| When not behind the desk at the Plumas County Library, you may spy Margaret Miles playing penny whistle around town on her lunch hour.
"I've really gotten into whistle the past few years, and it's such a portable instrument that I can take one with me anywhere."
Margaret may play a whistle tune or two, but her primary focus in performing is still singing. "I've been singing about as long as I've been talking, and I was an early talker."
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| Of her childhood, Margaret said, "it would be true to say that I was born a love child of the 60's in San Francisco, but the reality wasn't nearly as wild an upbringing as that sounds. My parents still live in the house in Santa Clara they bought when I was four, and I had to discover the folk music of the 60's after I got to high school."
Before committing to folk music, Margaret sang in high school and college choirs, and performed in Moscow, Talinn (Estonia) and Kiev with the UC Davis Chamber Choir. She is a former member of Jeez Louise, Miles & Miles, Kitchen Cinq (a five-woman vocal group that performed extensively in the Sacramento area), and (very briefly) an electric Celtic folk rock band called Hie Fie.
"For the past several years, I've been working on solo performance and jamming. And I've really enjoyed participating as a musician for Plumas Arts' Artists in the Schools program, teaching music and rhythm to young children."
Margaret's original songs tend to be folk-influenced, with memorable tunes, and words that paint a picture. Her soaring vocals sound equally well accompanied by autoharp, bodrhan (Irish drum), or a capella. "I continue to be surprised at how many people don't know what an autoharp is," laughed Margaret. "Somebody once saw the case and asked if it was a cello!"
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