Audio
Ben Krakauer, banjo
Paul Kowert, bass
Nick Falk, drums
Duncan Wickel, fiddle
Written by Ben Krakauer. Arranged by Krakauer, Kowert, Falk, and Wickel.
Recorded live at the Shasta Music Summit, July 14, 2016.
Paul Kowert, bass
Nick Falk, drums
Duncan Wickel, fiddle
Written by Ben Krakauer. Arranged by Krakauer, Kowert, Falk, and Wickel.
Recorded live at the Shasta Music Summit, July 14, 2016.
Ben Krakauer, banjo
Pete Frostic, mandolin
Written by Ben Krakauer
Pete Frostic, mandolin
Written by Ben Krakauer
Ben Krakauer, banjo
Pete Frostic, mandolin
Written by Ben Krakauer
Pete Frostic, mandolin
Written by Ben Krakauer
About
Bio
I am a five-string banjo player and multi-instrumentalist with roots in bluegrass, old-time, new acoustic, and jazz. I was a founding member of the bluegrass/jazz/pop string band Old School Freight Train. In 2005-2006, I toured and performed with mandolinist and Dawg music founder David Grisman. Since 2006, I have performed in various small group configurations with Tashina Clarridge, Tristan Clarridge, Simon Chrisman, Grant Gordy, and others. I have recorded banjo on productions by Acoustic Disc, CMH Records, and the Fiddle Masters Series. My debut solo album, featuring original compositions for banjo, drums, bass, and fiddle, will be released in December 2019.
I have also conducted ethnographic research in West Bengal, India and Bangladesh since 2010, and have studied and performed Baul-Fakir music with Basudeb Baul, Amirul Fakir, and others. Previously, I was a member of Javanese Gamelan and West African drumming ensembles at the University of Texas at Austin and Tufts University, and studied jazz performance at the University of Virginia with trumpeter John D’earth.
Praise for Ben Krakauer
“Ben Krakauer is one of my favorite banjo players and favorite human beings. His banjo playing is incredibly swinging, grooving, and wildly inventive, but always grounded in the best of tradition. He’s got a fertile brain and I love talking to him about all things musical. Check him out right now!”
- Matt Glaser, jazz violinist & Artistic Director of the American Roots Music Program at Berklee College of Music
Praise for Old School Freight Train
"After forty years of recording acoustic music, it's not very often that a new band catches (and keeps) my attention. Old School Freight Train has done that and more. Their finely crafted tunes and innovative arrangements bring creativity, taste and wit to a broad spectrum of contemporary styles - vocal and instrumental, all firmly rooted in many traditions. They are certainly an emerging force to reckon with in today's wide world of acoustic music."
- David Grisman, mandolinist & founder of Dawg music
I am a five-string banjo player and multi-instrumentalist with roots in bluegrass, old-time, new acoustic, and jazz. I was a founding member of the bluegrass/jazz/pop string band Old School Freight Train. In 2005-2006, I toured and performed with mandolinist and Dawg music founder David Grisman. Since 2006, I have performed in various small group configurations with Tashina Clarridge, Tristan Clarridge, Simon Chrisman, Grant Gordy, and others. I have recorded banjo on productions by Acoustic Disc, CMH Records, and the Fiddle Masters Series. My debut solo album, featuring original compositions for banjo, drums, bass, and fiddle, will be released in December 2019.
I have also conducted ethnographic research in West Bengal, India and Bangladesh since 2010, and have studied and performed Baul-Fakir music with Basudeb Baul, Amirul Fakir, and others. Previously, I was a member of Javanese Gamelan and West African drumming ensembles at the University of Texas at Austin and Tufts University, and studied jazz performance at the University of Virginia with trumpeter John D’earth.
Praise for Ben Krakauer
“Ben Krakauer is one of my favorite banjo players and favorite human beings. His banjo playing is incredibly swinging, grooving, and wildly inventive, but always grounded in the best of tradition. He’s got a fertile brain and I love talking to him about all things musical. Check him out right now!”
- Matt Glaser, jazz violinist & Artistic Director of the American Roots Music Program at Berklee College of Music
Praise for Old School Freight Train
"After forty years of recording acoustic music, it's not very often that a new band catches (and keeps) my attention. Old School Freight Train has done that and more. Their finely crafted tunes and innovative arrangements bring creativity, taste and wit to a broad spectrum of contemporary styles - vocal and instrumental, all firmly rooted in many traditions. They are certainly an emerging force to reckon with in today's wide world of acoustic music."
- David Grisman, mandolinist & founder of Dawg music
Video
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Joe Walsh (mandolin)
Dan Klingsberg (bass) Ben Krakauer (banjo) "That One Doesn't Exist," written by Ben Krakauer Vermont String Summit, January 2019 |
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Jody Stecher (fiddle)
Courtney Hartman (guitar) Ben Krakauer (banjo) Shasta Music Summit, July 2015 |
