Mike block & Biribá union

Borrowing its name from a Brazilian wild sugar-apple, Biribá Union features Mike Block (cello, vocals), Christylez Bacon (beatbox, guitar, rhymes) and Claire Davis (electric bass, vocals). The trio met through Silkroad’s Global Musician Workshop, initially bonding over their shared love of Brazilian music. They quickly began co-writing new music that draws on the freestyle theatrics of hip-hop and Go-go music; the effortless beauty of Brazilian forró and choro; the earthiness of American roots music, and the improvisational spontaneity of jazz.

Mike Block is a Grammy Award-winning cellist, singer and composer with a passion for cross-cultural collaboration. Hailed as “one of the bravest, most intriguing musicians on the American fusion scene,” (Gramophone) he has been a member of the Silkroad Ensemble for nearly twenty years, and directs Silkroad’s Global Musician Workshop. Yo-Yo Ma calls Block “the ideal musician for the 21st century,” saying, “I’m always struck by his unique perspective on the world and his relaxed and confident approach; he takes on new music and new things fearlessly.”

Christylez Bacon is a Grammy-nominated songwriter, storyteller, rapper, beat-boxer and guitarist from southeast Washington, DC. With a tall antenna and wide curiosity, Bacon loves exploring music in different cultural contexts and has collaborated with Hindustani, Arabic and Brazilian musicians. He was the first hip-hop artist to be featured at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival and has composed for and performed with the National Symphony Orchestra and Princeton Symphony Orchestra.

Claire Davis is a bassist, songwriter, vocalist and music director currently based in Boston, MA. Known for her melodic basslines, thoughtful lyricism and dynamic stage presence, Claire is the co-founder of eclectic indie-pop group Bermuda Search Party, whose performances have been described as “a celebration of life”. A nationally touring artist since the age of 21, Claire takes pride in holding down the groove in a way that always uplifts the music, and in crafting songs and performances that are meant to move both the audience’s heart, and feet. 

Biribá Union is certainly on a mission — to embody cultural acceptance and unification through music — but always with an infectious groove to hook audiences in. Take their rendition of “Lamentations,” a well-known classical cello composition, is a case study in experimentation and integration. The piece was written by Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, an African-American composer who wrote arrangements for Marvin Gaye and Harry Belafonte. Biribá Union bends the piece into radically new shapes with beat-boxing, freestyle rapping and collective vocal lines harmonizing the cello. Or their take on “Santo Antonio,” a tune by Hermeto Pascoal based on rural forró rhythms that gets elevated with three-part harmonies and extended improvisations. Their debut album will be released on the Bright Shiny Things label in Fall 2025.