Sarana VerLin (born September 19, 1953) is a violinist, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. She was the vocalist/violinist of the bands Natasha and Dark Carnival and violinist for numerous bands.

Biography

VerLin was classically trained on violin starting at age 10 and performed in The International Youth Symphony which was founded by Windsor Symphony Orchestra conductor Matti Holli. After high school, she played guitar and

rock violin Rock violin is rock music that includes violin in its instrumental lineup. This includes rock music only and does not include classical style music using melodic Motif (music), motifs from rock. Rock music and rock and roll bands typically use el ...

with other musicians for many years. In 1979 after a feature article about women in rock appeared in the

Detroit News ''The Detroit News'' is one of the two major newspapers in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan. The paper began in 1873, when it rented space in the rival ''Detroit Free Press'' building. ''The News'' absorbed the ''Detroit Tribune'' on Februar ...

, she decided to front her own band called Natasha which won an award for Best New Talent. They were active until 1985 and during that time she also worked on projects with Grammy Award winner

Don Was Don Edward Fagenson (born September 13, 1952), known professionally as Don Was, is an American musician, record producer and record executive. Primarily a bass player, Was co-founded the funk-rock band Was (Not Was). In later years he produced s ...

, Grammy Award winner

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...

producer Steve King and

Marilyn Manson Brian Hugh Warner (born January 5, 1969), known professionally as Marilyn Manson, is an American rock musician. He came to prominence as the lead singer of the band which shares his name, of which he remains the only constant member since it ...

Debbie Harry Deborah Ann Harry (born Angela Trimble; July 1, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter and actress, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Blondie. Four of her songs with the band reached on the US charts between 1979 and 1981. Born in ...

producer

Ben Grosse Ben Grosse is an American record producer and mixer, known for his signature sound involving metal and hard rock music. Grosse has mixed and produced numerous albums for popular artists such as Dream Theater, Marilyn Manson, Sevendust, Disturbe ...

. They toured extensively throughout the midwest and Canada. She is in the Detroit Metro Times Hall of Fame (alongside

Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter and author who became an influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album '' Horses''. Called the "punk poe ...

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...

and

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

) after winning best instrumentalist 3 years running for the

Detroit Metro Times The ''Detroit Metro Times'' is a progressive alternative weekly located in Detroit, Michigan. It is the largest circulating weekly newspaper in the metro Detroit area. History and content Supported entirely by advertising, it is distributed f ...

Music Awards (a.k.a. the

Detroit Music Awards The Detroit Music Awards Foundation is a Michigan 501(c)(3) organization, whose mission is to recognize Detroit area musicians working on a national, regional, and local level. The Foundation supports and nurtures the musical community in Detro ...

). She has been featured in numerous articles in the

Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' is the largest daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, US. The Sunday edition is titled the ''Sunday Free Press''. It is sometimes referred to as the Freep (reflected in the paper's web address, www.freep.com). It primari ...

, Goldmine,

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

Metro Times The ''Detroit Metro Times'' is a progressive alternative weekly located in Detroit, Michigan. It is the largest circulating weekly newspaper in the metro Detroit area. History and content Supported entirely by advertising, it is distributed f ...

, and the

as well as television and radio appearances. Sarana was one of the original members of the supergroup Dark Carnival, which was a rotating group of superstars from the Detroit Area...most notably

Niagara Niagara may refer to: Geography Niagara Falls and nearby places In both the United States and Canada *Niagara Falls, the famous waterfalls in the Niagara River *Niagara River, part of the U.S.–Canada border *Niagara Escarpment, the cliff ov ...

Ron Asheton Ronald Franklin Asheton (July 17, 1948 – c. January 6, 2009) was an American musician , who was best known as the guitarist, bassist, and co-songwriter for the rock band the Stooges. He formed the Stooges along with Iggy Pop and his brother, ...

Scott Asheton Scott Randolph Asheton (August 16, 1949 – March 15, 2014) was an American musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band the Stooges. Asheton was born in Washington, D.C. and moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan with his family at the age of ...

, Cheetah Chrome of the

Dead Boys The Dead Boys are an American punk rock band from Cleveland, Ohio, United States. The band was among the first wave of punk, and regarded by many as one of the rowdiest and most violent groups of the era. They were formed by vocalist Stiv B ...

and poet

Jim Carroll James Dennis Carroll (August 1, 1949 – September 11, 2009) was an American author, poet, autobiographer, and punk musician. Carroll was best known for his 1978 autobiographical work '' The Basketball Diaries'', which inspired a 1995 film of ...

. In 2004 she switched her talents from rock to Celtic, performing at midwestern

renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

and

pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

festivals such as the

Michigan Renaissance Festival The Michigan Renaissance Festival (Mich Ren Fest) is a Renaissance fair, an interactive outdoor event that focuses on recreating the look and feel of a fictional English village called Hollygrove during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I in the latter ...

for the next 4 years. Her most well known and popular song written during that time is St. Brendan's Reel, a song about

St. Brendan Brendan of Clonfert (c. AD 484 - c.577), is one of the early Celtic Christianity, Irish monastic saints and one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland. He is also referred to as Brendan the Navigator, Brendan the Voyager, Brendan the Anchorite, Br ...

. After reappearing on the Detroit music circuit in 2009, she won

Outstanding Instrumentalist in the Acoustic category. In 2010 she won

Outstanding Folk Act as a duo with Billy Brandt and received several other nominations in various categories. Her music has been heard worldwide from Australia to Japan and her song "Knock On Wood" was featured on Taxi Talk video in 2010. VerLin's recording of 'Kyrie' was featured in a 2012 Haiti Rescue film soundtrack for Maryland's Fire & Rescue team. She has also appeared in two films which were shot in Michigan. She is credited with playing the part of a renaissance fiddler in

All's Faire in Love ''All's Faire in Love'' is a 2009 romantic comedy film directed by Scott Marshall and written by R. A. White and Jeffrey Ray Wine. The film stars Owen Benjamin as Will, a college student who is assigned to work at a renaissance fair by his ...

and also appeared in Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story where she was a journalist photographer. A voting member of the

Grammy Awards 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 many as the most pres ...

, she currently splits her time between Detroit and

Stroud Stroud is a market town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It is the main town in Stroud District. The town's population was 13,500 in 2021. Below the western escarpment of the Cotswold Hills, at the meeting point of the Five ...

when not touring.

Style of music

Sarana VerLin's primary musical instruments are the violin, the guitar and the

baritone violin A Baritone violin is a member of the violin family and has two specific meanings: * a violin tuned an octave below conventional violin tuning (G2–D3–A3–E4). This is commonly accomplished by stringing a standard violin with heavy gauge strin ...

. Her current style blends the roots of Celtic, Folk and Americana.

Festivals/Touring

Sarana VerLin has toured extensively throughout the Detroit/

Ann Arbor Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...

area as well as touring

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, Florida, Canada, Chicago, New York City,

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...

, and England. In 2009 she performed solo and with various musicians during the summer tour, performing at

Blowout, Hamtramck Blowout, Scarab Club Musings Series, Dunegrass, and Michigan Earth Day Festival as well as individual venues. In May 2010 she toured 2 weeks around

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

with music partner Billy Brandt. Arriving back in the US in June to begin the heavy summer touring season, she performed solo, as a duo with Billy Brandt, or with full band lineup (Brandt on guitar/mandolin/vocals, John Holk on bass/vocals, Drew Howard on dobro/mandolin, Chris Degnore on guitar, and Todd Glass on drums.) Festivals included

WYCD WYCD (99.5 FM, "New Country 99-5 YCD") is a radio station in Detroit, Michigan, owned by Audacy, Inc. WYCD's offices and studios are located at Audacy's Detroit facility on American Drive in Southfield, Michigan. WYCD's transmitter is located in ...

Downtown Hoedown, Mackinac Island Music Festival, Arts, Beats and Eats, Crazy Wisdom Concerts, and St. Dunstan's Cranbrook Concert Series. In 2011 VerLin returned to England with Billy Brandt and added

Crediton Crediton is a town and civil parish in the Mid Devon district of Devon in England. It stands on the A377 Exeter to Barnstaple road at the junction with the A3072 road to Tiverton, about north west of Exeter and around from the M5 motorway ...

and

Exmouth Exmouth is a harbor, port town, civil parishes in England, civil parish and seaside resort, sited on the east bank of the mouth of the River Exe and southeast of Exeter. In 2011 it had a population of 34,432, making Exmouth the List of town ...

May dates. From June through September the Michigan tour included festivals such as

Ann Arbor Summer Festival The Ann Arbor Summer Festival (A2SF) champions performing arts, outdoor entertainment, and community spirit. In addition to a nearly four-week festival each June that attracts a diverse audience of over 80,000 people and offers over 200 concerts ...

Concert of Colors A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or musical band, band. Concerts are held in a w ...

with

All-Star Review, Arts, Beats and Eats, Assembly Line Concert behind the Michigan Governor, Thumbfest, Detroit River Days Festival, Crossroads Music Festival, Bluewater Festival and concerts at Chelsea Sights & Sounds, Black Cat Concert Series, Stone Arch Concert Series, Trinity House Concerts, and Stonehouse Concerts. Since her November 2011 move to the UK she has continued to tour 3–4 weeks in the US and 3–4 weeks in the UK & Europe with Billy Brandt. She also performs at festivals (including Bristol Folk Festival,

Priddy Priddy is a village in Somerset, England in the Mendip Hills, close to East Harptree and north-west of Wells. It is in the local government district of Mendip. The village lies in a small hollow near the summit of the Mendip range of hills, ...

Folk Festival, Watchet Music Festival, Stroud Fringe Festival) and venues throughout the UK either as a solo artist, with UK music trio Iron & Oak, or guesting with various groups. She organizes the Stroud Americana Festival, a 3-day festival in her hometown of

which happens the first weekend in June.

Awards

*1985 VerLin's band Natasha won Detroit Metro Times Music Awards Best New Talent. *2000 listed in the Detroit Metro Times Hall of Fame alongside

and

after winning Best Instrumentalist for 3 consecutive years. *2009 VerLin won the ''Acoustic/Folk Instrumentalist'' award at the

with 2 other nominations. *2010 VerLin along with music partner Billy Brandt won the ''Folk Artist/Act'' award at the

with 4 nominations in different categories. Her song "Gravity Down" won the Black Crystal Songwriting Challenge. *2011 VerLin won ''Acoustic/Folk Instrumentalist'' and ''Acoustic/Folk Album'' awards at the

with a total of 11 nominations in several categories. *2012 VerLin won ''Classical Recording'', ''World Recording'' and ''Acoustic/Folk Recording'' (with Billy Brandt) at the

. *2013 Goin' Home CD nominated ''Acoustic/Folk Recording'' at the

. *2014 Brandt & VerLin nominated ''Folk Artist'' at the

. *2017 VerLin nominated ''Classical Instrumentalist'' at the

. *2017 Finalist in the International UK Songwriting Contest for the song ''Detour'' in the Country category. *2019 VerLin & Brandt Are You Listening? CD nominated ''Americana Recording'' at the

Discography

# ''Slip of The Lip/Crocodile'' (1981) # ''Mandatory Music Tremor Records Compilation'' (1982) # ''WLLZ Motor City Rocks Compilation'' (1983) # ''WLLZ Motor City Rocks II Compilation'' (1984) # ''Unity Gain Compilation'' (1985) # ''GutterPups'' (2004) # ''GutterPups – Live on the Street of Red Lanterns'' (2005) # ''Amadon Crest – Live'' (2007) # ''Sarana VerLin – Half'' (2009) # ''Billy Brandt & Sarana VerLin – Live From Billy'sBasement'' (2010) # "New Atlantic Sound Volume 1 (UK)" (2010) # ''Rock N Reel Magazine Compilation (UK)'' (2010) # ''Carnival Girl – Live and Otherwise'' (2010) # ''US/UK Compilation – Distant Thunder'' (2010) # ''Sarana VerLin – Bats & Butterflies'' (2010) # ''Wilderspin – Something to Crow About'' (2012) # ''Sarana VerLin & Billy Brandt – Goin' Home'' (2013) # ''Iron & Oak – Detour'' (2017) # ''Sarana VerLin & Billy Brandt – Are You Listening?'' (2018)

References

;Notes
Detroit Metro Times Music Awards Hall of Fame

Women Rock Back, Detroit Metro Times

Friday Profile, Detroit News

St. Brendan, St. Brendan's Reel written by Sarana VerLin

Detroit Music Awards

Concert of Colors video on My Damn Channel

Maryland CERT team in Haiti video

International Lineup for Stroud Americana Festival

Stroud Americana Festival Returns

External links

*
Sarana VerLin website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Verlin, Sarana Living people American rock songwriters American rock singers American punk rock singers American women singer-songwriters American violinists Women punk rock singers 1953 births Place of birth missing (living people) Singer-songwriters from Michigan 21st-century violinists 21st-century American women