Fri Apr 10: House Concert: Alessandro Penezzi & Mike Marshall

[Santa Cruz House Concerts]

The next show in the Downtown Soundz house concert series features two luminaries of Brazilian choro music:

                                    Friday, Apr 10  7:30 PM

              Alessandro Penezzi & Mike Marshall: Brazilian choro

Details below.

The concert will be held indoors in downtown Santa Cruz.

Please stay at home if you have cold/flu symptoms, or mask if you're not sure.

Suggested donation: $30/person sliding scale.

To reserve your spot, email <Conc...@InstantHarmony.com>.

Be sure to include the total in your party.

---

Upcoming shows in our series:

     Thu, Apr 30:    Jackson, Cotter, Clarridge & Colliton: Celtic roots tunes & songs 

     Thu, May 7:     Kalos: Celtic Roots Trio  *note date change*

     Tue, Jul 14:      Miss Tess & Thomas Bryan Eaton: Crossover Country

     Sat, Jul 18:      Sophie Wellington & Evie Ladin: old-time fiddle/banjo duet

Other musical events of interest:

     Sat, Apr 4:  7-10:00pm  Monterey Contradance

                 YMCA, 600 Camino El Estero, Monterey

                 featuring: John Weed, Daniel & Ezra Steinberg

     Sun, Apr 12: 4-7:00pm  LaTiDo swing & latin songs

                  Shanty Shack Brewing, 138 Fern St, Santa Cruz

                  Evelyn Salguero: vocals, Annie Stafford: sax

                  Daniel Steinberg: piano

_________________________________________________________________________

              Alessandro Pennezi & Mike Marshall: Brazilian choro

                                    Friday, Apr 10  7:30 PM

   Choro is an instrumental music from Brazil that dates back to the late 1800's.

It evolved in parallel with Ragtime in the United States, but has remained an evolving

and living tradition through the present day.  Choro draws on both European and

African musical elements. This blending of classical chamber sensibilities and

counterpoint coupled with an Afro-Brazilian groove and improvisation is what makes

this music so interesting and compelling.

   In 2024, 7-string guitar virtuoso Alessandro Penezzi met mandolinist Mike Marshall

at the ‘California Brazil Camp’ and an explosive music partnership was born. That

same year the two performed and recorded their debut CD in Germany for the

Adventure Music label.  This is a rare opportunity to hear this dynamic pair performing

in an intimate setting.

Mike Marshall: mandolin

   Three-time Grammy nominee Mike Marshall is one of most accomplished and versatile

mandolinists in the world today as well as a master of the mandocello, guitar and violin.

Marshall cut his teeth on traditional American music in Florida and, at the age of 19, joined

the David Grisman Quintet which included jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli, Tony Rice,

Darol Anger, Todd Phillips, and Mark O’Connor. Mike went on to create some of the most

adventurous new acoustic music in America with the Montreux Band, Psychograss, New

Grange, The Big Trio, and the Modern Mandolin Quartet.

    Mike has recorded with many luminaries of bluegrass, including Joshua Bell, Sam Bush,

Edgar Meyer, and Bela Fleck. Mike has spearheaded a global interest in Brazilian Choro

music through his recordings with Hamilton de Holanda, pianist Jovino Santos Neto, and

with his workshops and book publications. Mike has released over 40 cds to date as well

as numerous instructional books and DVDs.

Alessandro Penezzi: 7-string guitar

    Alessandro Penezzi is widely regarded as one of Brazil’s foremost exponents the
country’s most sophisticated popular instrumental tradition: Choro. His mastery of this
demanding idiom, both as a soloist and accompanist, has earned him recognition at the
highest levels of Brazil’s musical community. Penezzi is part of a new generation of

Brazilian musicians who are re-inventing Brazilian choro with a contemporary language.

As one of the top 7-string guitarists of his time, he has been invigorating the genre with

fresh ideas, fierce improvisations, original compositions and a global palette of musical

influences. His ability to bridge classical technique with Brazilian popular forms has

positioned him as a key figure in the evolution of modern Brazilian instrumental music.