Harpeth Rising
Biographies
Billed as an “Americana Sensation” by WSM 650, this group of young classically trained musicians is making an immense impact wherever they play. The quartet brings an exciting and distinctive sound to the Americana genre." With a banjo and fiddle, you might think they’re traditional bluegrass, but think again: cello and hand drums round out the group, creating a truly new sound. A little bit bluegrass, a little bit folk, a little bit classical and whole lot of original, Harpeth Rising is a band to watch.
”An Americana Sensation” – WSM 650
“The future of original string music…” Keith Harrelson, Moonlight on the Mountain
“Harpeth Rising, warm, honest and true music by four exquisite musicians.” Peter Zeijl, Folk En Zo
Harpeth Rising recently returned from a tour of the UK, where they were acclaimed as “absolutely fabulous”, “brilliant” and “…some of the best three-part harmonies we’ve heard…” They were invited to return to play the prestigious Cambridge Folk Festival in Summer 2011. This year they were voted ‘Best Local Band’ in Nashville, Tennessee, appeared on the critically acclaimed shows “Music City Roots,” and “Nashville Traditions” and completed successful US tours of the Midwest, South, and Northeast. The ensemble’s debut album was released in 2010, and is available on iTunes and at live shows.
A native of Ontario, Canada, Jordana Greenberg began her violin studies at the age of 8 at Indiana University. She has performed as a soloist in the United States, Canada, France, Japan, and throughout South and Central America. Following her solo performance at 17 years of age with the Indiana University Symphony Orchestra music critic Peter Jacobi wrote: “…what excitement she brought to the hall…what feats of magic she already managed to shape as she moved through all the intricacies of the piece, seemingly unfazed by the challenges…” Through her classical training combined with a childhood surrounded by bluegrass musicians in rural Indiana, Jordana has developed a truly unique "crossover" style of playing and songwriting. She has performed in Carnegie Recital Hall, played a concert as a special guest of Ziggy Marley at the Maui Arts and Cultural Center, and has soloed with numerous orchestras. In addition to her solo performances and touring with Harpeth Rising, she currently teaches at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, KY, where she lives with her husband David and their menagerie of five hounddogs and three cats.
Rebecca Reed-Lunn was born in Davis, California and grew up listening to Beethoven, Mahler, and Bob Dylan. She began taking piano lessons and composing classical music at the age of six, and studied several instruments before deciding to pursue the viola at Indiana University Bloomington. The summer after finishing her degree, Jordana invited Rebecca to attend a bluegrass festival in her hometown of Paoli, Indiana. Rebecca bought a banjo a week later, and began teaching herself traditional clawhammer style (by watching youtube) while in graduate school. The following year, as Jordana and Rebecca went on a cross country roadtrip and moved to Hawaii, Rebecca discovered her own style of banjo playing by infusing clawhammer style with other strumming techniques such as those used on ukulele and spanish guitar. She continues to reinvent her banjo playing and songwriting, while also teaching violin and viola lessons, at her home in Nashville, TN.
Chris Burgess was born and raised in Louisville, KY. He earned his Bachelors of Music at Indiana University, where he studied with Anthony Cirone and Gerry Carlyss. At Indiana Chris discovered his interest in ethnic music and instruments from around the world, which he incorporates in the style of Harpeth Rising. He then continued on to The Boston Conservatory for his Masters of Music, studying with Keith Aleo, Nancy Zeltsman, David Herbert and John Grimes. While in Boston, Chris was a founding member of the Davis Foundation Peace Project Grant winner MuizikoMonda ensemble, which educated young people about cultural tolerance through common traits in music. Chris now lives in Memphis with his wife Ruth, and in addition to writing and performing with Harpeth Rising is a freelance percussionist and Artist in Residence at Memphis Drum Shop.
Born in Brooklyn, Maria Di Meglio studies and performs a wide variety of musical styles. As a classically trained cellist, she has also given acclaimed performances of Latin American, Contemporary and Traditional folk music, of both America and Eastern Europe. Her performances have taken her around the United States and Europe, from the stages of local folk festivals to Carnegie Hall. She began her studies at the age of 8 at her local elementary school's music program, later continuing her pre-college studies at the Manhattan School of Music with Marion Feldman. In addition to performing with Harpeth Rising, Maria is currently finishing her Master's Degree at Indiana University, studying with Peter Stumpf and serving as Associate Instructor of cello. While at Indiana University, she also completed her Pilates certification through the department of Kinesology, and presides as the in-house instructor for Harpeth Rising.
