Alison Krauss

A brilliant fiddle player and accomplished singer, Alison Krauss raised the profile of bluegrass to previously unimaginable heights, taking it into the mainstream of American culture, partly on the back of her contribution to the soundtrack of the groundbreaking Coen brothers movie O Brother Where Art Thou? As a child Krauss played classical violin but, soon drawn to bluegrass, she was writing songs and fronting her own band by her early teens. Becoming a regular at bluegrass festivals she made her first album Too Late To Cry when she was 16 in 1987 backed by the band Union Station. It was the start of a long association with Union Station as Krauss juggled solo records with her duties as a band member. Her reputation rapidly grew as the country music community showered her with awards, and she played a significant role in popularising bluegrass, notably when her music was featured in the movies O Brother Where Art Thou? (2000) and Cold Mountain (2003). Her collaboration with Robert Plant on the widely acclaimed and hugely popular 2007 album Raising Sand provided another major landmark and she has, to date, won 27 Grammy Awards - more than any other female artist in music history.