Gillian Welch in Auckland

Gillian Welch is an American singer-songwriter who plays spare folk and country rooted in old-time and bluegrass traditions. Born in New York City in 1967 and raised in Los Angeles, she established a long-running partnership with guitarist and songwriter David Rawlings. Her catalog includes the albums Revival, Time (The Revelator), Soul Journey and The Harrow & the Harvest, and songs such as “Orphan Girl,” “Everything Is Free” and “Look at Miss Ohio.” Welch and Rawlings toured behind Revival in the 1990s as an acoustic duo, and they retained that format on later concert runs built around Time (The Revelator), Soul Journey and The Harrow & the Harvest. On those tours, they played theatres including Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. The core show features Welch on vocals, acoustic guitar and banjo, accompanied by Rawlings on guitar and harmony vocals. Their arrangements center on close vocal harmony and the interplay between the two acoustic instruments. Newport Folk Festival has featured Welch and Rawlings as a duo. She has also performed repeatedly at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in San Francisco.