Haselden (Hasee / "HAY-zee") Ciaccio (“see-AH-ko") [she/they] is a performer, maker, and educator residing in Cove Creek, NC. Born and raised on the Low Country coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, she made her way to the Mountain South in 2010 to study traditional Appalachian music and culture at East Tennessee State University. Hasee drives the upright bass with honed skill and conviction well beyond her years, moving listeners at festivals, intimate venues, and concert halls alike. In recent years, she has toured and recorded artists among the likes of the timeless and legendary Laurie Lewis, the all star bluegrass band Sister Sadie, the trailblazing Alice Gerrard and the visionary Jake Blount. During Hasee’s time with Sister Sadie, the band regularly appeared on Nashville’s own “The Grand Ole Opry", and brought home various International Bluegrass Music Association Awards, including “Entertainer of the Year” in 2020, the industry’s highest honor, which had never previously been awarded to an all female group. Throughout Hasee’s years as a performer, she has shared the stage with artists among the likes of Mary Chapin Carpenter, Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs, Del McCoury, Molly Tuttle, Dale Ann Bradley, and David Grisman, playing at such notable venues as New York City's Lincoln Center, PBS’s Song of the Mountains, and San Francisco’s “Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival.” While off tour, you might find her caning chairs, canning preserves, teaching lessons online, or sitting on the porch at her home in Western North Carolina.
. . . . .
In 2018, Hasee was a nominee for the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Instrumentalist of the Year in the Momentum Award category.
Haselden toured to Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, Africa in 2014 with the North Carolina stringband The Barefoot Movement as an Ambassador of Bluegrass with the United States Embassy. While in Burkina Faso, The Barefoot Movement performed for the Embassy's nationally broadcasted Independence Day Celebration, and were fortunate to spend time exchanging song and dance with local orphanages, women's homes, and primary schools.
In 2014, the International Bluegrass Music Association recognized The Barefoot Movement as the "Band of the Year" in the Momentum Award category. A pioneering member of the innovative roots stringband, Haselden toured with The Barefoot Movement for 5 years.
Haselden attended East Tennessee State University from 2010-2014, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in Bluegrass, Oldtime, and Country Music, with a minor in Appalachian Studies. While attending, Haselden was a member of the university's esteemed Oldtime Pride Band.
Haselden enjoys teaching at roots music camps, and works with folks in all age groups. She has previously taught at The Ashokan Fiddle and Dance Camp: Southern Week, GrandTarghee Music Camp, Bluegrass Camps for Kids, Folk College, and serves as a faculty instructor at Mountain Music School in Big Stone Gap, VA.
In 2018, Hasee released her debut Old Time String Band album, “Hay.” It features top performers of the Old Time realm.
In 2021 Hasee was apart of the collaborative supergroup recording “Tune Hash: Covered & Smothered.” The album features the George Jackson, Frank Evans, Amy Alvey and Mark Kilianski.