Biography

As a child, Susan listened to recordings her grandfather and great uncles had made of weekend folk and pop jams during the 1930's and 40's. She was inspired to begin making her own music, expanding her family's musical heritage. She sang in church choirs and learned to play mandolin and guitar in her late teens. "Music has been a part of me since I was a little girl," she says. "It's been a joy, a refuge, and an escape."

Susan grew up in Sequim on the Olympic Peninsula, and relocated to North Kitsap in 1988. She joined the Kitsap folk circuit during the 1990's, and since then has performed solo and with other folk ensembles at venues throughout western Washington. Musicians she's performed with include Billy Forrester, the New Romeo Loafers, and TR Stewart and the Mean Palominos. She plays monthly at the Winslow Way Cafe with Art Hanlon, and sings with Bella, an a cappella trio with Emily Groff and Georgia Browne.

Susan's voice has been described as smoky, earthy, magical, powerful, soulful... and in one memorable metaphor from Bainbridge musician Eddie Williams, as "a choir of wildcats." She describes her own style as contemporary Western folk. Her lyrics draw upon regional imagery and universal experiences.