Biography
Dorothy Carter brought a singular voice to traditional and medieval material as a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist, shaping the paths of psychedelic folk, experimental, and new age artists who followed. She commanded an array of stringed instruments—hammered dulcimer, zither, and hurdy-gurdy among them—and delivered Appalachian, Celtic, and French folk songs in a trance-like, improvisatory style that at times evoked the sustained resonance of droning ragas. On her own Celeste label she issued two albums in the 1970s, the second of which, the 1978 release Waillee Waillee, became her most recognized work. Later she gained wider recognition as a founding member of the British ensemble Mediæval Bæbes, which enjoyed commercial success, and she completed a third solo album, Lonesome Dove, issued in 2000. After her death in 2003 her recordings attracted a devoted audience; Waillee Waillee, long viewed as an avant-folk landmark, received its first authorized reissue in 2023, while her 1976 debut Troubadour appeared again in 2024 through Drag City.
Born in New York in 1935, Carter took up classical piano in childhood and went on to master several hammer-chord instruments. Over the course of an eventful life she resided and performed in markedly different settings—convents in Mexico, a Mississippi steamboat, and a Maine commune—while also studying at conservatories in France and London. In the early 1970s she joined lifelong associate Robert Rutman and new-age innovator Constance Demby to establish the experimental collective Central Maine Power Music Company. She crossed paths with street performer Laraaji and encouraged his turn toward zither performance. Carter’s first album, Troubadour, emerged on Celeste in 1976; Demby added guqin to its tracks. Waillee Waillee followed two years later, with Rutman contributing bowed chimes and steel cello and Gail Edwards supplying tamboura, both elements deepening the hypnotic character of the interpretations.
Carter later settled in Germany, where she formed friendships with Alexander Hacke of Einstürzende Neubauten and his partner Danielle De Picciotto. Through Berlin’s cabaret milieu she met Katharine Blake of Miranda Sex Garden; together they launched Mediæval Bæbes in London in 1996. Carter performed autoharp, hurdy-gurdy, and dulcimer within the group and occasionally took lead vocals. The ensemble, whose membership fluctuated between six and twelve, presented medieval songs and poetry alongside newly composed pieces, reached the top of the British classical charts, and built a substantial touring profile aided by television appearances. John Cale produced their third album, Undrentide, released in 2000, which incorporated unconventional instrumentation and contemporary textures. Carter’s own Lonesome Dove appeared independently and was sold via the Mediæval Bæbes site.
She eventually relocated to New Orleans and hosted salons in her warehouse studio. Carter died of an aneurysm in 2003 at age 68. The master tapes for Waillee Waillee were later recovered from Rutman’s Berlin studio; he himself passed away in 2021. Long recognized as a forerunner of the 2000s freak-folk movement, the album was reissued by Palto Flats in 2023, and Drag City followed with an official edition of Troubadour the next year.
Born in New York in 1935, Carter took up classical piano in childhood and went on to master several hammer-chord instruments. Over the course of an eventful life she resided and performed in markedly different settings—convents in Mexico, a Mississippi steamboat, and a Maine commune—while also studying at conservatories in France and London. In the early 1970s she joined lifelong associate Robert Rutman and new-age innovator Constance Demby to establish the experimental collective Central Maine Power Music Company. She crossed paths with street performer Laraaji and encouraged his turn toward zither performance. Carter’s first album, Troubadour, emerged on Celeste in 1976; Demby added guqin to its tracks. Waillee Waillee followed two years later, with Rutman contributing bowed chimes and steel cello and Gail Edwards supplying tamboura, both elements deepening the hypnotic character of the interpretations.
Carter later settled in Germany, where she formed friendships with Alexander Hacke of Einstürzende Neubauten and his partner Danielle De Picciotto. Through Berlin’s cabaret milieu she met Katharine Blake of Miranda Sex Garden; together they launched Mediæval Bæbes in London in 1996. Carter performed autoharp, hurdy-gurdy, and dulcimer within the group and occasionally took lead vocals. The ensemble, whose membership fluctuated between six and twelve, presented medieval songs and poetry alongside newly composed pieces, reached the top of the British classical charts, and built a substantial touring profile aided by television appearances. John Cale produced their third album, Undrentide, released in 2000, which incorporated unconventional instrumentation and contemporary textures. Carter’s own Lonesome Dove appeared independently and was sold via the Mediæval Bæbes site.
She eventually relocated to New Orleans and hosted salons in her warehouse studio. Carter died of an aneurysm in 2003 at age 68. The master tapes for Waillee Waillee were later recovered from Rutman’s Berlin studio; he himself passed away in 2021. Long recognized as a forerunner of the 2000s freak-folk movement, the album was reissued by Palto Flats in 2023, and Drag City followed with an official edition of Troubadour the next year.
Albums
Singles
