Joe Craven

Joe Craven
Background information
GenresRoots
Folk
World
Jazz
Americana
Occupation(s)Musician
educator
MC
Instrument(s)Fiddle, Mandolin, Tenor Guitar
Puerto Rican Cuatro
Tres Cubano
conventional and found sound percussion
Jawbone
LabelsBlender Logic Arts

Joe Craven is an American freestyle folk, world and roots music multi-instrumentalist, singer and educator. He is the Director of RiverTunes Music Camp and a Co-Director of the Wintergrass Youth Academy. He plays a wide variety of string instruments, including fiddle, mandolin, ukulele, tres, cavaquinho, balalaika, as well as percussion, including a pickling jar, a credit card, or a jawbone. Craven is a well known sight at acoustic music festivals and, for many years, was violinist and percussionist for the David Grisman Quintet.[1] He also played percussion in the group Psychograss with fiddler Darol Anger and mandolinist Mike Marshall. Craven lists some of his influences being Jimi Hendrix, dumpster diving, Hermeto Pascoal, thrift stores, Frank Zappa, educator and aesthetician John Dewey, beachcombing, Carl Stalling, Eddie Palmieri, field recordings, Tiny Moore, Los Pleneros De Viente Uno, Darol Anger and The Horseflies.

Craven has played with many notable musicians including Jerry Garcia, Stephane Grappelli, Alison Brown, Rob Ickes and David Lindley. He performs solo and in different sizes and versions of his own projects, most notably The Joe Craven Trio.

  1. ^ Harris, Craig. "Biography: Psychograss". AMG. Retrieved May 18, 2010.