Mary Halvorson | Artist
Mary Halvorson is an American avant-garde jazz guitarist born 1980 in Brookline, Massachusetts. Halvorson began her musical education on violin but began playing guitar after discovering Jimi Hendrix. She first picked up electric guitar at the age of Eleven in seventh grade. At Wesleyan University she began studying biology, but dropped her major after sitting in on one of saxophonist Anthony Braxton's music classes. A prodigious recording artist, Halvorson recorded her debut album in 2008, along with two other albums that same year, including the excellent Dragon's Head, with the Mary Halvorson Trio. As well as leading her own ensembles (Trio, Quartet, Quintet, Septet and Octet) she is a frequent collaborator with other leading jazz artists, and a permanent member of several other groups including Thumbscrew, Illegal Crowns and Map. To-date Halvorson has released 26 solo, ensemble and collaboration albums, plus many more with her side-projects. Highlights include Dragon's Head, Saturn Sings, Illusionary Sea, Away With You, Code Girl and Artlessly Falling. Also well worth exploring are the Thumbscrew albums; Ours, Theirs and Never is Enough. Although Halvorson is often categorized as a jazz guitarist, her music includes elements of many other genres, such as flamenco, rock, noise, and psychedelia. In 2017, 2018, and 2019 Halvorson won Best Guitar in Downbeat's International Critics Poll. In 2019, she was awarded a MacArthur "Genius" Grant for music.
Artist Website: maryhalvorson.com
Featured Albums: Mary Halvorson
Related Artists: Code Girl, Mary Halvorson Trio, Mary Halvorson Quartet, Mary Halvorson Quintet, Mary Halvorson Septet, Mary Halvorson Octet
Video Clips: Interview, Tiny Desk Concert, Code Girl
