Join us for a guitar concert highlight of the year with guitarist Teja Gerken and his Acoustic Guitar Summit. Teja is joined by Tim Sparks and Matthew Montfort. With styles ranging from global-fusion to folk, jazz, and classical, this guitar summit is certain to be a joyous tour de force of solo, duet, and group performances in one of the Bay Area’s finest listening rooms.
Tim Sparks was the 1993 National Fingerpicking Guitar Champion, and he is one of the most diverse and eclectic guitarists currently performing. Rooted in both classical and country-blues styles, Tim spent years leading the Minneapolis jazz group Rio Nido before going on to record Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker suite, an album of Balkan music, and finally, a series of CDs of traditional Jewish music for John Zorn’s cutting-edge Tzadik label. Tim frequently collaborates with artists such as Leo Kottke, Bill Frisell, and Marc Ribot. www.timsparks.com.
Teja Gerken is a contemporary steel-string fingerstyle guitarist known for his original compositions, many of which employ alternate tunings, two-handed tapping, percussive effects, and other extended guitar techniques. His latest CD is Postcards. www.tejagerken.com.
Matthew Montfort is well known as the leader of the world fusion music group, Ancient Future. He is a pioneer among guitarists who have had their instrument’s fretboards scalloped in order to play various forms of world music that require intricate note-bending ornaments while still being able to play chords. Montfort immersed himself in an intensive study with vina master K.S. Subramanian in order to fully apply the South Indian gamaka (note-bending) techniques to the guitar. He is recognized as one of the world’s 100 Greatest Acoustic Guitarists by DigitalDreamDoor.com, a curated “best of” site. The December 2009 issue of Guitar Player Magazine includes a full page feature on Matthew Montfort with a corresponding GuitarPlayer.Com video and lesson entitled “The Music of Jimi Hendrix Applied to Indian Raga.” Montfort wrote the book Ancient Traditions – Future Possibilities: Rhythmic Training Through the Traditions of Africa, Bali, and India, which has been used by many musicians to improve their rhythm skills. www.matthewmontfort.com.
