Nominated for a 2014 New England Music Award, Kate Callahan, Connecticut’s “Best Singer-Songwriter 2013” has three albums including her recent release"Breakthrough." The Boston Globe praises her"...inspirational, and at times mystical lyrics." Callahan’s music feels soulful and she’s unapologetically optimistic in concert. WNPR host Colin McEnroe praised a recent performance, saying, “Kate Callahan is the only performer I’ve ever seen who occasionally seems to be channeling something vaster and far more ancient than herself, something more easily understood by Emerson than by any modern person.Kate’s credits include appearances at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Emerging Artists Showcase, the New Haven Festival of Arts and Ideas, and the CT Folk Festival. She has opened shows for folk legends Judy Collins and Noel Paul Stookey (Peter, Paul, and Mary), troubadours Aztec Two-Step, John Gorka, Mustard’s Retreat, and the late Bill Morrissey. She has also shared stages with folk-rock artists Rachael Sage and Regina Spektor. Stookey calls Callahan"real" and says her lyrics are"Zen-like."Callahan’s depth comes from the creative way she embraces her life experiences. At the age of nineteen she sustained traumatic brain injury in a skiing accident. She had to withdraw from college and rehabilitate five days a week for a year until her insurance ran out. Her doctors told her she had plateaued. Callahan knew she had more desire to heal than the doctors could see, so she took up acoustic guitar lessons. Her short-term memory was so impaired that she couldn’t remember that she was taking lessons from week to week. Over time, however, she began to remember and saw improvements in her coordination, eyesight, and guitar playing. She began writing songs soon after that and felt compelled to share them with small audiences at open mics. Open mics turned into features, opening sets, and headlining appearances at venues throughout New England.Callahan says she writes songs that “become conduits between heaven and earth.” Swing Low quotes the well-known African-American spiritual, surrounding its anthem with three short windows into climactic experiences of life and death.Swing Low was produced by Jim Chapdelaine, a Grammy nominated and Emmy award-winning producer. The song features Callahan on vocals and acoustic guitar, Chapdelaine on electric guitar, drummer Lorne Entress (Lori McKenna, Catie Curtis, Mark Erelli), and bassist Paul Kochanski (Lori McKenna, The Shinolas).Since the turn of the millennium, Kate has won the Hartford Advocate’s “Best Solo Performer” award three times. She was also awarded the Hartford Courant's"Woman of Character Award” for her involvement in schools and on stages and met Jane Fonda when she received that award. The Greater Hartford Arts Council chose Kate as the prestigious United Arts Campaign’s Featured Music Artist of 2014. She has appeared on WNPR ‘s The Colin McEnroe Show to talk about the rise of folk music, Connecticut’s Hartfolk Festival, and the her personal experience with the healing power of music. She has also appeared on WNPR’s Where We Live discussing the music of Joni Mitchell, the Mitchell inspired book Gathered Light, and also in promotion of her album Two Doors.