Welcome to the world of Mundi... a modern harvest of ancient sounds. When the Mundi string section - Austin Symphony players Bruce Colson and Carolyn Hagler - combines with Mundi percussionist Ric Furley, Mundi bassist Mario Gonzalez and Mundi music director Darrel Mayers, Mundi magic happens. Mundi means world in Latin. They play this old world Mundi music in Central Texas. It certainly sounds far away in time and space. Some say Penguin Café Orchestra, some say Dead Can Dance, others Cirque de Soleil.
With Mundi, concepts of time dissolve. This band may take its name and roots from the Old Europe of peasant dances and mossy cathedrals, but Mundi's spirit is contemporary and vibrant. For all their kettledrums, bells and strings, they make 800 year old tunes sound brand new.
Throughout their concerts you will hear the careful weave of Bruce Colson's violin mixed with Mayers's spanish guitar, Carolyn's cello, Mario Gonzalez's bass and Ric Furley's kettledrum, all adding up to an irresistible fabric.
Thrown into the Mundi mix are some of Mayers's pieces which may make one think of the Minimalists composers (Reich, Glass, Adams) of the late 20th Century. This connection between things Medieval and Minimalist is typical of the character of this special group.
Now in its sixth year, Mundi has already notched up a string of concert successes in the central Texas area. They performed with poets Robert Bly and Coleman Barks at the Texas School for the Deaf in 2007; they appeared earlier this year at a 'Sneak Peek' opening of the beautiful Long Center in Austin; they have performed in Corpus Christi Cathedral, and performed shows with Craig Hella Johnson, the director of Conspirare. The tour of northern Spain in July 2006 was a triumph, and this year they have been invited back to perform at the Granada International Festival of Music and Dance, Spain's most illustrious festival.