New Words (Novas Palavras)

New Words, Novas Palavras, Not just a title but a philosophy-music without borders, without preconceptions. What would happen if you combined a traditional Appalachian fiddle tune like 'Blackberry Blossom' with Ernesto Nazareth's classic choro, 'Apanhei-te-Cavaquinho?' Listen to the second track-it works beautifully, don't you think? And it also metaphorically anchors this cross-cultural collaboration between two of the mandolin world's brightest stars, Mike Marshall and Hamilton de Holanda. Most American listeners are probably familiar with Mike's extensive body of work with artists as diverse as Psychograss, Chris Thile, Edgar Meyer, Darol Anger, Jovino Santos Neto and Choro Famoso. Suffice to say that there are few mandolinists who command as broad a stylistic pallet. But for many, this recording also serves as an introduction to the incredible virtuosity of Hamilton de Holanda who, at just 30 years of age, has emerged as one of the leading figures in contemporary Brazilian instrumental music. Meeting in 2004 while both were artists-in-residence at a mandolin fesitval in Lunel, France, Mike and Hamilton found that despite their geographic and linguistic differences, they shared a sense of musical adventure and a mutual fondness for traversing cultural boundaries. Not to mention big ears, chops, and taste, too! The result of their collaboration is music played with passion and confidence by two musicians living in what the composer Henry Cowell once called 'the whole world of music'. From the liner notes by Andy Connell, Assistant Professor of Music, James Madison University, Va.