About this project

Introducing: Colors

"Colors: Modern Music for Guitar" is the title of my third independently released album. Similarly to "Tones from an Open Heart" (2005) and "Genteel" (2009), this recording offers a snapshot of my development as an interpreter and a performer, as I continue on a journey that has taken me from the original fingerstyle tunes of my beginnings to a more strictly classical approach. In the past few years, I have been dedicating myself to the study of the contemporary repertoire for the classical guitar—a field that offers a mesmerizing array of musical styles, textures, and colors. 

The music included on this album showcases a cross-section of the many languages of this repertoire, from the 1960s to the twenty-first century. It ranges in style from the atonal chromaticism of Benjamin Britten and Michael Tippett, to Toru Takemitsu's jazz-hued pantonality and Lou Harrison's transparent melodic textures. Each piece creates its own musical sound-world, often pushing the instrument beyond its expect limits, and definitely offering me, as a performer, a variety of interpretive and aesthetic elements to consider. I can only hope to re-create the same fragile and ethereal experience for my listeners; as such, I invite you all to follow me on this journey, listening with open ears to something—whether familiar or different—you might have not really *heard* before.

About the project

Recording

The opportunities I have been granted as a young musician are both humbling and inspiring, and the circumstances for this project are not an exception.

I will begin recording on March 21st at the San Francisco Conservatory, an institution that offers fantastic-sounding rooms and equipment to its alumni. My recording and post-production engineers are gifted musicians themselves, and their guidance is sure to make my job in front of the microphones considerably easier.

The Guitars

In terms of instruments, two very special guitars will be featured on "Colors". Harrison's "Scenes from Nek Chand" was written for a tricone resophonic guitar tuned in just intonation, a unique and somewhat bizarre instrument that was issued in five specimens by National Reso-phonic in the spring of 2003. After much study and research, Scott Richter of Fairfax, California completed a replica for me in September 2010; it's a beautiful thing and it rings like a bell!

For the other pieces, I will be borrowing a marvelous historical instrument—a 1965 Ignacio Fleta e Hijos, graciously lent to me by the Harris Guitar Collection. This guitar's tone is nothing short of metaphysical, and I think it will complement the music perfectly. Needless to say, to be able to perform and record with such a rare and refined instrument is a real privilege, and I am very grateful to John Harris for his kindness in offering me such an opportunity.

Costs

I am fronting the recording, mixing, and mastering costs, but I need your help with licensing (all of this music is still under copyright), artwork design, and physical production. I will be posting updates from the recording studios and I'm offering the usual range of Kickstarter rewards—in addition to some more whimsical ones. 

Most importantly, your support is what will allow me to pursue my musical vision with freedom and abandon. I believe in this music and love it deeply; if you'd like to hear it, please help me make this happen.