"D'Addario takes great care in crafting high quality products across the board, from their strings and picks to cables and accessories. As a guitarist, whenever I use any D'Addario gear I can relax knowing it's something I can count on to sound great and last a long time."
Mary Halvorson
"D'Addario’s coated XS strings are resonant, warm, long lasting, and feel great to play. String noise is reduced, and this allows for the instrument's tone to really come through for maximum clarity of expression."
PRODUCTS Mary Halvorson USES
ABOUT Mary Halvorson
Guitarist and composer Mary Halvorson has been described as "a singular talent", "NYC's least-predictable improviser", and "one of the most exciting and original guitarists in jazz-or otherwise." In recent Downbeat critics’ polls, Halvorson has been celebrated as guitarist, rising star jazz artist, and rising star composer of the year. In 2019, she was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship.
Halvorson's most recent releases, Amaryllis and Belladonna, showcase her string quartet writing, deftly interpreted by The Mivos Quartet, alongside a brand new sextet featuring Adam O'Farrill (trumpet), Jacob Garchik (trombone), Patricia Brennan (vibraphone), Nick Dunston (bass) and Tomas Fujiwara (drums). The twin debuts for Nonesuch Records, released in May 2022, were called "...new landmarks in Halvorson's already inimitable discography" in a five star review by The Guardian.
Halvorson has also released a series of critically acclaimed albums on the Firehouse 12 label, from Dragon's Head (2008), her trio debut featuring bassist John Hébert and drummer Ches Smith, she expanded to a quintet with trumpeter Jonathan Finlayson and alto saxophonist Jon Irabagon on Saturn Sings (2010) and Bending Bridges (2012). Halvorson moved to a septet with the addition of tenor saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and trombonist Jacob Garchik on Illusionary Sea (2014), and an octet with pedal steel guitarist Susan Alcorn on Away With You (2016). Also for Firehouse 12, she released the solo guitar album Meltframe (2015), plus two albums with her band Code Girl (2018, 2020), featuring Halvorson's own lyrics.
One of New York City's most in-demand guitarists, over the past decade Halvorson has worked with such diverse musicians as Tim Berne, Anthony Braxton, Taylor Ho Bynum, John Dieterich, Trevor Dunn, Bill Frisell, Ingrid Laubrock, Myra Melford, Jason Moran, Joe Morris, Tom Rainey, Jessica Pavone, Tomeka Reid, Marc Ribot and John Zorn. She is also part of several collaborative projects, most notably the longstanding trio Thumbscrew with Michael Formanek on bass and Tomas Fujiwara on drums.