Marti Rogers
Detailed Biography
Marti
Rogers was born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia, PA. Her mother, a retired concert pianist and
mezzo-soprano, taught Marti formal music, but always insisted that Marti started
to sing before she could talk. As an adolescent, Marti was active in church
choirs and school choral groups. Her first public concert participation was at
a hootenanny in 1963, while a student at Bard College.
Marti
learned to play
the guitar in 1959, the Appalachian mountain lap dulcimer in 1965, and the Autoharp
in 1966. She began teaching them all in
1967. She also studied performance
technique with countertenor Richard Dyer Bennett, and ethnomusicology with
Henrietta Yurchenko at The New School for Social Research in New York City.
By
1965,
Marti had dropped out of school to become a professional folk singer. In addition to numerous coffee houses, Marti
performed at community centers, churches, schools, colleges and the New York
World's Fair. She appeared on several
folk music radio programs, including the popular Vince Scalsa and Izzy Young
shows. She also made guest appearances
with Frank Wakefield and The Greenbrier Boys, and Danny Kalb of The Blues Project.
In
the early '70's,
Marti moved back to Philadelphia and continued to entertain at many venues
primarily folk-clubs and colleges, and on radio and television, including a
two-hour program about the Autoharp on WXPN.
She was also a founding member of the eclectic acoustic folk band, Cutty
Wren which performed in the area for several years.
Marti retired from performing in 1976 to return
to school, earning a Master of Arts degree in community psychology from Temple
University. Until 1999, she was
employed in the mental health and health-care fields.
When
she joined the
Bucks County Folk Song Society in 1994, Marti began performing once again. She
has since volunteered her participation in annual fund-raising concerts, and
appeared with other society members at crafts fairs and arts festivals. She served as president of the society from
2000 thru 2003 and was on their board from 1995 to 2007.
Tom Levy, Marti's husband since 1977, leaned to
play bass fiddle in high school, but put it aside to pursue photography and a
profession in the public service sector.
Now, Tom is backing Marti up on bass and bodhran. Together they often invite other musicians
to join them to form the Ol' Rusty Pickup band.
Marti’s current performances, solo or with
Tom, include coffee houses, house concerts, public events, historic sites,
nursing homes, retirement communities, Folk Factory People's Choice Concerts
(three-time winner) and radio and internet programs.
Although not a prolific
song-writer, Marti has been published in Broadside magazine, and her
song "Lucid, The Rambler" was recorded by Kevin Roth. Marti released her first recording,
"Plain," in 2002, and her second, an extension of the first which
includes new arrangements and back-up musicians, “Plain & Fancy,” in
September of 2004.” "Old Songs for Young Folks" which is for "Other Folks, too" was completed in 2008.
For Bookings
or More Information Contact Marti Rogers