Dance to the violin with Mads Tolling

KALW | By Jen Chien

Published January 21, 2016 at 2:39 PM PST

Mads Tolling and the Mads Men, madstolling.com, cropped and resized

Musician Mads Tolling lives in Albany, but he’s played all over the world. He’s a classically trained violinist and composer who loves jazz, and his goal is to remind audiences that the violin is capable of playing all kinds of music.

KALW's Jen Chien spoke with Tolling about using the basics as a point of departure.

Tolling: I just had that desire to do something a little different. I mean, I love the classical music, but I had this urge to tap my feet.

The Mads Men will be playing, with special guest Kenny Washington, on Sunday (1/24) at Yoshi’s in Oakland and next Thursday (1/28) at Kuumbwa in Santa Cruz.

Jen Chien

Jen Chien was the managing editor for Crosscurrents and KALW News from 2016 to 2018. She has been a contributor to All Things Considered, Radio Netherlands Worldwide, BBC/PRI’s The World, Making Contact, SF Public Press, East Bay Express, New America Media, and KPFA in Berkeley, where she took part in the First Voice Apprenticeship Program. She is the recipient of the 2013 Outstanding Emerging Journalist Award from the Society of Professional Journalists of Northern California. She holds a BA in American Studies from Smith College, and an MA in Interdisciplinary Performance from New College of California. Before entering the field of journalism, she had a successful career as a professional dance and theater artist, teacher, and massage therapist.

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Dance to the violin with Mads Tolling

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