For those of you who are first timers, hello, and welcome to my web site. For you old-timers, I hope you enjoy the new ‘Art Deco’ look of the site. My web designer (guitarist extraordinaire) Lonnie Knight has worked deep into the night past his bedtime curfew (even on weekends) to redesign my site. I think he has done an excellent job. I believe the new look was inspired by Spring fever, which came very unexpectedly (for Minnesota) at the end of February. Spring has been in full swing since then to the end of April. The flowers are at least a month ahead of time. I went to a few Minnesota Twins games at the new outdoor Target Field (if you build it, they will come) and if you love baseball, and I do, the park is to die for. Everything was looking great going into May, then on May 7th the snow came again. It’s been cold and rainy ever since. Snow on May 7th? Welcome to Minnesota!

Anyway, at least I got my onions and potatoes planted before the snow and they’re just starting to poke out of the ground. I’m now wondering when I should plant the tomatoes…

It’s been a good year although I didn’t tour as much as I have in previous years due to the economy. The economy seems to be picking up a bit so hopefully I’ll be coming your way soon to do a few shows.

A few highlights from the past year are as follows. Last Summer “My precious”(To quote Gollum) mandolin built by Peter White, Ken Keppeler, and myself, died on me when the top caved in. This instrument was my workhorse, my best buddy, and the instrument that changed my whole approach to mandolin playing. Was I distraught? I went temporarily insane, until as if a gift from the Gods, a new mandolin appeared at my door, a Lyon & Healey circa 1930, a very sweet beauty with a distinctive voice. It didn’t replace “My precious” but became my new best buddy. I sent “My precious” to Peter White who lives in New Mexico to see if he could do anything with it. Lo and behold 5 months later a miracle happened. Like Lazarus back from the dead, Peter White delivered “My precious” to my front door. It had a new top, a new color and a slightly different voice, but still that deep warm tone that changed my music forever. I was a happy fellow. Well, as happy as a fellow “built low to the ground for picking potatoes” can be. Speaking of being “low to the ground,” Peter White (who is also “built low to the ground”) delivered the mandolin just in time for me to play it on my annual Heartland Holiday concert in December. Always one of my favorite concerts to do every year, this year was special for me because my daughter Anna became officially “built low to the ground for picking potatoes” when she sang Christmas carols in Ukrainian for the first time on stage. I must say, I was in Tubular Bliss!

I was invited last June to teach at the Mandolin Symposium in Santa Cruz California. It’s a weeklong camp devoted to the mandolin. It was a great honor to be asked and I was quite blown away by not only the other instructors but also the level of the students. It was an intense experience and the best mandolin playing I’ve ever heard in my life. I highly recommend this camp for any serious student of the mandolin. This past year I also reconnected with some of my favorite collaborators from the past for some concerts and recording projects. The always-amazing Irish guitarist Daithi Sproule and I did a few concerts together and also some recording. Dirk Freymuth moved back to Minnesota from California and we’ve done a few gigs together and will also do a little recording in the near future. Recently I’ve done a few concerts with Dan Chouinard on keyboards and gypsy jazz guitarist Sam Miltich. Those gigs are especially fun for me because between those two guys I can choose to play any kind of music I want to, and usually do! I also continue to perform with my long time friend Danny Gotham from Chapel Hill North Carolina. We did some recording together a few months back. I played on a new project for him and, he reciprocated on a recording of mine for a future release. Filmmaker Ken Burns once again honored my music this past fall. He used a lot of it on his film “National Parks: Americas Great Idea.” I’ve received lots of comments from people who saw the series, and I thank you for all the kind words about my music.

I recently decided to join the faculty at one of the oldest and most respected music schools in Minnesota, The MacPhail Center For Music. I teach fiddle, mandolin, and improvisation. I’m very excited about this new direction in my life and if you would like to learn more about my teaching at MacPhail, click onto the ‘Lessons’ page.

Finally, I have a new CD that just came out entitled “When The Last Morning Glory Blooms” on the Red House Records label. It is an album of mostly original waltzes that I’ve gotten many requests for. I toyed briefly with the idea of naming the CD “Nine Waltzes and a Ballad” which technically it is, but that title didn’t convey the beauty of the music so I named it after one of the tunes on the CD. The music is very piano driven so my two favorite piano players Dan Chouinard and Richie Dworsky are all over it. Also, I recorded one of my favorite waltzes of all time “The Nine Years Waltz” written by my old friend and mentor, Norman Blake. Most special to me was having Norman and his wife Nancy record the tune with me. I also recorded a waltz that I wrote in honor of one of my fiddle heroes, Johnny Gimble. A tune called “Memories of Tyler Texas." I went down to Texas to record the tune with Johnny and his son Dick Gimble. Another great honor for me. I hope you check out the new CD. You won't be disappointed.

Last but not least, a few things coming up on the horizon. In July and August after a one-year hiatus I will be back playing live music for the Circus Juventas Summer show “Saw Dust." I hope to see you in Saint Paul under the big top. Also in August I will be recording a CD with Scottish legend Archie Fisher for the Red House label. I can hardly wait...

That’s it for now. The Twins are playing the Red Sox and I have to go cheer the home team on.