by kristen case
photo courtesy of lily honigberg
A violin virtuoso, fiddler, and composer raised in Washington DC, LA-based Lily Honigberg seamlessly weaves together a rich tapestry of Irish fiddle, classical, and contemporary improvisation in the music of singer-songwriters, rappers, and artists. She is the featured fiddle player on Shaboozey's 2024 hit “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”, appears on FINNEAS’ second album For Cryin’ Out Loud! and played on the Dungeons & Dragons (2023) feature film soundtrack in the specialty band. Lily works across a variety of genres with artists like FINNEAS, Shaboozey, Dasha, Denzel Curry, Juicy J, 070 Shake, Bebe Rexha, Quadeca, KennyHoopla, Alex Warren, and Felly. Lily is currently based in Los Angeles, and regularly on tour with rising pop country artist Dasha. Raised in a family of professional musicians, Lily dedicated herself to music at a young age. As a teenager, she studied at the Interlochen Arts Academy, and went on to complete a master’s degree in Contemporary Improvisation from the New England Conservatory. Lily has been fortunate to tour with the National Youth Orchestra (2014), and has performed all over, including at Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Hall, Millennium Stage, and on The Late Late Show with James Corden. During college, she lived in Ireland’s County Mayo and spent hours sitting in pub sessions, learning Irish trad music by osmosis. She’s made a name for herself as an Irish folk fiddler, headlining the Korrö Music Festival and playing with the likes of Eric Rigler, John Doyle, Dennis Cahill, and Solas. The Sun’s Valley, Lily’s latest album, is a testament to her nuanced interpretation of Irish fiddle and elegantly bridges tradition and innovation.
What was the genesis of Lily Honigberg?
Lily: “I was born into a family of classical musicians — my dad gave me a violin for my fourth birthday. He played cello in the National Symphony Orchestra for 40 years, retiring last spring. As for my mom, she plays piano and the harpsichord. My grandmother was a concert pianist, and both of my parents run a concert series, so music was often playing in my house. I always loved the sound of string instruments. Also, something about the warmth and precision of the violin has kept me craving the instrument and striving to unlock all of the things I can do with it.
I grew up reading a lot of fantasy books — and listening to movie soundtracks — like the Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Tuck Everlasting, and Peter Pan. I classically ‘trained’ to be in an orchestra through school and a conservatory. Yet, I went over to Ireland during the summer when I was 19 and found myself fully immersed in Irish traditional music. I discovered then that I wanted to do more than read notes on a page. I wanted to write melodies, create atmospheres, and improvise with music. My intention became to become a fiddler, as well as, classical violinist, and also recreate some of the feelings the fantasy aspect of my childhood had upon me. I ended up staying at the New England Conservatory to earn a master’s degree in Contemporary Improvisation after finishing up my B.M. in Classical Violin Performance.”
I read that you were born and raised in Washington, DC, but had relocated to LA a few years back. How did the transition impact you as an artist and the music that you make?
Lily: “Los Angeles has everything. It has every kind of music and every type of opportunity. The city always surprises you! I love waking up and not knowing what I’m going to get called for. There are incredibly creative and ambitious people here, making huge strides in the music and artistic world. I feel incredibly inspired watching my friends and colleagues navigate the challenges of the industry in LA, too. However, the city is not always as glamorous as it looks on the outside! Yet, I feel like I can be the artist I’ve always wanted to be in LA, constantly learning and evolving with all of the things being thrown at me as a string player, fiddler, composer, and improvisor.”
Congratulations on being Grammy nominated for “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by Shaboozey as a featured fiddle player breaking multiple records. Kudos on getting to play Lollapalooza this past summer and having released music with Elijah Fox, Nick Leng and Enluv! What emotions were you feeling having received such life changing news? Furthermore, what did you learn about yourself both personally and musically?
Lily: “Thank you! I am really proud of ‘Tipsy’ and all it has accomplished since it came out almost a year ago. It was an honor collaborating with the artists you listed, who are all also good friends of mine. Yes, I love that we can make music together. But, we can also explore our city, watch over our pet bunnies and look at the wind in the trees together. Doing these things together help make the music all the more special! The emotions that came along with it were joyful, along with a bit of the, ‘well that’s great, but what’s next?’ sort of emotion. It also took a while for it to hit that I had played on a Grammy nominated song. It’s hard to sometimes grasp the extent of how many people have listened to and loved it! I also feel extremely grateful for having had the opportunity to play on that particular song and being able to continue working on what I believe in.”
In addition to working with Shaboozey, you have gotten to collaborate with various artists like FINNEAS, Denzel Curry, and 070 Shake just to name a few! How was the collaboration process, as it varies from each artist differently, and what's your favorite part about the collaborative processes?
Lily: “Again, it's such an honor to work with these artists. It’s special to come in as a string player on sessions like these, usually not to read sheet music that has been prepared, but getting to collaborate and talk through ideas. All artists and producers have different languages for things, and I love decoding what they are trying to tell me with their languages around strings. It was especially wonderful to come in and recreate some of FINNEAS’ string parts, and also have him ask me to just rip a few takes of improvising over his incredible songs. I’ve admired Billie and FINNEAS as artists and people since they released ‘Ocean Eyes’ back in 2016, and it feels like a dream to be included as a very small part of that.”
You recently played fiddle in Dasha’s band on her recent tour which is absolutely amazing! What was the experience like? Is there a favorite memory you have playing live?
Lily: “I love Dasha. She is such a homie, and we have a great time on the road. I was never looking to tour like this with all I have going on in LA, but when the opportunity came out of nowhere, it felt right to roll with it. It took a few months for it to sink in about just how busy we’d be, but being on the road getting to play fiddle with a badass female artist is exactly what I’m supposed to be doing right now. I still get to come home and play sessions and work on projects in LA too. In addition, I have a remote set-up for recording that I take on the road.
One of my favorite memories on tour is when a fan at a show in Indiana screamed, ‘Play Drown Me!’ This is one of Dasha’s songs on the same album as ‘Austin,’ and she didn’t quite hear them, took out one of her earpieces and said, ‘Huh?? Play ground beef??’ It’s an awesome crew, band, and team. I feel lucky to be up there with people making music and traveling the world, surviving the curveballs that tour life throws at us, and also laughing at the absurdity of what we are doing with the little things that happen during our long days of travel and performances.”
Along with playing the violin, fiddle, and being a composer, are there ever any challenges searching for that necessary “sound?” How do you overcome that?
Lily: “Yes, there are lots of challenges in so many ways. I don’t know if I ‘overcame’ that. I do enjoy getting lost in the process of finding exactly what I am looking for in my own artistic projects as well as those of others. I think it’s important to make things you don’t like, and I feel like I’m still definitely working on being more comfortable with that.”
What is your favorite way to connect with fans?
Lily: “I love hearing about people’s personal experiences with music, specifically the violin and fiddle. Also, not about the fans, but it brings me great joy to ask artists I’m in the studio with if they’ve ever tried playing the violin. From there, I try to let them play mine. It’s always funny to me to observe how quickly they realize how hard it is to make a good sound, have no frets, and things like that. Then, I see how they explore trying to get a good sound, what they do with their bow hands, along with their left hand, too.”
Can you tell us something unexpected that your fans might be surprised to hear about your upcoming projects? Are there any items on your bucket list?
Lily: “I am working as part of a team scoring a new video game at the moment! I don’t think I can say much more about it. I am excited for the next phase of my career that will be playing on and creating more fantasy soundtracks.
I also have two new releases coming out under my own artist project, Lily Honigberg, for Saint Patrick’s Day on both March 7th and March 14th!”