Tom Bekeny
Photo By: Irene Young
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Tom Bekeny (mandolin, vocals) has been playing and singing with Kathy since 1996. He remains among the most adventurous mandolinists in the music, creating thrilling solos as well as solid backup by using influences ranging from his thorough grounding in blues to his mastery of Jesse McReynolds’ “split string” technique with nods to Monroe, Burns, Wakefield, and hisownself along the way. Tom is a veteran of Laurie Lewis & Grant Street and Done Gone, and has appeared with Tony Trischka, Steve Goodman, Jethro Burns, Peter Rowan, David Grisman, Jody Stecher, Jerry Garcia, David Nelson, Phil Lesh, Banana, Sharon Gilchrist, Scott Law, and gypsy jazz guitarist George Cole. He has played fiddle for High Country, the west coast’s premier traditional bluegrass band, since 1988. Tom also currently plays mandolin in two straight-ahead jazz trios, The Missing Man Quartet and the Jazz Hands. For the last 9 years, he has played with Bill Evans’ all-star trad ‘grass jam band, Bangers & Grass, and fronts his own bluegrass band, Tom Bekeny and Friends. He has released both a mandolin instruction DVD and a highly-regarded CD of jazz standards titled Jazzolin.
Tom is also an experienced teacher, giving private lessons on mandolin and fiddle, and as part of music camps including the California Bluegrass Association Music Camp, Camp He Ho Ha (Alberta, Canada), Nimblefingers (BC, Canada), Haapavesi Folk Music Festival (Finland), and Walker Creek Music Camp (California). |
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DISCOGRAPHY (in addition to KKB and Cut To the Chase):
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Photo by: Jon Sievert
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