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Butch Baldassari Extended Biography
In today's crowded, noisy and sometimes complicated music environment,
oftentimes less is truly more. Lyric, not loud. Soft, not strident.
Romantic, not raucous.
Mandolinist Butch Baldassari created new interest in this
age-old instrument and is luring legions of new admirers to the
music he created. Download
more information.
With mastery of a wide variety of mandolin styles, Butch's versatility was unmatched.
He moved from bluegrass festivals to symphony halls with ease and grace, earning
respect and admiration in these seemingly disparate worlds.
A native of Scranton, PA, he was first introduced to the mandolin at
the Philadelphia Folk Festival in 1972, where he saw Andy Statman with
David Bromberg and Barry Mitterhoff with the Bottle Hill Boys. He was
so inspired by their playing, that he resolved to learn to play the
mandolin. He began studying immediately, experimenting with the
mandolin's unique sound and delving more deeply into the history of
the instrument.
In 1985, Butch became a member of Weary Hearts, a critically
acclaimed bluegrass band, winners of the Society for the Preservation
of Bluegrass Music in America (SPBGMA) 1988 Best Bluegrass Band Award.
After attending the Classical Mandolin Society of America convention
in November 1990, and intrigued by the existence of mandolin
orchestras in America at the turn of the century, he returned to
Nashville (where he had moved in 1989) and founded the Nashville
Mandolin Ensemble in June 1991, recruiting some of Nashville's best
and most talented string players. The ensemble, composed of mandola,
mandocello, guitar and bass, in addition to mandolins, became one of Music City's
city's most unusual and sought-after entertainment.
"We surprise our audiences every time we play," Butch said.
"People just revel in the sound of all these marvelous instruments and
in the tremendous variety of music we perform. Our repertoire includes
Bill Monroe's Bluegrass, as well as the music of O'Carolan and
Vivaldi."
Butch has appeared on "A Prairie Home Companion," "CBS This
Morning," CNN and "Riders in the Sky Radio Theatre."
Not just a performer and bandleader, Butch was widely respected as
a teacher, serving as Adjunct Associate Professor of
Mandolin at Vanderbilt University's renowned Blair School of Music.
His instructional videos, books and tapes are among the most widely
used by aspiring mandolin players, and his workshops at festivals
including Telluride, Rocky Grass Bluegrass Academy, Winterhawk and
Grass Valley were standing-room only sessions. His annual appearances
at the Classical Mandolin Society were among the event's most popular.
With his own successful record label, SoundArt Recordings, Butch broadened
both his reach to new audiences and his influence on the music.
In Butch Baldassari and the music he created, the past, present and
future of this small, yet richly powerful instrument were in the best
of hands.
Awards/ Nominations:
Best Classical Recording - Nashville Mandolin Ensemble --Nashville
Music Association Award - 1999 -- All The Rage, New World Records
Grammy Nomination - 1997 - The Grass Is Greener - Best Bluegrass Album
- Sales Tax Toddle
Nominated - 1994, 1995, 1996, Mandolin Player of the Year -
International Bluegrass Music Association
Song of the Yea - 1993 - "Lonesome Standard Time" - International
Bluegrass Music Association - with Lonesome Standard Time
Grammy Nomination - 1992 - Lonesome Standard Time - Best Bluegrass
Album for Lonesome Standard Time
Some of his recordings:
Cantabile - with John Mock, SoundArt Recordings
New Classics for Bluegrass Mandolin, SoundArt Recordings
American Portraits, Nashville Mandolin Trio, SoundArt Recordings
Reflections - with John Carlini, SoundArt Recordings
Travellers - with John Reischman and Robin Bullock, SoundArt
Recordings
What's Doin' - Cactus Records
Old Town - Rebel Records
Evergreen - Cactus/CMH Records
A Day in the Country - Pinecastle Records
Plectrasonics - Nashville Mandolin Ensemble, CMH Records
Gifts - Nashville Mandolin Ensemble, Columbia Records
All The Rage - Nashville Mandolin Ensemble, New World Records
Instruments:
Mandolin - Mandocello
Mandola - Octave Mandolin
Musical History:
Nashville Mandolin Trio (1997- )
Nashville Mandolin Ensemble (1991- )
The Grass is Greener (1995-1997)
Lonesome Standard Time (1992-1998)
Weary Hearts (1985-1990)
Instructional:
You Can Play Bluegrass Mandolin (Vols. I and II), Homespun Tapes
(Video)
30 Fiddle Tunes for Mandolin (Book and two CDs), Homespun Tapes
16 Gems - Bill Monroe Transcriptions - Hal Leonard
Evergreen Mandolin Music for Christmas - Mel Bay
Acutab - Transcriptions, Vol. I - Acutab
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