Muriel Anderson
| Muriel Anderson | |
|---|---|
| Born |
1960 Downers Grove, Illinois, U.S. |
| Genres | Classical, folk, bluegrass, flamenco |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Guitar, harp-guitar |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Labels | CGD |
| Website |
www |
Muriel Anderson (born 1960) is an American fingerstyle guitarist and harp guitarist who plays in many genres. She is the first female to win the National Fingerpicking Guitar Championship.
Biography
Muriel Anderson was born in Downers Grove, Illinois, and is of Finnish descent: her great grandparents had emigrated to the United States from Finland.[1] Her grandfather played saxophone in the John Philip Sousa band. She learned piano as a child. When she was 8, she was given a guitar from a family friend who was going to throw it away. In her early teens she took lessons at Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago. In high school she was a member of the jazz band and a bluegrass band, which she helped create, that performed locally through her college years. She attended DePaul University on an academic scholarship. At DePaul she took mandolin lessons from Jethro Burns, brother-in-law of Chet Atkins. Burns introduced her to Atkins, who became a lifelong friend and mentor. She took master classes with classical guitar virtuoso Christopher Parkening.[2]
Anderson is founder of the All Star Guitar Night, which donates its money to the Music for Life Alliance, a charity she founded. Her music can be heard in Woody Allen's film, Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Her album Heartstrings accompanied astronauts on the space shuttle Discovery.[3]
Her double CD, "Nightlight Daylight" won top honors in 11 national and international awards. It is the first CD to use interactive fiber optics in the packaging, her concept (first registered with the PTO in 2005).[4]
With the German duo Tierra Negra she recorded New World Flamenco.[5]
Anderson has released more than a dozen solo albums and teaching DVDs through Truefire and Homespun, and guitar books published by Hal Leonard, Mel Bay, and Zen-On Japan. Her compositions include commissioned classical works for the Nashville Chamber Orchestra and Vox Caelestis Women's Choir, as well title tracks for three albums by various artists. Muriel Anderson is a member of the advisory board for Mel Bay Publications.
Discography
 Anderson on Music for Life July 16, 2009, NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) Oral History Library] |
- 1989 Heartstrings (CGD)
- 1991 Arioso from Paris (CGD)
- 1993 Hometown Live! (CGD)
- 1995 A Little Christmas Gift (CGD)
- 1995 Le Duet (with Jean-Felix LaLanne) (Rarefied)
- 1998 Christmas in Nashville (Nippon Crown)
- 1999 Theme for Two Friends (CGD)
- 2000 Music for Life (CGD)
- 2001 Guitar Muse (Crown)
- 2002 Journey Through Time (CGD)
- 2003 Uncut Gems (with Phil Keaggy) (CGD)
- 2003 New Classics for Guitar and Cello (Valley Entertainment)
- 2006 Wildcat (CGD)
- 2008 Harp Guitar Christmas (CGD)
- 2009 New World Flamenco (with Tierra Negra) (CD Baby/Tierra Negra OHG)
- 2010 Harp Guitars Under the Stars (with John Doan) (CDG)
- 2014 Nightlight/Daylight (CGD)
Compilations
- Guitar Fingerstyle (Narada, 1997)
- Guitar Fingerstyle II (Narada, 2001)
- La Guitara (Vanguard, 2005)
- Beyond Six Strings (Harp Guitar, 2010)
- Further Beyond Six Strings (Harp Guitar, 2011)
- Christmas Present (Harp Guitar, 2011)
Video
Concert DVDs
- Muriel Anderson's All Star Guitar Night (Homespun, 1996)
- Muriel Anderson's All Star Guitar Night 2000 (Homespun 2002)
- Muriel Anderson's All Star Guitar Night 10th Anniversary (Mel Bay, 2004)
- One Camera One Concert (Snapshot, 2004)
- Muriel Anderson Live in Europe (CGD, 2006)
Instructional DVDs
- Building Guitar Arrangements (CGD, 1994)
- Adventures in Fingerstyle Guitar:Techniques & Arrangements of Muriel Anderson (Homespun, 1997)
- Great Guitar Lessons (Homespun, 2001)
- Innovations for Acoustic Guitar (TrueFire, 2009)
- 10 Lessons (TrueFire, 2010)
- Fingerstyle Guitar Essentials: Arranging in D (TrueFire, 2010)
- 50 Right Hand Techniques You Must Know (TrueFire, 2011)
- 1-2-3 Fingerstyle (TrueFire, 2012)
- Essentials Fingerstyle (TrueFire, 2014)
- Essentials Fingerstyle, Chet Atkins Style (TrueFire, 2016)
Books
- Chord Constellations (Creative Concepts, 1990)
- Building Guitar Arrangements Book/CD (Hal Leonard, 1994)
- All Chords in All Positions (Hal Leonard, 1996)
- Muriel Anderson Hometown Live (Mel Bay, 1998)
- All Scales in All Positions (Hal Leonard, 2000)
- Hometown Live Songbook (Zen-On, 2000)
- Selected Guitar Works (Zen-On, 2000)
Compilation books
- Winfield Winners Songbook/CD (John August/Mel Bay, 1995)
- Portraits of Christmas Songbook/CD (John August/Mel Bay, 1996)
- Blues 2000 (Mel Bay, 2000)
- Fingerstyle Guitar Solos (Mel Bay, 2000)
- Remembering Marcel (Mel Bay, 2001)
References
- ↑ FINNISH-AMERICAN MURIEL ANDERSON ALWAYS LONGED FOR A HARP GUITAR Culture for Friends
- ↑ Edwards Gehrt, Vicky (4 September 1994). "A Guitar Picker's Guitar Picker". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
- ↑ "Strings of Her Heart". Retrieved 2015-10-04.
- ↑ /
- ↑ d'Souza, Jerry (11 February 2010). "CD/LP Review: New World Flamenco". All About Jazz. Retrieved 5 October 2010.