PortraitFaculty
Mario DaSilva
Guitar
Mr. DaSilva received a Master of Church Music from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary School of Music in Louisville, KY and a Bachelor of Arts from Belmont College in Nashville, TN. A native of Sao Paulo, Brazil, Mr. DaSilva has established himself in the United States as a teacher and performer. Early in his educational career Mr. DaSilva studied theory and composition with the Brazilian veteran Maestro Leo Peracchi and classical guitar with Edmar Fenicio. In America, Mr. DaSilva studied commercial composition and arrangement with William Pursell and guitar with John Pell and Douglas Jones. As a teacher, he was a former guitar instructor at the University of Louisville, and concurrently teaches at both Indiana University Southeast (since 1989), and Belmont University (since 1995). As a performer, Mr. DaSilva maintains a busy schedule both in Louisville and Nashville areas with live appearances and recording sessions. He is heard nightly on the nationally syndicated FM radio talk show ‘Delilah after Dark’ based in Seattle, Washington and the ‘Joe Arnold Show’ on WHAS 84 AM. Mr. DaSilva’s performance credits include the Ballet Espanol, a flamenco dance company based in Louisville, KY, ESPN, ‘Shop at Home’ television networks and many appearances on local TV. He has worked closely with the likes of flamenco guitarist Pedro Cortes, drummers Rod Murgenstein (Dixie Dregs) and Chester Thompson (Phil Collins), and singer-songwriter Lari White. He has released two recordings; ‘Meet Mario’ and ‘Christmas, Love and Light’ by Rainbow at Midnight Records available in music stores in the Louisville and Nashville areas, and at www.meetmario.com.
Biography
On Mario.
Mario DaSilva is, in the words of those who know the Annie Moses world best, something of a "musical grandfather" — a mentor whose influence runs through generations of the Institute's artists. A native of São Paulo, Brazil, he studied theory and composition early on with Brazilian veteran Maestro Leo Peracchi and classical guitar with Edmar Fenicio, before establishing himself in the United States as both teacher and performer. He went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts from Belmont College in Nashville and a Master of Church Music from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary School of Music in Louisville, studying commercial composition and arrangement with William Pursell and guitar with John Pell and Douglas Jones along the way.
Mario's bond with the Wolaver family began at the music stand. He taught both Gretchen and Jeremiah Wolaver, and over the decades he has been a fixture on the faculty of the Annie Moses Summer Music Festival. That connection deepened into kinship when his son James DaSilva — whom Mario himself taught, and who has since become one of the finest guitarists in the world, a first-call jazz and country player — married Camille Wolaver, formally weaving the DaSilva and Wolaver families together. Now, with nearly twenty years of collaboration behind him, Mario is a true member of the wider family of the Institute.
As a teacher, Mario was formerly a guitar instructor at the University of Louisville and has taught concurrently at Indiana University Southeast since 1989 and Belmont University since 1995. As a performer, he maintains a busy schedule across the Louisville and Nashville areas with live appearances and recording sessions, and has been heard nightly on the nationally syndicated FM program Delilah after Dark, based in Seattle, as well as the Joe Arnold Show on WHAS 84 AM. His performance credits include the Louisville-based flamenco company Ballet Español, ESPN, and the Shop at Home television network, along with many local television appearances. Over the years he has worked closely with flamenco guitarist Pedro Cortés, drummers Rod Morgenstein (Dixie Dregs) and Chester Thompson (Phil Collins), and singer-songwriter Lari White. He has released two recordings, Meet Mario and Christmas, Love and Light on Rainbow at Midnight Records, available in music stores throughout the Louisville and Nashville areas and at www.meetmario.com.
Today Mario continues to teach classical and commercial guitar and rhythm lab as a faculty member of the Conservatory of Annie Moses.