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Don Conoscenti Biography

don-conoscenti
  • Born:
  • Years Active: 1990s-2000s
  • Genre: Jazz

Don Conoscenti began his music career playing rock & roll and later earned acclaim as a jazz guitarist. But he is best known for dynamic acoustic folk performances characterized by a distinctive use of multiple and partial capos and a wide-ranging instrumental proficiency that includes six and 12-string guitar, steel guitar, piano, drums, percussion, flute, recorder, didgeridoo, mandolin, banjo, and harmonica. Conoscenti grew up in the Chicago area. At the age of 17 he left home and began to travel extensively throughout the United States, South America, Jamaica, and Japan. He formed his first rock band while living in Vermont and working behind the counter of the original Ben and Jerry's ice cream store. Several other jazz and rock groups followed, none of them spectacularly successful. Finally he moved to Atlanta and began to make a name for himself as a folksinger in the thriving Decatur music scene. His success continued when he moved west to Oklahoma and later to Colorado. Western landscapes continue to be a major influence on Conoscenti's songs, as does the plight of the American Indian. His early records (which went out of print) include Carved in Stone and Beneath Your Moon. Over the years, Conoscenti has made several notable friends in the music industry. He has played with and for artists like David Wilcox, Shawn Mullins, Darryl Purpose, and the Indigo Girls. Conoscenti records like Boxes of Bones (1996), My Brilliant Masterpiece (1997), and One for the Road (1998) feature guest performances from several notable artists. Boston folk hero Ellis Paul is a close friend. The two toured together to promote Conoscenti's solo acoustic effort, Mysterious Light, in 1999, and two years later Paul was a major vocal contributor to the more ambitiously arranged Paradox of Grace. ~ Evan Cater, Rovi

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