Mark O'Connor

For other people named Mark O'Connor, see Mark O'Connor (disambiguation).
Mark O'Connor
O'Connor on stage at the 1985 Cambridge Folk Festival
O'Connor on stage at the 1985 Cambridge Folk Festival
Background information
Born (1961-08-05) August 5, 1961 (age 63)[1]
Mountlake Terrace, Washington, U.S.
GenresCountry, bluegrass, jazz, classical
Occupation(s)Musician, composer, teacher, author
Instrument(s)Violin, fiddle, guitar, mandolin
Years active1974–present
LabelsRounder, Warner Bros., Sony Classical Records
Websitemarkoconnor.com

Mark O'Connor (born August 5, 1961) is an American fiddle player, composer, guitarist, and mandolinist whose music combines bluegrass, country, jazz and classical. A three-time Grammy Award winner, he has won six Country Music Association Musician Of The Year awards and was a member of three influential musical ensembles: the David Grisman Quintet, The Dregs, and Strength in Numbers.[2]

O'Connor has released 45 albums, of mostly original music, over a 45-year career. He has recorded and performed mostly his original American Classical music for decades. An expert at traditionally-based fiddle and bluegrass music, he also plays other instruments proficiently, including the violin, guitar and mandolin.[3] He has appeared on 450 albums, composed nine concertos and has put together groundbreaking ensembles. His mentors have included Benny Thomasson[4] who taught O'Connor to fiddle as a teenager, French jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli[5] with whom O'Connor toured as a teenager, and guitarists Chet Atkins, Doc Watson and Steve Morse.[6]

  1. ^ "Mark O'Connor biography". CMT. Archived from the original on February 23, 2004. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  2. ^ "Mark O'Connor, Violin". fromthetop.org. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
  3. ^ Hiltner, Justin (7 August 2018). "Mark O'Connor, 'Pickin' in the wind'". thebluegrasssituation.com. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  4. ^ "Mark O'Connor: On Learning, Playing, and Teaching Strings, American-style by Peter Anick". Fiddle Magazine. August 21, 2010.
  5. ^ "Mark O'Connor Hot Swing on Mountain Stage". NPR. April 5, 2010.
  6. ^ Tom Redmond (January 28, 2017). "Chet Atkins and Mark O'Connor". Mister Guitar.