Mandolinist David Grisman to bring acoustic music to Purdue

The performance is part of the group's 30th anniversary tour. Grisman will be joined by opening act Old School Freight Train, a five-piece acoustic band from Virginia. Purdue Convocations is presenting the performance.

For more than 40 years, Grisman has been busy creating what he calls "dawg" music, a blend of many stylistic influences including swing, bluegrass, Latin, jazz and gypsy. In doing so, he inspired a new genre of acoustic string instrumental music while creating a niche for himself in the world of contemporary music.

In 1990 Grisman founded the Acoustic Disc label, and to date, the label has released 55 CDs, including six with Jerry Garcia, all produced or co-produced by Grisman. His discography includes recordings with Bela Fleck, the Grateful Dead, Stephane Grappelli, Emmylou Harris, Chris Isaak, Dolly Parton, Bonnie Raitt, Linda Ronstadt, Earl Scruggs, Dan Fogelberg, Maria Muldaur, John Sebastian and James Taylor.

For the past 25 years, the David Grisman Quintet has won numerous polls and awards and has headlined at major jazz, folk and bluegrass festivals around the world. Quintet alumni — including Tony Rice, Mark O'Connor, Mike Marshall and Darol Anger — have gone on to establish successful careers as leaders of acoustic music. Current group members include bassist Jim Kerwin, multi-instrumentalist Joe Craven, flutist Matt Eakle and Argentine guitarist Enrique Coria.

Old School Freight Train will be opening on this tour. This young group based out of Charlottesville, Va., blends jazz, Latin, Celtic, bluegrass and pop. After gaining a loyal local following, the band gained national recognition touring the country and winning awards at the Telluride Bluegrass and Rockygrass Bluegrass contests.

Old School Freight Train released its first self-titled record in 2002. The Independent Music Awards picked up on the band's sound and chose them as finalists for best bluegrass album of the year.

Grisman first heard their music in the fall of 2004 and described the band as "an emerging force to reckon with in today's world of acoustic music." He invited the band to record at his Dawg Studios in Northern California and manned the production and recording of the group's second album titled "Run."

"After forty years of recording acoustic music, it's not very often that a new band catches (and keeps) my attention," Grisman said. "Old School Freight Train has done that and more. Their finely crafted tunes and innovative arrangements bring creativity, taste and wit to a broad spectrum of contemporary styles — vocal and instrumental, all firmly rooted in many traditions. They are certainly an emerging force to reckon with in today's wide world of acoustic music."

Tickets are available at the Elliott Hall and Stewart Center box offices at (765) 494-3933 or (800) 914-SHOW. Tickets are also available through Ticketmaster outlets. Tickets are $28 for adults and $20 for children 18 years and younger, Purdue students and Ivy Tech Lafayette students.

Members of the public also are invited to an acoustic instrument jam session before the performance at 1:30 pm in Stewart Center, Rooms 218B and 218C. Participants are asked to bring their own instrument and join other local pickers in a beginner or advanced circle led by local musicians. The event is free and secure instrument storage is available for the show following.

Source: Kerry Schutt Nason, Purdue Convocations director of marketing, (765) 494-5045, knason@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

Note to Journalists: Publication-quality photos of The David Grisman Quintet are available at and photos of Old School Freight Train are available.

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