Bryan Sutton is an American musician. Primarily known as a

flatpicking Flatpicking (or simply picking) is the technique of striking the strings of a guitar with a pick (also called a plectrum) held between the thumb and one or two fingers. It can be contrasted to fingerstyle guitar, which is playing with indi ...

acoustic guitar player, Sutton also plays mandolin, banjo,

ukulele The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings. The tone and volume of the instrumen ...

, and

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gu ...

. He also sings and writes songs.

Biography

Early career

Sutton's grandfather and father were regionally recognized fiddlers, and Sutton grew up playing in the family band, the Pisgah Pickers. In 1991, he played guitar for

Karen Peck and New River Karen Peck and New River is a southern gospel mixed group based in Gainesville, Georgia. Music career The youngest of three daughters, Karen was exposed to the traditional sounds of gospel music at a very early age. Her parents often took Ka ...

, a gospel group. In 1993, he moved to Nashville.

Ricky Skaggs

Sutton first came to prominence in 1997 as lead guitarist in

Ricky Skaggs Rickie Lee Skaggs (born July 18, 1954), known professionally as Ricky Skaggs, is an American neotraditional country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, ...

' band

Kentucky Thunder Kentucky Thunder, or Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, is the band that plays with American country and bluegrass singer Ricky Skaggs. Many members of the band have won numerous awards. Bandleader Ricky Skaggs plays mandolin and is the lea ...

when Skaggs returned to bluegrass. Sutton eventually left the band to focus on session work.

Hot Rize

Bryan was asked to join the bluegrass quartet

Hot Rize Hot Rize is a bluegrass band that rose to prominence in the early 1980s. Established in 1978, Hot Rize has appeared on national radio and TV shows, and has toured most of the United States, as well as Japan, Europe and Australia. History Hot ...

in 2002. He has toured and recorded with them ever since, and has only missed one show since they re-formed.

Session work and touring

In addition to Skaggs and Hot Rize, Sutton has toured with the

Dixie Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and ...

Jerry Douglas Gerald Calvin "Jerry" Douglas (born May 28, 1956) is an American Dobro and lap steel guitar player and record producer. Career In addition to his fourteen solo recordings, Douglas has played on more than 1,600 albums. As a sideman, he h ...

Sam Bush Charles Samuel Bush (born April 13, 1952) is an American mandolinist who is considered an originator of progressive bluegrass music. In 2020, he was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame as a member of New Grass Reviva ...

Béla Fleck Béla Anton Leoš Fleck (born July 10, 1958) is an American banjo player. An acclaimed virtuoso, he is an innovative and technically proficient pioneer and ambassador of the banjo, bringing the instrument from its bluegrass roots to jazz, classi ...

Chris Thile Christopher Scott Thile (; born February 20, 1981) is an American mandolinist, singer, songwriter, composer, and radio personality, best known for his work in the progressive acoustic trio Nickel Creek and the acoustic folk and progressive blue ...

Tony Rice David Anthony Rice (June 8, 1951 – December 25, 2020), known professionally as Tony Rice, was an American guitarist and bluegrass musician. He was an influential acoustic guitar player in bluegrass, progressive bluegrass, newgrass and a ...

and others. In 2007-08, Sutton toured with

& The How to Grow a Band, a project which later turned into the

Punch Brothers Punch Brothers is an American band consisting of Chris Thile (mandolin), Gabe Witcher (fiddle/violin), Noam Pikelny (banjo), Chris Eldridge (guitar), and Paul Kowert (bass). Their style has been described as "bluegrass instrumentation and sponta ...

. Bryan is one of the most in-demand session players in Nashville, and recently produced a record for Della Mae and the Cash Cabin. His style is a unique blend of staccato mixed with powerful chromatic and melodic movements which is integrated into the more common bluegrass, blues and folk leads that are common to the genre.

Other projects

In June, 2011 he launched th
Online Bluegrass Guitar School with Bryan Sutton
as part of the

ArtistWorks ArtistWorks, LLC is an online music learning education platform based out of Napa, CA. ArtistWorks was founded by David and Patricia Butler in 2008. The company developed a proprietary patented system for interacting with teachers based upon online ...

br>Academy of Bluegrass
In 2013, Sutton recorded the album ''Ready for the Times'' with T. Michael Coleman and David Holt. They recorded the album as a tribute to Doc Watson. The trio got together in 2011, and have performed frequently under the name Deep River Rising.

Recordings

For ''Almost Live'', Sutton was joined by 17 guest musicians, including

(banjo),

(resonator guitar),

Russ Barenberg Russ Barenberg (born October 8, 1950) is an American bluegrass musician. Biography Barenberg began playing guitar at age 13, taking lessons from Alan Miller, whose brother, John Miller, Barenberg would later play with. His style was heavily inf ...

(guitar), Chris Thile (mandolin), and Stuart Duncan (fiddle). Sutton's album ''Into My Own'' featured guests

Bill Frisell William Richard Frisell (born March 18, 1951) is an American jazz guitarist, composer and arranger. Frisell first came to prominence at ECM Records in the 1980s, as both a session player and a leader. He went on to work in a variety of contexts ...

(guitar),

Ronnie McCoury Ronnie McCoury is an American mandolin player, singer, and songwriter (born March 16, 1967). He is the son of bluegrass musician Del McCoury, and is best known for his work with the Del McCoury Band and the Travelin' McCourys. Biography Ronnie ...

(mandolin), and

Noam Pikelny Noam Pikelny (born February 27, 1981, in Chicago, Illinois) is an American banjoist. He is a member of the group Punch Brothers and was previously in Leftover Salmon as well as the John Cowan Band. Pikelny is a nine-time Grammy Award nominee, win ...

(banjo). On 2016's ''The More I Learn'', Sutton continued to develop and showcase his singing and songwriting skills. The album prominently features Bryan Sutton Band members Casey Campbell (mandolin), Mike Barnett (fiddle), and Sam Grisman (bass).

Awards

*2000 - IBMA Guitar Player of the Year *2003 - IBMA Guitar Player of the Year *2004 - IBMA Guitar Player of the Year *2005 - IBMA Guitar Player of the Year *2006 - IBMA Guitar Player of the Year *2007 -

Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by m ...

for ''Whiskey Before Breakfast'' w/ Doc Watson. The song was recorded using 3 vintage Neumann microphones and a laptop in a Colorado hotel room by Engineer Phil Harris. *2011 - IBMA Guitar Player of the Year *2013 - IBMA Guitar Player of the Year *2014 - IBMA Guitar Player of the Year *2014 - ''Into My Own'' was nominated for a Grammy in the Best Bluegrass Album category *2015 - IBMA Guitar Player of the Year *2016 - IBMA Guitar Player of the Year

Gear

Bryan support
Bourgeois Guitars
and performs regularly with his own signature model,
Bourgeois Bryan Sutton Limited Edition
He also uses a Bourgeois
Country Boy Deluxe
model

dreadnought The dreadnought (alternatively spelled dreadnaught) was the predominant type of battleship in the early 20th century. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's , had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her ...

, and a Bourgeois
Banjo Killer
slope-shouldered dreadnought, which is another model directly inspired by Bryan. He also regularly performs with a 1940

Martin Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austr ...

D-28.

Discography

References

External links

BryanSutton.com, Official site
* *
Online Bluegrass Guitar School with Bryan Sutton
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sutton, Bryan Bluegrass musicians from North Carolina American country guitarists American country singer-songwriters Grammy Award winners Living people American mandolinists Resonator guitarists American country banjoists 1973 births American acoustic guitarists American male guitarists American bluegrass mandolinists Musicians from Asheville, North Carolina Guitarists from North Carolina American session musicians 20th-century American guitarists 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American singers Country musicians from North Carolina 21st-century American guitarists Punch Brothers members Hot Rize members Kentucky Thunder members American male singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from North Carolina