July 2005
Americana Soundscapes

In music circles, Americana refers to a rustic, country influenced style of music, but on Echoes Americana takes on a different flavor with artists who are suffused by the musical heritage of America, but are far from rustic. Alex De Grassi is the influential fingerstylist, and we caught him in 2003 when he'd done a CD of American standards like "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" and "Saint James Infirmary," breathing new life into these time-worn songs. William Coulter and Barry Phillips are steeped in traditions from India to Ireland, but they also have a love of Shaker hyms which they revealed in a live performance from 1996. Michael Gulezian is a thoroughly modern finger-style player, but one whose influences include the blues, folk and jazz. Bassist Edgar Meyer has been a leading proponent of Americana Chamber music and he does it here with violinist Joshua Bell, mandolinist Sam Bush and guitar/mandolinist Mike Marshall. As we enter July, the "American" month, we celebrate our own heritage.                                                                                                  ~John Diliberto

Echoes would like to know what you think about this concert collection. Drop us an :email:

Joshua Bell, Edgar Meyer, Sam Bush & Mike Marshall (1999)

Edgar Meyer is a classically trained and bluegrass bent bass player. Joshua Bell is a classical violin virtuoso. They're joined by bluegrass mandolinist Sam Bush and guitarist/mandolinist Mike Marshall for a set of original chamber folk songs drawn from their 1999 CD, SHORT TRIP HOME. listen>> (about 25 min.) playlist>>

Alex de Grassi (2003) "In 'When Johnny Comes Marching Home' I wanted to say, well, this is maybe an Irish-American melody but today, you could also be playing it on tablas with a sitar." listen>> (about 20 min) playlist>>

In 2003, Echoes celebrated Independence Day with a special Living Room Concert with guitarist Alex De Grassi. At the time, he had just released Now & Then: Folk Songs For The 21st Century, interpreting traditional American folk songs like "O Susannah," and "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" in his own, intricate, finger-picking style. It's not a trip to nostalgia, but a re-investigation of seminal American works.

The Coulter-Phillips Band (1996) William Coulter and Barry Phillips take shaker hymns and turn them into evocative chamber instrumentals. They've released a few albums of this music, including 1996's Music on the Mountain. That same year, Coulter and Phillips sat down with guitar and cello in a chamber quartet and played this music live in an Echoes Living Room Concert. listen>> (about 25 min) playlist>>

Michael Gulezian (1995)

Since the early days of Echoes, Michael Gulezian has dazzled us with his albums, including Distant Memories and Dreams and The Dare of An Angel. In 1995, he dazzled us even more when he sat down in the Echoes Living Room for some live renditions of his music. listen>> playlist>> (about 25 min.)

Let us know what you think about this concert collection. Drop us an :email:

:Back to Top: