Abigail Washburn facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Abigail Washburn
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Washburn at the Smithsonian Folk Festival, 2014
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| Background information | |
| Born | November 10, 1977 Evanston, Illinois, U.S. |
| Genres |
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| Instruments | Vocals, Clawhammer Banjo |
| Labels | Nettwerk, Rounder Records |
| Associated acts |
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Abigail Washburn, born on November 10, 1977, is an American musician. She is famous for playing the banjo in a special style called clawhammer. She also sings.
Abigail performs by herself and with different music groups. She has played with Uncle Earl and the Sparrow Quartet, which are old-time bands. She also performs with an experimental group called The Wu Force and as a duo with her husband, Béla Fleck, who is also a famous banjo player.
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Abigail's Early Life and Music Journey
Abigail Washburn was born in Evanston, Illinois. She spent her younger school years near Washington, D.C.. Later, she went to high school in Minnesota.
She studied East Asian cultures at Colorado College. She even learned to speak Mandarin Chinese during her summers. Abigail lived in China for a while and thought about becoming a lawyer there.
However, before going back to China, she had an experience that changed her mind. She spent five days meditating at a center. After this, Abigail decided to follow her dream of becoming a musician. Soon after, she was offered a record deal in Nashville, Tennessee.
Playing with Uncle Earl
In Tennessee, Abigail met KC Groves. KC was one of the people who started the band Uncle Earl. Abigail joined the band and toured with them for five years.
Uncle Earl was an all-female group. They released two albums with Rounder Records. These albums were called She Waits for the Night (in 2005) and Waterloo, TN (in 2007). A famous musician named John Paul Jones from the band Led Zeppelin helped produce Waterloo, TN.
First Solo Album: Song of the Traveling Daughter
In 2004, Abigail entered a songwriting contest at MerleFest. This is a big bluegrass music festival in North Carolina. She won second place for her song "Rockabye Dixie." This helped her get noticed by the Nettwerk record label.
Her first solo album was named Song of the Traveling Daughter. It was produced by Béla Fleck. Other musicians who played on the album included Ben Sollee on cello and Jordan McConnell on guitar.
The Sparrow Quartet and China Tours
In 2005, Abigail went back to China with a group called the Sparrow Quartet. This group included Ben Sollee, Béla Fleck, and Grammy Award-nominated fiddler Casey Driessen. They recorded an album called Abigail Washburn The Sparrow Quartet. Two songs on this album were sung in Mandarin Chinese.
The U.S. government asked the Sparrow Quartet to tour Tibet in 2006. No other American band had done this before. They also performed in Beijing during the 2008 Summer Olympics. In 2008, Abigail taught American folk music at Sichuan University for six weeks.
The Sparrow Quartet released a full album in 2008. It was also produced by Béla Fleck. After the album came out, they toured North America. They played at many festivals, including New Orleans Jazz & Heritage and Bonnaroo Music Festival. They returned to China for more performances during the 2008 Olympics.
The Wu-Force: A Unique Sound
The Wu-Force is an interesting music group. They played their first show in Beijing in 2011. The group includes Abigail Washburn, multi-instrumentalist Kai Welch, and Chinese zither (guzheng) player Wu Fei.
The band describes their music as "kung fu-Appalachian avant-garde folk-rock." Their songs are in different languages. They sing about international relations, environmental issues in China, and even put a new spin on Chinese folk songs. The Wu-Force released an album in 2017. Wu Fei and Abigail Washburn also released a self-titled album together in 2020.
Béla Fleck & Abigail Washburn Duo
Abigail and her husband, Béla Fleck, started performing together as a duo. They wanted to keep their family together while touring. They began touring as "Béla Fleck & Abigail Washburn" in 2013.
In 2014, they announced their first duo album. It featured only their banjos and voices. They recorded the album at home and produced it themselves. This album became number one on the Billboard Bluegrass charts. It also won them a Grammy Award for Best Folk Album.
Abigail's Personal Life
Abigail Washburn is married to the famous banjo player Béla Fleck. They first met in Nashville at a square dance. Abigail was dancing, and Béla was playing music.
Their first son was born in Nashville in May 2013. Their second son, Theo, was born in 2018.
Abigail's Activism and Global Work
Abigail Washburn is also known for her work to build connections between the U.S. and China through music. She was named a TED fellow in 2012. She gave a talk at the TED Convention about how music can help improve relationships between countries.
In 2013, Abigail was named the first US-China Center Fellow at Vanderbilt University. This was because of her work as an ambassador for American culture in China. She is always willing to help the US-China Center.
Images for kids
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Washburn at the Smithsonian Folk Festival, 2014
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Abby Washburn at Merlefest 2007
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Sparrow Quartet in Asheville, North Carolina, 2008
