Dana and Susan Robinson

Dana and Susan Robinson

Dana and Susan Robinson are an old-time and folk duo based in Asheville, North Carolina. They combine traditional music with contemporary songwriting, and perform material shaped by acoustic guitar, fiddle, mandolin, banjo and close vocal harmony.

Background

Dana Robinson is raised in California, then moves to the Northeast. Susan Robinson is raised in the Northeast, then moves to California. They meet in 2002 after Susan attends a house concert Dana gives in California. The pair then begin working together, exploring their shared interest in traditional and contemporary music.

In the early 1980s, Dana settles in northern Vermont and builds a house on 30 acres near the Canadian border, without electricity or a phone. There he founds a bakery and café that becomes a local meeting place, helped by the folk concerts he presents there.

Music and performance

Dana begins touring full-time after the release of his debut album Elemental Lullabye in 1994, following an invitation to perform at Carnegie Hall for Putumayo's Shelter benefit concert. He plays guitar, fiddle, mandolin and banjo, and draws on guitar styles associated with Norman Blake, Tim O'Brien, Nick Jones and John Martyn. His songwriting is compared with Steve Goodman and Dougie MacLean, and he sings in a warm tenor voice.

Susan contributes harmonies and clawhammer-style banjo to Dana's songs. She has also played piano, oboe, fiddle, guitar and banjo, and is working as an environmental grantwriter in California when she and Dana meet.

Writing and ongoing work

Dana writes a monthly e-journal called Notes From The Road, which records his experiences as a travelling songwriter and includes stories about the landscapes and people he encounters on the road.