By Nicole Fitzgerald
What: International Guitar Night
When: Wednesday, Nov. 1, 8 p.m.
Where: MY Millennium Place
Tickets: $22/$19
The acoustic guitar has to be one of the most well known instruments in North America. It’s the ultimate one-person show at local pubs and facilitates fun around campfires. It’s a common instrument, yet the genre of acoustic guitar music is still relatively unknown.
“It doesn’t have as wide a recognition as it deserves when you look at the talent out there,” said guitarist Brian Gore. “The show will help people understand there is some amazing writing going on, on the guitar — a true renaissance. When you look at the quality of material, and how well it’s known, that is definitely something that needs to be changed.”
A proponent of everything acoustic guitar, Gore founded a mobile guitar festival, inviting celebrated guitarists to a collective stage.
International Guitar Night strings together the brilliance of world-class talents Nov. 1 at 8 p.m. at MY Millennium Place as the first show of the 2006-07 Performance Series.
“We want to bring the most artistically deserving guitar composers to a larger audience,” Gore said. “We want to grow the audience for acoustic guitar. I think International Guitar Night is creating more opportunities for the guitar community… We want to create new fans for the genre. It’s a pretty pure hearted motivation.”
The touring group of interchanging members celebrates 10 years of strumming and finger picking this year with the release of their debut album, distributed by Warner Music Canada. The guitar styles traveled among this year’s four-man lineup are as far reaching as the parts of the world they come from.
Italy-born Peppino D’Agostino brings European romance and international flare to the lineup. Once a street performer, he now passionately plays legendary stages such as Carnegie Hall and Wolftrap.
Montreal native Antoine Dufour is one of Canada’s fastest rising stars of acoustic fingerstyle guitar. The youngest of the group, the Canadian fingerstyle champion plays everything from funk and classical to rock and folk, bringing a new technical groove to the guitar.
Andrew White hails from New Zealand, with his inventive guitar style that has led to collaborations with Grammy-nominated artists David Arkenstone and others. The adventurer brings a bohemian vibe to the group.
Gore is a lyrical fingerstyle guitarist from San Francisco whose roots-driven, and introspective and emotional music has led to him being called a musical romantic.
“Everyone has a persona in the way that they put out their music,” Gore said. “There are similarities too. All of us have a strong lyrical sensibility.”
The first act of the show focuses on original music, including solos and duets, and then follows with a closing quartet — the definite highlight of the evening.
Tickets are $22 for adults and $19 for students, seniors and Whistler Arts Council members.
For tickets, call 604-935-8418 or on line at ticketmaster.ca.
