Amy Shaw is a musician and a writer specializing in topics related to music history and folklore. Active in traditional music circles in Minneapolis-St. Paul, she plays Irish, French-Canadian, and Scandinavian music on an eight-key wooden flute of 19th-century design. She also has a background in classical music, holding graduate degrees from Indiana University and the University of South Dakota. An oboist by training, she became interested in the wooden flute while researching her master’s thesis about early English flutes at the National Music Museum. During her time at the museum, she also researched and presented public programs related to the baroque oboe and silent movie music.
Subsequent research projects have included turn-of-the-century mandolin orchestras in Minnesota, traditional Irish music, and the music of Norwegian-born fiddler Ole Hendricks. One of her great joys is uncovering a musician’s story, especially that of an immigrant, and communicating that story to other musicians.
Amy has worked for more than 20 years at St. Catherine University Library in St. Paul, Minnesota, where she is Head of Archives & Special Collections.