Born on February 27th, 1989, Sam Sweeney is an English folk musician from Nottingham. His resonant and captivating abilities on the viola captured the attention of folk music fans on 2012's State and Ancientry -- with fellow folk musician Hannah James -- and his solo effort, 2018's The Unfinished Violin. Sweeney began playing the viola at the age of six, and by the time he was 12, went on to perform as a solo act at local folk festivals. Between the years of 2002 and 2010, he was part of the four-piece folk act Kerfuffle, in which he also performed vocals and used the cajón. After the group went their separate ways in 2010, Sweeney teamed up with accordionist and vocalist Hannah James -- another former member of Kerfuffle -- and the duo began performing shows together throughout the north of England. The year 2010 saw Sweeney and James awarded the BBC Radio 2 Folk Award. The pair put out two albums, 2009's Catches and Glees and 2012's State and Ancientry (both via Rootbeat Records), before disbanding in 2014. Sweeney had also joined the folk outfit Bellowhead in 2008, with which he appeared on four records, beginning with 2008's Matachin and ending with 2014's Revival. In 2009, he began performing with Jon Boden and the Remnant Kings, in which he took up percussion as well as the fiddle. Sweeney also appeared on three LPs by Fay Hield and the Hurricane Party between 2010 and 2016. His collaborative efforts remained frequent throughout the 2010s; he made appearances on efforts by Rachael McShane and Sam Carter. In 2018, Sweeney signed a deal with Island Records and put out his debut solo release, The Unfinished Violin. ~ Rob Wacey