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February 9, 2009 - Interweaving the music of Tibet and old-time string-band music, Abigail Washburn and The Sparrow Quartet perform songs from their full-length, self-titled album in a Mountain Stage appearance from the Paramount Arts Center in Ashland, Ky.

Washburn, of the all-woman old-time group Uncle Earl, plays clawhammer-style banjo along with banjo luminary Bela Fleck, cellist Ben Sollee and violinist Casey Driessen. Their sound is progressive in nature, thanks to the virtuosity of the players (all of whom have appeared variously on the program), while remaining reflective of various styles, countries and languages.

After performing "Strange Things," a blues tune reinvented by The Sparrow Quartet, the group plays a Tibetan-language folk song, translated as "Happy Under the Sun," followed by the Washburn/Sollee composition "It Ain't Easy."