Dave Giegerich

Resonator guitarist and instructor. Born in Chicago, Illinois on March 15, 1953. Died December 29, 2010 in Baltimore, Maryland. He was known in the Baltimore-Washington D.C. area for his hybrid of Hawaiian tunes, western swing and rockabilly. Giegerich grew up in South Haven, Mich. He started playing guitar as a young man and, after studying for several years at Michigan State University, dropped out of school to pursue music full time. Giegerich's career in music spans more than 30 years, and he first came to prominence when he moved to Fredericksburg, VA in the late 1970s from Michigan. He was quickly embraced by the bluegrass scene in D.C. and northern Virginia, which was the vital center of the east coast bluegrass world at the time. After their marriage, he and his wife Pam moved to Maryland where he continued with his playing. Giegerich was among the very first resophones to embrace the then-radical melodic style that Jerry Douglas had pioneered, and his work with such fellow virtuosi as Jimmy Arnold and Bobby Hicks was memorable for those who heard it. Giegerich served primarily in the sideman role, both on acoustic resonator guitar and electric steel. He worked for a time with Bill Harrell, and had been a member of Wayne Taylor & Appaloosa in recent years. He also had his own group, The Hula Monsters, who played a unique mix of swing, Hawaiian, country and blues music. Giegerich also recorded a solo album, "Slide-Tracked," and performed at the White House, the Kennedy Center and the Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia.