Mark Simos

The musical imagination of Mark Simos weaves a lifetime love of many traditions into innovative musical forms. As songwriter and composer, fiddler, ‘tunesmith,’ and guitar and piano accompanist, Mark draws on long apprenticeship in a wide variety of genres—Irish, Southern old-time, New England, Quebeçois, bluegrass, and Klezmer among others—creating a musical language grounded in traditional forms, yet uniquely his own.



"Mark Simos is a remarkable songwriter. He's one of those rare people who knows what words sound good together, and his lyrics are just as unique as his melodies. I never stop being amazed at his songs, and I'm never surprised that I love another one." — Alison Krauss

Mark Simos is steadily building a reputation as a premiere 'new traditionalist' songwriter. Mark's signature style, combining finely crafted lyrics with surprising turns of melody, harmony, and phrasing, has caught the ear of some of the most respected artists in bluegrass, Celtic and contemporary folk genres. (John Rossbach calls Mark "… a master at avoiding clichés in genres built on them.") His more than 30 song cuts to date include four songs recorded by Americana supergroup Alison Krauss & Union Station (AKUS), as well as covers by Laurie Lewis and Tom Rozum, Kate Brislin and Jody Stecher, the Del McCoury Band, the Wayfaring Strangers, Valerie Smith and Liberty Pike, and other progressive acoustic artists. AKUS released Mark's "Find My Way Back to My Heart" as the first single and video from their 1997 So Long, So Wrong (RIAA Gold), and included a new live performance of his "Take Me For Longing" on their latest Live CD and upcoming DVD.

Mark has just released an album of his own songs, Crazy Faith (Devachan Music CD4347), produced by master old time fiddler Bruce Molsky, and featuring Bruce, Tom Rozum, Sally Van Meter, Ronnie Simpkins and other great players. Songwriter Bob Franke calls Mark "an artist who has spent enough time with traditional music to learn its spiritual as well as its musical lessons, and to use that learning to forge an art that is at once timeless and utterly contemporary."

Tunesmithery

Mark's original songs and tunes draw strongly on a long apprenticeship in varied traditional idioms—Celtic, Southern old time, bluegrass, and Quebecóis, among others—as guitar accompanist, fiddler, 'tunesmith,' composer and arranger. Mark’s original fiddle tunes, waltzes, and other ‘traditional music from imaginary countries’ have delighted and bemused listeners, fellow musicians and dance communities at home and abroad for nearly three decades, and have been recorded by traditional bands such as Childsplay, the Hillbillies From Mars, Laurie Andres, and the American Cafe Orchestra. Mark’s debut solo album, Race the River Jordan (Yodel-Ay-Hee CD017), a collection of original fiddle tunes in a mostly Southern old-time vein, garnered great critical acclaim and frequent radio play on traditional music programs.

"My favorite almost all-instrumental album of the 1990s… Simos provides not just exciting new music that uses elements of traditional music; his work continues and gives back to the tradition. … Campground tunes for the 21st century…" — Art Menius, Bluegrass Unlimited

Mark has been a member of Childsplay (a group of fiddlers playing instruments made by Cambridge violin-maker Robert Childs) for the past fifteen years. Mark’s ‘orchestral fiddle music’ compositions have become signature pieces for the band, and have been featured as incidental music on NPR’s "All Things Considered." Mark also composed the score for Twitch and Shout, Laurel Chiten's award-winning documentary on Tourette's Syndrome. The soundtrack features Mark on keyboards, Matt Glaser on fiddle and Julie Durrell on cello.

Dance Fiddling and Teaching

Mark recently took 1st place in OldTime Fiddle in the 2003 Appalachian Music contest at Clifftop, WV. Mark has fiddled and ivory-pounded for contra dances, square dances, English country dancing, Morris dancers and midnight waltzathons; and has instructed the unwary in fiddling, guitar and piano accompaniment, tunewriting and songwriting, and strange theories of modal harmony, at dances, private workshops, festivals, and fiddle and dance weeks such as Pinewoods, Ashokan, Lark in the Morning, Centrum Festival of American Fiddle Tunes, Fiddlehead, and Lady of the Lake.

Mark is an enthusiastic, inspired and inspiring teacher, writer and ‘modal philosopher.’ He has taught classes in accompaniment, songwriting, fiddling and ‘tunesmithery’ at private workshops, festivals, music and dance camps, and most recently, at classes at the Club Passim School of Folk Music.


… a quick note about one of the positive day-to-day life impacts it's made. After Class One, I was impressed by the careful thought you put into the exercises: the circle game was fun and challenging. After Class Three, I realize that the effect is cumulative — the exercises are drop-dead practical, in that they play out the meaning of the philosophical lesson, and resonate in the assignments and the long term. Practicing them changes the day-to-day way I hear and process poetry and music. Naming is power! Thank you for teaching me practical new ways to Hear, Notate, Appreciate, and Craft song-seeds. It's all very useful and validating. — Passim student, "Calling Down the Well" class

Traditional Irish Music Accompaniment

Mark is one of the most respected guitar accompanists for traditional Celtic music in the United States, known for his inventive and subtle chord movement, varied textures and tunings. A veteran of the seminal ‘70s Irish music scene in California, Mark toured the United States as a member of Knock Na Shee, the first American band playing Irish music to record for the prestigious Shanachie label (Last Night's Fun, 1979). Since then, Mark has accompanied many great Irish traditional musicians of our day in concert and on record, most recently with New York-based fiddler Brian Conway.

"Simos approaches Irish music in a way that I've never heard any other guitarist attempt, finding rhythmic accents where no other explorer has dared venture, and applying harmony that owes as much to avant-garde jazz as to the three-chord trick. And it all works magnificently." — Andy Cheyne, Folk Roots

"...one of my favorite guitar players in the genre of Irish music. His sensitivity and knack for finding workable and unique harmonies are legendary..." — All-Ireland button accordeon champion Billy McComiskey

"I know him best as an accompanist, and he is one of the finest I have ever heard; he always adds, always complements, always inspires the lead instrumentalist to greater heights. Irish music in America would not be the same without him." — Mick Moloney


http://www.devachan.com/Mark_Simos/Mark_Bio_Page.html