Overview

Dirk Powell (born 1969) is an American fiddler, banjo player, and singer. He was born in Oberlin southwest of

Elyria, Ohio Elyria ( ) is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the forks of the Black River (Ohio), Black River in Northeast Ohio, southwest of Cleveland. The population was 52,656 at the 2020 United States cens ...

into a family with deep

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

roots. He has lived in

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

since 1992. He is considered one of the world's leading experts on traditional Appalachian

fiddle A fiddle is a Bow (music), bowed String instrument, string musical instrument, most often a violin or a bass. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including European classical music, classical music. Althou ...

and

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...

styles. Powell is also a recording engineer, producer, and owns a studio, the Cypress House, in Breaux Bridge near

Lafayette, Louisiana Lafayette ( , ) is the most populous city in and parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, Lafayette Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana, located along the Vermilion River (Louisiana), Vermilion River. It is Louisiana's List of municipaliti ...

. The studio is in a converted 1850s Louisiana Creole home on Bayou Teche and focuses on vintage gear and audio.. Powell has won four

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

and has been a guest on television shows including ''

Late Night with David Letterman ''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the first installment of the '' Late Night''. Hosted by David Letterman, it aired from February1, 1982 to June 25, 1993, and was replaced by ...

'', ''

the Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'') is an American morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was the first of its genre on American television ...

'', and ''

American Masters ''American Masters'' is a PBS television series which produces biographies on enduring writers, musicians, visual and performing artists, dramatists, filmmakers, and those who have left an indelible impression on the cultural landscape of the U ...

''. For ten years, he was Joan Baez's "band." He was a longtime member of the

Cajun The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the US state of Louisiana and surrounding Gulf Coast states. Whi ...

band Balfa Toujours. He performs as a solo artist, as a featured artist with

Transatlantic Sessions Transatlantic Sessions is the collective title for a series of musical productions by Glasgow-based Pelicula Films Ltd, funded by- and produced for BBC Scotland, BBC Four and RTÉ of Ireland. The productions comprise collaborative live performan ...

, on tour with

Mary Chapin Carpenter Mary Chapin Carpenter (born February 21, 1958) is an American country and folk music singer-songwriter. Carpenter spent several years singing in Washington, D.C.-area clubs before signing in the late 1980s with Columbia Records. Carpenter's firs ...

, and as a duo wit
Rainy Eyes
Powell has recorded with

Rhiannon Giddens Rhiannon Giddens (born February 21, 1977) is an American musician known for her eclectic folk music. She is a founding member of the country, blues, and old-time music band the Carolina Chocolate Drops, where she was the lead singer, fiddle pl ...

Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as "Hey Loretta", "The Pill (song), The P ...

Irma Thomas Irma Thomas ( Lee; born February 18, 1941) is an American singer from New Orleans. She is known as the "Soul Queen of New Orleans". Thomas is a contemporary of Aretha Franklin and Etta James, but never experienced their level of commercial succ ...

, Tim O'Brien, the Raconteurs on their record “Consolers of the Lonely,” and

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

. Powell has scored and worked on numerous films including Cold Mountain, In the Electric Mist, Stevie, and Ride with the Devil. He collaborated on the score for

Sundance A Sun Dance is a Native American ceremony. Sun dance or Sundance may also refer to: Places ;Canada * Sundance, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * Sundance, Manitoba, a ghost town ;United States * Sundance, New Mexico, a census-designated pl ...

award-winning documentar
Descendant

Discography

* ''If I Go Ten Thousand Miles'' ( Rounder, 1996) * ''Songs from the Mountain'' ( Howdy Skies, 1999) - Dirk Powell, Tim O'Brien & John Herrmann * ''Tony Furtado & Dirk Powell'' (Rounder, 1999) * ''Hand Me Down'' (Rounder, 1999) * ''Time Again'' (Rounder, 2004) * ''A Fret Free Christmas'' (

Valcour Records Valcour Records is an independent record label based in Eunice, Louisiana. Valcour was founded in 2006 by Joel Savoy (son of Marc Savoy, Marc and Ann Savoy), with friends Phillip LaFargue II and Lucius Fontenot. Valcour Records' first release in ...

, 2010) * ''Walking Through Clay'' ( Sugar Hill/

Welk Music Group Welk Music Group is an American record company comprising Ranwood Records. It was founded by Lawrence Welk and is still owned by the Welk Family. The company evolved from when Welk's Teleklew Productions acquired Harry Von Tilzer Music in 1957. W ...

, 2014) * ''I Wanna Sing Right: Rediscovering Lomax in the Evangeline Country'' four-EP set - various artists (Valcour Records, 2015) * ''Cajun Accordion Kings (and the Queen)'' various artists (Valcour Records, 2015) * ''When I Wait for You'' ( Vertical Records, 2020) See also Balfa Toujours.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Dirk American male composers 21st-century American composers American banjoists American folk singers American record producers American male songwriters Grammy Award winners Appalachian music Appalachian culture Living people 21st-century American male musicians People from Oberlin, Ohio 1969 births