Bryan Bowers

We had a fine time with Autoharp master Bryan Bowers in the 1998 festival. Likened to the impact made by Earl Scruggs on the five-string banjo, Bryan developed a new way of playing and tuning the multi-stringed instrument in the early 1970s and created new festival audiences for the instrument as well as a new generation of players. Part of the process is tuning strings in unison to create more resonant chords. More of it is the creative fire to get more music out of one instrument. If masterful playing weren't enough, Bryan also is a fine showman, a clever, dynamic solo artist who pulls his audiences into his performances.

A Virginia native, Bryan relocated to Seattle 30 years ago and began as a street musician. The Dillards introduced him at a bluegrass festival, and his dynamic playing went over very well. Bryan's repertoire reflects his appreciation by including some of the classic songs in the style. Bryan also retains some of the music he heard in his boyhood from field workers and railroad hands. The call-and-response form of the work song is one of Bryan's favorite ways to get an audience to sing.

Visit the Bryan Bowers web site.