Ken & Brad Kolodner are a Baltimore-based father-son acoustic roots duo who have built their musical partnership on a foundation of family, tradition, and a shared passion for Old Time music. What began as a father passing on tunes to his son has grown into a full-fledged collaboration that’s taken them across the country, onto festival stages, into recording studios, and into the hearts of acoustic music fans.
Ken is one of the most respected hammered dulcimer players in the US having toured and recorded extensively with the folk trio Helicon. Over the past several decades, he has helped raise the profile of the instrument within the folk and roots music scene. Also a skilled fiddler, Ken brings a deep understanding of traditional roots music, which he’s spent years performing, recording, and teaching. His playing is both technically refined and innovative, shaped by a lifelong dedication to the craft.
Brad grew up surrounded by music, with jam sessions, concerts, and festivals forming the backdrop of his childhood. He picked up the banjo as a teenager—not out of obligation, but from a genuine curiosity sparked by the music he’d grown up hearing. Over time, Brad developed his own voice as a clawhammer banjo player, blending traditional influences with modern ideas. His playing is clean, expressive, and full of rhythmic drive. He’s also a skilled composer, adding new tunes to the old-time repertoire and reimagining traditional melodies. He's a founding member of the acclaimed roots quartet Charm City Junction.
What makes Ken and Brad’s music stand out is the natural connection that comes from years of playing together as family. Their performances aren’t just about technical skill—they’re about communication, listening, and a shared sense of exploration. Whether trading leads, locking into a groove, or improvising in the moment, they play with a deep sense of trust that audiences immediately feel.
The duo’s journey began with informal living room sessions while Brad was in high school and gradually grew into a national touring act. They’ve recorded multiple albums, appeared at major folk and roots festivals, and performed on stages big and small. Their 2020 album Stony Run hit #4 on the Billboard Bluegrass Chart. Along the way, they’ve brought others into the fold, performing regularly with bassist Alex Lacquement and multi-instrumentalist Rachel Eddy, who help expand the group’s sound and dynamics.
Even as they continue to innovate—incorporating unusual instruments like the hammered mbira or gourd banjo—they remain grounded in the music’s core values: community, tradition, and joy. Both Ken and Brad are also committed educators, teaching at camps and workshops across the country and helping keep traditional music alive for future generations. They co-founded and direct the acclaimed Baltimore Old Time Music Festival in addition to leading local jam sessions and square dances.
Ken & Brad Kolodner are proof that old-time music is anything but static. It’s a living tradition, carried forward through relationships, stories, and the simple act of playing music together. Their work is a testament to the power of family—both the one you’re born into and the one you build through music.
For Ken's Solo Webpage: www.kenkolodner.com
For Brad's Solo Webpage: www.bradkolodner.com
Ken is one of the most respected hammered dulcimer players in the US having toured and recorded extensively with the folk trio Helicon. Over the past several decades, he has helped raise the profile of the instrument within the folk and roots music scene. Also a skilled fiddler, Ken brings a deep understanding of traditional roots music, which he’s spent years performing, recording, and teaching. His playing is both technically refined and innovative, shaped by a lifelong dedication to the craft.
Brad grew up surrounded by music, with jam sessions, concerts, and festivals forming the backdrop of his childhood. He picked up the banjo as a teenager—not out of obligation, but from a genuine curiosity sparked by the music he’d grown up hearing. Over time, Brad developed his own voice as a clawhammer banjo player, blending traditional influences with modern ideas. His playing is clean, expressive, and full of rhythmic drive. He’s also a skilled composer, adding new tunes to the old-time repertoire and reimagining traditional melodies. He's a founding member of the acclaimed roots quartet Charm City Junction.
What makes Ken and Brad’s music stand out is the natural connection that comes from years of playing together as family. Their performances aren’t just about technical skill—they’re about communication, listening, and a shared sense of exploration. Whether trading leads, locking into a groove, or improvising in the moment, they play with a deep sense of trust that audiences immediately feel.
The duo’s journey began with informal living room sessions while Brad was in high school and gradually grew into a national touring act. They’ve recorded multiple albums, appeared at major folk and roots festivals, and performed on stages big and small. Their 2020 album Stony Run hit #4 on the Billboard Bluegrass Chart. Along the way, they’ve brought others into the fold, performing regularly with bassist Alex Lacquement and multi-instrumentalist Rachel Eddy, who help expand the group’s sound and dynamics.
Even as they continue to innovate—incorporating unusual instruments like the hammered mbira or gourd banjo—they remain grounded in the music’s core values: community, tradition, and joy. Both Ken and Brad are also committed educators, teaching at camps and workshops across the country and helping keep traditional music alive for future generations. They co-founded and direct the acclaimed Baltimore Old Time Music Festival in addition to leading local jam sessions and square dances.
Ken & Brad Kolodner are proof that old-time music is anything but static. It’s a living tradition, carried forward through relationships, stories, and the simple act of playing music together. Their work is a testament to the power of family—both the one you’re born into and the one you build through music.
For Ken's Solo Webpage: www.kenkolodner.com
For Brad's Solo Webpage: www.bradkolodner.com
Notable Performances
The Kennedy Center - Washington, DC
The Meyerhoff Symphony Hall - Baltimore, MD
Maryland Folk Festival - Salisbury, MD
Fire in the Mountain Festival - Wales, UK
Ozark Folk Center - Mountain View, AR
Old Songs Festival - Altamont, NY
Walnut Valley Festival - Winfield, KS
Baltimore Old Time Music Festival - Baltimore, MD
The Birchmere - Alexandria, VA
Appalachian Stringband Festival - Clifftop, WV
Strathmore Hall - Rockville, MD
Avalon Theater - Easton, MD
Charm City Bluegrass Festival - Baltimore, MD
Watermelon Park Festival - Berryville, VA
Lawrence University - Appleton, WI
Old Town School of Folk Music - Chicago, IL
Previous Concert Calendar HERE
The Meyerhoff Symphony Hall - Baltimore, MD
Maryland Folk Festival - Salisbury, MD
Fire in the Mountain Festival - Wales, UK
Ozark Folk Center - Mountain View, AR
Old Songs Festival - Altamont, NY
Walnut Valley Festival - Winfield, KS
Baltimore Old Time Music Festival - Baltimore, MD
The Birchmere - Alexandria, VA
Appalachian Stringband Festival - Clifftop, WV
Strathmore Hall - Rockville, MD
Avalon Theater - Easton, MD
Charm City Bluegrass Festival - Baltimore, MD
Watermelon Park Festival - Berryville, VA
Lawrence University - Appleton, WI
Old Town School of Folk Music - Chicago, IL
Previous Concert Calendar HERE
Reviews
"This is old time music played in the purest way: at home, with family, with heart, and with a creative curiosity that lets all listeners know that a passion for traditional music yet thrives in every generation." - Dulcimer Player News
“…oozing with variety. From trad standards to new classic folk songs to lush originals, the repertory found here is both dependable and enjoyable. The arrangements include barn-burning twin-fiddle ragers, mellow meditations on hammered dulcimer, and bluegrass settings with solos on the breaks and three-part harmony vocals.”
"It seems fair to say that there’s no strong bond than that which exists between parent and child, or, more specifically, as in the case of Ken and Brad Kolodner, the ties that bind father and son. With Stony Run, the duo’s fourth album, that precept proves true courtesy of their musical synergy, and their ability to draw on a traditional tapestry while still maintaining a contemporary credence. The two complement one another with an adroit sense of novelty and nuance, Ken’s masterful hammered dulcimer finding a perfect complement through Brad’s tasteful banjo. Stony Run offers an adroit example of instrumental artistry and integrity, stirred with equal measure." - Bluegrass Today
"On their fourth studio album, Ken and Brad Kolodner make it clear: The family that plays together stays together. The canon of Americana music has long been passed down the generations, but these 12 tracks showcase not only the father-son duo’s familial bond but also their unique musical chemistry and mutual inspiration. It’s their most creative recording yet, charting new territory on robust original tunes, like the effusive title track, inspired by the waterway that ripples between their Baltimore homes, as well as through evolving techniques, such as unlikely instrument combinations and added emphasis on Brad’s warm vocals." - Baltimore Magazine
"Never underestimate an instrument’s, vocalist’s, or composer’s potential and ability to grow and perform new styles and music genres. Beginning with their first Otter Creek recording and through this fourth musical journey, both musicians have revealed an amazing ability to spread their music wings to new levels. On Stony Run the two are joined by Rachel Eddy and Alex Lacquement, outstanding musicians and vocalists themselves, and the results of this teamwork are audibly and uniquely exceptional." - Dulcimer Player News
"Credit the Kolodner’s with one of the best examples of innovative traditional string music heard yet this year. The centerpiece of the Ken & Brad Kolodner sound is fiddle tunes and old time songs on banjo and hammered dulcimer. But don’t stop there. Brad’s ten-plus years of focus on clawhammer banjo has paid off in clean technique, excellent tone and his own musical innovations. He plays with drive, precision and when appropriate, quieter and more evocative tones. He’s become a worthy tunesmith and a fine musician on fretless and fretted banjos and fiddle. Ken has established himself as a world-class fiddler and hammered dulcimer player. On dulcimer he goes beyond hammering out fiddle tunes showcasing the wonderful percussive and muted sounds the instrument offers. Enter the hammered mbira, a hybrid musical creation by Don MacClane that uses hammered dulcimer technique and set-up with African mbira (thumb piano) metal keys instead of strings. Ken takes his hammered dulcimer technique to a new format and sound and brings it into the old-time atmosphere beautifully. If there were stars in this review, Stony Run gets 5 out of 5!" - Banjo Newsletter
“…oozing with variety. From trad standards to new classic folk songs to lush originals, the repertory found here is both dependable and enjoyable. The arrangements include barn-burning twin-fiddle ragers, mellow meditations on hammered dulcimer, and bluegrass settings with solos on the breaks and three-part harmony vocals.”
"It seems fair to say that there’s no strong bond than that which exists between parent and child, or, more specifically, as in the case of Ken and Brad Kolodner, the ties that bind father and son. With Stony Run, the duo’s fourth album, that precept proves true courtesy of their musical synergy, and their ability to draw on a traditional tapestry while still maintaining a contemporary credence. The two complement one another with an adroit sense of novelty and nuance, Ken’s masterful hammered dulcimer finding a perfect complement through Brad’s tasteful banjo. Stony Run offers an adroit example of instrumental artistry and integrity, stirred with equal measure." - Bluegrass Today
"On their fourth studio album, Ken and Brad Kolodner make it clear: The family that plays together stays together. The canon of Americana music has long been passed down the generations, but these 12 tracks showcase not only the father-son duo’s familial bond but also their unique musical chemistry and mutual inspiration. It’s their most creative recording yet, charting new territory on robust original tunes, like the effusive title track, inspired by the waterway that ripples between their Baltimore homes, as well as through evolving techniques, such as unlikely instrument combinations and added emphasis on Brad’s warm vocals." - Baltimore Magazine
"Never underestimate an instrument’s, vocalist’s, or composer’s potential and ability to grow and perform new styles and music genres. Beginning with their first Otter Creek recording and through this fourth musical journey, both musicians have revealed an amazing ability to spread their music wings to new levels. On Stony Run the two are joined by Rachel Eddy and Alex Lacquement, outstanding musicians and vocalists themselves, and the results of this teamwork are audibly and uniquely exceptional." - Dulcimer Player News
"Credit the Kolodner’s with one of the best examples of innovative traditional string music heard yet this year. The centerpiece of the Ken & Brad Kolodner sound is fiddle tunes and old time songs on banjo and hammered dulcimer. But don’t stop there. Brad’s ten-plus years of focus on clawhammer banjo has paid off in clean technique, excellent tone and his own musical innovations. He plays with drive, precision and when appropriate, quieter and more evocative tones. He’s become a worthy tunesmith and a fine musician on fretless and fretted banjos and fiddle. Ken has established himself as a world-class fiddler and hammered dulcimer player. On dulcimer he goes beyond hammering out fiddle tunes showcasing the wonderful percussive and muted sounds the instrument offers. Enter the hammered mbira, a hybrid musical creation by Don MacClane that uses hammered dulcimer technique and set-up with African mbira (thumb piano) metal keys instead of strings. Ken takes his hammered dulcimer technique to a new format and sound and brings it into the old-time atmosphere beautifully. If there were stars in this review, Stony Run gets 5 out of 5!" - Banjo Newsletter