Much to the excitement of guitar players worldwide, acoustic guitar
virtuoso Peppino D'Agostino will be releasing his eagerly awaited new album
'Penumbra' on Mesa/Bluemoon on August 5, 2014. Along with original material,
the new CD features work by Roland Dyens, Maurizio Colonna, and two
compositions written especially for D'Agostino by Latin Grammy award-winning
Brazilian guitarist Sergio Assad.
Peppino
D'Agostino doesn’t just play the guitar. He composes, arranges, collaborates,
improvises and has even been known to sing a song here and there in both
English and Italian. But what he does create on the guitar makes the difference
between simply playing and truly making music apparent in the most wonderful
ways. D'Agostino has been hailed as “a guitarist's guitarist” by Acoustic
Guitar magazine as well as “a giant of the acoustic guitar” (San Diego Reader),
and holds many top guitar awards, but the San Francisco Chronicle encapsulated
the essential difference that distinguishes D'Agostino’s music when it dubbed
him “a poet.”
“Peppino's
music is deep and beautiful.” - Tommy Emmanuel
A native
of Italy, D'Agostino has made his considerable international mark as a musical
artist on the guitar since he arrived in America a little over 25 years ago.
The readers of Guitar Player voted him 'Best Acoustic Guitarist in 2007', and
the following year in Acoustic Guitar's People's Choice Awards he won a Bronze
medal for 'Best Acoustic Album of All Time' for his 2002 release 'Every Step Of
The Way' (tying with Leo Kottke, one of his prime inspirations) and another
Bronze award as 'Fingerstyle Guitarist of the Year'. Even his Peppino
D'Agostino Seagull Signature Guitar model was ranked in June 2014 as one of the
10 best signature guitars by Guitar Player Magazine. But as said above, it's
not just his talent that makes D'Agostino so notable, but also what he does
with it.
Collaborations
have been key to D'Agostino’s career. In
2010, D’Agostino co-founded with David Tanenbaum, The Pacific Guitar Ensemble –
an eclectic group of six guitarists who play everything from nylon and steel-string
guitars to electric basses and 17th century theorbos. At other times, he's on stage with musicians
such as Stef Burns, electric guitarist for Huey Lewis and the News and Italian
rock star Vasco Rossi, drummer Jeff Campitelli, one of Rolling Stone's 100
Greatest Drummers of All Time; legendary Paraguayan harpist and violinist
Carlos Reyes; or Frank Martin, keyboardist extraordinaire who has played with
everyone from Lady Gaga to Bruce Springsteen.
D'Agostino's
simultaneous immersion in the classical guitar and rock worlds, has culminated
in his new solo recording, 'Penumbra'. “There has been an evolution in my
playing due to all the incredible musicians that I have met, and this new CD
reflects that,” he says. “How can I not be influenced by such great players? I
don't even recognize how much, because it goes into your brain, and you can't
quantify that, but working with all these artists, and knowing what inspires
them, has made a noticeable difference in my approach. I definitely feel that
this record expresses all those various influences.” According to D'Agostino,
'Penumbra' is a mix of sophisticated yet melodic compositions that are
technically complex.
“Peppino
brings warm humanity to the acoustic.” - Adrian Legg
'Penumbra'
includes two compositions written for D'Agostino by Latin Grammy Award winner
and classical guitar legend Sergio Assad. Of this fateful collaboration
D'Agostino says, “We became good friends when he started teaching at the
Conservatory in San Francisco. I really admire what he does as a composer, so
one night when we were having dinner in North Beach, I asked him, 'What’s your
approach?' And he said, 'Well there's different things that I do. One of them
is, I use numbers, like the dodecaphonic approach. For instance, if you give me
your name, each letter, p-e-p-p-i-n-o, is a note.' And then, three weeks later,
he came up with a tune based on my name which is very melodic and lyrical. On
another night, David Tanenbaum, Sergio, and I went out and had some fun and
three days later, Sergio said, 'Hey I wrote another one for you.' This one is
more like a samba and it's pretty fast. Later David was telling me, 'Do you
know how many classical guitarists constantly ask Sergio to write for them –
and he just gave you two compositions - you're really lucky.' ”
“The
latest CD release by Peppino D'Agostino brings us a repertoire typically
associated with nylon guitar players. The beautiful sound of Peppino's steel
strings makes us hear this repertoire with renewed interest. 'Penumbra' is a
must for all kind of guitar lovers.” - Sergio Assad
The new
CD also features compositions from two other contemporary classical guitarists,
Roland Dyens and Maurizio Colonna. “I really admire Roland Dyens,” says
D'Agostino. “He's one of my favorite guitarists, because he mixes classical and
jazz. He has this mind that can go both places. And every concert he starts
with an improvisation. I always loved his piece 'Valse des Anges' ('Angel's
Waltz'). It's more of a jazz waltz - very melodic, but also jazzy.”
Like
Assad, Italian guitarist Colonna contributed two pieces. D'Agostino explains,
“I met Maurizio years ago, and he's interesting because he uses a classical
technique, yet he has also recorded very complex arrangements of rock songs by
Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, but the two pieces I recorded are his original
compositions. One is very melodic, with a lot of the classical tremolo
technique. The challenge is to do it on steel-string, which is not easy. The
other piece, 'Synchronized Movements', is an almost minimalist piece, where
phrases are rhythmic yet change only slightly.”
While
all these guitarists have clearly contributed to Peppino's continuing
evolution, he returns the favor with compositions dedicated to Tanenbaum and
Sergio Assad. Says D'Agostino, “I dedicated 'Penumbra', the title track of the
CD, to David Tanenbaum. 'Penumbra' means between dark and light. Through David
I learned about Baroque music and minimalism. So I was really trying to bring
some of the Baroque and minimalist elements into the composition. I wrote it
for him and he actually started performing it. So there's an even stronger
connection with the classical world.”
“Peppino
D'Agostino's new CD 'Penumbra' actually has very few shadows, but rather his
usual bright, Italian, sunny charm. I was particularly happy to hear him play
the wonderful piece he wrote for me, 'Penumbra', with its blend of Baroque
music and minimalism.” - David Tannenbaum
The
track “Penumbra” is also a perfect illustration of how D'Agostino is balancing
his interest in classical guitar and his older steel-string style. Opening with
a Baroque-sounding theme, played with great sensitivity and feeling, the piece,
which is in one of D'Agostino's trademark open tunings, segues into a rhythmic
section in 9/8 that references his rock and ethnic-influenced style.
“[a]
phenom in the same league with John Fahey, Leo Kottke, Doc Watson and John
Renbourn.” - Jazziz
Peppino
D'Agostino will be performing with a variety of ensembles in support of
'Penumbra'. He'll continue playing with the Pacific Guitar Ensemble, longtime
colleagues Tanenbaum and Burns as well as the duos with drummer Jeff Campitelli
and harpist and violinist Carlos Reyes. Furthermore, he is also part of a 2014
- 2015 tour called “The Great Guitars”, with Martin Taylor, Frank Vignola, and
Vinny Raniolo. All these projects although different in nature and scope have
one thing in common - D'Agostino's ongoing desire to expand the repertoire of
the steel string guitar and to reaffirm the important role that music plays in
our lives.
Peppino
D'Agostino 2014 Tour Dates:
Aug 15,
2014 - Coalesce Bookstore - Morro Bay, CA, USA
Aug 16,
2014 - Castoro Cellars - Templeton, CA, USA (Show Time: 7:30 pm)
Sept 27,
2014 - House Concert - Windsor, CA, USA
Oct 16,
2014 - The Ballroom at the Outer Space - Hamden, CT, USA
Oct 17,
2014 - Medallion Opera House - Gorham, NH, USA (Show Time: 7:30 pm)
Oct 18,
2014 - Harvard Public Library - Harvard, MA, USA (Show Time: 7:30pm)
Oct 23,
2014 - House Concert -Wheeling, WV, USA
Oct 26
& 27, 2014 - Via Vecchia Winery - Columbus, OH, USA (Show Time: 2:00pm)
Oct 30,
2014 - Foundry Hall - South Haven, MI,
USA
Nov 1,
2014 - Taffy's - Eaton, OH, USA
Nov 8,
2014 - Blackstone River Theatre - Cumberland, RI, USA
Nov 15,
2014 - 21. Dresdner Gitarrenfest - Dresden, GERMANY
Nov 21,
2014 - Gaste Garage - Hasbergen, GERMANY
Nov 22,
2014 - Schalloch - Hamburg, GERMANY
Nov 27,
2014 - Bar D’Amato - Wolfratshausen,
GERMANY
