called Compose Your Career.

Stone is a galvanizer. He produced 400 songs for the Facebook Sound Collection; curated a concert series at the Colorado Chautauqua; directed a folk music symposium at the University of Colorado; co-produced an episode of the Afropop Worldwide podcast; directed the branding for Folkalist Records, a 21st century label centering music from the global south; and co-facilitates a traveling global music retreat called Sonora Expeditions. Other career highlights include winning two Juno Awards, three Canadian Folk Music Awards; being featured on NPR, BBC, and CBC; and performing thousands of concerts including venues like the Lincoln and Kennedy Centers, Library of Congress, Rockygrass, Celtic Connections, Vancouver Folk Festival, Chicago World Music Festival, Montréal Jazz Festival, and more.

You’ve heard the saying “what you resists, persists.” Well, Judith resisted learning Reiki at first. She designed and wrote copy for a friend’s Reiki brochure, and in return, her friend wanted to teach her Reiki. She declined the offer but her friend wouldn’t take no for an answer saying she felt Judith would use it later. She finally agreed and has been hooked ever since going on to learn and be certified in Pranic Healing, Magnified Healing, Integrative Energy Therapy, Practical (Kundalini) Reiki, and Usui Reiki.

Judith has a gentle spirit and presence. She believes in the amazing transformation that energy work can provide just by being open to receiving it. The insights she receives while doing a Reiki session provides a look at your landscape and tools helpful for moving around that landscape, and some options to help you better prepare for the experiences you wish to have in your life. Her work assists you in letting go of limiting beliefs replaced with empowering questions such as “What would it take to create greater possibilities today?”And since she works with animals, she just might receive an animal totem for you.

She is a certified Usui Reiki Master/Teacher, Kundalini Reiki Master/Teacher, Practical Reiki Master/Teacher, Pranic Healer, and practices Bars Access Consciousness healing. Outside of Reiki, she enjoys photography, creative writing, being in nature, music of all kinds, dancing, good food, cornhole. and spending time with family and friends.

All attendees can sign up for a FREE photo shoot during mentoring hours at the morning sign up table. Photos will be taken at the ranch grounds which includes open stage performances when Rob and Carine are available to do so. All images will be provided digitally without charge and can be used in any way the subject wishes with or without accreditation. Photos from the Song School Photo Sessions have been used for gig promotions, websites, sponsorship listings, media, and CD art.