“One American guy came to me and asked me to record some songs for his CD. Okay, I said. More work, more of a 'gringo' trying to play Choro... Here we go... I thought. When I listened to his solos, I said 'OMG! This guy is Brazilian, and good! He's just disguised as an American!' I was very impressed with his musicianship, his sound, very unique - with a touch of gypsy flavor - his virtuosity, his good taste! I wrote to him - 'Hey Brian, you're the reincarnation of Stephane Grappelli.' I still have that opinion.”

- Alessandro Penezzi (Brazilian multi-instrumentalist/composer)

“I first met Brian several years ago in Winfield, Kansas as I came offstage there with my group, Mountain Heart. Almost immediately, we struck up a friendship that has since led both of us to destinations to Kansas to New York, to St. Croix, and places in between, for music and camaraderie. I count him as one of my dearest friends, and as you can now hear...he is also a supremely accomplished violinist and musician. The material offered for you here is at once challenging and beautiful, romantic and rambunctious, emotionally charged while technically dazzling. This is all testament to Brian's skills...to be able to navigate the complex artistic waters and deliver this material in a technically precise way, yet still communicate the emotion and heart of each song, speaks to Brian's intense devotion to his craft, but more importantly, his depth as a human being. In a word, you can hear Brian's soul through his music, and that is surely a treat, as he has such a good one. I love Brian, both as a player and musician, but much more (and much more importantly) as a dear friend. Congratulations to him on accomplishing this masterful work, and congratulations to you for being lucky enough to now experience it. Please sit back and let Mr. Silber transport you to the intersection of the violin and the incredible musical birthplace for the material on this project...a place known as Brazilliant!! 

- Jimmy VanCleve (Grammy nominated fiddler, songwriter and producer)

 Brazil is better. In jazz, classical, psychedelic, and folk traditions, Brazil just wins, appearing to be both closer to the aboriginal impulses of music than everywhere else and further along in its evolution. It's like the state of Indiana and the jump shot: Music belongs to Brazil. Tough noogies. Pat Metheny turned an obsession with Jobim into a major, mid-career direction shift. Paul Simon reset his songwriting in the Brazilian milieu on Rhythm of the Saints, borrowing Milton Nascimento and a Brazilian supergroup to make it work. David Byrne kicked off his post-Talking Heads age of imperialism by incorporating Tropicalia and championing the work of Caetano Veloso. Now Rhinebeck violin whiz Brian Silber offers up Brazilliant, a sparkling collection of contemporary, acoustic, and unrelentingly virtuosic Brazilian music.

The catch is this: Violin is not an instrument often heard in traditional Brazilian music, until now. The light incongruity of that voice over those rhythms gives this session much of its novelty and charm. On tracks like "Frevaricando," Silber's burning chops and bouncy touch come off like an alternative-history Stephane Grappelli. Silber assembled an elite cast of contemporary Brazilian musicians to both compose and perform this material. Breakneck execution is the norm, but many of the albums finest moments are lyrical and moody, such as Renato Anesi’s “Sonho de Gabriel” and “Pernambucano,” and the tender “Meia Noite,” on which Silber’s daughter Kayla takes an impressive turn as vocalist. BrianSilberMusic.com. 

- John Burdick, The Chronogram

Recorded in Brazil, US, US Virgin Islands and released Fall, 2013, BRAZILLIANT features Brian’s violin and viola alongside a cast of stellar South American multi-instrumentalists. Combining stellar writing and world-class performances by Marquihno Mendonca, Alessandro Penezzi, Renato Anesi and Celso Machado, Brian’s athletic, dazzling and sensitive lines skyrocket and caress their way through ten dynamic, melodic and challenging compositions. Opening with the sparkling tropicalia of "Jabuticaba," this stunning disc is further highlighted by such jewels as the fleet, jazz rock-inflected reading of choro icon Jacob do Bandolim’s "Assanhado," the beautifully sad "Meia Noite" (with a gorgeous vocal by Brian’s daughter, Kayla Silber), and the impossibly breakneck "Frevaricando.". 

- Amazon Editorial Review