Twice nominated for the Latin Grammy, he is a virtuosic and brilliantly innovative player of the bandolim. a flat-backed, almost round-bodied mandolin, usually with four double strings.

He’s virtually reinvented the instrument of his homeland, adding two extra strings, and breaking free from the legacy of some of its influences and styles. In the US, the press has dubbed de Holanda the “Jimi Hendrix of bandolim”.

Hamilton has evolved a characteristic way of playing, his phrasing and the increased number of strings, the delicacy of his picking combined with the speed and agility of the solo flights and improvisations. His playing is a dazzling display and his performances filled with emotion.

He plays a unique cocktail of Brazilian jazz, samba, rock, pop, lundu, choro, bossa nova, and more. Hamilton`s search for simplicity, music focused on beauty and spontaneity, is not necessarily new. In his view, there is a world full of possibilities, what is important is not the past or the future, but the intersection between them both, the exact point at which they blend, right here, right now.

Hamilton appears in various major events and festivals in Brazil and internationally. He has recorded or shared stages with Egberto Gismonti, Hermeto Pascoal, Milton Nascimento, Chucho Valdes, Wynton Marsalis, Chick Corea, Buena Vista Social Club, Béla Fleck and the Flecktones, John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin), Djavan, Cesaria Evora, Melody Gardot, Richard Galliano, Stefano Bollani, Seu Jorge, Ivan Lins, Paquito d`Rivera. He’s won TIM award, Prêmio da Música Brasileira e JAZZ + magazine as the best group and Hamilton de Holanda best performer.

“dazzling virtuosity, humour and captivating tenderness.” Guardian

Read more about Hamilton de Holanda on Last.fm.

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