BIO
I began playing folk music in my teens, and have scarcely stopped since then -- well, except to go to work or pick up groceries and stuff like that. Drawing inspiration from the folk revival in Ireland and the UK, I've focused largely on music from the English, Irish and Scottish traditions: songs and tunes heard from various musicians and singers or found in books or other publications, sometimes tinkered with to suit my particular needs, abilities and whims.
My approach to guitar – such as my use of DADGAD tuning or my syncopated thumb-picking – reflects a lot of contemporary styles that flourished in the US and elsewhere during the folk revival. I also play bouzouki and tenor banjo, with occasional flailing at mandolin, bodhran and Anglo concertina. In addition to appearing as a soloist, I am part of the duo Mrs. Wilberforce with Kyra Davies. My other major collaborations include Ceol Corvus, with Emily Peterson and Steve Levy, and in a duo with Colleen White.
I once spent a year in the UK and Ireland, during which I went out to numerous folk clubs, festivals and sessions, soaking up all the music and zeitgeist of the folk revival. Since moving to Boston in 1981, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to meet, and play music with, many talented, affable and downright brilliant people. I've appeared at various events and venues in Greater Boston and beyond, including Club Passim, The Burren Backroom Series, Gore Place Carriage House Series, Boston Celtic Music Fest, notloB Concert Series, New England Folk Festival Association, Dorchester Irish Heritage Festival, Boston Irish Festival, Open Book Coffeehouse, Newton Festival of the Arts, The Bebop, The Press Room, The Wayside Inn, Oasis Coffeehouse, Nameless Coffeehouse, Boston College Arts Festival and J.P. O'Hanlon's Pub.
Contact me at:
seansmithmusic@yahoo.com
MUSIC
•I have solo albums, and a couple with Colleen White, available for listening and free download on Bandcamp.
•My Soundcloud includes recordings with Ceol Corvus and Colleen White, my “Steadfast Sessions” project, and some miscellaneous tracks.
•I made a pair of YouTube series, “Feeling@Home” and “Music@Morn.”
•I appeared on the album “Land of My Youth: American Piping in the Scottish Tradition,” by Mark Cushing and Donald Lindsay, originally released in 1981 by Front Hall Records and reissued as a CD in 2016 by Donald.