Four internationally diverse guitarists will perform tonight at the Performing Arts Center as part of the International Guitar Night tour.
Billed as “the longest-running mobile guitar festival in North America,” the International Guitar Night tour was founded in 1995 by San Francisco native Brian Gore. The event aims to showcase acoustic guitar music and will begin at 8 p.m.
Three notable guitarists join Gore each year to play concerts across Canada and the United States. This year’s concert features the following musicians: D’Gary from Madagascar; Clive Carroll from England; and Trinidadian-born, Canadian-based Miguel de La Bastide.
Each guitarist brings a unique style of music to the concert, thanks to their different cultural backgrounds. Cal Poly music professor Craig Russell said the concert is a good opportunity to learn about these cultures.
“If you want to know about someone’s life, listen to the music they make,” he said. “When you hear music from different cultures, it gives you a different perspective.”
Gore uses elements of folk, jazz and classical music to create a particular brand of finger-style playing. He has also released two solo-albums and has authored a book on guitar techniques.
D’Gary, whose real name is Ernest Randrianasolo, developed his sound from traditional Malagasy music. His innovative playing style, based on the concept of open tuning, has “(listeners) swear there must be at least two guitarists playing,” according to RFImusique.com. (Open tuning is a method of tuning the guitar so that the sound emanating is “super rich and super full,” Russell said.)
Carroll has toured for more than two years and has released two solo albums. His style is based on “traditional Irish, acoustic, and pop/rock,” according to his personal Web site.
Bastide emigrated from Trinidad to Canada at the age of 18. He is one of the most respected flamenco guitarists outside of Spain. Bastide’s work has been featured on more than a dozen albums.
“This event will show students the versatility of the guitar from the viewpoint of other countries and cultures. I think that the combination of musicians from all over will show that the guitar itself can be applied towards all different styles of music rather just than the pop and rock music we are used to,” business senior and jazz band trombonist Brian Rubin said.
Tickets for the concert can be purchased at the PAC.