“Lord of the Strings” Arvel Bird wins Artist of the Year at the Ninth Annual NAMA

Oct. 28, 2010 - PRLog -- Niagara Falls, NY – At an exciting ceremony last night at the Seneca Niagara Casino & Hotel in Niagara Falls, New York, “Lord of the Strings” Arvel Bird won the coveted Artist of the Year title at the Ninth Annual Native American Music Awards (Nammys).

The top honor of the evening was presented to Bird in recognition of his 2006 CD Animal Totems 2, and his competition in the category was stiff. Fellow nominees were Douglas Blue Feather, Jana, Mary Youngblood, Paul LaRoche, and Wade Fernandez; all extremely talented and celebrated artists.

Bird rushed to the event last night from Westampton Township in New Jersey where he is performing at the Powhatan Renape Nation Indian Arts Festival all weekend. But his side trip to New York State and back was indeed worthwhile.

So who is this man of music with grace and talent? His story is intriguing, and brings a message of hope to us all.

The fiddle artistry of Arvel Bird is unquestionable. He is a unique recording artist with a flawless talent and a passion to inspire his audiences. He uses his mixed-blood heritage – his mother is Southern Paiute Indian turned Mormon and his dad was Scottish – to full advantage to create a repertoire like none before. His music is so universally appealing that no matter what style of music you enjoy listening to, from classical, New Age, folk, country, and Celtic, to Native American, bluegrass, fusion, jazz, or blues, you’ll find it all, and more, in Arvel’s work.

He’s a charismatic performer and expert storyteller, too. All of his songs have meanings and messages, and when you see him perform live he tells their tales before he plays them. The stories enhance the music and are compulsive to listen to. He’s a great environmentalist, so he covers subjects such as the earth we all live on, and the animals we share it with. Other pieces include insightful accounts of Native American history and ways, some of which have great relevance for today. No matter whether you hear him perform as a solo act, a duo, or with the bands he’s associated with One Nation and Ananeah, you’re guaranteed to have a good time, feel better, and definitely learn something new.

But while Arvel is reaping the rewards of all his endeavors today – he is nominated for awards all over the indigenous music world – his path to success was not an easy one. He was born in Utah and his childhood was spent in a dysfunctional family; he had little self-esteem. The one thing he had, however, was music. His siblings all played instruments and Arvel had the use of a fiddle. He took to it straight away and used music practice as an excuse to hide away from his parents in his bedroom.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, his confidence took another hit when teachers at school, and later professors at university (he won a music scholarship to Arizona University), told him he wasn’t good enough. It left him feeling deflated and totally discouraged. If it hadn’t have been for one guiding light, a private music teacher in Salt Lake City who Arvel studied under for a while, it might have all ended for Arvel right then and there.

Her encouragement early on in his training taught Arvel to never give up. So he took his destiny into his own hands, ditched his university education, and sought out world-renowned Hungarian violinist Paul Roland at the University of Illinois. After several years with the master, Arvel found the confidence that had been missing all his life. Armed with the burning desire to prove everyone wrong, he set about to perfect his craft and become a successful musician. While he had been studying in the Midwest, other styles of fiddling had become popular, including Appalachian, bluegrass and Celtic. He not only loved the music, but was also transfixed by the artists’ ability to play so passionately that they excited their audiences. He vowed this would be his mission, too.

After many years of hard work learning and practicing new styles and following the music wherever it led him, Arvel met Glen Campbell in 1986 and toured with him both at home and abroad for almost six years. He moved to Nashville in 1991 looking for further opportunities, and toured with new artists and such country legends as Loretta Lynn, Ray Price, and Louise Mandrell. He built and operated a recording studio and produced and engineered music for clients all over the world.

He was having the time of his life, but something nagged at him. Despite all the fun and excitement, Arvel knew that what he really wanted to do was record and perform his own music. So in 2001 he put everything on the line by selling his home and his recording studio, and set out to tour both nationally and internationally to prove himself as a solo artist.

The gamble paid off. He now has eleven CDs of his own music under his belt, along with one DVD. Early albums earned several music award nominations, and in 2006 two of them struck gold in the Nammys and Izzys (Indian Summer Music Awards) in the Best Instrumental categories. And finally, last night, he landed the biggest catch of all. So where does he go from here?

As well as continuing to tour, Arvel has his sites set on a Grammy. He’s currently working on a new solo CD (after two collaborations); one which he thinks will be life-defining for him. Its working title is Tribal Music Suite, and he’s employing the skills of Grammy-winning producer Tom Wasinger for it. He’d also like to write more scores for films and documentaries, something he has had some success with. He’s currently signed to Singing Wolf Records in Nashville, and is constantly on the road performing and making media appearances in towns up and down the country.

So watch out! The artist that could be described as “the best performer you don’t yet know about” is starting to change all that. Check out arvelbird.com for more information, booking details, a discography, and an up-to-date tour list. Better still, see him live. You’ll be glad you did!