"Butch Baldassari, who led the Nashville Mandolin Ensemble when they opened for Judy Collins at the 2001 Kent State Folk Festival, passed away Sunday morning. He had an inoperable brain tumor. Last year Nashville's finest (Bela Fleck, Tim O'Brien, Maura O'Connell) held a benefit concert to raise funds for him. He had a wonderful spirit and absolutely loved playing at our event. When he pulled out the Allman Brother's "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" arranged for 3 mandolins, mandola, octave mandolin, and violin, the crowd went nuts. We knew the end was coming, but it's still hard. So many losses this year. Fortunately Jimmie Wilson made a marvelous recording. We will hear excerpts this weekend [on WKSU] and on Folk Alley."
My notes. Baldassari was not just a great musician, he was also a good businessman and a music historian. I was only in my second year managing merchandise for the festival when he ran behind the table to help sell CDs after the band's set. Rightly, I handed him a sharpie and told him to go sign. We had enough salespeople - he needed to play star right then. The Mandolin Ensemble was his idea, revisiting a time at the turn of the 20th century when string ensembles were commonplace in sitting rooms across the country.
Posted by Ann VerWiebe at January 13, 2009 9:12 AM
Comments
I met Butch at the Four Corner States Bluegrass Festival in Wickenburg, Arizona many years ago.
I was was blown away by his talent, wit, and depth of interest in all styles of music. I still treasure a cassette tape he signed for me there, and am very sad that he will no longer be making music for us!
Posted by: Jim Pipkin at January 13, 2009 11:23 PM
Beautiful music! As a former member of the Toronto Mandolin Orchestra [it has its roots in the Ukrainian community as part of the Shevchenko cultural group] I appreciate the chance to hear mandolin music in its full potential and sympathise with those who have experienced the loss of a great player/mentor..Jamie.
Posted by: Jamie Snider at January 17, 2009 8:58 PM
Registered users can post comments in the blog. Please register or log in to share your views.
Farewell Butch Baldasarri
