Casey Driessen’s Adventures in Fine Fiddling

Bluegrass fans will be familiar with Casey Driessen’s fiddling influences: Byron Berline, Vassar Clements, Bobby Hicks, Kenny Baker, Stuart Duncan, and Mark O’Connor. But this Asheville, N.C., fiddler is charting a unique career as a vibrant performer, thoughtful teacher, imaginative entrepreneur, and musical ambassador whose projects have taken him to 22 countries on four continents.

Whether he’s playing in a traditional bluegrass band with his five-string fiddle or performing Singularity, his one-man live looping show, it's always an adventure.

“I just enjoy playing music that feels good when I listen to it,” Driessen says. “Really exciting things happen when I branch out of my comfort zone musically.”

That openness to new ventures has led to projects with Bela Fleck, Jerry Douglas, Tim O’Brien, Abigail Washburn, and Steve Earle, among others, and four solo records.

Born in Minnesota, Driessen’s family moved to the Chicago area when he was ten. He grew up surrounded by music.

“My dad played banjo and pedal steel guitar around the house, doing some bluegrass and sort of country western things. I grew up going to festivals. Then he put a fiddle in my hand, probably because it’s lighter than a banjo or pedal steel guitar, and we would play some tunes together. That's how I got started.”

While he played in the school orchestra, Driessen never had a classical teacher. “My dad would send me to camps, and I’d get a practice regimen going. He bribed me with baseball cards, basically.”

Driessen went to Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he interacted with bold and accomplished musicians from diverse backgrounds. “We had a lot going on. It was a really creative and community-minded scene going on when I was up there,” he recalls.

Driessen pursues creativity and adventure in his professional life. After 15 years performing as a solo artist and as a touring musician supporting other artists, Driessen moved his family in 2016 to Valencia, Spain, to serve as the program director of Contemporary Performance (Production Concentration) at Berklee College’s international campus. After four years in higher education- just before the pandemic- he spent a year traveling the world with his family, documenting musical collaborations with local artists. The result was “Otherlands,” his collection of essays and audio and video recordings documenting his experiences in Spain, Ireland, Scotland, India, Japan, Finland, Italy, Slovakia, and Czechia. While all the visits were rewarding, one was especially memorable.

“India was the only country we went to that I didn't have any experience with previously, so everything there was new for me,” he says. “I learned so much stuff there that I still practice and think about and share with other students and fiddle players and musicians. So, India stands out for me.”

Driessen is now busy with many activities, such as directing the second annual Blue Ridge Fiddle Camp in Brevard, N.C., near his home in Asheville. Banjoist Bela Fleck and guitarist Bryan Sutton also run camps at Brevard.

“The facility is fantastic. It’s set up for this sort of thing,” Driessen says. There’s lots of cabins and open-air spaces for classrooms. It's just a beautiful, serene, creative place. When you’re here, you're removed from the little town, so you can really focus on playing and getting into music.

“It's really for anybody who plays what we would call the fiddle or violin and has an open mind and an adventurous musical spirit. Bluegrass is certainly represented there, as are other fiddling traditions, but there's so much more that is of interest to people who really get into the instrument.”

Driessen continues to perform his solo shows with a pedal board, live looping, and tour with Grammy-nominated banjoist Tony Trischka. “And I've been doing a lot of work with Woody Platt (formerly of the Steep Canyon Rangers). He's got a new record out. We go under the name The Bluegrass Gentlemen. We came together to do some stuff with Steve Martin and Martin Short.”

Driessen has also been asked to produce a jam at this year’s Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival in Oak Hill, New York. He’ll create an all-star band from all the visiting musicians. It’s called The Red Shoe Stringjam, a tribute to the footwear he always sports that he has become known for.

But those shoes aren’t his only trademark. He’s also known for his willingness to take on new opportunities and challenges. You can see it in everything from his global journeys to the unique fiddle camp he’s created.

“There are other fiddle camps out there, so I think this one probably should reflect the things that I'm passionate about, such as adventure and aspects of rhythm and technology. So that’s what I think I can bring to this little camp community.”