Mary Halvorson (born October 16, 1980) is an American avant-garde jazz composer and guitarist from Brookline, Massachusetts.
Among her many collaborations, she has: led a trio with and Ches Smith, and a quintet with the addition of Jon Irabagon and Jonathan Finlayson; recorded duo albums with violist Jessica Pavone; and recorded several albums with bassist Michael Formanek and drummer under the band name Thumbscrew.
In 2017, 2018 and 2019 Halvorson won Best Guitar in DownBeat's International Critics Poll. In 2019, she was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship.
Halvorson is on faculty at the School of Jazz (The New School).
Early life and career Halvorson began her musical education on violin but was enthralled with the idea of playing guitar after discovering Jimi Hendrix. She first picked up electric guitar at the age of 11 in seventh grade. Her first guitar teacher was Issi Rozen.
She initially enrolled in Wesleyan University to study biology, but dropped her prospective major after sitting in on one of saxophonist Anthony Braxton's music classes. She quickly connected with him and he heavily encouraged her to find her own expression on guitar.
Halvorson's 2008 recording Dragon's Head was as the leader of a trio containing bassist John Hébert and drummer Ches Smith. Her later album, Saturn Sings, added saxophonist Jon Irabagon and trumpeter Jonathan Finlayson. In 2012, she played with trumpeter Peter Evans and drummer Weasel Walter on the trio album Mechanical Malfunction.
In 2013, the trio of Halvorson, bassist Michael Formanek, and drummer recorded the first of several albums as the band Thumbscrew. NPR called Halvorson's 2015 solo album Meltframe "category-exploding", and its 2015 Jazz Critics Poll named the record 7th-best of the year.
Her album Away With You features pedal steel player Susan Alcorn (later described in Something Else! as "the Mary Halvorson of the pedal steel guitar"),Aaron, S. V., "Susan Alcorn—Pedernal (2020)", Something Else!, November 13, 2020. cellist Tomeka Reid and saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock. The album Code Girl was Halvorson's first attempt at writing lyrics for her original works, which are sung by Amirtha Kidambi and inspired by the songwriting of Robert Wyatt and Elliot Smith. The album also features drummer Tomas Fujiwara, bassist Michael Formanek and trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire. The album received an 8.1 rating from a Pitchfork review, explaining, "The pleasure of this kind of text comes from the way it invites active listening as a means of interpretation." Code Girl is named after an offhand remark by Braxton, who used the phrase in conversation while on a European tour with Halvorson. Later, she settled on the phrase as an album title, because "at that point I'd written a lot of the lyrics... and they seemed a little bit coded and strange." Halvorson has also worked with John Dieterich of Deerhoof. Halvorson had previously performed some of her lyrics in collaboration with violinist Jessica Pavone, with whom she also recorded duo albums. As of 2018, Halvorson was an instructor at The New School's College of Performing Arts.
Halvorson won Best Guitar in DownBeat's International Critics Poll between 2017 and 2019. In 2019, she was awarded a MacArthur "Genius" Grant for music.
Musical style Although Halvorson is often categorized as a jazz guitarist, her music includes elements of many other genres, such as flamenco, rock, noise, and psychedelia. In speaking with PostGenre, Halvorson noted that she's "never really felt like I had to stick with a particular style or idea... From [Anthony Braxton], I learned that it was normal to take such a broad approach. You would respect traditions but at the same time, you would push the boundaries of those traditions. You would break the traditions apart and do whatever you wanted. That approach has always come naturally to me...". In a 2018 interview with Jazz Times, Halvorson described the guitar as a "neutral vessel", saying “The cool thing about the guitar is it’s not associated as much with a particular genre... it could be classical, it could be rock and roll, it could be jazz, it could be folk.”.
In 2012, Troy Collins of All About Jazz called Halvorson "the most impressive guitarist of her generation", and wrote, "The future of jazz guitar starts here." Jon Garelick of The Phoenix identified Halvorson's search for her own sound as a key component of her success as a musician and composer.
Discography
As leader +List of albums as leaderYear recordedTitleLabelNotes2008Dragon's HeadFirehouse 12Trio, with John Hébert (bass), Ches Smith (drums)2010Saturn SingsFirehouse 12Quintet with Jonathan Finlayson, Jon Irabagon, John Hébert, and Ches Smith.2010Bending BridgesFirehouse 12Quintet with Jonathan Finlayson, Jon Irabagon, John Hébert, and Ches Smith.2013Illusionary SeaFirehouse 12Septet with Jonathan Finlayson, Jon Irabagon, Ingrid Laubrock, Jacob Garchik, John Hébert, and Ches Smith.2013Ghost LoopEMITrio with John Hébert, and Ches Smith.2014Reverse BlueRelative PitchQuartet with Chris Speed, Eivind Opsvik, Tomas Fujiwara2015MeltframeFirehouse 12Solo covers album.2016Away With YouFirehouse 12Octet with Jonathan Finlayson, Jon Irabagon, Ingrid Laubrock, Jacob Garchik, Susan Alcorn, John Hébert, and Ches Smith.2018Code GirlFirehouse 12Most tracks quintet, with Ambrose Akinmusire (trumpet), Michael Formanek (bass), (drums), Amirtha Kidambi (vocals)2020Code Girl: Artlessly FallingFirehouse 12Most tracks sextet, with Adam O'Farrill (trumpet), Michael Formanek (bass), Tomas Fujiwara (drums), Amirtha Kidambi (vocals), Maria Grand (tenor sax, vocals); plus Robert Wyatt (vocals)2022BelladonnaNonesuchQuintet with Halvorson and the Mivos Quartet2022AmaryllisNonesuchSextet with Patricia Brennan, Nick Dunston, Thomas Fujiwara, Jacob Garchik, and Adam O'Farrill; augmented by the Mivos Quartet on three tracks2024CloudwardNonesuchSextet with Patricia Brennan, Nick Dunston, Thomas Fujiwara, Jacob Garchik, and Adam O'Farrill2025About GhostsNonesuchSextet with Patricia Brennan, Nick Dunston, Thomas Fujiwara, Jacob Garchik, and Adam O'Farrill. Additional contributions from Immanuel Wilkins and Brian Settles.
Selected collaborations +List of selected collaborationsYearArtistTitleLabel2004Trevor Dunn's trio-convulsantSister Phantom Owl FishIpecac2005Mary Halvorson & Jessica PavonePrairiesLucky Kitchen2005People (Mary Halvorson, Kevin Shea)PeopleI & Ear2007Mary Halvorson & Jessica PavoneOn and OffSkirl2007People Misbegotten ManI & Ear2008Mary Halvorson & Weasel WalterOpulenceugEXPLODE2008Mary Halvorson, Jessica Pavone, Devin Hoff, Ches SmithCalling All PortraitsSkycap2009Mary Halvorson & Jessica PavoneThin AirThirsty Ear2009Mary Halvorson, Reuben Radding, CrackleknobHatology2009Weasel Walter / Mary Halvorson / Peter EvansMystery MeatugEXPLODE2009The Thirteenth Assembly (Bynum, Pavone, Fujiwara)(un)sentimentalImportant Records2010Tom Rainey TrioPool SchoolClean Feed2010Tomas Fujiwara & The Hook UpActionspeak482 Music2011Weasel Walter / Mary Halvorson / Peter EvansElectric FruitThirsty Ear2011Mary Halvorson & Weasel WalterOminous Telepathic MayhemugEXPLODE2011Mary Halvorson & Jessica PavoneDeparture of ReasonThirsty Ear2011The Thirteenth AssemblyStation DirectImportant Records2012Tom Rainey TrioCamino Cielo EchoIntakt2012Weasel Walter / Mary Halvorson / Peter EvansMechanical MalfunctionThirsty Ear2012AYCH (Jim Hobbs, Mary Halvorson, Taylor Ho Bynum)As the Crow FliesRelative Pitch2012ErgoIf Not InertiaCuneiform2012Living by LanternsNew Myth/Old ScienceCuneiform2013Secret Keeper (Stephan Crump & Mary Halvorson)Super Eight Intakt2013Kirk Knuffke, Mary Halvorson & Matt WilsonSifterRelative Pitch2013Curtis HasselbringNumber StationsCuneiform2013Joy MegaForever Is Something Inside YouNew Atlantis Records2013Xiu XiuNinaGraveface Records2014Mary Halvorson, Michael Formanek, Tomas FujiwaraThumbscrewCuneiform2014People3xaWoman: The Misplaced FilesTelegraph Harp2014Illegal Crowns (Halvorson, Fujiwara, Delbecq, Bynum)Illegal CrownsRogueArt2015Secret KeeperEmergeIntakt2015Tom Rainey TrioHotel GriefIntakt2015Tomeka Reid QuartetTomeka Reid QuartetThirsty Ear2015Marc RibotThe Young Philadelphians: Live in TokyoYellowbird2016Tomas Fujiwara, Ben Goldberg, Mary HalvorsonThe Out LoudsRelative Pitch2016ThumbscrewConvallariaCuneiform2016Mary Halvorson & Noël AkchotéMary Halvorson and Noël AkchotéNoël Akchoté2017Sylvie Courvoisier & Mary HalvorsonCrop CirclesRelative Pitch2017Elliott Sharp with Marc Ribot, Mary HalvorsonErr GuitarIntakt2017Mary Halvorson Quartet plays John Zorn's Masada Book TwoBook of Angels, Vol. 32 - PaimonTzadik2018ThumbscrewTheirsCuneiform2018ThumbscrewOursCuneiform2018Mary Halvorson & Bill FrisellThe Maid With the Flaxen HairTzadik2018Robbie Lee & Mary HalvorsonSeed TriangularNew Amsterdam2018Ingrid LaubrockContemporary Chaos PracticesIntakt2018Joe Morris & Mary HalvorsonTraversing OrbitsRogueArt2018Various ArtistsA Day in the Life: Impressions of PepperImpulse Records2018Tomeka Reid QuartetOld NewCuneiform2019Tom Rainey TrioCombobulatedIntakt2019Mary Halvorson / John Dietericha tangle of starsNew Amsterdam2019Michael Formanek Very Practical TrioEven BetterIntakt2020ThumbscrewThe Anthony Braxton ProjectCuneiform2021Sylvie Courvoisier & Mary HalvorsonSearching for the Disappeared HourPyroclastic2021ThumbscrewNever Is EnoughCuneiform2022ThumbscrewMulticolored MidnightCuneiform2025John ZornThe Bagatelles Vol. 1 - Mary Halvorson QuartetTzadik2025Sylvie Courvoisier & Mary HalvorsonBone BellsPyroclastic2026Ambrose Akinmusire & Mary HalvorsonSlo-Mo Neon Luminate HoveringsNonesuch Records
References