2019 Island Camp Instructors
Kristin Andreassen
Kristin Andreassen is a singer, songwriter & percussive dancer whose music honors both the playful & the profound. She's toured with some of the most respected acoustic groups around: the stringband Uncle Earl, the "folk noir” singing trio Sometymes Why, the Appalachian clogging troupe Footworks, and NYC's "anti-folk" superhero Jeffrey Lewis. Her originals range from the infectious rhythms of her #1 kids' hit "Crayola Doesn't Make a Color for Your Eyes” to the emotive soundscape in this shadow art video made with beloved MoM instructor Anna Roberts-Gevalt. 2018 promises a new trio album with drummer Shane Leonard & Punch Brother Chris Eldridge as well as an album of children's songs about emotions, co-created with Brooklyn psychiatrist Dr. Kari Groff for the Smithsonian Folkways label. An experienced teacher & square dance caller, Kristin is a true believer in the transformative power of music camps for all ages. After studying creative writing, history and community development at Montreal’s McGill University, she is as surprised as her parents to have found a career where she employs all three of those skills in balance. www.kristinandreassen.com
Laura Cortese
Laura Cortese has built a distinguished career as an Americana fiddler, songwriter and vocalist. She is now one of the most in-demand musical collaborators on the folk circuit. She grew up in San Francisco, CA and moved to Boston, MA to study at Berklee College of Music, immersing herself in the city's vibrant indie music scene and enjoying a busy touring-and-studio career which included appearances with Band of Horses at Carnegie Hall and Pete Seeger at Newport Folk Festival. She tours internationally with her band, the Dance Cards. The group is bold and elegant, schooled in the lyrical rituals of folk music and backed by grooves that alternatively inspire Cajun two-stepping and rock ’n’ roll hip swagger. Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards have appeared at venues and festivals throughout the US, UK, Sweden, Canada, India, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Estonia, Montenegro, Greece and Bangladesh pairing sophisticated string arrangements (two fiddles, cello & bass) and rich vocal harmonies with poignant and powerful singing. www.thisislauracortese.com
Zachariah Hickman
Zachariah Hickman is a double bassist, multi-instrumentalist and producer based out of Boston, MA. Originally from Lynchburg, VA, he received his formal training in jazz performance and composition from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. For most of his adult life he has toured with singer-songwriter Josh Ritter, traveling all over the world and recording 9 full-length albums. Currently, he is performing as bassist and musical director for Ray Lamontagne. He has performed at many notable venues and festivals, including Carnegie Hall, Radio City Music Hall, Red Rocks, Bonnaroo, Dublin Castle, The Fillmore, and the Royal Albert Hall. With Josh Ritter, he has also performed with the Boston Pops in Symphony Hall, the New York Pops in Central Park, and many other orchestras in Europe and the United States. Television appearances include five David Letterman appearances, Conan O’Brien, Ellen Degeneres, and Late Night with Jools Holland for the BBC. As a producer, Zachariah as made records with a number of talented singers, including Rose Cousins (for which he won a Canadian JUNO award), Mark Erelli, Laura Cortese, Miss Tess, and his own bluegrass band Barnstar! He has also produced and ring-mastered his own circus, released his own brand of mustache wax, and runs a vaudeville style variety show, Zack Hickman’s House of Ill Repute.
Cedric Watson
One of the brightest young talents to emerge in Cajun, Creole and Zydeco (Louisiana French) music over the last decade, Cedric Watson is a four-time Grammy-nominated fiddler, singer, accordionist & songwriter with seemingly unlimited potential. Cedric and his group Bijou Creole resurrect the ancient sounds of the French and Spanish contra dance and bourré alongside the spiritual rhythms of the Congo tribes of West Africa, who were sold as slaves in the Carribean and Louisiana by the French and Spanish.
With an apparently bottomless repertoire of songs at his fingertips, Cedric plays everything from forgotten Creole melodies and obscure Dennis McGee reels to more modern Cajun and Zydeco songs, even occasionally throwing in a bluegrass fiddle tune or an old string band number. www.cedricwatson.com
Chas Justus
Chas Justus - aka the Mississippi Mystic - is a songwriter and guitar picker from the American south and has toured the world for over a decade as a founding member of the Red Stick Ramblers and The Revelers from Lafayette, Louisiana. https://chasjustus.com
Sharon Leahy & Rick Good
Sharon Leahy has spent a lifetime creating dance and theater for the stage, working with traditional forms to express/impress contemporary themes. As a choreographer she has been commissioned to create work by Jacob's Pillow, the National Endowment for the Arts, New England Foundation for the Arts National Dance Project, and many others. She was an artist in residence at the University of Dayton and has taught master classes at colleges across the country. As Artistic Director of Rhythm in Shoes, she led an ensemble of dancers and musicians, touring nationally and internationally, presenting original performance art that was both surprising and familiar. Carry it on…Sharon's first dance for camera and has been seen at numerous dance film festivals including Dance on Camera at Lincoln Center, The International ScreenDance Festival at the American Dance Festival and the San Francisco Dance Film Festival. She has won the Blue Ribbon in the clogging contest at both the National Folk Festival at Wolftrap in Virginia and the Appalachian String Band Festival in West Virginia.
Rick Good is a founding member of the Hotmud Family, a twenty-four year veteran of Rhythm in Shoes and an Ohio Heritage Fellow. Rick is recognized and respected for his driving banjo, swinging guitar, heartfelt singing and crafty songwriting. With his wife and long-time collaborator, Sharon Leahy, Rick has made a life of creating critically-acclaimed performance art, rooted in American traditions. He’s written original music for dance, film and theater productions and his discography currently includes fifteen recordings made from 1974 to 2012, (Hotmud Family, Rhythm in Shoes, Sharon Leahy, ShoeFly, Red Clay Ramblers, and two solo ventures). Rick currently plays regularly with two fine bands: Good & Young and the Elements. www.leahygood.com
Christopher Pappas
Christopher Pappas is an award winning composer and multi-instrumentalist. Under the moniker Elle Belle, his latest release “No Signal” (2018) has been met with critical acclaim.
Pappas grew up in rural New Hampshire where he started the band The Everyday Visuals. After relocating to Boston, the band began to amass a cult-like following of fellow musicians and fans who were attracted to Pappas’ penchant for vocal harmonies and catchy left-of-center songwriting.
He moved to Los Angeles in 2010 where he met Pierre de Reeder, bassist for the venerable L.A. band Rilo Kiley, who signed Pappas to his newly formed label Little Record Company.
Pappas has written music for NASA, Google, and Lexus, and his music has been heard on ABC, NBC, Showtime, FX, and more. He’s written a musical that is slated to go off-broadway, and assembled his own 27 piece orchestra to perform his original orchestral works. Twin-Tone luminary Peter Jesperson notes Pappas’ “talent is staggering” and his rich catalogue only further cements his title as one of America’s prolific and captivating under-the-radar artists.
K.C. Groves
When K.C. Groves was a young musician she was mentored by bluegrass and acoustic music greats such as Sally Van Meter, Charles Sawtelle and Laurie Lewis. She has since become a driving force in her own right, passing on that spark and pure joy of playing music. A multi-faceted musician, spirited bandleader and inspiring mentor, K.C.’s energy, tenacity, and creativity seem to be boundless. But she’s simply, “paying it forward,” as she puts it, answering the call to keep the music she loves a living experience.
An accomplished instrumentalist (mandolin, guitar, bass), vocalist and songwriter, K.C. Groves has been at the heart of many celebrated projects. As the creative center and bandleader of Uncle Earl for over a decade, K.C. helped bring old time music to a wider audience. The "g’Earls" played major festival stages in the United States and toured extensively abroad, gaining fans and musical cohorts such as Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones, who produced their 2007 album Waterloo, Tennessee. In addition to Uncle Earl, K.C. has released two solo albums of original material, and was a Telluride Troubadour contest finalist and a Detroit Music Award winner. She has teamed up with countless notable musicians, including old time musician and craftsman Riley Baugus and Leftover Salmon’s Vince Herman.
K.C.’s home base in the sleepy town of Lyons in the foothills of the Colorado Rockies near Planet Bluegrass, the hallowed grounds that host RockyGrass and Folks Festival. Along with founding the successful High Street Concert series in Lyons, K.C. is a certified in the Wernick Method of Bluegrass Jamming. She also spearheaded the famous weekly bluegrass jam at Oskar Blues, the largest and longest running jam in Colorado. www.thebluegrassgirl.com
Chris Eldridge
As a member of Punch Brothers since the band's inception, guitarist Chris Eldridge has been at the vanguard of acoustic music for much of the past decade. Although initially drawn to the electric guitar, by his mid-teens Chris Eldridge had developed a deep love for acoustic music, thanks in part to his father, a banjo player and founding member of the seminal bluegrass group The Seldom Scene. Eldridge later gained in-depth exposure to a variety of different musical styles while studying at Oberlin Conservatory, where he earned a degree in music performance in 2004. During his time at Oberlin, Eldridge studied with legendary guitarist Tony Rice. 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, and bassist Greg Garrison 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, received 6 Grammy nominations and toured around the world. www.chriseldridge.net
Joy Askew
Originally from the North of England, Joy Askew has made New York City her home for over 30 years. In the 80s and 90s Joy led her own band as lead vocalist/keyboardist developing her songwriting to become a writer for Quincy Jones Music Publishing. During this time she also played and toured in the bands of such luminary artists as Joe Jackson, Peter Gabriel, Laurie Anderson, Rodney Crowell and Jack Bruce and appeared in Laurie Anderson's quintessential movie “Home Of The Brave”.
In the last few years Joy has focused on her own records and inspired by memories of growing up in Newcastle, Joy recorded her latest album, “Queen Victoria” in Yorkshire England with The Brighouse & Rastrick Band, the most famous traditional British Brass Band. It was released in 2017.
Joy teaches voice at Stevens Institute of technology and has coached many artists in the recording studio and in preparation for tours & recording. www.joyaskew.com
Trey Boudreaux
One of Louisiana’s premier upright bass players, Trey Boudreaux has written and performed with a long list of musical partners in a variety of styles, from classical to jazz to Americana, across South Louisiana. http://treyboudreaux.com
Thomas Brown
Thomas Brown is a mixed media visual artist based in NYC. Early in his career, his work was concentrated around the formal aspects of illustration and sculpture but then shifted into found object and mixed media collage. Eventually, the discovery of ephemeral, nature- based artwork changed his perception of what artistic expression can look and feel like. Exploring the kinetic value of materials that melt, dissolve, degrade, or combust has become a central focus. The majority of his year is spent making ice sculptures for a variety of events and festivals. A few overlying themes of his work are: expression of creativity with whatever is available; drawing from environment and experiences,taking inspiration from even the most mundane; and embracing the moment fully when confronted with art that speaks to the individual.
Lula Wiles
Lula Wiles is a Boston-based roots trio and the first-ever Miles of Music Band-In-Residence. The band members (Isa Burke, Ellie Buckland, and Mali Obomsawin) met and started playing music together at a fiddle camp in their home state of Maine, and they honed their skills and their band's sound attending MoM as campers, so they're firm believers in the power of music camps. They count MoM as one of their most formative experiences as a band and as individual musicians. Their original songs blend country, old-time, and folk-rock sounds, all anchored by rich vocal harmonies and dynamic instrumental work on fiddle, guitar, and bass. They are deeply rooted in a variety of music traditions, but equally deep is their devotion to modern songcraft and lyrics that are fiercely honest, littered with reinvented folk tropes and evocative images. Comprised of three multi-instrumentalists, songwriters, and singers, Lula Wiles brings a diverse range of musical passions and skills to their work. All three are alumnae of Berklee College of Music, and they have taught (individually and together) at Maine Fiddle Camp, Ossipee Valley String Camp, Miles of Music House Camp, and the Passim School of Music. www.lulawiles.com
Thomas Bryan Eaton
Thomas Bryan Eaton has been honing his skills as a musician since he first fell in love with sound at the ripe old age of 3. That fateful Christmas, he got an old gray walkman with a record button on it that set his imagination running into a wild world of sonic explorations that continue to this day.
Thomas can often be seen coaxing sweet sounds out of a telecaster or pedal steel; working his melodious magic while singing his own songs or chiming in on harmonies.
Thomas is also an avid music educator, having taught private lessons for 15+ years and at various music camps around the country, notably as a staff member of Augusta Heritage Center’s “Classic Country Week” for 9 years and running. www.thomasbryaneaton.com
Miss Tess
Miss Tess has been leading her own band, performing, and touring professionally for the last decade. She currently lives in Nashville, making a living as a singer, songwriter, guitarist, and bassist. Tess specializes in writing and playing American roots music influenced by styles of country, blues, and swing.
With a decade’s worth of US & European tours and multiple full length releases under her belt, Miss Tess has proven to be one of the more interesting acts on the blossoming Americana scene. Her eclectic taste steeped in her deep well of musical knowledge results in her own timeless sound that continues to fascinate music lovers. Over the years she has shared the stage with the likes of Lake Street Dive, NRBQ, The Holmes Brothers, Eilen Jewell, and Todd Snider. Her band has graced stages at Blissfest, Cayamo, Clearwater Jazz Holiday, Floydfest, Ossippee Valley Music Festival, Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion, Burlington Jazz Festival, Green River Festival, Red Wing Roots, Shakori Hills, and more. Miss Tess’s music has been heard from coast to coast on taste maker programs such as XM/Sirius’s The Loft, NPR’s Folk Alley, Santa Cruz’s KPIG and Boston’s WUMB. Her newest album "Baby, We All Know" lived in the top 20 on the Americana Charts for six weeks. www.misstessmusic.com
Chris Miller
“The Chris Miller” - as he is affectionately referred to - could not imagine his life without Miles of Music Camp. Chris plays a variety of instruments (banjo, clarinet, dobro, flute, t’fer), but it’s his captivating saxophone style that has brought him around the world and earned him a GRAMMY nomination with his band The Revelers (2016 Best Regional Roots Music). His versatility and sunny disposition have also earned him gigs with A.C Newman, Doug Wamble, John Mailander and many more. At time of print Chris defines 'home' as Lopez Island, Washington and splits his time between the Revelers and his recently named acoustic trio The Faux Paws. www.chrismillersax.com
Elizabeth Ziman
Elizabeth Ziman, who performs as Elizabeth and the Catapult, is a critically acclaimed singer/songwriter from New York, living and working in Brooklyn. She's toured with the likes of Sara Bareilles, Kishi Bashi and Esperanza Spalding, recorded with Gillian Welch, Blake Mills and Ben Folds; scored, with Paul Brill, a variety of international award-winning documentaries including Trapped, a Peabody winner; and won the 2015 Independent Music Award for Songwriting, in the Folk category. Her songs have been featured in national television campaigns for Google, Amazon, Sky TV, and "So You Think You Can Dance". Her latest record "Keepsake" was produced by Dan Molad (Lucius) and the late Richard Swift.
Taylor Ashton
Born in the last year of the 1980s, Taylor Ashton grew up surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and the old growth rainforests of Canada's west coast. His songs are inspired by the crooked primeval funk of traditional old-time music, the humor and heartbreak of Randy Newman, the cosmic emotionality of mid-career Joni Mitchell, and the sage vulnerability of Bill Withers. Somehow, he finds a way to make this all work on the clawhammer banjo.
He spent most of late teens and early 20s as the frontman of Vancouver-based five-piece Fish & Bird, releasing four albums of heady progressive folk. In the past few years he has increasingly spent his days in New York City. His most recent release finds him swapping songs with Grammy-nominated songwriter and guitarist Courtney Hartman, on the pair's 2018 duo album "Been On Your Side". The album is an acoustic, stripped-down affair, which Rolling Stone had to admit, "packs a punch in today's mainstream".
After well over a decade of varied and fruitful collaborations, Taylor is excited to finally release his debut solo recording in 2019. Keep your ears peeled...taylorashton.com
Hannah Read
Hailing from Scotland and now based in Brooklyn, Hannah Read is a versatile multi-instrumentalist widely recognised on the International stage. She’s best known for her fiddle playing, songwriting and was recently described as one of “the finest singers of the day” in the UK’s MOJO Magazine. Hannah leads her own band and is an in-demand collaborator on both sides of the Atlantic, including one part of the critically acclaimed British folk super-group ‘Songs of Separation’, winners of ‘Album of the Year’ at the 2017 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. Her original songs are largely influenced by the people, places and landscapes she has encountered along the way, as well as musings of home, travel, love and loss - as can be heard on her critically acclaimed new album Way Out I’’ll Wander (Hudson Records) which is compiled of "nine gorgeous originals” (The Guardian). www.hannahread.com
Valerie Thompson
Originally from Kansas City, Valerie Thompson grew up as a classical cellist in a household filled with the music of Bach, The Beatles, The Chieftains and the blues. She holds a B.M. from the Berklee College of Music and M.M in Contemporary Improvisation from New England Conservatory.
A cellist versatile in many genres, she performs nationally and internationally as a cultural ambassador for the U.S. State Department, in rock bands, string quartets, and chamber folk ensembles in venues ranging from concert halls, festivals, farmers' markets and music clubs. She currently tours with Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards and Goli, and can be seen in the 100th episode of Gossip Girl. www.valeriethompson.com
Charlie Rose
Having played and studied many instruments with many people in many places for many years, Charlie Rose has accumulated a cache of musicianship to share with students of all levels. He keeps pretty busy touring, recording, writing, and producing. Primarily a pedal steel and banjo player, Charlie also plays guitar, bass, mandolin, cello, keys, and brass instruments. A long-standing regular in the Sub Rosa 3 Mile Island songwriting community and guest artist/sailing enthusiast at Miles of Music, Charlie is excited to be back at camp this year!
Dinty Child
Besides being the off-season manager of Three Mile Island, Dinty Child is a longtime member of the Boston roots/folk scene. A fearless multi-instrumentalist he can most often be seen with the band Session Americana, as well as the Chandler Travis Philharmonic, the unapologetically loud and grimy Catbirds, as sensitive side man to any number of singer/songwriters, including Rose Cousins and Kris Delmhorst, and even fronting the 15 piece party band, the Funky White Honkies. www.sessionamericana.com/
Dietrich Strause
Dietrich Strause’s songs are a mix of timeless melody, literate lyricism, and a "virtuosic command of imagery.” (The Artery, WBUR) In less than one year, Strause released two albums -- How Cruel That Hunger Binds and Dietrich Strause & The Blue Ribbons -- proving himself to be one of the most prolific and eclectic writers and performers coming out of New England.
His blend of mid-century modern pop and atomic-age folk has drawn comparisons to M. Ward and a young Paul Simon and has garnered him invitations to support folk luminaries such as Anais Mitchell and Sarah Jarosz, to indie pop acts like Great Lake Swimmers and Lake Street Dive. This fall he spent three months living in London and touring extensively throughout the UK & Ireland by train and foot, writing material for his next release. More information can be found at www.dietrichstrause.com.
Rennie Elliot
Rennie Elliot is a singer, banjo player and drummer who spends her time between Brooklyn, Nashville & Austin. She loves to play everything from old time, country, cajun, mariachi, punk, & viper jazz in such bands as Woody Pines, Kings County Queens, Wild Angles & The Yeah Yeah Yeahs. She also works professionally in video production, tv commercials and film, as well as puts on camps and festivals. Rennie would love to help you get you started on drums, banjo, singing or video making. www.rennieelliot.com