Christina Courtin

As anyone whoʼs caught one of Christina Courtinʼs live performances can attest, the critically acclaimed New York City-based singer-songwriter/Juilliard trained violinist decisively takes over whatever space sheʼs occupying. In 2009 she burst onto the scene with her self-titled debut solo album on Nonesuch Records and has been trail blazing ever since. Courtin released her sophomore album Varsity in 2014 and is to release her most recent solo recording entitled Situation Station in the winter of 2019. Her newest work can best be described as a tapestry of her musical and life experiences, weaving together her work in classical music and her pop/rock sensiblities. She has opened shows for and/or toured with Andrew Bird, Suzanne Vega, Mike Doughty, Josh Rouse, Ray Davies, Pomplamousse, The Punch Brothers, and Lake Street Dive. Most recently, she was a featured soloist with the Orlando Philharmonic, performing her songs at their Spring Pops Festival in the spring of 2019.

As a founding member and violinist of New York based collective The Knights, Christina has been a contributor of 6 albums on Sony Classical records and has shared a 2011 Juno award and 2016 Grammy Nomination. The group has toured extensively around the world and has performed with artists such as Yo-yo Ma, Dawn Upshaw, Gil Shaham, Avi Avital, and Béla Fleck. Driven by an open-minded spirit of camaraderie and exploration, The Knights inspire listeners with vibrant programs that encompass their roots in the classical tradition and passion for artistic discovery.

As a composer/producer/arranger, Courtin has contributed work to the Five Boroughs Songbook Festival, Meet The Composer, Brooklyn Riderʼs Almanac, The Knightsʼ The Ground Beneath Our Feet, and pianist Kimball Gallagherʼs 88 Concert Tour (with a world premiere in Antarctica). She has written string arrangements for several acts, including Dr. Dog, LeeAnn Womack, and Lisa Loeb. Most recently, she has also been commissioned to write an original song for The Prototype Festival to be debuted in 2020. She occasionally writes music for This American Life, and has written commercially for several national ad campaigns including McDonald's, European Wax Center, and Quilted Northern.

In addition to her solo work, Courtin co-leads a synth pop dance band called Pilot Violet that released a record in 2016 called Nite Farm. She has also been a collaborator and side(wo)man to many artists and groups, including Bonnie Prince Billy, Baaba Mail, Planetarium, Doyle Bramhall II, Iron & Wine, Sia, Nico Muhly, Bebel Gilberto, Sara Barellies, Antony and the Johnsons, Marc Ribot, Paul McCartney, Mark Morris, Dance Heginbotham, Sufjan Stevens, Alvin Ailey, and the Buffalo Philharmonic. She is a featured soloist for the films Chappaquiddick and Free State of Jones and has provided backing strings for several films and television shows.

In 2019, Christina was the Associate Music Director for The National Young Arts Presidential Scholars at the Kennedy Center. As an educator, she has led a Songwriting Composition Seminar at Dartmouth College for undergraduates as well as an Independent Study course for graduate students. A firm believer in the arts and education, she has has participated extensively in educational outreach and musical classroom activities with The Knights throughout NYC. She was also a teaching fellow and performer at Sing-Sing Correctional Facility through the Musical Connections Program at Carnegie Hall in 2016.