Lawrence Parker "Moondi" Klein is an American singer and guitarist. He is known for his work with

Chesapeake Chesapeake often refers to: *Chesapeake people, a Native American tribe also known as the Chesepian * The Chesapeake, a.k.a. Chesapeake Bay *Delmarva Peninsula, also known as the Chesapeake Peninsula Chesapeake may also refer to: Populated plac ...

The Seldom Scene The Seldom Scene is an American bluegrass band that formed in 1971 in Bethesda, Maryland. The band's original line-up comprised John Starling on lead vocals and guitar, Mike Auldridge on Dobro and baritone vocals, Ben Eldridge on banjo, Tom Gra ...

, and

Jimmy Gaudreau Jimmy Gaudreau is a singer and mandolinist playing traditional and progressive bluegrass music. He is best known for his solo albums, and his work with The Country Gentlemen, Tony Rice, and J. D. Crowe. Biography Early life In high school in the ...

Biography

Early life

Klein grew up in New York City. His father, Howard Klein, was a pianist and music critic for the

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

, and his mother was an artist. Raised on opera, he (and his brother) sang with the

New York Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

Children’s Chorus before he was age 10 until his mid-teens. When his father took him on a trip to southwest Virginia, Klein began to develop an interest in bluegrass music.

Early career

Klein's brother Adam Klein is an opera singer and a multi-instrumental folk musician. In 1981, Adam and Moondi recorded the album ''Me and My Brother''. After college in 1984, Klein relocated to the Washington D.C. area. He was a founding member of the DC area bluegrass group Rock Creek with Randy Barrett, then he replaced John Starling as lead singer for

, staying with them from 1994 until 1996.

Chesapeake

Klein and

met in 1990 at a picking party. In 1992, they formed

with

Seldom Scene The Seldom Scene is an American bluegrass band that formed in 1971 in Bethesda, Maryland. The band's original line-up comprised John Starling on lead vocals and guitar, Mike Auldridge on Dobro and baritone vocals, Ben Eldridge on banjo, Tom Gr ...

members

Mike Auldridge Mike Auldridge (December 30, 1938 – December 29, 2012) was an American Dobro player and a founding member of the bluegrass group The Seldom Scene. The ''New York Times'' described Auldridge as "one of the most distinctive dobro players in the ...

(resonator guitar) and T. Michael Coleman (bass). At first a side project, the band eventually became a full-time occupation, and they recorded three albums for Sugar Hill. With no banjo, they were more acoustic country than bluegrass. Chesapeake disbanded in 1999 when their contract with Sugar Hill ended.

Jimmy Gaudreau and Moondi Klein

When Chesapeake split up, Klein took time off from touring to raise his young children, but eventually began to play the occasional show with Gaudreau. When they recorded their 2008 album ''2:10 Train'', thery decided to formalize the duo. This was followed by ''Home From the Mill'' and then ''If I Had A Boat'', all released on

Rebel Records Rebel Records is an independent American record label based in Charlottesville, Virginia that specializes in bluegrass and old time music. The label was founded in Mount Rainier, Maryland in 1959 by Dick Freeland, Bill Carroll and Sonny Compton. ...

. In 2008, Gaudreau and Klein toured with

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She has released dozens of albums and singles over the course of her career and has won 14 Grammys, the Polar Music Prize, and numerous other honors, including ...

. Their focus is on relaxed improvisation and interplay.

Discography

As Adam and Moondi Klein

* 1981: ''Me and My Brother'' (Zeng)

With
Chesapeake Chesapeake often refers to: Chesapeake people, a Native American tribe also known as the Chesepian The Chesapeake, a.k.a. Chesapeake Bay *Delmarva Peninsula, also known as the Chesapeake Peninsula Chesapeake may also refer to: Populated plac ...

* 1994: '' Rising Tide'' ( Sugar Hill) * 1995: '' Full Sail'' (Sugar Hill) * 1997: '' Pier Pressure'' (Sugar Hill) * 2014: ''Hook, Live & Sinker'' (Chesterbury) compilation of live performances

As
Jimmy Gaudreau Jimmy Gaudreau is a singer and mandolinist playing traditional and progressive bluegrass music. He is best known for his solo albums, and his work with The Country Gentlemen, Tony Rice, and J. D. Crowe. Biography Early life In high school in the ...
and Moondi Klein

* 2008: ''2:10 Train'' (Rebel) * 2012: ''Home from the Mills'' (Rebel) * 2014: ''If I Had a Boat'' (Rebel)

Also appears on

* 1992:

Tony Furtado Tony Furtado (born October 18, 1967) is an American singer-songwriter, banjoist, and guitarist. History Furtado was born in Pleasanton, California. He took up the banjo at age 12, inspired by the Beverly Hillbillies television show and a sixth- ...

- ''Within Reach'' (

Rounder Rounder(s) or The Rounder(s) may refer to: Film and television * ''The Rounders'' (1914 film), a comedy short * ''The Rounder'' (1930 film), a comedy short * ''The Rounders'' (1965 film), a western comedy * ''Rounders'' (film), a 1998 poker f ...

) * 1995:

Doc Watson Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. Watson won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. W ...

- '' Docabilly'' (Sugar Hill) * 1997: Jonathan Edwards - ''

Man in the Moon In many cultures, several pareidolic images of a human face, head or body are recognized in the disc of the full moon; they are generally known as the Man in the Moon. The images are based on the appearance of the dark areas (known as lunar ma ...

'' (Rising) * 1997:

Lisa Moscatiello Lisa Moscatiello is an American singer who is part of the Washington, DC area music scene. She is listed in Music Hound's ''Folk: Essential Album Guide'', and is most often categorized as a folk vocalist. Moscatiello is, however, known for her ...

- ''Innocent When You Dream'' (Happy Cactus) * 1999:

John McCutcheon John McCutcheon (born August 14, 1952) is an American folk music singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who has produced 41 albums since the 1970s. He is regarded as a master of the hammered dulcimer, and is also proficient on many other i ...

- ''Storied Ground'' (Rounder) * 2003: BanjerDan - ''Old Stuff'' (self-released) * 2004:

Lucie Blue Tremblay Lucie Blue Tremblay (born 1958 in Montreal) is a Canadian folk singer-songwriter. Tremblay started performing when she was still a child, accompanying her mother's five-piece band as a drummer. Later, she taught herself how to play the guitar, f ...

- ''It's Got to Be About Love'' (

CD Baby CD Baby, Inc. is an online distributor of independent music. The company was described as an "anti-label" by its parent company's Chief Operating Officer Tracy Maddux. The CD Baby music store was shut down in March 2020 with a statement that "C ...

) * 2007: Candlewyck - ''Two'' (Votive) * 2010:

Frank Solivan Frank Solivan is an American mandolinist, recording artist, composer, and leader of the progressive bluegrass band Dirty Kitchen. Biography Early life Solivan grew up near Modesto, California. His grandmother on his father’s side played mandoli ...

and Dirty Kitchen – ''Frank Solivan and Dirty Kitchen'' (Fiddlemon) * 2011: Jonathan Edwards - ''My Love Will Keep'' (Appleseed)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Klein, Moondi Living people American male guitarists American bluegrass guitarists Americana musicians 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers 1963 births The Seldom Scene members