Tin Hat is a subversive chamber jazz group that mines its original tunes from all over the map. Whether the first notes of a number are plaintive cowboy or seductive bossa nova, you never know where exactly they're headed -- but you can always be sure it is somewhere intriguing. The group's irresistible hybrid of Old World exotica and New World chutzpah combines tango, bluegrass, Eastern European folk, and contemporary classical music with elements of Klezmer, Cajun, and more.

When accordionist and pianist Rob Burger left the original trio last year, violinist Carla Kihlstedt and composer and guitarist Mark Orton added new hues to the group's already spectacular palettee by enlisting the two evocative performers -- clarinetist Ben Goldberg and the multi-talented Ara Anderson on trumpet, harmonium, and glockenspiel. Together the four create rich, wonderfully compelling music. Tin Hat's most recent album is Book of Silk (Ropeadope).

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