Bio

Bio for printed programs, Short Publicity Bio
Bios in German, French, Italian, Czech, ,Croatian
Quotes, Reviews and Features, Videos

Wonderlust A/V show and EPK, Press Photos, Posters

If you’re not already familiar with harp-guitarist and composer Muriel Anderson, you will find yourself smiling when you feel the joy of her music shining through a stunning array of styles. She embraces music from all over the world with ease, grace and gentle humor.

She is celebrating the pre-release of SAILING DREAMS, her innovative CD & board game, on the heels of her Acoustic Chef book/CD. Muriel’s double CD, Nightlight Daylight, was chosen as one of the top 10 CDs of the decade by Guitar Player Magazine. Her “Heartstrings” recording accompanied the astronauts on the space shuttle.

Muriel is the first woman to have won the National Fingerstyle Guitar Championship. She has performed/recorded with Chet Atkins, Les Paul, Victor Wooten, Tommy Emmanuel and many others on her show,  Muriel Anderson’s ALL STAR GUITAR NIGHT®. Muriel is founder of the MUSIC FOR LIFE ALLIANCE charity.

Muriel’s multimedia show brings you on a planetary tour of tastes, images, and music with a backdrop of stunning visuals by photo-artist Bryan Allen.

Her current projects and upcoming live-streams can be found at murielanderson.com/now.

Quotes

Muriel Anderson is a good friend and a great guitarist.  She deserves national recognition.

Chet Atkins

Just one hell of a great player …a great personality and what I like is the touch that Muriel has on the guitar, the way she plays it like we all wish to play.

Les Paul

Recordings and Publications

Her double CD “Nightlight Daylight” won top honors in a dozen awards and is the first ever to include an interactive fiber-optic lighted CD cover, her own concept. It includes collaborations with fellow musicians Victor Wooten, Phil Keaggy, Mark Kibble of Take 6, Danny Gottlieb, Stanley Jordan, Tommy Emmanuel, Earl Klugh, Howard Levy, Jeff Coffin, Tierra Negra and members of the Nashville Symphony.

Her recording of “El Noi de la Mare” appears in Woody Allen’s film “Vicky Cristina Barcelona.” and her “Heartstrings” recording accompanied the astronauts on the space shuttle Discovery.  Muriel Anderson has released more than a dozen instrumental CD’s, eight instructional DVD’s and guitar books published by Hal Leonard, Mel Bay, and Zen-On Japan.  Her compositions include commissioned classical works for the Nashville Chamber Orchestra and Vox Caelestis Womens Choir, as well as songs which have appeared as title tracks for three albums by various artists.

Endorsements and Columnist

Muriel has published articles in Guitar Player, Acoustic Guitar, Fingerstyle Guitar, Classical Guitar and Frets magazines, and has been a regular columnist for Acoustic Guitar Japan magazine. She has many teaching DVDs and books. Muriel teaches online via TrueFire.com/h2495 and StringMasters as well as at guitar workshops across the country. many of which are sponsored by her GHS Signature strings. She plays and records on many handmade instruments including Tierra Negra flamenco, Camps, Mike Doolin harp guitars, Mike Brittain harp guitars, DT guitars, Alvarez Yairi, McPhearson, Emerald, and Morris steel string guitars (Japan). She uses Seymour Duncan D-Tar and Barbera pickups.

More Quotes

She has demonstrated excellent technique and has the fine musicianship to communicate well to her audiences.

Christopher Parkening

Acoustic guitarist Muriel Anderson… has justifiably gained a reputation as one of the world’s best, and most versatile, guitar instrumentalists.

Chicago Tribune

After reaching the top in her field – she is widely recognized as the premier female fingerstyle guitarist today – Anderson hopes to encourage and inspire a younger audience, to turn them on to the beauty of making music, and maybe in some cases, even turn their lives around.

The Reporter, Melissa Erickson

Theme for Two Friends marks a new renaissance for classical guitar and cello! Ms Anderson’s compositions are flawless. Work like this assures me that music in the next century is in good hands.

Nicholas Fuchs, Music Director Emeritus, Illinois Chamber Ensemble

Wildcat is not only Muriel Anderson’s best CD to date, it is perhaps the best album of the year.

Steve King and Johnnie Putnam of WGN Radio

With playing that grabs you by the ear and never let’s go, this is a fine portrait of an artist that just keeps getting better and better fully deserving of a toe to toe spot with the masters that have taught her so well.

Chris Spector, Midwest Record Recap

I cannot think of another guitarist who seems to have taken over the role of Segovia in popularizing the finger-style guitar as Muriel Anderson has.

Lawrence Long, Knoxville-Oak Ridge Guitar Society

Muriel Anderson is one of America’s Premier solo-acoustic guitarists. 

Guitar Player Magazine

Muriel Anderson’s performance blew us all away at the Troubadour.  Including me.  As a guitarist myself, I was astonished at how easily and fluidly she breezed through musical passages of extreme technical difficulty without the slightest hitch in their musicality.  And her presentation and stage persona were inviting, friendly, and accessible to everyone in the audience, whether musicians or ordinary music-lovers.   I can’t wait to have her back.

Mike Agranoff, Program Chairman, Troubadour Acoustic Concert Series

COMPOSER BIO

Composer, guitarist, and harp guitarist Muriel Anderson has composed music since about age five. She fell in love with the guitar at an early age and learned every style available to her, beginning with folk, bluegrass and jazz. She received a degree in music from DePaul University and went on to study with classical virtuoso Christopher Parkening and with Nashville legend Chet Atkins.

Her CD “Nightlight Daylight” is a culmination of her creative spirit and has won 11 awards including Global Music Award’s Best Instrumental Composition for “A Bakers Dozen.”

Books of her original music include “New Classics for Guitar and Cello” and her works have been performed by the Nashville Chamber Orchestra and Chicago’s Vox Caelestis among others.

She is founder of the Music for Life Alliance charity and the Muriel Anderson’s All Star Guitar Night®.