BlueSky: Storyteller through song, #folkmusic #roots #singersongwriter #Junos2022 Winner @mariadunnmusic.bsky.social celebrates resilience, grace, gratitude, solidarity on new album Hardscrabble Hope: https://www.mariadunn.com

BIO

2 page downloadable Maria Dunn Bio: pdf

Short bios are below testimonials & media quotes:

Performance Testimonials

"It was our pleasure to present your exquisite show. I mean that with all my heart. The songwriting, the presentation, the musical arrangements, the stage presence, the accompaniment, all just perfect. I loved it and so did our audience!"  Suzanne Searle, AD, Beneath the Arch Concerts, Diamond Valley, AB (January 2026)

Selected Quotes

Hardscrabble Hope – Still a subtle, serious, sensitive songwriter then, that Maria Dunn, and one who continues to challenge preconceptions of that thing called folk music. A national treasure at the very least. — Roddy Campbell, Music Journalist

Maria is a writer with a critical eye, a keen ear and a nose for sniffing out issues that need to be examined and publicized through the medium of song. For those of you who are not yet familiar with Maria’s recorded output and live performances, I invite you to familiarize yourselves with her amazing body of work. – Tim Readman, Roots Music Canada

From the very first note [Joyful Banner Blazing] truly hit my heart – like welcoming a loved friend – wonderful stories and songs needed for this time. – Tom Coxworth, Folk Routes, CKUA Radio

Maria Dunn's Joyful Banner Blazing elevates our humanism — Fish Griwkowsky, Edmonton Journal

…remarkable singer-songwriter, think of her as a distaff Woody Guthrie. – Mike Ross, Edmonton Sun

An arrestingly powerful singer-songwriter from Canada who writes great historical and social commentary. – Rich Warren, WFMT Chicago and Sing Out! Magazine

...one of our most important and vital songwriters… Essential listening, then, this Gathering. – Roddy Campbell, Penguin Eggs Magazine

She started twenty years ago with great storytelling, songwriting, singing and production — now 20 years later Maria Dunn sounds as fresh, smart and polished as ever. -- Katherine Duncan, CBC Radio One (October 2018)

...Dunn’s musical accomplishments have left us with a richer appreciation of our culture. I can think of few other songwriters who embrace the work of searching out and researching real-life stories from often overlooked corners of the world, only to turn them into memorable songs. -- Roger Levesque, Edmonton Journal (November 2018)

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Short Bios

60 words

A true preserver of the spirit of folk music, 2022 Juno Award Winner Maria Dunn is often compared to Woody Guthrie for her keen social awareness and unvarnished melodic songs about ordinary people. With her eighth album, Hardscrabble Hope (November 2025), Maria continues to celebrate stories of gratitude, solidarity and the love that fires our action to make a better world. www.mariadunn.com

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112 words

2022 Juno-winner Maria Dunn (www.mariadunn.com) draws deeply on the folk tradition of storytelling through song to write and sing thought-provoking, hope-mongering roots music. On her 8th album, Hardscrabble Hope (released November 2025 and voted #4 on Roots Music Canada Critics Poll for 2025), she finds a path through the upheaval of the past five years with stories of gratitude, solidarity and hope. (Produced by Shannon Johnson of Juno-winning band The McDades.)

Scotland-born and Amiskwacîwâskahikan / Edmonton-based, with 25+ years of touring the international folk music scene, whether solo or with larger ensemble, Maria’s lyrically rich music, engaging storytelling and expressive singing (with many a singalong chorus!) make for a compelling live performance.

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175 words

2022 Juno Award winning songwriter Maria Dunn draws deeply on the folk tradition of storytelling through song. Melding North American roots music with her Scottish-Irish heritage, she sings about the resilience and grace of “ordinary” people, past and present. Along with multimedia shows Packingtown, GWG: Piece by Piece, On The River (with Asani) and Troublemakers, developed with Don Bouzek of Ground Zero Productions, Maria has eight independent albums, including Joyful Banner Blazing (2022 Juno Winner, 2022 WCMA Nominee), Gathering (2017 Juno Nominee, 2017 WCMA Nominee, 2016 Edmonton Music Prize Winner), Piece By Piece (2013 Canadian Folk Music Award Nominee), The Peddler (2009 CFMA Nominee), and 2004 people’s history of Alberta, We Were Good People. Her latest release Hardscrabble Hope (November 2025) finds a path through the upheaval of the past five years and celebrates gratitude, solidarity, connection and the love that fires our actions to make the world a better place. (All albums produced by Shannon Johnson of Juno-winning band The McDades). Edmonton-based, Maria performs at festivals, theatres and conferences across Canada, Europe and USA.

www.mariadunn.com

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275 words

2022 Juno Award winning songwriter Maria Dunn draws deeply on the folk tradition of storytelling through song. Melding North American roots music with her Scottish-Irish heritage, her new album Hardscrabble Hope (November 2025) finds a path through the upheaval of the past five years with themes of gratitude, solidarity and renewed connection. Her previous album Joyful Banner Blazing (2022 Juno Winner, WCMA Nominee) celebrates resilience, grace, joy and the love that fires our actions to make the world a better place. Gathering (Nominee - 2017 Juno Award, Nominee - 2017 WCMA, Winner - Edmonton Music Prize), highlights positive stories of courage and activism, both local and global. 2012’s Piece By Piece (Nominee – 2013 Canadian Folk Music Award) pays tribute to immigrant women working at a Canadian clothing factory and 2004’s We Were Good People mines the vibrant people’s history of Western Canada in the early 1900s. Maria's other independent albums include the more broadly themed The Peddler (Nominee – 2009 CFMA), For A Song (Nominee – 2002 Juno Award), all produced by Shannon Johnson (of Juno-winning band The McDades).

Amiskwacîwâskahikan/Edmonton-based, Maria has developed and tours four multimedia people’s history shows, On The River (with Indigenous women’s trio Asani), Packingtown, GWG: Piece by Piece and Troublemakers: Working Albertans, with videographer Don Bouzek. Maria also performs (solo, duo, ensemble) at festivals and theatres in Canada, Europe (UK, Ireland, Netherlands) and USA. Media features include: Bravo TV (The Carol Project), CBC National Radio (Sunday Edition), CKUA Alberta, BBC Radio Scotland. Her songs are published in the Rise Again songbook, Sing Out! and Penguin Eggs magazines and recorded by other artists including Niamh Parsons, The Outside Track, Bob Bossin.

www.mariadunn.com