Album Notes

Born of Mennonite hymns, classical training, bluegrass, and even classic rock, Christopher and Maria Clymer Kurtz perform original songs as well as an eclectic array of covers at venues including coffee houses, church gatherings, and weddings.


At age nine, Christopher ordered his first guitar from a Sears catalog for $25. Later, he first recorded original songs with his brother Zachary, who played their $50 drum set. In high school, Christopher and two friends formed a country and rock band that performed four times. In college, Christopher pursued a social work degree and founded a bluegrass band which the university sponsored on a ten-day, sixteen-gig tour through four states. While volunteering for a prison arts program, Christopher played guitar with a country band in the medium security facility and sang with a community and inmate choir. Christopher currently teaches English to seventh graders.


Maria began singing before she learned to talk, and later studied piano for nearly a decade. She played the lead role in her high school’s production of The Sound of Music and competed individually in district, regional and all-state choruses. Maria sang in junior high and high school choirs and university chamber singers, and currently sings in the local arts academy’s chorale. During the summer of 1996, Maria sang in a women’s vocal trio that performed in Georgia. She picked up the guitar while a college student studying Spanish and music. A church accompanist and music leader, Maria is a liaison for immigrant families in the public schools.