Last Update: 7 February 2006
From the time she bought her first guitar at the age of 13, Barbara Martin has never been afraid to explore and experiment. She moved from the folk coffeehouse circuit in her native Iowa to the new-wave rock scene in Boston, to discovering her true love, blues and jazz, in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Her journey has taken her to festivals and concert venues throughout the United States and Europe, five recordings and critical acclaim from presenters and reviewers alike. She conducted workshops for the Highland County Schools on 16-17 May 2005.
Barbara offers an American history program, “From Ragtime to Rock and Roll,” for elementary school students. She and the students explore the blues from their birth in the Mississippi delta in the 1890s to the emergence of jazz during the Harlem Renaissance in the 1930s and beyond. Students discover the exciting improvisational elements of jazz and how blues can be used to express sadness, anger and frustration in our daily lives.
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Guitarist Mac Walter joined Barbara to help the Highland County Arts Council celebrate its 15th anniversary with a concert at The Highland Center on 12 November 2005.
Martin and Walter’s music is a rich stew of earthy blues peppered with sassy, swinging jazz. Their performances are rooted in a healthy respect for the traditions of American music from Josh White to Bessie Smith to Billie Holiday. Barbara Martin’s soulful voice and the bending, sliding strings of guitar wizard Mac Walter captivate audiences. For more information on Barbara Martin, visit her web site, barbaramartinmusic.com .