BELLOWS FALLS — Bluegrass, jazz, classical, and swing will be on tap when the Andrew Collins Trio performs Saturday, March 10, at 7:30 p.m., in the Chapel at Immanuel Episcopal Church, 20 Church St.
In his native Canada, Collins has received rave reviews. The Toronto Star wrote, “Light of touch, fast of wit, copiously imaginative, and a musical scholar of the highest distinction, Toronto mandolin virtuoso pulls out all the stops” And Exclaim! magazine declared, “To call Andrew Collins a master of the mandolin would be putting it mildly ... artfully arranged string music perhaps best described as 'chambergrass' shines through.”
Collins, who has five Juno nominations and seven Canadian Folk Music Awards under his belt, is at the epicenter of Canada's burgeoning acoustic/roots music scene. He didn't invent it, but he is a major contributor, having co-founded noteworthy Canadian bands such as the Creaking String Quartet, the Foggy Hogtown Boys, and, more recently, the Andrew Collins Trio.
Collins, who is comfortable on mandolin, fiddle, guitar, mandola and mandocello, is focusing on the work he does with his beloved trio: fellow string guru Mike Mezzatesta, whose versatility and mastery shine through on guitar, mandolin, fiddle, and mandola, and James McEleney on bass, mandocello, and vocals.
Showcasing a popular collision of bluegrass, folk, jazz, classical, and swing, not to mention a dizzying number of instruments on stage, the trio is promoting their new CD, And It Was Good, which tackles the Biblical creation story.