Fall Visiting Artist
Each fall and spring, Penland invites a visiting artist to join us for one or two weeks to engage with Concentration instructors and students. The intent is to add an invigorating presence to the session, enhancing the experience for everyone.
Tift Merritt
Tift Merritt is a singer and songwriter. In her nearly 20-year career, she has recorded seven albums of original material and earned a Grammy nomination. Tift is known for her short-story-style songwriting and her creative collaborations. She has shared the stage with bands as varied as Nick Lowe and Jason Isbell and was a member of Andrew Bird’s band, The Hands of Glory. In 2017, she designed a fabric collection for Bernhardt Design inspired by the guitar straps she makes with vintage ribbons. Most recently, she has been a regular contributor to the Oxford American, chronicling her tours with her young daughter Jean. The New Yorker called Tift “the bearer of a proud tradition of distaff country soul that reaches back to artists like Dusty Springfield and Bobbie Gentry.”
