We have a new Judge! Welcome Putnam Murdock!
Rachel Sumner
Singer-Songwriter/Touring Musician. Rachel Sumner is an award-winning songwriter and Berklee College of Music graduate, celebrated for her evocative lyrics and genre-defying sound. A founding member of the acclaimed string band Twisted Pine, Rachel toured extensively with the group before embarking on a solo career that has garnered significant acclaim. Since then, she has won the 2021 Grand Prize and Lennon Award in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest and the 2024 Kerrville New Folk Contest. Her work is archived in the Library of Congress, where she and her touring band, Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light, were invited to perform and participate in an oral history interview. Passionate about storytelling through song, Rachel is honored to support the next generation of songwriters as a contest judge.
Susan Cattaneo
Professor of Songwriting at Berklee, Singer-Songwriter. With her powerful voice, captivating melodies and finely-crafted lyrics, Susan Cattaneo is one of Boston’s most respected singer-songwriters. Combining vivid storytelling with a modern songwriter’s spin, Susan’s music blends folk, rock and blues with hint of country. She likes to call it, “New England Americana”. Susan’s latest album, All is Quiet charted #2 and was a top 25 Album of 2022 on the FAI Folk Radio chart. Susan won the CT Folk Festival and was nominated for Singer Songwriter of the Year at the 2022 Boston Music Awards. She has been a finalist or winner in the country’s most prestigious songwriting and music contests including being a three-time Kerrville New Folk finalist.
Putnam Murdock
Touring artist Putnam Murdock got his start as a professional musician with the Colorado rock and roll band Chief Broom. With Murdock as front man, the group achieved a slot on the 1997 H.O.R.D.E tour, appeared in festivals at Red Rocks Amphitheater and sold out venues throughout the western US. After graduating with a songwriting degree from Berklee School in Music in 2002, Murdock launched a solo career and has since traveled across the country performing with artists such as Martin Sexton, Taj Mahal, Ben Taylor, Gregory Alan Isakov, and Kaki King.
He has co-written songs that have appeared in the television shows Joan of Arcadia, Dawsons Creek, MTV’s Made, and The Biggest Loser. The song When it Comes Around appeared in the movie and sound track for Just Friends with Ryan Reynolds. He’s performed as a session musician on several Ken Burns documentaries including The Mayo Clinic with Bill Frisell and The Roosevelts: An Intimate History.
Monica Rizzio
Singer-Songwriter/Touring Musician. After graduating from Belmont Univ in 2003 (Nashville, TN) she found her way back to the East Coast. With a perspective equally influenced by her Texas roots and her Cape Cod home, Americana singer-songwriter Monica Rizzio has emerged as one of the finest talents in the East Coast music scene. She has been nominated for a Boston Music Award as Country Artist of the Year, nominated for Best Country Album for the Independent Music Awards and winner of the Grassy Hill Songwriting Competition for the CT. Folk Festival. She has also landed several placements in Film and TV. Aside from her solo project with Monica Rizzio & The Round Ups she is often found alongside Tom Rush playing fiddle and singing in his band. Monica has a deep passion as an educator and started Washashore Music, an instructional music studio in Orleans focusing on teaching students of all ages. She is also founder of Vinegrass Music, a non-profit focusing on raising money for our scholarship fund, instruments in the schools and teacher grants.