| Dulcimer Players News August 2000 by Neal Walters Speaking of Winfield champions, Karen Mueller has some exceptional credentials in that area as well. She was the autoharp champion in 1986 and a finalist in the mountain dulcimer competition in 1985. In addition, she was twice the Kansas State Dulcimer Champion. Karen is a truly remarkable musician with "serious" skills on autoharp, mountain dulcimer and guitar. She is equally at home with a spirited Appalachian string band classic, a complex Celtic reel or jig, a well-known television theme, or a "hey dude" contemporary rock classic and she plays them all with both passion and precision. Still Point is her latest project and superbly showcases her skills on all of these instruments. She layers in a number of other instrumental textures with the more than able assistance of Tim Britton on flute and uillean pipes, Drew Miller on bass guitar, Mathew Zimmerman on percussion, Bruce Bowers on fiddle, Dick Hensold on Northumbrian pipes, Laura MacKenzie on concertina, and Anna Vazquez on cello. In her previous life, I'm betting that Karen was probably a percussionist as her rhythm chops are second to none. Still Point definitely confirms Karen's vast array of ear-opening instrumental licks, and "Music for a Found Harmonium," which has been a staple of her live shows, is included, but there's a lot more, too. Listen, for example, to the evocative and moody title cut, an original which Karen plays superbly on bass dulcimer accompanied only by Dick Hensold's low whistle. "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" is a seamless example of how to make two dulcimers sound like a band, and "Linus and Lucy" is a tutorial on how to make that same bass dulcimer sing and dance at the same time. |
Autoharp Quarterly Spring 2000 issue by Mike Herr I just love the satisfaction of waiting and waiting for a specific musical CD, and then getting more than I expected. Karen Mueller has done it again, folks, and I am simply honored to be doing this review. So what does Karen do that is so special? She's a seasoned, experienced, professional musician and you hear it come through the well-developed intros, interludes and endings--through the interplay with the other musicians, and through the complete ease with which she uses her 'harp. She switches from lead to back-up to lead seamlessly. She's one of the fastest melody pickers in the top echelon of autoharpers and makes it sound so effortless. Especially in the mind blower, Miss McLeod's. Another strength of the CD as a whole is the variety of selections. Karen winds her way from the snappy 30-Year Jig to the plaintive Eleanor Plunkett, from the amazingly quick rendition of Bill Cheatham to the slip-jiggery medley of Hardiman/Dever/Star. This brings me to another aspect of this CD which is abundantly evident--the excellent cast of musicians around Karen... In conclusion, every offering delivers a message, a well-developed feel and a meaning; every offering is well-arranged; and every offering shows why Karen Mueller is one of the most complete musicians we have the pleasure to hear these days. Take advantage of the opportunity. |