Dreams of Lost Roads

"Ethno-chaos" — that's how the musicians of Ukrainian quartet DakhaBrakha describe their style. Starting out in 2004 as a theater project in Kiev, this avant-garde world-music group (whose name means give and take) combines native Ukrainian folk motifs and ideas from Africa, Bulgaria, Hungary, Australia, India, and beyond. With a sound that's wildly experimental yet steeped tradition, the four are wowing audiences worldwide. Their recordings include 2010's Light. DakhaBrakha is: Nina Garenetska, Iryna Kovalenko, Olena Tsybulska, and Marko Halanevych.

Funny how things come together. Born in Rome, Italy, to parents from Minnesota, Hilary Thavis grew up loving music - especially folk music - from Woody Guthrie to Italian folk singers like Fabrizio De Andre and Francesco De Gregori. But it was the blues that ultimately captured her attention. Trouble & Truth is the 2011 recording from her band Gaia Groove. Now making her home in the Twin Cities, Hilary is working on a solo album of original songs.

Born and raised in St. Paul — one of seven children in an Irish-American family — Chris Coleman is passionate about his hometown. After several years as a city councilmember, he was elected mayor in 2005. He's now beginning his third term in office. He told one reporter, "I get up every day going, 'What do we do today to make St. Paul better?'" In his spare time, Mayor Coleman studies classical guitar and has been known to play the bagpipes — in kilts.

Keyboardist, composer, and arranger Richard Dworsky is music director for A Prairie Home Companion. He has also accompanied Garrison Keillor on U.S. and European concert tours and has collaborated with numerous other performers, including Al Jarreau and singer/actress Kristin Chenoweth. Among his many CDs is So Near and Dear to Me (Prairie Home Productions). Chet Atkins called Pat Donohue (guitar) one of the greatest fingerpickers in the world today. And he writes songs too - recorded by Suzy Bogguss, Kenny Rogers, and others. Nobody's Fault and Vicksburg Blues (a collaboration with Butch Thompson) are the most recent of Pat's albums. Gary Raynor (bass) has performed with the Count Basie band and Sammy Davis Jr., with whom he toured for several years. He was first call for dozens of touring Broadway shows, including the first presentation of The Lion King. Gary teaches at the McNally Smith College of Music in St. Paul. Peter Johnson (percussion) has played klezmer music with Doc Severinsen and jazz with Dave Brubeck. He was a drummer for The Manhattan Transfer and for Gene Pitney. He has toured the world, but he always comes back to home base: Saint Paul. When Richard Kriehn turned 10, his mom bought him a mandolin; at 19, he'd won the Buck White International Mandolin Contest. He went on to play with the Nashville Mandolin Ensemble and bluegrass group 1946. On the classical side, he has performed with numerous orchestras and was principal second violin for the Washington/Idaho Symphony. Guitarist Dean Magraw studied at the University of Minnesota and the Berklee School of Music in Boston. His first recording, 1994's Broken Silence, won the NAIRD award for Best Acoustic Instrumental Album of the Year. Dean has since turned out a bunch of dazzling albums, including his latest, Reservoir (Acoustic Music Records), a collaboration with Sandor Szabo.