In an unusual case, I'm posting this combined review of both the DVD and CD of this release that shares the common title "The Mountain Music Project". Though both were originally released in 2009, they are being re-issued in 2012. I just discovered them and this appears to be the first review on Amazon. They are separate releases and not a combined package.

In 2006, a group of Appalachian folk music musicians from Virginia, led by string (violin/guitar) player Danny Knicely and guitarist Tara Linhardt made the journey to Nepal in the Himalayas to seek out (and share their music with) the Nepalese mountain caste known as the Gandharbara. They took along film director Jacob Panchansky, who captured the event and conducted interviews to create the hour-long documentary DVD.

The similarities between the two mountain cultures are truly amazing. Both groups of musicians lived in remote areas where there was little access to popular media such as radio and TV. In fact records were rare. They heard their music played live by relatives and neighbors and learned to play string instruments (most of which were hand made in their community) at an early age. We even learn that - though thousands of miles apart and, in what might be considered two distinct cultures, each group made their own "moonshine" (distilled alcohol). But back to the music.

The DVD follows the group on their trip and captures some performances where the American's join the Gandharbara on Nepalese songs, while the Nepalese join in on traditional Appalachian folk tunes like "Cluck Old Hen" and Stephen Foster's "Hard Times". The Nepalese bowed stringed instrument - the Sarangi (handcrafted from a single piece of wood) is closer to a cello than any other instrument fits in perfectly with the fiddle playing by Knicely.

The interview segments with the Nepal musicians have easy to read English subtitles. The interviewees recorded in the US are from locals you've never hear of, but fascinating to hear. The lone exception to notoriety is the late Mike Seeger (to who the documentary was dedicated.)

The Americans recorded some of the joint songs and, back in the US, added tracks by well known artists like Tim O'Brien, Abigail Washburn and Tony Trischka to created the CD, alternating Gandharbara music with the classic American tunes. The version of Oh Susanna", Knicely wrote words in the Nepali language so it could be sung bilingually!

So, these two products really go hand-in-hand. The DVD is wonderful to watch which the CD will be something you can play again and again. (They've even included a booklet with the lyrics).

While these each still get five stars from me, I would have wished that the producers would have included video of some of the US recorded sessions and maybe a "juke box" function where you could just watch the musical performances without the interviews and narration. But this is an independent self-released project so the cost may have been the reason. (I can wish, can't I?)

If you love Appalachian OR "world music", I can highly recommend either (or, better yet, both of this releases.

One final note on the DVD: I see that Amazon lists Tony Trischka and Abigail Washburn as "artists" on the DVD release page. They do not appear in the film except for a quick shot of the US recording. Neither they, nor Tim O'Brien or Mark Schatz travelled to Nepal. Their US recording session is in the CD.