Neal Hellman (born April 13, 1948, in New York, New York) is an American folk musician, music teacher, and performer of the mountain dulcimer. He has been active in performing, writing, teaching and recording acoustic music for the past thirty years throughout the United States and Europe.[1][2]
In collaboration with Joe Weed, Hellman wrote the score for Princess Furball, a children's video by Weston Woods which won a 1993 American Library Association Commendation.
An original composition, written by Neal and performed by Jay Ungar and Molly Mason, is featured on the Ken Burns production "The Story of Susan B Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton" which was broadcast on PBS across the United States in the fall of 1999.
He has written books on the Appalachian dulcimer,[3] including It's A Dulcimer Life, The Dulcimer Chord Book, The Hal Leonard Dulcimer Method, Beatles Dulcimer Book and The Music of the Shakers For Mountain Dulcimer on Mel Bay Publications.
As founder,[4] director and one of the primary artists of the Gourd Music record label, Hellman has produced over thirty albums, including Simple Gifts, Tree of Life, The Fairie Round, Tender Shepherd, The World Turned Upside Down and A Victorian Christmas.
Discography
edit- Oktober County (1988) – Gourd Music
- Dream of the Manatee (with Joe Weed) (1989) – Gourd Music
- Autumn in the Valley (1993) – Gourd Music
- Emma's Waltz (2007) – Gourd Music
References
edit- ^ The Daily Courier 25 Mar 2001
- ^ The Durant Daily Democrat, 1 Oct 2000, Page 5a
- ^ Brend, Mark (2005-10-01). Strange sounds: offbeat instruments and sonic experiments in pop. Hal Leonard Corporation. pp. 136–. ISBN 978-0-87930-855-1. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
- ^ Kava, Brad (May 17, 2001). "Recording Industry .Gourd Label Carries On With The Tools..." The Vindicator. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
Further reading
edit- Neal Walters & Brian Mansfield (ed.) (1998) MusicHound Folk: The Essential Album Guide, p. 358-359, ISBN 1-57859-037-X
External links
edit- Podcast episode about Neal Hellman.
- Oktober County - Artist's Biography.
- FolkLib Index - Gourd Music discography
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