Eric Branner

Eric Branner is a musician currently living in Seattle, although he grew up in the mountains of Virginia. He lived in a log cabin above the north fork of the Shenandoah River, spending most of his formative years playing guitar and fishing. His grandfather was a professional classical pianist and the leader of a big band, inspiring his grandson to pursue music as a vocation. He mastered metal, rock, and acoustic guitar halfway through high school, and performed at the grain alcohol fueled field parties that burst the stillness of Shenandoah Valley summers. Eric studied classical guitar in college, and moved to Seattle the day after graduation. He performed as a classical guitarist, and was a prizewinner at the 2002 Northwest Guitar Competition. He was selected to play in master classes with classical guitar luminaries such as David Russell, and studied with guitarist extrodinaire Michael Nicolella. All along his burgeoning passion was the Appalachian acoustic music he heard growing up in Virginia He drove back and forth between Seattle and the Shenandoah, stopping along the way in small towns to study american life and pen songs about his findings. His self titled album was released on Blackforrest records in 2003. Produced by Troy Tietjen,(The Decemberists, Death Cab For Cutie) and created at Avast Studios in Seattle, WA, the album pays homage to his musical roots and to folk heroes like Greg Brown and Jorma Kaukonen. Revealing an inspired lyricist, a confident guitarist, and an honest voice, the album paved the way for relentless gigging in smokey bars, folk festivals, acoustic clubs, coffee shops, and on street corners from Vancouver, British Columbia to Monterey, California, and across to Virginia He was a featured performer at the 2005 Northwest Folklife Festival, and is currently recording a follow up album which explores modern classical, rock, and americana compositions. Eric’s songs are about the realm between.. a back road and a busy intersection, honeysuckle and industrial smog, a general store and a shopping mall, and a train trestle and an overpass. These elements merge into lush, vivid lyrics traversing an inimitable bed of nylon or steel string guitar.. a living soundtrack for anyone who savors the country and the city.