David Grisman is not a man who likes to analyze the past. “I prefer to live musically in the present,” says Grisman. “It’s a continuum. As some wise person once said, ‘Past is prologue.’”

Grisman’s past and present rank him easily as one of the most influential acoustic musicians of the past 30 years. One of music’s most renowned mandolinists and bandleaders, Grisman launched the David Grisman Quintet in 1976. Ever-evolving, both in membership and style, DGQ was a pivotal stop for Tony Rice, Mark O’Connor, Darol Anger, Mike Marshall, Rob Wasserman, Bill Amanteek, John Carlini and many other virtuoso musicians. At one point, the group included legendary violinist Stephane Grappelli, who along with guitarist Django Reinhardt had pioneered gypsy jazz and acoustic swing with the Hot Club of France. While some of the DGQ’s initial outings helped revive the Hot Club’s sound, the DGQ has embraced a number of different genres, notably in recent years forms South American music. It all falls under the banner of what Grisman long-ago dubbed “Dawg Music.”

Born in Hackensack, NJ, in 1945, Grisman was the son of a professional trombonist father and an art teacher mother who also played the piano. Grisman’s musical journey began at the age of seven...

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