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"A fraction of the songs that exist in the public domain possess much more
than a fleeting immediacy. MacDonald has for decades crafted in word and melody,
living and breathing entities that bear repeated hearing."

Since first stepping on a Newport, Rhode Island stage in 1972, Rod MacDonald has taken many interesting journeys where he has met many interesting people; many of whom eventually show up in one of his songs. He has performed in Italy, Western and Southern Australia, Sweden, England, Canada, Switzerland, and Pellworm, a remote island west of Germany, British Columbia and Alaska. He was the first American folksinger to tour the Czech Republic where he debuted for an audience of 10,000 at the Straznice Festival, his "For The People"; a hauntingly uplifting tribute to a peoples' undying love for their country, recorded on both his earlier "Man On The Ledge" cd, and "After The War", released in 2009.

Throughout an international music career of more than 35 years, Rod has remained a vital force in the folk music community. At the forefront of the 80s Greenwich Village folk revival, he has helped to pave the way for many others with a history that places him with Tom Paxton, Jack Hardy, Dave Van Ronk and other notables of Folk. Rod's love for music, his reverence for all living things, and his personal commitment to exploring and communicating events that effect and shape our world's societies have been instrumental in guiding his songwriting and his career.

A troubador at heart who loves performing best of all, he has performed at several international festivals, spent a summer with the Hopi Indians on their South Dakota reservation, and lived for a time in Italy. He has recorded 9 cds of his original compositions, and has the honor of having 21 of his songs included in the Smithsonian Folkways recordings of re-mastered music from the Fast Folk Magazine.

Rod MacDonald loves performing most of all, and wherever and whenever he performs, he knows that what he wants most of all is to connect with his audiences. Which he does, very successfully. Since the early 80s, he has traveled across the U.S., Europe, Canada and Australia, performing at concert halls, outdoor festivals, folk clubs, coffeehouses, and house concerts. He has performed for audiences as large as 10,000 in the Czech Republic, and as small as 8 in a remote area in British Columbia. But no matter how small or large the venue is, a Rod MacDonald performance is an intimate, authentic, inspirational and uplifting experience.

An engaging entertainer in full command of his artistry, Rod has a warm, relaxed stage presence, a clear, expressive voice, a solid and at times driving guitar style and masterful harmonica licks that are enthusiastic and exciting. He moves effortlessly between the many styles that have deeply influenced him, including folk, blues, folk-rock, light jazz, and occasionally, almost hymnal. When singing one of his songs, he creates an easy rapport with his audiences with his eclectic music that he calls "progressive, contemporary folk". When singing someone else's songs, his interpretation and delivery is authentic, heartfelt and respectful of the original songwriter or performer. Seamlessly weaving beautiful and often haunting ballads in between powerful and poignant commentaries that are observations of all things in society and in our personal lives, his performances have been described as "powerful and hypnotic." Audiences love the rich musical texture and the intimacy of his performances, as he sings a quiet ballad one minute, and in the next minute talks quietly with his audiences as he humorously tells them the story of how a particular song came about ... then he and his guitar become almost one as next he soulfully sings a blues song showcasing his soaring voice ... then tops it off with a stirring a capella song like "Sailor's Prayer". But more than anything, listeners respond to Rod and his music because not only is it about the everyday lives of ordinary people - their joys, hopes, struggles and triumphs, but because, through his music, he is sharing with them his reverence for all things in our universe.