Carolyn Dutton

Carolyn Dutton (b. Indiana, June 10, ?? - ) – Violinist and writer. Raised in Martinsville, Dutton was originally trained as a classical violinist but at the time was more intent on a writing career. Following training at Western College for Women in Oxford, Ohio, and an eight-week course at Radcliffe College, she was a feature writer for two years for the Indianapolis Times and then moved on to New York, where she became a publicity writer for Seventeen magazine. In New York, she studied acting on the side and later combined those skills with her music prowess. Thriving in New York’s rich cultural life, Dutton soon found various acting and musical outlets. She also wound up working on theatrical productions with Meryl Streep. In 1990, she was the on-stage violinist of a 1990 Tony Award winning production of the Grapes of Wrath. Even though her primary music focus in her thirty years in New York was learning the jazz style of Reinhardt and Grappelli, she also recorded and toured with rock musicians, whom she met while hanging out in Woodstock (upstate New York); they include John Sebastian, Paul Butterfield, and Eric Anderson. Currently, Dutton enjoys living in peaceful Brown Country and has become involved with various artistic ventures in her native state. In addition to serving as Vice President for Jazz from Bloomington (a non-profit organization), she performs with various groups around central Indiana, including Blue Django, the Hot Club of Naptown, and B.G. McPike and the Haute Club. She also records with notable Bloomington-area folk singers—Carrie Newcomer, Krista Detor, Tim Grimm, etc.