She will carry you away to special places with unique melodies stemming from her heart ~
Mary Christine (Hargreaves) known to many as Mary Ukelady, was raised on Mozart, Lithuanian Polkas, and the Beatles. Singing and writing songs since childhood, she learned classical piano at the age of six, and guitar as a teen. During her college days, she became strongly influenced by the Boston Folk Music scene and spent many evenings singing and playing guitar with musician friends. Later as a mom, when performing in her daughter's 1st grade classroom, she discovered how children make a great audience and her musical dreams took off from there!
In 2001, Mary began playing the ukulele. She spontaneously purchased a soprano uke to bring to a music celebration in the tropics. It was there where she first played "Ukulele Lady" her uke on stage and has since performed in many communities in her home state of Maine.
In 2002, Mary was chosen for the Discovery Stage at the Maine Festival in Brunswick. For almost a decade she has performed at Maine festivals, gatherings, libraries, classrooms, restaurants and cafes.
She currently lives with her family in the western foothills of Maine. After a longtime career in dental hygiene and after raising three great kids, she now finds the time to continue in her passions of music, art, and writing. Her lyrical originals and folksy favorites will take you on a musical journey celebrating Maine, country life, love and perseverance. She has evolved musically creating a genre of her own blending Folk, Americana, Pop, Blues, Ballads, Children's songs, and Soul.
Her main influences include ... The Beatles, Woody and Arlo Guthrie, Theodore Bikel, Mississippi John Hurt, Buffy Sainte Marie, Peter Paul & Mary, Tom Rush, Fritz Richmond, June Carter, Rita Coolidge, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Linda Ronstadt, Jonathan Edwards, Jimmy Cliff, Tracy Chapman, Bob Marley; and contemporaries Susan Tedeschi, Kate Schrock, Anni Clark, Ellis Paul, Aimee Mann, Ziggy Marley, Mishka, and Israel Kamakawiwo'ole.
Mary performs on her custom made concert ukulele, her eight string tenor uke, and her acoustic guitar. You can often count on favorites by Carole King, Susan Tedeschi, Woody Guthrie, Willie Nelson, Neil Young, Jack Johnson, and kids cover tunes by Tom Chapin, Peter Paul & Mary, as well as her own originals.
She has shared stages with Kate Schrock, Anni Clark, Heather Pierson, Nate Towne, Dave Rave, Jeff Rojo, Dave Kent, Earl Bigelow, Jim Gallant, Keith Dover, Bob Wallace, Bill Shimamura, Lucindagail, Jan Kubiac, Rusty Wiltjer, Brian Patricks, and her brother Walt Turell on live radio.
As a longtime promoter of local original music, Mary has been an active member of Norway Maine's "Commons Music Collective", "Musicians of Maine" at Mount Blue TV, "Mainely Musicians" at Great Falls TV, and recently "Mainely Acoustic" at Norway Paris Community TV where she has collectively talent scouted, coordinated, co-hosted, and co-produced.
Mary Christine has released her own original recordings, including her debut studio album LOVE IS STRONG, twelve upbeat originals with full ensemble, and LITTLE PONY EXPRESS, a homespun family & classroom collection of kid's songs for the entire family!
* And now it's the soul driven folk songs inspired by life in Maine that have sparked the ember of her upcoming contemporary CD. *
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MEMBERSHIP:
Maine Songwriters Association (2005 - 2010); Portland Music Foundation ( 2008); SESAC - Society of European Stage Authors & Composers, N.Y.C. (2008 - 2010)
PRIOR GIGS :
FESTIVALS - The Maine Festival, Norway Summer Festival, Common Ground Fair, Great Falls Balloon Festival, Maine Songwriters Assoc. Summer Music Fest, Countryfolk Music Theater, Rangeley Guides Strawberry Fest, The Old Port Festival, Maine Cultural Music Festival, Moore Park Art Festival and Kid's Concert Series, Deering Oaks Park - Mothers Acting Up, Bridges Foundation, Waterford World's Fair, MunjFest
VENUES - Jonathan's - Ogunquit, ME. ; The Carriage House Cafe - Livermore, ME. ; North Star Music Cafe, Acoustic Coffee, Blue, Dogfish Cafe, St. Lawrence Arts & Community Center - Portland, ME. ; Thai Paradise - Brunswick, ME. ; The Norway Coffeehouse, Books N Things, The Fare Share Commons Gallery & Follies - Norway, ME ; Big Kahuna Cafe - Bridgton, ME. ; Lisbon Teen Center - Lisbon, ME. ; The Maine Bookhouse - Oxford, ME. ; Sudbury Pub - Bethel, ME. ; Creative Media, Cafe Nomad - Norway, ME.
"UKELADY KIDS SHOWS" - Hartford-Sumner Elementary School- Sumner, ME. ; Norway Memorial Library- Norway, ME. ; Paris Public Library- So. Paris, ME. ; Arthur L. Mann Library- West Paris, ME. ; Naples Memorial Library- Naples, ME. ; Munjoy Branch Library- Portland, ME. ; Thomas Memorial Library- Cape Elizabeth, ME. ; The Maine Book House - Oxford, ME.
MAINE SENIOR CENTERS - Norway Living Center, Norway ; Market Square-So. Paris; Russell Park-Lewiston ; Victorian Villa-Canton ; Schooner Estates- Auburn ; Heritage Living Center-Winthrop ; Clover Manor-Auburn
WEDDINGS - The Schooner Steven Tabor, Rockland, ME.
TELEVISION - "Musicians of Maine" - Farmington ; "Shine" Program Ch 4 - Portland ; Community TV -Bath, Brunswick, Norway/Paris, Lake Region, & Lisbon Falls ; "Live From The Sound" - Harpswell ; "MSA at Home" & "Mainely Musicians" - Great Falls TV in Auburn ```; Co-producer & Co-host of "Mainely Acoustic" - Norway Paris Community TV, Norway, ME.
LIVE RADIO - as a guest: WERU-FM Blue Hill, ME. "Radio Open Mic Show" ; WMFO-FM Tufts Univ.- Medford, MA. "Folk On Records" ; WCLZ-FM and WBLM-FM Portland, ME. "Greetings from Area Code 207" ; WMPG-FM "In Your Ear" show with Deirdre Nice, USM Portland, ME.
ON THE AIR - WCLZ FM Portland "Music form 207" ; WBLM FM Portland - "Greeting from Area Code 207" ; WMPG FM Portland - Univ. of S. Maine ; WERU FM Blue Hill - Community Radio
ONLINE RADIO 1067lite FM - N.Y.C.