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Forrest O'Connor

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Forrest O'Connor (born April 1, 1988 in Nashville, Tennessee) is an American singer-songwriter, mandolinist, and entrepreneur. He is the son of violin virtuoso and composer Mark O'Connor.[1]

Early life

O'Connor grew up in Nashville, Tennessee. His father, Mark O'Connor, was a country session fiddler during the first few years of his life, giving the younger O'Connor firsthand exposure to many of the leading figures in the country music scene, such as Dolly Parton, Marty Stuart, Emmylou Harris, Bela Fleck, Jerry Douglas, and Sam Bush. In 2000, he moved with his mother, Suzanne, to Missoula, Montana, where he picked up the mandolin. As a student at Hellgate High School, he wrote for his local newspaper, The Missoulian, and placed second in a national journalism competition. He graduated in 2006 from Hellgate High School as his class valedictorian.[2]

That fall, O'Connor enrolled at Harvard College. As a sophomore, he co-founded a short-lived progressive bluegrass band called The Hay Brigade, which performed on Public Radio International's The World[3] and WGBH's A Celtic Sojourn.[4] John Lawless of Bluegrass Today praised The Hay Brigade for possessing a "stunning level of virtuosity and a fine sense of the appropriate mix of improvisation and melody when it comes to folk-derived music."[5] As an undergraduate, O'Connor was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa and awarded a Thomas T. Hoopes Prize for his senior thesis on F-5 mandolin design.[6] He graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in sociomusicology.[7]

Career

In summer 2010, O'Connor co-founded Concert Window, Inc. with former Hay Brigade bandmate Dan Gurney.[8] Concert Window has webcasted more than 2,000 concerts from 15 venues around the country, and it has been featured in TechCrunch,[9] The Boston Herald,[10] Complex,[11] Evolver.fm,[12] TechHive,[13] and BostInnovation.[14]

O'Connor began singing in 2011 and has performed as a vocalist and mandolinist with Mark O'Connor, Melissa Ferrick, Cia Adkisson (formerly of the band Cherryholmes), and Carrie Rodriguez.[15] He appeared on Ferrick's album The Truth Is (June 2013).[16]

In July 2013, he released his debut EP, Wisewater.[17]

References

  1. ^ "Acclaimed violinist Mark O'Connor to take chill out of Hamilton winter".
  2. ^ "MCPS High, Middle Schools Plan Graduation".
  3. ^ "The Hay Brigade".
  4. ^ "A Celtic Sojourn Presents: The Boston Sessions, Number Two".
  5. ^ "The Hay Brigade".
  6. ^ "Interview: Forrest O'Connor, Musician and Entrepreneur".
  7. ^ "Bluegrass educates with sound of music".
  8. ^ "Concert Window".
  9. ^ "Concert Window, The Netflix for Live Concerts, Gives Fans a New, Mobile-Friendly Venue on the Web".
  10. ^ "The best seat in the house".
  11. ^ "Concert Window Is Like the Netflix of Streaming Shows".
  12. ^ "Concert Window: Live Music In Your Home".
  13. ^ "Bands build brands and fans by streaming shows".
  14. ^ "Concert Window Streams Live Concerts for Free: A Story of Two Starving Musicians".
  15. ^ "Grammy-winning violinist joins Philharmonic holiday show".
  16. ^ "Melissa Ferrick: Interview".
  17. ^ "Official website for Forrest O'Connor".

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