- Tony Burt:
- Resonator guitar, guitar, cajon, keys, vocals.
- Krissy Jackson:
- Fiddle, vocals.
- Karen Jones:
- Harp, keys, guitar, vocals.
‘Across the Great Divide’ blends Celtic and Americana music using simple yet sensitive harmonization to create a tasteful celebration of the diversity
of folk music in New Zealand.
Using their own innovative and unique arrangements the trio offers a fusion of traditional and contemporary, airs and songs, foot stomping fiddle
tunes from both the Americana and Celtic traditions, and original compositions.
The name comes from the Kate Wolf song and was originally the concept for the trio’s first concert. It seems to have organically stuck since then!
The idea was experimental to see how the resonator and Celtic harp sounded together, add a fiddle, move to a cajon for some rhythm or a piano, and the
rest is very recent history.
- Karen Jones
- Singer, multi instrumentalist and educational music specialist Karen Jones was born and raised in a musical family in Auckland, but spent a good
chunk of her adult years, cutting her teeth in Scottish traditional arts and assimilating Scottish culture in Edinburgh. There she ran a popular weekly
session and became an active member of the folk community. Traditional Scottish music soon became her inspiration and passion. Karen guested in the
first ‘Flowers of Edinburgh’ and ‘Scottish Stramash’ concert in Edinburgh and more recently on various stages including the Auckland Folk Festival and
Devonport Folk Club. She co-runs the monthly Tradition Bearer Session here in Auckland and her mission
is to engage pakeha in their own heritage through music and song.
- Tony Burt
- Versatile musician and composer, Tony's performance style ends towards the Americana folk traditions from finger style guitar, bluegrass, old time,
blues roots and western swing. As a resonator player he performs with artists such as Rainberry Pie, Carol Bean, Albi, and often backs or joins a host of
artists at festivals, concerts and recording on the reso’s “hubcap” and Weissenborne. As a solo artist, Tony filmed and produced the documentary “The
Snapper Sandwich” a unique mix of live performance and film which debuted at the New Zealand International Documentary Film Festival "Doc Edge”
and continues to engage audiences around the country. Tony always looks towards the challenge of how music can blend together to create new ideas,
for him New Zealand is a melting pot of traditions all worth celebrating with music and song.
- Krissy Jackson
- Krissy has played the violin from the tender age of 2 and has literally had a life full of music. Dabbling in various genres, including classical, celtic,
country/bluegrass, jazz and more recently, klezmer traditions, Krissy is always up for a new challenge and often joins other musicians in the studio or on
the stage. Krissy loves looking at the history behind the music, the people and places that traditional music is written about, no matter what the
geographical location. Currently working as a teacher of singing and violin, Krissy hopes to inspire and encourage young musicians on their journey.
