crying uncle duo

When not playing with their Bluegrass Band, brothers, Miles and Teo Quale, as the original Crying Uncle, perform as a Duo and enjoy collaborating with musicians of all genres. The brothers have performed at venues and festivals across the country, including Largo at the Coronet in Los Angeles (as guests of The Watkins Family Hour), Greyfox Bluegrass Festival in NY, Ogden Music Festival in Utah, Rapidgrass in Colorado, and Whippoorwill Arts/Northwest Foklife in Washington. Since 2016, both have performed for Kids on Bluegrass at IBMA’s World of Bluegrass Festival in Raleigh, NC and also for IBMA’s Pinecone Live! Powered by PNC event. The brothers founded Crying Uncle in 2016 and formed the bluegrass band in 2017. Their bluegrass band recently received the 2023 IBMA Momentum Band of the Year award. They were also honored to perform for the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame’s induction of their hero, David Grisman.

In 2019, the brothers performed as a Duo at the Grand Ole Opry and, with Country Music Legend Marty Stuart and his Fabulous Superlatives, at Ryman Auditorium. They have had the privilege of playing with many phenomenal artists, including Hawktail, Brothers Comatose, Mike Marshall, Darol Anger, Missy Raines & Allegheny, Sister Sadie, Sam Reider, Richard Howell Quintet, and Pascal Bokar’s AfroBlueGrazz Band.

The brothers, who are also National and State Champion fiddlers and pickers, were 2019 Freshgrass Festival finalists in the fiddle and mandolin contest categories, and were each nominated for the 2021 IBMA Momentum Instrumentalist Award. In 2022, Miles received the prestigious Whippoorwill Arts Fellowship. Miles and Teo are Fishman sponsored artists and are also Ear Trumpet Labs artists.

ABOUT MILES & TEO

Teo Quale is a multi-instrumentalist from Alameda, CA who has been delighting audiences with his inventive and heavily grooved mandolin playing. Teo is fearless on the mandolin, playing with both a rhythmic and melodic creativity that never abandons the groove. He is a founder of and the mandolinist for bands Crying Uncle Duo, Crying Uncle Bluegrass Band, and Jubilee. In 2021, Teo was nominated for the IBMA Instrumentalist Award. 

He has played with a number of bands, including: Special Consensus as a substitute guitarist; as substitute mandolinist for Missy Raines & Allegheny;  as a substitute mandolinist for Brothers Comatose; as the mandolinist for Sam Reider’s Human Hands, and as a substitute mandolinist for Sister Sadie. He also plays fiddle and electric mandolin for Pascal Bokar and his AfroBlueGrazz Band. In 2019, Teo had the honor of playing with his brother, Miles, at Ryman Auditorium and the Grand Ole Opry (Nashville, TN). He recorded on Jennifer Berezan’s 2022 album, Belonging, which garnered a positive review from Rolling Stone France. He looks forward to more collaborations and opportunities. 

Teo is also an accomplished contest fiddler and picker, having won several picking contests in California and nationally in fiddle. On mandolin, Teo holds 1st Place in the 2018 Open Division CA State Picking Contest. And, in 2019, he was a finalist at Freshgrass Festival’s Mandolin Contest. No slouch on the fiddle, Teo is a 2-time National Fiddle Champion in the Jr. Jr. division in Weiser, Idaho (2019, 2018) and placed in the Top 3 in the 2019 Youth Grand Master Fiddlers Championship in Nashville, TN. He is also the 2019 CA State Fiddle Contest Champion of the Jr. Jr. Division.

At the age of 3, Teo began his fiddle studies with Catherine Manning of Manning Music in Berkeley, CA and now studies music with Tristan Clarridge of Crooked Still. He began mandolin studies at the age of 8 with multi-instrumentalist Sharon Gilchrist and has studied with mandolinist Mike Marshall. He is graduating a year early from high school in 2024. Teo also has students of all ages, learning ukulele, guitar, and mandolin. He is an avid yo-yoer and aspires to be multilingual. Teo is a Fishman sponsored artist.

Miles Quale is a fiddler from Alameda, CA who plays and sings with depth beyond his years. Miles is  accomplished in both bluegrass fiddle and jazz violin, playing with his own bands and as a guest on stages and at music festivals throughout the country and internationally. He is the fiddler for and a founder of bands Crying Uncle Duo, Crying Uncle Bluegrass Band, and Jubilee. Recording his first album at the age of twelve, Miles and his bands have since released several full length albums and EPs. He has been fortunate to play with many of his musical heroes, including Darol Anger, Mike Marshall, Brittany Haas, and Country Music legend Marty Stuart. In 2019, Miles had the honor of playing at Ryman Auditorium and the Grand Ole Opry. In 2021, he toured with band leader and guitarist, Pascal Bokar and his AfroBlueGrazz Band. 

An accomplished contest fiddler, he placed 4th in the 2023 Open Division Grand Master Fiddlers Championship (Nashville, TN) and won the 2019 Youth division of the same contest. In 2019, he won the Jr. Swing Division National Fiddle Contest Championship (Weiser, ID). In 2021 and 2020, Miles was nominated for the IBMA Instrumentalist Award; and, in 2019, he was a finalist at Freshgrass Festival’s Fiddle Contest. In 2022, Miles was awarded a Whippoorwill Arts Fellowship . The Fellowship allowed him to take a gap year from the University of California Los Angeles, to travel around the world, learning from and recording with musicians. He currently studies Global Jazz and Astrophysics at UCLA.

Miles began Suzuki violin at the age of 3 and switched to bluegrass fiddle when he was 6. He began his studies with Catherine Manning of Manning Music in Berkeley, CA, and has since studied with Tristan Clarridge of Crooked Still, Chad Manning of The David Grisman Quintet, Grammy Award winning jazz violinist Mads Tolling, and Darol Anger.

Miles has taught fiddle at Manning Music School, Berkeley CA, since the age of 12, and he currently teaches jazz violin at Oaktown Jazz, Oakland. He has also worked as a teaching assistant for Freight and Salvage’s Freight Kids Music Camp and for California Bluegrass Association’s Kids on Bluegrass program. He plays a mean round of chess, is a green belt in judo, and enjoys cooking for family and friends. Miles is a Fishman sponsored artist.