E-and'a

At this point, my existence seems to be focused on bringing together different generations of musicians, confesses Darol Anger. The fiddle virtuoso, founding member of both The David Grisman Quintet and the Turtle Island (String) Quartet, creator of the Republic of Strings, and associate professor at Berklee College of Music, has done just that for his newest project. The Anger-designed, multigenerational, and progressive string band supergroup, E-and'a, is comprised of four generations of acoustic musicians: guitarist Courtney Hartman is also part of the Grammy-nominated bluegrass outfit Della Mae, Lukas Pool is a fine Scruggs-style player and two-time National Old-Time Banjo Champion, and mandolin player/co-producer Joe Walsh (no, not THAT Joe Walsh) spent four years with The Gibson Brothers, the 2012 recipients of the IBMA Entertainer of the Year Award. Sharon Gilchrist - the group's other veteran - has played bass for everyone from The Dixie Chicks to Peter Rowan and Tony Rice. The music of E-and'a is half-curated, half-created, resulting in a track list that builds on American string band history. Vibrant renditions of traditional tunes are complimented by well-chosen covers of songs by late, great geniuses like Vassar Clements and John Hartford. E-and'a pays tribute to the past while ushering in a new era of roots music. It also happens to be a whole lot of fun, which was Anger's plan all along. I just want to play, he says. Why else would you make a record?