Chris Thile Biography

Chris Thile (pronounced THEE-lee) (born February 20, 1981) is both a renowned mandolin player and founding member of the progressive bluegrass trio Nickel Creek, along with Sara Watkins and Sean Watkins. The three met at the Carlsbad, California That Pizza Place in 1989, listening to the weekly bluegrass show with their parents. Soon they were taking lessons from the same instructor, playing festivals, and even recording albums--their first, Little Cowpoke, was released in 1994. Nickel Creek has gone on to produce several more albums, including their official, self-titled debut (which was certified gold) and This Side, which not only sold gold but also won a Grammy on February 23, 2003, for Best Contemporary Folk Album.

Thile began playing the mandolin at the age of 5, and soon thereafter began performing at California bluegrass festivals. At age 12, he won the prestigious national mandolin championship at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, Kansas in 1993. He released his first solo album (Leading Off) that same year, featuring mostly original compositions. Two more albums followed, showcasing not only his technical virtuosity but his skill at composition: Stealing Second, followed by his 2001 release Not All Who Wander Are Lost, which featured guest appearances from several well-known instrumentalists such as Stuart Duncan, Bela Fleck, Edgar Meyer, Jerry Douglas, and Bryan Sutton.

In 2003, he teamed up with mandolinist Mike Marshall for the duet album Into the Cauldron, which included some originals as well as mandolin arrangements of pieces by Charlie Parker and J. S. Bach. In 2004, Thile released Deceiver, an experimental album on which he recorded every track himself, including electric guitar, piano, drums, violin, viola, cello, and bass. Deceiver also demonstrated Thile's interest in pop/rock songwriting in addition to "newgrass." His fifth solo project, How to Grow a Woman from the Ground, was released by Sugar Hill Records on September 12, 2006.

Thile's career has been successful, especially for one so young. In 2001 he was awarded the IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association) award for Mandolinist of the Year, after having earned several annual nominations. He is also featured in the documentary Bluegrass Journey, along with the rest of Nickel Creek, and still mantains an active touring schedule. An in-demand studio musician, he has also appeared on a number of other artists' recordings, including Béla Fleck's Perpetual Motion, playing arrangements of Baroque music with Fleck and Edgar Meyer, and Dolly Parton's Little Sparrow.

In August 2006, Nickel Creek announced via Billboard Magazine and their official website that at the end of the year they would no longer be recording together as a group and their tour scheduled through 2007 would be their last for an indefinite period of time.