Jonah & Maya
July 19th @ 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm
UnCommon Corner, Boylston St &, Tremont St, Boston, MA 02116
Jonah and Maya are a pair of musical friends based in Boston. The two originally met through a jazz improvisation class at Berklee, quickly discovering each others’ shared love of all things folk music.
Originally from Connecticut, guitarist and songwriter Jonah Birtwell grew up playing and writing indie folk music, inspired by artists such as Adrienne Lenker and Field Medic. While studying at Berklee, Jonah delved into traditional American music through his involvement with Berklee’s American Roots Department, creatively combining his intricate fingerstyle guitar playing with traditional ballads and instrumental tunes.
Originally from Pennsylvania, fiddler/violinist Maya Leibowitz grew up steeped in various fiddle music traditions, deepening her understanding of American roots music and her improvisational skills at Berklee. While at Berklee, she learned how to accompany songwriters such as Jonah, lending tasteful melodic ideas to any song.
The two have brought their shared roots music language, improvisational ideas, and harmonic sensibilities to many projects and jam sessions alike. The duo most recently collaborated on a live concept album titled The Fox’s Tale, a collection of Maya’s original folk-jazz instrumentals that center around a fairytale. Their blend of Jonah’s profound songwriting, Maya’s repertoire of original and traditional fiddle tunes, and re-interpretations of folk songs is both ancient and timeless, creating an unique musical experience that anyone is sure to enjoy.
Maya Leibowitz
Jonah Birtwell