Martino Coppo

I was born in 1958, and started playing guitar - virtually - at age 5, on a tennis racket, and more seriously (albeit self-taught) at age 13, inspired by the acoustic sound of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Bob Dylan, and Joni Mitchell.

Towards the end of the '70s, with some friends I formed the band Green Cellar Society, playing guitar and starting playing the mandolin as well, awestruck by Sam Bush and NGR, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, David Grisman and Tony Rice.

I joined Red Wine in 1981, and took up a sort of backwards musical journey towards the sources of traditional bluegrass, which took me to playing intensively in all of Italy, Europe, and, starting in the mid-'90s, the USA too.

In the mid-'80s and early '90s I also played with the country rock band Arizona, and the bluegrass Band Freewheelin' (with which I played my first USA tour in 1986).

All along I've done quite a bit of touring and recordings with artists like Beppe Gambetta (with whom I still gig regularly), Carlo Aonzo, Kathy Chiavola, Gene Parsons, Tony Trischka, Barbara Lamb, Peter Rowan, Barry & Holly Tashian, Patty Larkin, Paolo Bonfanti, Vittorio De Scalzi and New Trolls, Roberto Dalla Vecchia, Hocus Pocus and La Rosa Tatuata.

I've done several mandolin workshops and courses in Europe and USA, with artists such as Chris Thile, Alan Bibey, Christian Seguret, Paul Van Vlodrop, Helmut Mitteregger, and I was Beppe Gambetta's assistant at two editions of his Summer Guitar Camp in Slovenia.

My loves besides the mandolin? Cats, and ramblin' around on my motorbike.

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