Ben Sollee in Knoxville

Ben Sollee is an American singer-songwriter and cellist from Kentucky whose music draws on folk, soul and chamber pop. He introduced his solo work on the album Learning to Bend, which includes “A Few Honest Words” and “How to See the Sun Rise,” and later released records including Half-Made Man and Kentucky Native. He toured as the cellist in Abigail Washburn and the Sparrow Quartet, performing in an acoustic ensemble that also featured Béla Fleck and Casey Driessen. In 2009, he began the bicycle-based Ditch the Van tour, carrying his cello and concert gear between shows in a trailer. His performances center on singing and cello playing that moves between bowing, plucking and percussion, an approach closely associated with Ditch the Van.