Mama Beth started playing and singing with her guitar in front of folks at the age of 12 and hasn’t stopped yet. Starting at coffee houses, singing in school & church choirs and playing trumpet in band as a youngster, she has run a coffee house in Alaska, played in bars from Florida to Newfoundland, was the Honor Guard Bugler in the Navy, hosted a tv show at Harpswell Community TV, and currently is a Deejay on WBOR 91.1FM Bowdoin College Radio with a show called “Mama’s Midcoast Bluegrass”.
Mama Beth has been a member of the Windy Ridge Band, a bluegrass band out of Brunswick, for eighteen years. She plays 12 & 6 string guitar, and Irish tenor banjo, mandolin, octave mandolin and upright bass as well as singing lead and harmony. She also serves on the Bluegrass Music Association of Maine’s Board of Directors.
She is always juggling her two musical loves, Bluegrass and Irish music. When she’s not sitting in with Bitter Brew or playing with Windy Ridge, you can find Mama Beth having fun (even playin’ her Irish banjo) at the 317 Community Music Center Jam in Yarmouth playing Irish/Contra music most Monday nights or Ceili Dancing with the Irish American Club in Portland weekly.
Currently, she is the Chairman of the Board for the Bluegrass Music Association of Maine.
Awards include: National Veteran’s Creative Arts Festival Gold Medal winner 2014 & 2015 with Windy Ridge Band and Maine Veteran’s Creative Arts Festival winner in individual World Music (Irish) category.