Fiddler and violinist Maura Shawn Scanlin is gaining notoriety across the country. Her playing, hailed for its inventiveness, fluidity, and tone, brings together influences from her Classical background as well as the Celtic and American music traditions she grew up with. Touring actively, Maura performs regularly with Rakish, Rasa String Quartet, and has shared the stage with many cornerstone musicians in the Celtic music world including Seamus Egan, Maeve Gilchrist, and Hanneke Cassel. Maura is a 2-time U.S. National Scottish Fiddle Champion, a Glenfiddich Fiddle Champion, and is touring for the first time under her own name, following the release of her debut full-length solo album, released in May 2023. Maura holds a M.M. in Violin Performance from the Yale School of Music, and a B.M. from the New England Conservatory. She attended the University of North Carolina School of the Arts for High School. Her classical music collaborations have led her to the Osaka International Quartet Competition, Fischoff International Chamber Music Competition, the Yellow Springs Chamber Music Competition, and the Banff Chamber Music Residency.

Jeanne Johnson’s performances have been lauded by the press as “stunningly effusive,” and “delivered with gusto.” Her Baroque trio Music of the Spheres made its European debut at the 2006 Tage Alter Musik Festival in Regensburg, Germany, and was featured in the chamber music magazine Ensemble. In 2016, Centaur Records released Ms. Johnson’s recordings of violin works by Johann Jakob Walther and Jean-Fery Rebel with Eco dell’Anima. She has performed with Tafelmusik, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, Portland Baroque, Brandywine Baroque, Musica nel Chiostro (in Tuscany), the Carmel Bach Festival and the Atlanta Symphony. Ms. Johnson has served on the faculty of Clayton State University and has maintained a large private teaching studio for twenty years. She studied with James Buswell and Stanley Ritchie, receiving her bachelor’s degree in performance with honors from Indiana University and her master’s degree with distinction in performance and academics from New England Conservatory.

The Reel Sisters are a duo steeped in the musical tradition of Scottish harp and smallpipes. Rosalind and Kelly share lifetimes of experience in the traditional music community and the technical expertise of classical training. Compelling tunes combine with The Sisters’ approachable, lighthearted personalities to create a unique and intimate musical experience. The Reel Sisters’ music is uplifting, stirring, and just sweet fun.

Rosalind Buda holds a BMUS from the University of Iowa and a MM from New England Conservatory in Bassoon Performance. She has taught and performed throughout the US and Europe. She teaches and performs classical chamber and orchestral music and Celtic music in her in her home of Asheville, NC and throughout Western North Carolina. Keeping to the mountain tradition, Rosalind plays banjo for fun and enjoys contra dance.

Kelly Stewart holds a BMUS and a Masters Diploma in Harp Performance and Musicology from the University of North Wales. She has taught and performed throughout Europe and the US. Kelly lives in Atlanta where she maintains a large teaching studio and performs both classical and Celtic music. When she is not performing or teaching, she is homeschooling her son. You will often find them designing and conducting experiments. Is it science or food?!

www.reelsistersmusic.com

A versatile and engaging musician, Barbara Weiss’s diverse musical experiences range from recording and performing ancient classical Cambodian music to directing a baroque opera company to chairing a university’s early music program. Now an Asheville resident, Ms. Weiss has served on the faculty the Oberlin Conservatory and the Peabody Institute, and teaches at summer workshops, including the Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute and the Mountain Collegium Early Music Workshop, in Cullowhee, North Carolina. She has collaborated with the Newberry Consort, Quicksilver, Chatham Baroque, the Smithsonian Chamber Players, and the Chicago Opera, as well as recording has recorded on the Dorian and Harmonia Mundi labels.