17 Aug The Faces of For All. For Life. – Gwen Holt
The Faces of For All. For Life.
We are thrilled to tell you more about the unique individuals who make up the Lee Oskar Harmonicas For All. For Life. Campaign, which features gorgeous fine art photography by Michael Weintrob and Jerry & Lois Photography. This beloved project is more than just a campaign—it’s a philosophy based upon Lee’s longtime belief that the harmonica is an instrument for anyone and everyone, through all stages of their lives. On a regular basis, we’ll share stories about the diverse faces of For All. For Life.
Meet Gwen Holt, One of the faces of our For All. For Life. Campaign!
“What I love most about Lee Oskar Harmonicas is definitely the tone: dark, warm, round … you just never get tired of hearing it!”—Gwen Holt
Gwen Holt is one of the many memorable individuals who make up the Lee Oskar Harmonicas For All. For Life. campaign. Gwen was an ideal choice for our For All. For Life. campaign because of her individuality, her broad range of musical interests and styles, and her overall passion for sharing her love of music with the world in so many diverse ways.
Gwen is a multi-talented multi-instrumentalist who grew up in a musical family in a small town in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains of Canada. Everybody—including parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and more—played multiple instruments and everybody sang. On many weekends, the family would party until the sun came up and/or the beer ran out!
After graduating from Berklee College of Music in Boston with a focus on songwriting, she moved to Vancouver, BC, Canada for a decade, working in recording studios, performing in blues bands as a sideman (bass guitar, backup vocals, harmonica, sax, keyboards), and fronting original groups (vocals, guitar).
After relocating to Nashville, Gwen returned to songwriting and volunteered as a piano teacher at the W.O. Smith School of Music teaching underprivileged children for several years before taking a position at Jan Williams School of Music in Brentwood, TN, for nine years.
For the past nine years, Gwen has been teaching voice, piano, guitar, bass, harmonica, sax, ukulele and songwriting on a private basis in her home studio in East Nashville. She’s an avid player of Lee Oskar Harmonicas, too!
Gwen fronts The Gwen Holt Duo (providing vocals/keyboards/acoustic guitar/sax/ harmonica in original acoustic, easy listening pop style) as well as the Nashvillebased, original alt rock band Sister Gypsy and the Pirates of Time (providing vocals/guitar/harmonicas in an ‘80s pop-meets-classic rock style). In addition, she has worked with Mark Antony Wray on his Mystery School project, which is unique, instrumental world music: