By any measure, Ben Gunderseimer has followed an unusual career path. Beginning with open mics and coffee houses, his early work earned him the first songwriting scholarship awarded by the Berklee College of Music. With a penchant for cross-cultural collaborations, Ben went on to win a Latin GRAMMY Award, a tribute to his songcraft as well as his strength as a producer, multi-instrumentalist, and recording engineer.

But that’s not the interesting part. After touring the club circuit and then sharing the stage with a range of artists including Phish, Crash Test Dummies, Martin Sexton, and The Spin Doctors, Ben struck out in a different direction. Inspired by folk heroes like Pete Seeger, he went back to graduate school and earned a Masters in Education. While working as an elementary school teacher, he began writing songs to inspire his students, who called him MISTER G.

The word spread and Ben found himself following an unexpected career path in children’s music. In a short period of time, he went from performing at birthday parties and libraries to festival stages like Lollapoolaza and New Orlean’s Jazz Fest. Over the last decade, he has released ten albums, performed around the world, and published two picture books with Penguin Random House.

2020 marks Ben’s return to his roots as a singer-songwriter. His forthcoming release “Sarasota” introduces a backlog of material written for adult audiences. Written in Spanish, the song “Tú y tú” reflect his experiences working on both sides of the US-Mexico border, while the balled “Warm Hands & Bones” takes refuge in the fleeting moments that lovers share.