Mary Halvorson is a guitarist, ensemble leader, and composer who continually pushes against established musical categories with a signature instrumental sound and an aesthetic that evolves with each album and musical configuration. She melds deep jazz roots with experimental rock, folk, and other musical traditions, reflecting a wide range of stylistic influences. After releases with jazz-rock quartet Friendly Bears and Anthony Braxton, she and violinist Jessica Pavone became a performing duo for 2005's Prairies. In 2015 she issued the solo guitar outing Meltframe. One of 2018's most acclaimed jazz releases, Mary Halvorson's Code Girl, cemented a nomination and award of the 2019 MacArthur Foundation Genius Grant. Halvorson wrote prolifically during the pandemic. In 2022 she issued Belladonna for jazz sextet and Amaryllis for solo guitar and chamber ensemble Mivos Quartet simultaneously. In 2024, her sextet issued Cloudward.