Biography
Hailing from a modest New Jersey community, mandolinist Barry Mitterhoff resists any attempt to confine his work to a solitary genre, even though database compilers might default to labeling him bluegrass. Like countless mandolin players, he immersed himself in bluegrass and performed extensively within it, forging a close tie with banjoist Tony Trischka, whose boundary-pushing experiments carried the style into progressive and even avant-garde territory. Fellow mandolinist Jimmy Gaudreau once observed that Mitterhoff remains under constant scrutiny from “the bluegrass police,” a remark that also applies to Gaudreau’s own departures from convention. Outside bluegrass circles, Mitterhoff regularly performs with a klezmer ensemble and, thanks to strong sight-reading skills, has entered theater and film scoring. One such Hollywood project, the soundtrack for You’ve Got Mail, features his contributions. He maintains deep respect in old-time music through a longstanding partnership with Appalachian singer Hazel Dickens, while simultaneously exploring the choro repertoire of Brazil.
Mitterhoff first cultivated serious musical passions during junior high and high school. His enduring collaboration with guitarist Danny Weiss dates to 1963, when the pair began performing together as high-school juniors. By the late ’60s rock dominated the scene; Mitterhoff steered his friend toward bluegrass while Weiss still favored rock. His aunt Sylvia Reuben, who played mandolin in Newark’s fifteen-piece Workman’s Circle Orchestra and had taken up the instrument herself as a teenager, placed the mandolin in his hands. At the time his interests centered on guitar, yet her gift prompted him to experiment. Guitar instructor Bob Appelbaum, whom Mitterhoff had recently begun studying with, also played mandolin and banjo; he introduced the student to seminal bluegrass mandolin recordings that left a lasting impression. Weiss, Mitterhoff, and another friend soon convened to explore folk, blues, and bluegrass, later gravitating toward country blues and jug-band styles. Only after leaving for college did Mitterhoff join a dedicated bluegrass band, yet his outlook remained broad: jazz guitarist Ted Dunbar, then on the college faculty, supplied swinging influences that complemented his bluegrass pursuits.
Skyline issued its debut album in 1977. The original lineup comprised Mitterhoff, Trischka, Weiss, bassist Larry Cohen, and vocalist Dede Wyland, later replaced by Rachel Kalem. The group toured and recorded vigorously across the United States and Europe for nearly twelve years before disbanding in 1989; in the late ’90s the members resumed occasional performances, averaging roughly ten dates annually. The shift from constant road work to sporadic activity allowed Mitterhoff to cultivate a reputation as a versatile session player capable of handling diverse styles while remaining based in the New Jersey–New York region. Parking tickets in Manhattan proved the chief inconvenience of this freelance existence. Although the intense Skyline schedule was not missed, ties among the musicians endured; Weiss, Cohen, and Mitterhoff formed Silk City after adding violinist Marty Laster. The ensemble has released several CDs and serves as Mitterhoff’s primary bandleading outlet.
Silk City’s lighter schedule permits extensive freelancing. Mitterhoff’s bluegrass work in the ’90s included U.S. and European tours with traditional-leaning singer, banjoist, and bandleader Lynn Morris, as well as projects alongside Nashville singer Chris Jones and Hazel Dickens. He also sustains a connection with Texas bluegrass musician and theoretical mathematician Tex Logan, whom he first backed in college and later rejoined when Logan moved to New Jersey; their recorded collaboration appears only on an obscure English release. Additional New York–area work encompasses off-Broadway productions, jingles, and films. Mitterhoff substituted on Broadway for The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Accordionist Dominic Cortese recommended him for the soundtrack of the gangster comedy Mickey Blue Eyes and subsequent major-studio projects. Mandolin parts recorded for the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack were ultimately omitted.
Italian music constitutes another active sphere. Session work on tomato-sauce commercials intersected with his interest in Italian mandolin traditions, yet his involvement extends beyond commercial spots. He has performed with Friti e Latzi, the ensemble led by Emilise Allesandri that revives early-twentieth-century Italian vaudeville material, and contributed to a CD by Neapolitan singer Mary Mancini. Further ethnic explorations include a Philippine mandolin orchestra, Brazilian concerts with David Rumpler, and six years with the West End Klezmorium. He also appears periodically with the New York Mandolin Symphonette and with the chamber ensemble Abaca String Band, whose engagements have included the White House, Alice Tully Hall, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
In the late ’90s Mitterhoff recorded the Mandolin X 4 project alongside Todd Collins. Silk City issued the album Time in 2000. Beyond performing and recording, Mitterhoff teaches mandolin and regularly prepares arrangements and original compositions for the ensembles in which he participates, drawing on an expansive range of genres.
Mitterhoff first cultivated serious musical passions during junior high and high school. His enduring collaboration with guitarist Danny Weiss dates to 1963, when the pair began performing together as high-school juniors. By the late ’60s rock dominated the scene; Mitterhoff steered his friend toward bluegrass while Weiss still favored rock. His aunt Sylvia Reuben, who played mandolin in Newark’s fifteen-piece Workman’s Circle Orchestra and had taken up the instrument herself as a teenager, placed the mandolin in his hands. At the time his interests centered on guitar, yet her gift prompted him to experiment. Guitar instructor Bob Appelbaum, whom Mitterhoff had recently begun studying with, also played mandolin and banjo; he introduced the student to seminal bluegrass mandolin recordings that left a lasting impression. Weiss, Mitterhoff, and another friend soon convened to explore folk, blues, and bluegrass, later gravitating toward country blues and jug-band styles. Only after leaving for college did Mitterhoff join a dedicated bluegrass band, yet his outlook remained broad: jazz guitarist Ted Dunbar, then on the college faculty, supplied swinging influences that complemented his bluegrass pursuits.
Skyline issued its debut album in 1977. The original lineup comprised Mitterhoff, Trischka, Weiss, bassist Larry Cohen, and vocalist Dede Wyland, later replaced by Rachel Kalem. The group toured and recorded vigorously across the United States and Europe for nearly twelve years before disbanding in 1989; in the late ’90s the members resumed occasional performances, averaging roughly ten dates annually. The shift from constant road work to sporadic activity allowed Mitterhoff to cultivate a reputation as a versatile session player capable of handling diverse styles while remaining based in the New Jersey–New York region. Parking tickets in Manhattan proved the chief inconvenience of this freelance existence. Although the intense Skyline schedule was not missed, ties among the musicians endured; Weiss, Cohen, and Mitterhoff formed Silk City after adding violinist Marty Laster. The ensemble has released several CDs and serves as Mitterhoff’s primary bandleading outlet.
Silk City’s lighter schedule permits extensive freelancing. Mitterhoff’s bluegrass work in the ’90s included U.S. and European tours with traditional-leaning singer, banjoist, and bandleader Lynn Morris, as well as projects alongside Nashville singer Chris Jones and Hazel Dickens. He also sustains a connection with Texas bluegrass musician and theoretical mathematician Tex Logan, whom he first backed in college and later rejoined when Logan moved to New Jersey; their recorded collaboration appears only on an obscure English release. Additional New York–area work encompasses off-Broadway productions, jingles, and films. Mitterhoff substituted on Broadway for The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Accordionist Dominic Cortese recommended him for the soundtrack of the gangster comedy Mickey Blue Eyes and subsequent major-studio projects. Mandolin parts recorded for the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack were ultimately omitted.
Italian music constitutes another active sphere. Session work on tomato-sauce commercials intersected with his interest in Italian mandolin traditions, yet his involvement extends beyond commercial spots. He has performed with Friti e Latzi, the ensemble led by Emilise Allesandri that revives early-twentieth-century Italian vaudeville material, and contributed to a CD by Neapolitan singer Mary Mancini. Further ethnic explorations include a Philippine mandolin orchestra, Brazilian concerts with David Rumpler, and six years with the West End Klezmorium. He also appears periodically with the New York Mandolin Symphonette and with the chamber ensemble Abaca String Band, whose engagements have included the White House, Alice Tully Hall, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
In the late ’90s Mitterhoff recorded the Mandolin X 4 project alongside Todd Collins. Silk City issued the album Time in 2000. Beyond performing and recording, Mitterhoff teaches mandolin and regularly prepares arrangements and original compositions for the ensembles in which he participates, drawing on an expansive range of genres.
Albums