Bronwyn Keith-Hynes - Fiddler's Pastime (2020)

Fiddler’s Pastime (release date Sept. 4th) is the debut solo album that establishes fiddler Bronwyn Keith-Hynes as one of the most exciting bluegrass musicians of her generation. This powerful collection of original fiddle tunes and traditional songs features world renowned guest artists Sierra Hull, Tim O’Brien, Sarah Jarosz, Chris Eldridge, Laura Orshaw and James Kee. This debut showcases Bronwyn’s ability not only to effortlessly lead a band with her fiery, innovative and witty fiddling but to slip into the background in creative ways to support the other instrumentalists and guest singers who contribute to this stunning bluegrass album. Created with the help of producer and Sam Bush Band banjo player Wes Corbett, Fiddler’s Pastime is a celebration of her first year of living in Nashville, TN. “I moved here in 2018 and it’s been a really inspiring time in my life, being surrounded by this incredible music scene” Bronwyn says. "I felt like I had to make an album to capture some things I'm excited about right now.”

Keith-Hynes composed four of the instrumental tracks on Fiddler’s Pastime: the album’s bright kickoff, “Hendersonville Hop,” the fast, soaring fiddle/mandolin unison feature “Open Water,” the pensive and expressive “Michelle's Waltz” and the groovy “North Garden.” The two additional instrumentals on the album are a twin fiddle take on the classic Bill Monroe/Vassar Clements tune “Fiddler's Pastime” with Po Ramblin’ Boys fiddler Laura Orshaw, and a fiddle/banjo duet on old-time tune “Happy Hollow” with album producer Wes Corbett.

The vocal numbers feature a captivating series of guest singers: Tim O’Brien performs a new melody he wrote to the late 1800’s Thomas Moore poem, “The Minstrel Boy,” Sarah Jarosz offers a soulful version of Peter Rowan’s bluesy “Last Train,” Chris Eldridge sings John Hartford’s “Natchez Whistle” to a quiet trio of fingerpicked guitar, ghostly fiddle and sparse bass, and James Kee delivers two perfect bluegrass tracks in “Hello Trouble” (Orville Couch & Eddie McDuff) and “I Don’t Know Why” (Alton Delmore), with Tim O’Brien blending in perfectly on both with his effortless tenor harmony. Other musicians contributing to the album are producer Wes Corbett on banjo, Nashville bluegrass and jazz phenom Jake Stargel on guitar, Harry Clark (The Wooks) on mandolin and Jeff Picker (Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder) on bass.

Originally from Charlottesville, VA, Bronwyn picked up the fiddle at age 3 and never looked back. The daughter of a first generation Irish American father and southern American mother, her first musical love was traditional Irish fiddling. But after a childhood of deep immersion in Irish music and culture, she traced its immigration across the Atlantic ocean and into the Appalachian Mountains and found a sound that resonated even more completely with her in the bluegrass music she heard as a teenager. In 2014, she formed bluegrass band Mile Twelve and has toured with them for the past 6 years across the United States, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Australia, the UK and Europe as well as releasing 2 full length albums. With accolades that include winning the 2014 Winfield Fiddle Championship and being named International Bluegrass Music Association’s 2018 Momentum Instrumentalist of the Year, Bronwyn emerges with Fiddler’s Pastime, expressing her uniquely creative voice in bluegrass fiddle.