Cathy and Marcy, a Folk Duo for Families

Kids and grownups alike gravitate to Cathy and Marcy wherever the folk duo perform on their multiple instruments. Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer met at a festival in Canada in 1980 and began performing together with the premise that everybody can sing, dance, make rhythm and share the love of music with others. Add a soupçon of silliness and soon the shyest children in the room will begin clapping, singing and reveling in the fun of making their own kind of music.

Sometimes their Alumni Chorus joins the fun. These are the kids who grew up on their music and sang on their albums back in the 80s and 90s. Fink and Marxer have a multi-generational following today made up of grandparents and their children who have grown up to become parents and now bring their own kids to our shows. No iPod can replace the excitement of participating in music together and nothing encourages children to love music more than parents who listen to music with their children - really listen - and make music with them. It doesn't matter if you have good voices. Fink tells parents to get a ukulele, learn a few chords, and they're on their way.

Cathy and Marcy's expertise in family-oriented music encompassing folk, country, swing, jazz and traditional styles has been a bonanza for them and their young audiences who have scooped up their 50-plus recordings. Many youngsters have been inspired to emulate the two by taking up the guitar, banjo and mandolin, as well as the ukulele. Along with virtuoso performances on their multiple instruments, Cathy and Marcy spread joy by singing, yodeling, clucking like chickens, cavorting in goofy costumes and encouraging audience participation.

Their audiences have included the Queen of Thailand, the U.S. Congress and those who listen to NPR and watch the "Today Show." Their recordings for children have won two Grammy Awards and received 14 other nominations. Among their admirers and fellow artists with whom they often perform are Pete Seeger, Tom Paxton, Tom Chapin, John McCutcheon and Ella Jenkins. In celebration of Ella's long career, they all dug into her repertoire and recorded a CD with Sweet Honey in the Rock, Riders in the Sky, Red Grammer, Bill Harley and other kid-oriented artists. It won the 2005 Grammy Award for Best Musical Album for Children.

The glue that holds these folk colleagues together is their belief in music and community. Although they go on their separate paths, they always come together with joy. This past summer, Fink and Marxer performed with the Children's Chorus of Washington at the Ihlombe South African Choral Festival. The recording they made there will be out in early spring, just one more example of the magic that happens when they bring people of all ages together to make music.

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