Virtuoso guitarists take the stage at the Community Concert Hall at Fort Lewis College at 7 p.m. tomorrow with the California and Montreal Guitar Trios.
Featuring six accomplished guitarists from four countries (Japan, Canada, Belgium, and US), California Guitar Trio (CGT) and Montreal Guitar Trio (MG3) fuse more than 40 years of combined performing experience into one unique 6-by-6-string "phenomensemble."
CGT's steel stringed guitars blend naturally with MG3's nylon-stringed guitars. Each trio's fret boards chase the others' original compositions and new arrangements of progressive rock, world, jazz and classical music.
A collaboration inspired in 2009 by an impromptu joint studio session in Montreal, the two groups went on to release a live recording (2011), land showcases at numerous arts presenter conferences, and sustain frequent co-bill touring throughout North America, from the Iridium in New York City, to Montreal Jazz Festival, to the Napa Valley Opera House, and ever-increasing points in between.
California Guitar Trio's relentless passion for following the muse is said to have served it well. The acoustic group's multi-genre explorations have driven 14 albums and nearly 1,500 gigs throughout its 22-year career - all with an ever-expanding audience.
The trio - Paul Richards of Salt Lake City, Utah; Bert Lams of Brussels, Belgium; and Hideyo Moriya of Tokyo - first met in 1987 in England at a Robert Fripp Guitar Craft course. After completing several of these intensive courses, the three toured worldwide with Fripp's League of Crafty Guitarists. Wanting to continue working together after the League had run its course, Richards, Lams and Moriya met up in Los Angeles in 1991 and formed California Guitar Trio, honing their intricate original compositions, surf covers and classical re-workings.
Montreal Guitar Trio has established itself as a force for bridging diverse genres of music. For more than 15 years, the trio's virtuosity, rigor, creativity and impressive stage presence - where humor and interacting with the public go hand-in-hand - have been winning over audiences around the world.
The trio, comprised of guitarists Marc Morin, Sébastien Dufour and Glenn Lévesque, has performed hundreds of concerts in some of the most prestigious venues across North America, Europe, New Zealand and Australia, including the BB King Blues Club in New York, the Rundetårnet in Copenhagen, and the legendary Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.
As the Edmonton Journal reported, the Montreal trio "delivers loads of infectious good humor and some solid ensemble playing that skirts the four corners of the musical world."
View the trios performing "Bohemian Rhapsody" at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uG74agPqxE4&feature=youtu.be.
Tickets for the California and Montreal Guitar Trios are $22 and $29 and are available by calling 247-7657, on the web at www.durangoconcerts.com, or visit the ticket office inside the Welcome Center at 8th St. and Main Ave. in Downtown Durango. Ticket Office hours are Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., and Saturdays, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. On show days, the box office at the Concert Hall will be open one hour prior to curtain. All sales final.
The Community Concert Hall is a not-for-profit, multi-use performance venue located on the campus of Fort Lewis College. Its ability to bring a diverse spectrum of shows to Southwest Colorado is made possible through a partnership with the college, a state-supported, independent institution of higher education, and through financial and in-kind contributions from generous members of the community.
