I ♥ Chris Thile

Dear Chris Thile,
If you happen to peruse the wide, wide world of web for postings including your name from random fans, please know that this post is intended in no way to be frightening or off-putting. I just think you're the bee's knees, and I had to share my love for you with the world.

Dear blog readers,
If you haven't heard of Chris Thile, I suggest--nay, I implore--you go right out to iTunes and buy some of his music. Chris is an incredible mandolin player--you'll never believe how fast his fingers can move on the strings, or the beauty of the melodies he creates. His three most recent solo albums (Not All Who Wander Are Lost, Deceiver, and How to Grow a Woman From the Ground) are all excellent (the first of the three albums is all instrumental and the other two include some tracks with vocals and some without). He is formerly of the group Nickel Creek (a progressive bluegrass trio with Sean and Sara Watkins, which is now defunct) and is currently performing with a new band called Punch Brothers, as well as other random performances by himself and with other talented musicians.

I am on vacation with the family (my parents, my sister and her husband, and my own husband). When I saw on Chris Thile's web site that he would be in Aspen while we were a mere two hours away, I decided I was willing to make the drive and pay the possibly exorbitant amount of money to see him perform. Somehow I roped the rest of my family into doing this as well.

Chris performed last night at Harris Concert Hall in Aspen, CO (a venue of the Aspen Music School) with Edgar Meyer, a bassist I have only recently been introduced to by my friend Alex, who gave me a copy of A Short Trip Home, a really interesting album with Edgar Meyer and Josh Bell, and several other ridiculously talented string players.

Edgar Meyer is also a stellar musician--you've never seen the bass played like this. He plays it more like a cello--with his fingers flying over the fingerboard almost to the bridge, hitting notes I never thought would come out of a bass (at least not with a pleasant sound). He practically has to lean over the bass to play--it probably makes his back sore to stand that way for a few hours!

While Edgar was thrilling to watch and obviously one of the most talented musicians I had ever seen, it was Chris Thile who kept my attention. He wore a suit that looked like it might have belonged to one of the Beatles, and shoes that were black (and looked a little funny next to his navy suit). His hair was messy and his clothes were wrinkled. When he plays, he does a funny little dance...in time with the music but still awkward, but also endearing. What I love the best is that he isn't concerned with what the audience thinks (which I suppose is true about every musician who is successful--the reason your audience loves you is that you are who you are, consistently and believably).

They made few small jokes, but mostly just played--fingers flying and humor in their tunes, intimately connected to the music. Some bluegrass and some classical, pieces written by both of them and also some written together, which will be available on a collaborative album in 2008, titled simply, Chris Thile & Edgar Meyer.

For the first half of the show I was in the back row of a small auditorium, holding maybe 500 people, maybe less. For the second half, I sat on the stage, just behind the performers (my parents bought their tickets at the last minute and those were the only available seats). Nothing moves me more than passion--for life, for music, for one's work, whatever it is. These two definitely have that and more...some indefinable quality that makes a performance worth watching.

I wish I could convey better how fun it was for me to watch the show...I'm no music critic that is for sure.

Chris, if you read this, thanks for the concert--it was the perfect addition to my summer vacation. I hope to see you again somewhere soon.