Crescendo welcomes the legendary Henry Butler and inimitable Martha Scanlan to the roster

After relocating from New Orleans to Boulder after Hurricane Katrina, we are proud to announce that Henry Butler has decided to join the Crescendo roster. A five-time W.C. Handy “Best Blues Instrumentalist - Piano” award nominee, Henry Butler knows no limitations. Although blinded by glaucoma since birth, Butler is also a world class photographer with his work displayed at exhibitions throughout the United States. Playing piano since the age of six, Butler is a master of musical diversity. Combining the percussive jazz piano playing of McCoy Tyner and the New Orleans style playing of Professor Longhair through his classically-trained wizardry, Butler continues to craft a sound uniquely his own. A rich amalgam of jazz, Caribbean, classical, pop, R&B and blues influences, his music is as excitingly eclectic as that of his New Orleans birthplace.


Martha Scanlan has also decided to join the Crescendo roster. The haunting quality of her voice, unique perspective and poetic imagery of her songs helped to gain national acclaim for the innovative old-time string band, Reeltime Travelers. In their six years of touring they have played some of America's most prestigious venues and festivals from the Grand Old Opry to the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. After catching the attention of Grammy-winning producers T-Bone Burnett and Bob Neuwirth the group recorded a cut for the soundtrack to Cold Mountain and were featured on the Great High Mountain Tour along with Alison Krauss, Ralph Stanley, and other artists from the “Oh Brother Where Art Thou” and “Cold Mountain” soundtracks.

Martha's songwriting first gained national attention in 2003 at the prestigious Merlefest Chris Austin Songwriting Contest where a panel of judges including Gillian Welch and Jim Lauderdale awarded her first and second place in the bluegrass and country music categories for "Little Bird of Heaven" and "Hallelujah".

The immersion into traditional American music and its expression in an ever-changing cultural landscape seems to be reflected in the songs she writes and the music she plays. Martha's first solo project is produced by and features Dirk Powell along with Levon Helm, members of the bands Ollabelle and Reeltime Travelers. The album is due out next spring. When not on the road she divides her time between a cabin in the mountains of East Tennessee and one in the mountains of Western Montana.






Link: http://www.henrybutler.com