Dave Soldier

Soldier is an Avant-Garde classical violinist who leads a well-known string quartet (the Soldier String Quartet, naturally), but also has a thing for traditional song and dance. His original writing stays true to the downtown N.Y. aesthetic by calling on a variety of genres -- Avant-Garde Jazz, New Classical, rock, and (with his group the Kropotkins) Delta Blues. The results are generally far from the stuffy contrivance one might fear, as he's able to create familiar, folk-like music that takes unexpectedly modern twists, especially in the lyrical department.