Mountain Song Productions will present an Italian night concert with Mike Guggino and Barrett Smith, and special guest Amanda Pascali, at the Porter Center for the Performing Arts on Thursday, Dec. 17 at 7:30 p.m.
Members of the Grammy Award–winning band Steep Canyon Rangers, Guggino and Smith have been performing traditional Italian folk music on mandolin and guitar together for more than two decades.
They first met in college where they studied jazz and classical music while also immersing themselves in bluegrass and American folk traditions.
Since then, they have cultivated a devoted following through intimate “Italian Night” evenings of song and storytelling held at restaurants, homes, and music venues across western North Carolina.
These gatherings allowed the duo to refine their distinctive take on Italy’s rich folk traditions as their 2020 debut album Mia Dolce Farfalla captures a special musical blend of authenticity, warmth, and craftsmanship.
Amanda Pascali is an internationally acclaimed bilingual singer-songwriter whose signature Immigrant American Folk musical genre explores identity, belonging, and the immigrant experience through folk/Americana blended with Mediterranean, Balkan, and Latin rhythms.
Her acclaimed album Roses and Basil features original music and Sicilian-English translations, and her song “Over the Sea” appeared in the 2024 Italian film Indelebile.
She is a Fulbright Fellow and artist-in-residence at the Library of Congress’s American Folklife Center as well as a Harrington Fellow at the University of Texas at Austin where she researches ethnomusicology and Italian studies. Pascali has additionally performed at the Kennedy Center and European Union Parliament.
Tickets for this event and a limited VIP pre-show meet-and-greet experience with Spezio Italian small bites and wine pairings are available at www.etix.com/ticket/p/35449441/italian-night-concert-brevard-porter-center-for-performing-arts-at-brevard-college-mountain-song-productions.
Proceeds from the optional VIP ticket upgrade will benefit the Cindy Platt Boys & Girls Club of Transylvania County.