Mike Marshall & Caterina Lichtenberg and Assynt

Mike Marshall and Caterina Lichtenberg will take you on a journey through the history of the mandolin as it made its way from 16th century Europe to the new world of the Americas, picking up strains of melodies from each new place and the many musical hands that it has touched.

This is not the first time Mike has built musical bridges with mandolinists from around the world. From his early days with the David Grisman Quintet, his sense of adventure has led him deeply and broadly through genre after genre and into combinations with other top-drawer musical explorers. From his founding of the Modern Mandolin Quartet in 1985, through now-famous recordings and performances with bluegrass whiz kid Chris Thile and Brazilian virtuoso Hamilton de Holanda, Mike has rejuvenated our sonic landscape by constructing original, illuminative creations for the mandolin.

This time, Mike will team up with one of the finest classical Mandolinists in the world. Having grown up in the former East Germany, Caterina is now at the peak of her recording and performance career, with over 10 CD’s to her credit. She was born in Bulgaria, and finished her university studies with distinction at the Cologne Academy of Music. She now holds the position of Professor of Mandolin and Director of the Mandolin Ensemble at the Cologne Music Conservatory, Wuppertal Campus.

Matching deep traditional roots with precociously accomplished musicianship, young Scottish trio Assynt - David Shedden (pipes/whistles), Graham Mackenzie (fiddle) and Innes White (guitar/mandolin) – released their superb, largely self-penned debut album, Road to the North, in 2018.