News from Falling Mountain

It was 25 years ago that Oxymora released its debut recording Thundering Silence on Philo/Fretless records to great acclaim and enthusiastic audiences. Before anyone had heard the term "World Music", the quartet that National Public Radio's Tom Cole called "the cutting edge of New Acoustic Music" had created a unique and immediately identifiable signature sound.

Comprised of Craig Matovich on oboe, Marcus Sims on mandolin, Jim Baird on bass and Michael DeLalla on guitar, Oxymora weaved their skills as classically trained performers and composers with their intricate take on improvisational interplay that bordered on intuitive. The group's critical acclaim echoed the sentiments; The Washington Post raved "...Groups of an experimental nature proliferated during the 1960's, but none was as eclectic as today's Oxymora...this is a group to watch...", while the prestigious jazz magazine Down Beat wrote "makes airy, honest music showcasing the players' classical music tidiness and their slightly unkempt enthusiasm for folk and jazz"

25 years later, we are delighted to not only reissue Thundering Silence this autumn here at Falling Mountain, but also to include two new pieces recorded this summer by the original quartet together with newest member, percussionist N. Scott Robinson. It is a milestone that all of us are keenly anticipating, both to share with fans of the original group in the mid-80's as well as with a whole new generation of acoustic music enthusiasts.

The new incarnation of Oxymora performed a special reunion concert at the State Arboretum of Virginia here in the Shenandoah Valley on Saturday June 24, to an enthusiastic audience and critical acclaim. You can visit our Press Room to read the Clarke Times-Courier's glowing review of their first performance together in nearly two decades.