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

10 years ago, James Paul Mitchell hopped off a tour van in Denver with nothing but a guitar, an amp, and a suitcase. It was here that he would gain expansive and diverse musical experience, eventually leading to his raw, atmospheric solo project. Carrying on the Grateful Dead legacy he performed with supergroup Imagine featuring Ray White (Frank Zappa) and Melvin Seals (Jerry Garcia Band), he studied North Indian classical music, produced a record for indie folk band called Cardinal and began dipping his toe into his own artistry. James eventually made Nashville his home base as a touring and recording musician, releasing Was Sad Before it Was Cool in August 2019. His next record album, Breakup Record, showcased a more personal, surrendered facet of his artistry. Varied and vulnerable, these songs - each made with a different producer - showcase James’ emotional specificity and descriptive storytelling that pulls the listener into their focal heartbeat. Against the backdrop of complementary, moody guitars, James pulls you into these places, circumstances and stories.

https://www.jamespaulmitchell.com

Over the last few years, musician, artist, and collaborator Nokosee Fields has proven himself to be one of the most provocative, significant, and capable voices in the North American traditional music scene. A quest for balance shapes his work, whether he’s reconciling the weight of tradition with his creative impulses; challenging the demands and vacuity of colonialist, capitalist structures and systems with the richness of his experience and upbringing as a member of the Osage, Creek and Cherokee Nations; or simply anchoring the beat in the rhythmic push and pull of the multiple bands in which he works.

Omar Ruiz-Lopez is a bilingual songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and co-founder of the original Americana group Violet Bell. Omar was born in Panama and raised in Puerto Rico with Spanish as his first language. His love of music began at an early age thanks to his father's frequent renditions of traditional Caribbean folk songs.

Omar is a composer at heart, and is experienced in music performance, production and engineering. The diversity of his own experience as a multi-genre musician and Latine immigrant helps him connect with diverse international audiences.

When not playing the fiddle or swinging a guitar around, he enjoys cooking, dog-petting and reading fantasy and fiction when life gets too heavy. If you see him talking to himself, don’t worry; he’s just working it out!

www.violetbell.net

Riley Calcagno is a fiddle, banjo, and guitar player, originally from Seattle, Washington. He grew up going to fiddle festivals and camps on the west coast, where he soaked up old-time music as he ran amongst jams and learned from older masters of the style. At age 7, he co-founded The Onlies, a stringband that is somehow still playing and performing together. In 2018, the band released a collaborative record with mentors and friends John Herrmann and Meredith McIntosh as the band The Ruglifters. Riley also plays in a duo with guitar player and singer, Vivian Leva. They released a critically acclaimed album of original songs on Free Dirt Records in 2021 and were named one of NPR Slingshot's Artists to Watch in 2022. Riley is an experienced teacher and has a passion and patience for passing along tradition and technique. He currently resides in Durham, North Carolina.

www.theonlies.com

Shane Leonard is a record producer, musician, mix engineer, and songwriter who lives in Eau Claire, WI. Equally at home in an indie rock band as he is in an old time stringband, those who work with Shane (Mipso, Field Report, Rose Cousins, Stray Birds, Larry Campbell) know him as a studio/live swiss army knife, helping their sound to evolve past previous benchmarks. NPR and Justin Vernon (Bon Iver) have praised his production with descriptors like "goosebumps inducing" (NPR Music), "a monster musician" (Justin Vernon) and "exquisite" (Paste Magazine). Anna Tivel, Humbird, J.E. Sunde and others have entrusted multiple albums to his care; they reside alongside multiple releases of his own music - the most recent being Strange Forms (2019).

www.shaneleonardmusic.com