In a performing and recording career of more than two decades, guitarist and composer Michael DeLalla has brought his delicious brew of traditional influences and classical, jazz, Celtic and folk stylings into the forefront of acoustic music. Beginning in the '80s as the driving force behind Philo/Fretless recording artists Oxymora, the seminal group that Tom Cole of National Public Radio called "the cutting edge of New Acoustic Music", Michael has forged a distinguished and storied career on stage and studio from his fluency on Classical, 12-string, and steel-string acoustic guitar and memorable performances that showcase gifted improvisation and dazzling technical facility that never sacrifices the richness and poignancy of his compositions.

Michael performs as a solo artist, with the reunited Oxymora, and as a member of the acclaimed traditional Celtic trio The Unfortunate Rakes. His solo concerts feature his original compositions and arrangements of traditional tunes that showcase his particular virtuosity, punctuated by his wry, sometimes irreverent observations of the experiences that are behind the pieces. The result is not just a collection of instrumental works, but also a narrative of his travels and travails found in his varied musical habitats, from a capella singing in Breton Gaelic to tweaking the nose of the Classical world with his raucous "Piece for Steel Drum (If I Played Steel Drum)".

Michael's performance resume includes a variety of concert and festival settings, including the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Walnut Valley Guitar Festival, the Potomac and Erie Celtic Festivals, the Piedmont Guitar Society, the Bodles Opera House, and the nationally syndicated Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour. In addition to concert, festival and house concert appearances both here and abroad he has been commissioned for several works, and leads workshops ranging from techniques in arranging to improvisation and extended guitar technique. Michael has also spent over a decade on the faculty of Shenandoah Conservatory in addition to his demanding workshop, studio and performance calendar.

Michael's distinguished discography includes three solo recordings, three recordings with The Unfortunate Rakes, and one with Oxymora, as well as appearing as a guest artist on over two dozen recordings in both the traditional and contemporary acoustic music worlds. His music has recently been included in soundtracks to programs on both Showtime and the Discovery Channel.

Michael enjoys an artist endorsement with Elixir Strings. Michael and writer Dominick Miserandino discuss his approach to guitar, composition, and a wealth of other topics in an on-line interview at thecelebritycafe.com.

"... a sensational guitarist... an amazing performer"
- Bodles Opera House, Chester NY

"a most concise creative force...his virtuoso 12-string, steel string, and classical guitar is the highlight..."
- Mass Music

"DeLalla proved he is indeed in dazzling technical command of his instrument, skillfully moving from traditional Celtic to contemporary solos with complete mastery"
- Eureka Times-Standard, Eureka CA

A wonderful representation of Michael's unique approach to guitar compositions and arrangements, performed on his trademark steel-string, Classical, and 12-string guitars. So many of Michael's influences abound, from the Old-World polyrhythms of "Le Marchais du Malaucene" and "At Water's Edge" to the multi-metered joyousness of "Celebration", to the simple harmonic elegance of "Lauren Grace", to the virtuosity of "Infinite Loops: See Loops, Infinite" and "A Cricket for Senor Felipe".

This celebration of Christmas, Winter Solstice & Winter Holiday music belongs in every collection. Michael has collected pieces from Celtic lands (Christmas Day in the Morning, Gloucester Wassail, Drive the Cold Winter Away, O Come All Ye Faithful, Auld Lang Syne) to France (Breton Carol, Ding! Dong! Merrily On High) to the US (Children Go Where I Send Thee) tied together by his taut arrangements. Also included is an original work based on the poem by Robert Graves "To Juan: At the Winter Solstice".

Michael's debut solo release melds his solid classical training with passionate performance, forged with his background in improvisation, tempered with influences of various musical traditions. Joining in on three of the works are virtuoso sax player Bob Read (Trapezoid, Bruce Hornsby, Michael Manring), and former Oxymora bandmate Jim Baird (now with Mappa Mundi) on bass.