I've been busy putting together a program and practicing for my next concert on Sunday, February 14th at Studio Z in St. Paul. I have developed such a large repertoire, that's it's getting harder and harder to select pieces to play in concerts. I have classical, romantic, Spanish, Latin, oldies, and contemporary hits that I try my best to mix in, To keep the concerts appealing to a wide array of people, I have so many classical/romantic, Spanish, Latin, oldies, and contemporary pieces that it's tough narrowing in on which ones will work best. I'm always wondering "am I alienating people in town who have come to only see a classical concert? Am I alienating people who want to hear new abstract, and lengthy pieces? (I'm convinced this crowd is dying off, but they still exist nonetheless).
While I believe I have the most eclectic mix of music possible, sometimes it becomes a burden. If you haven't seen me in concert in a while, my repertoire has become highly catered to arrangements of popular oldies, acoustic fingerstyle, and contemporary music, away from a strict all classical concert. Part of the change is the unbelievable amount of weddings and private events I have been playing in over the past few years. I just feel trapped as an artist playing the "standard" guitar repertoire that everyone who considers him/herself a classical guitarist falls into. I feel more connected to audiences when they hear a piece of music they are familiar with, and arranged in such a way that they have never heard before. I still love to play music from the "classical" repertoire, but I think it pigeonholes anyone who starts calling him/herself a classical guitarist. What does that even mean? Classical music is such a broad term. I know guitarists who play mostly modern South American, and Spanish music, and still call themselves classical guitarists. To me, "nylon string fingerstyle guitarist" makes more sense than "classical guitarist." I guess labels are what define people, so I have gotten used to being known as a classical guitarist, even though I enjoy playing many different guitar styles.
With all that said, I guess it's nice having the freedom to play what I want. When people say " I haven't heard such a wide mix of music on guitar before," I know it was worth the time and effort to put together such an articulated event. Ever wonder what it's like to hear South American, and Spanish music rub elbows with oldies hits and artists like Stevie Wonder, the Beatles, Clapton, The Beach Boys, and Elvis? Also, I have put together a killer medley that I will unleash upon the audience. Come out and watch me in concert, hope to see you there!
While I believe I have the most eclectic mix of music possible, sometimes it becomes a burden. If you haven't seen me in concert in a while, my repertoire has become highly catered to arrangements of popular oldies, acoustic fingerstyle, and contemporary music, away from a strict all classical concert. Part of the change is the unbelievable amount of weddings and private events I have been playing in over the past few years. I just feel trapped as an artist playing the "standard" guitar repertoire that everyone who considers him/herself a classical guitarist falls into. I feel more connected to audiences when they hear a piece of music they are familiar with, and arranged in such a way that they have never heard before. I still love to play music from the "classical" repertoire, but I think it pigeonholes anyone who starts calling him/herself a classical guitarist. What does that even mean? Classical music is such a broad term. I know guitarists who play mostly modern South American, and Spanish music, and still call themselves classical guitarists. To me, "nylon string fingerstyle guitarist" makes more sense than "classical guitarist." I guess labels are what define people, so I have gotten used to being known as a classical guitarist, even though I enjoy playing many different guitar styles.
With all that said, I guess it's nice having the freedom to play what I want. When people say " I haven't heard such a wide mix of music on guitar before," I know it was worth the time and effort to put together such an articulated event. Ever wonder what it's like to hear South American, and Spanish music rub elbows with oldies hits and artists like Stevie Wonder, the Beatles, Clapton, The Beach Boys, and Elvis? Also, I have put together a killer medley that I will unleash upon the audience. Come out and watch me in concert, hope to see you there!