And the Hi and I'm Brian and joining us for episode 200.

Hi and welcome to Soda Jerker on songwriting. I'm Simon and I'm Brian and joining us for

episode 232 is a prolific and prodigiously talented singer-songwriter

violin virtuoso and Whistler extraordinary who blends folk who blends folk, indie, pop, classical and jazz to mesmerizing effect.

Over the years he's collaborated with the legs of Fiona Apple, the Handsome Family,

Mathes and Madison Cunningham, Dan Wilson, Jimbo Mathers, St Vincent and Iron and Wine, and

recently dropped a tip-top new studio album Inside Problems, produced by no less than

friend of the show, Mike Viole.

It's our great pleasure to welcome the brilliance

Andrew Bird to the podcast. Andrew was born in 1973 and grew up in Lake Bluff

on the edge of Lake Michigan and from the age of 12 on an Illinois farm. He was surrounded by classical music at home and at his

mom's encouragement learned violin from the age of 4 by ear via the Suzuki method, a discipline

to which he was wholly dedicated practicing for many hours a day.

He later developed an interest in Irish tunes, bluegrass and English and Scottish folk music

as well as jazz artists like Johnny Hodges, Lester Young and Fat Waller.

Apparently the violin he still uses today was purchased when he was 16

from a Polish violin maker in Norwich, Illinois.

And this guy actually made Andrew audition for the rights by the instrument.

That's going to be a key scene in the movie of his life.

It would work well in a film actually.

Andrew began writing songs in his late teens and studied violin performance at Northwestern Music Conservatory for four years.

His debut record, Music of Hair, was largely instrumental and self-released in 1996, the same year he graduated.

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