Ida Clare

Winners of the 2017 John Hartford Memorial Festival Band Contest, Ida Claire plays an eclectic mix of Bluegrass, old-time, and original material. It doesn’t matter if you catch them performing at a festival, at a rehearsal or just warming up back stage before a show, the music is always exciting and fun.

The members of the band, powerhouse vocalist Lea Bullock Cockrell, mandolinist Jim Wheatley, banjo player Robin Roller Thixton, and bassist Mark Miller, are no strangers to performing. The depth of both stage and studio experience is obvious. The band has an intuitive understanding of performance dynamics. When you hear Ida Clare you will have a smile on your face and your toes will be tapping. The body of music the band performs is wide ranging but the back-bone is always Bluegrass.