Robert Moody, the music director of the Winston-Salem Symphony, said he favors programming that shows connections between tried-and-true pieces and . . . diverse background is reflected in the concerto, one of just a handful for mandolin. Chris Thile is to the mandolin what Yo-Yo Ma is to the cello."

The last time Chris Thile and the rest of the Punch Brothers came to town in 2008, Thile felt like he’d grown up since moving away from his parents . . . honest collaboration,” Thile said. The quintet will play some new songs Saturday from a new album called “Antifogmatic” due out by early June.

If you're a fan on the Nickel Creek, then in the next two weeks you have a chance to see and hear some of the latest works by two of the band's . . . see these two talented entertainesrs. Buy tickets to one of these wonderful Bluegrass concerts and receive a 10% discount on the other performance.

They all came to the music from bluegrass, but what Punch Brothers does is way beyond bluegrass. But what exactly is contained in that "beyond" is . . . Some of them, like Gabe Witcher, Chris Thile and Eldridge, grew up playing the music because their parents played it or loved listening to it.

Don't expect your father's bluegrass from the Punch Brothers. Mandolin virtuoso and Nickel Creek alumnus Chris Thile assembled these fiercely . . . band? Answer: In some ways that's accurate. We all met about four years ago when Chris Thile was imagining his next project, away from Nickel Creek.

The most remarkable thing about the career of mandolin savant and former Nickel Creek bandleader Chris Thile isn't that—despite best-selling albums . . . and a handful of high-profile collaborations—he's still not 30. No, the most remarkable aspect is Thile's consistent mix of quality and curiosity.

The young, virtuosic Punch Brothers string quintet featuring Chris Thile will perform at 8 p.m. Saturday night in concert at the Diana Wortham . . . Theatre is just one of more than 30 performances on its extensive cross-country tour in winter 2010. The band also plans a new album release in 2010.

Mandolinist extraordinaire Chris Thile is only 28, but already he has shocked or changed the world in which he operates several times. Thile is an . . . beyond that of a mere technician. The solo cadenzas, we’re told, were improvised -- and Thile did so in almost every conceivably tempo and rhythm.

"I love the contrast of our first two Colorado venues: the Fox in Boulder and the Wheeler in Aspen," Thile said of the Punch Brothers' three-day . . . no less ambitious, but collaborative expression needs to be less abstract," he said. Colorado has always played an important role in Thile's career.