With an attitude that mixes equal parts whimsey and subversion, the imaginative chamber jazz group Tin Hat 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 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.

Tin Hat's current lineup features violinist Carla Kihlstedt, guitarist and dobro player Mark Orton, clarinetist Ben Goldberg, and the multi-talented Ara Anderson on trumpet, harmonium, and glockenspiel. Together the four create rich, wonderfully compelling music, memorably described by the New Yorker magazine as "a soundtrack for the kind of puzzling dream which leaves you sitting awake in the middle of the night."

Tin Hat's most recent CD is The Sad Machinery of Spring (Hannibal/ Rykodisc).