About Us

Three tiny fiddlers wowed the audience at the 1997 Anchorage Folk Festival. Mike Doogan of the Anchorage Daily News even wrote about them in his column the next week: "On stage they looked improbably small. Two boys and a girl, fiddling their way briskly through 'Arkansas Traveler'." These were the "EM-eralds", Matthew Smith, 8, Matthew Crimp, 8, and Martha Leffek, 9. Mike Doogan quoted the emcee as saying, "You know what's really scary ­ you give those kids about five years. . . ." And five years later The Emeralds, including now three-time state fiddle champion Amanda Kerr and pulse keeping piano man Ethan Barske, cut their first CD, "The Emerald Edge".

It was seven year old Matthew Smith who broached the idea of a band with fiddle teacher and kid band guru Mary Schallert the spring of 1996. When she asked him who would be in the band, he named his friend and age-mate Matthew Crimp, whose violin lessons had inspired Mathew Smith to take up the violin. A duo wasnąt exactly a band, Mary Schallert advised, and suggested Matt recruit a third band member, preferably a girl. A girl? Long term stage appeal, she counseled. After some little-boy angst, an invitation was offered to long-time playmate, tomboy Martha Leffek. At first the new band considered calling themselves "The M&Ms", but settled on "The EM-eralds" or "Emeralds".

The Emeralds thought of themselves as the next Evergreen. The popular then teenage band "Evergreen" was a definite influence on and an inspiration to the Emeralds. The Emeralds, however, soon began developing their own fancy fiddling sound and unique stage personality. Classically trained Suzuki violin students all, they just kept getting better and better. So little, so cute, and so good, they were in demand, playing gigs all around town. They played a little of everything -- old time, bluegrass, Irish, Cajun.

Eventually the Emeralds came to the attention of local musician Jim Kerr, whose daughter (the same age as Martha) was an up and coming fiddler. Could she join? The band voted yes, and Amanda Kerr became the newest member in 1998. Now they were the fiddlers four, with guitar accompaniment by either teacher Mary Schallert or Amanda's dad or Matt Crimp's dad. The next year, teacher Mary Schallert suggested it was time they became independent of adult accompaniment, and said she had just the kid for them: Ethan Barske, piano accompanist extraordinaire. Ethan, a little older than the others, had even stood in for Evergreen pianist Chris Loeken. The band couldnąt pass this opportunity up, and Ethan joined The Emeralds in 1999.

With the addition of these two new members, The Emeralds began to really come into their own, with strong and creative multiple-part fancy fiddling backed up by skillful keyboard accompaniment. Coached by Mary Schallert and Jim Kerr, they learned to put together their own arrangements of songs and sets. Fitting band practices and gigs into busy schedules, The Emeralds thrived. They began to be asked more and more frequently for CDs of their music. After Anchorage Folkfest 2002 the group committed to a CD project, "The Emerald Edge", which was released in December 2002. The album did very well, selling over 1000 copies.

In May of 2003, Ethan graduated from high school and would soon be leaving for Linfield College in Oregon. The band began to realize that they would be out of their only back-up player when Ethan was away at school. After some scouting at Mary Schallert's Alaska City Folk Arts Camp, the talents of mandolin player and guitarist Eric Rodgers and bass player Tyler Tornfelt caught the Emeralds' attention, and the two joined the band later that summer. Ethan still plays with the band when he is home.

With the addition of Eric and Tyler, the band took on a fresh new sound, and began to move more into the jazz genre. Later that year, the Emeralds, now seven strong, committed to a second CD project, capturing their new style in an album entitled "Off the Edge". The band is excited to announce the scheduled release of "Off the Edge" in March, 2005.