For over 30 years Gary Gallier has remained on the forefront of evolution and innovation on the Mountain Dulcimer. This is well demonstrated in his unique and exciting playing style of Flatpicking, the revolutionary instruments he builds, and in the creative music he plays. Several healthy steps from traditional, his work has been reviewed as having “a powerful and highly original vision of where the dulcimer can go…breathtaking style”. Winning the 1987 National Championship with all original compositions, Gary demonstrates a very progressive edge to the dulcimer, and is most at home showing that power and energy are well within reach. Blending influences from Celtic and Mountain styles with touches of Blues, Jazz, Rock, and Swing, Gary possesses a true signature sound. The Walnut Valley Occasional has reviewed his CD Craft of Kin as …”the Moody Blues sans the synthesizers...Not somber and boring but lively and bold".
Collaborating with Gary for the three decades is Bo Brown on flatpicked guitar, mandolin, dobro, and vocals. Bo’s earliest musical influence was the country/bluegrass his folks listened to on the Grand Ol’ Opry. Hearing Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton in the late ‘60s spurred him to play electric guitar with a series of garage rock bands at local venues till 1975. But when he saw Mark O’Connor win the flatpicking championship at his first Walnut Valley Fest, it re-ignited his love of bluegrass, and by 1978, he was combining edgy rock/blues and traditional flatpicking with his progressive band “The Undergrass Boys”. They toured extensively in the Midwest in the early 80s, did several tour dates with Emmylou Harris, and were featured at the Walnut Valley Festival in 1981-82. He now plays with several Ozarks-based groups, and look for his Dobro/mandolin work on the soundtrack of 'Winter’s Bone', an Ozarks-based film starring Jennifer Lawrence that received four Oscar Nominations in 2011. When not playing music, Bo also runs his First Earth Wilderness School, teaching primitive survival skills,
Joining the band is Molly Healey, a violinist, cellist, and singer/songwriter residing in Springfield, MO. Spending several years on the road touring with acts such as The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Big Smith, Cornmeal, and countless other Missouri based bands, she has also recently released her own solo recording, Nightbirds, utilizing her talents with a looping effects pedal, layering backup, fills, counterpoint, and leads on the fly, With her formal training on bowed instruments, her smooth classical touch is just right for some songs, while on others you'll find her bearing down with an improvisational jam band edge. A perfect fit for the Gallier Band and the remarkable variety of music they play.
Jeff Sowers rounds out the band on Bass. While most teenagers might pick guitar as a starter instrument, Jeff's early love of traditional music took him to banjo at 14. By the time he was 18 he found that Bass was where he belonged. He since has been a member of the well known regional bluegrass band 'Fly By Night', and then moved to the Hickadelic Jazzgrass sound of 'Hogmolly'. He gives the nod to Hot Rize's Nick Forster as his biggest influence in style. Jeff is born and raised in the Missouri Ozarks.
Dulcimer Players News describes the Gallier sound as "truly great acoustic music that simply transcends any attempt to categorize it as merely extraordinary dulcimer."