Mappamundi: "More-or-Less Traditional Music of the Northern Hemisphere and the Previous Millennium"
Mappamundi is an old Italian word meaning "Map of the World;" this gleeful North Carolina band performs acoustic world music (ethnic music; folk music; non-mainstream music; roots music) from places including Eastern and Western Europe, the British Isles, Colonial America, and recently, Latin America.
Featuring strong harmony vocals, their instruments include fiddle, viola, English concertina, bowed dulcimer, acoustic bass, guitar, bouzouki, piano, trombone, recorder, bandura, zither, and more.
They present music from Jewish traditions; medieval and Renaissance music; holiday programs; popular music from the 1920s, 30s, and 40s; and more. You can see them at (or hire them for) festivals and concert series, at colleges and private parties, at weddings and bar mitzvahs.
MAPPAMUNDI - World Music Our Way (Skylark 3001 CD) Reviewed by David Potorti for the Independent
"There's a lot to love about Mappamundi's CD release: powerful vocal harmonies, complex musical arrangements and exotic acoustic instruments played with great relish. And they're all rendered with pristine clarity, courtesy of Jerry Brown's studio and Skylark Studios in Chapel Hill. more...
A wide-ranging, high-spirited program about things important to us all. What will you hear? A 13th century Icelandic ode to beer; a Macedonian love song; a Yiddish freylekh; a swing tune or two and (of course) much more! The world is full of breath-taking music; come on a free-wheeling ride from Siberia to Tin Pan Alley."
WHEELWRIGHT CENTER CONCERT SERIES
At its heart, Mappamundi's style is that of pub music, soul music, dance-at-your-Greek-friend's-wedding music." Kathleen Dayton, The Sun News
The sound of the Balkans goes kaleidoscopic as the
ground-breaking, irreverent world-music group Mappamundi ... drawing
from all imaginable points on the musical map, integrates the vibrant energy,
unpredictable beats and close harmonies of Bosnia, Bulgaria, Greece and
points east."
DUKE LIVING TRADITION SERIES
