Rocky Mountain Guitar Camp, Olde Town Pickin Parlor and Hendriksen Amplifiers are pleased to present the Rocky Mountain Guitar Spectacular featuring Richard Smith, Pat Bergeson, John Knowles CGP, Jim Nichols and Brooks Robertson at the Oriental Theatre, Thursday, August 12, 7:00 pm. Buy tickets at Hold My Tickets.com | https://tickets.holdmyticket.com/tickets/377013
Between solo sets, duets and ensembles, this promises to be a guitar spectacular not to be missed. Here is the lowdown on this year’s featured artists:
Richard Smith: Hailing from Beckenham, England, Richard started early and first picked up the guitar at the age of 5 with his father teaching him his first chords and songs. After some early solo performances and six years of working as a trio with two of his brothers, Rob and Sam in the 90’s. Richard moved to Nashville, TN. in January 2000. In 2001 he won the national fingerpicking championship and has since forged a career as a solo artist, performing all over the USA, Canada, UK, Europe, Australia and Brazil, releasing solo records, duet and ensemble records. Smith is constantly touring with a repertoire of fingerpicking classics, originals, fiddle tunes, blues, Joplin rags, jazz standards, classical repertoire and everything from pop to Sousa marches.
Pat Bergeson is an American guitarist, harmonica player and occasional songwriter. Based in Nashville, he is best known for his live and session work with Chet Atkins, Lyle Lovett, Suzy Bogguss, and Les Brers. Equally at home with guitar and diatonic and chromatic harmonica styles, Bergeson toured and recorded with Atkins for seven years and afterwards became a member of Lyle Lovett’s band and also toured with Shelby Lynn.
John Knowles is a C.G.P. (Certified Guitar Player) a title Chet Atkins gave to fingerstyle guitarists he admired. Knowles has worked with renowned fingerstyle and classical guitarists including Chet Atkins, Jerry Reed, Lenny Breau and Tommy Emmanuel. He and Tommy recently released a new CD entitled “Heart Songs”. His Fingerstyle Quarterly which ran for 10 years serves as a seminal resource for all guitarists Knowles works as a composer and arranger and has won many awards including a Grammy and 2 Emmy nominations. In 1996. John was inducted into the National Thumb Picker’s Hall of Fame twice.
Knowles first learned accordion, then ukulele, transposing the accordion keyboard to the ukulele fretboard. He studied guitar in high school, then attended Texas Christian University where he received a PhD in physics while playing guitar in his free time.
Jim Nichols plays everything from modern jazz, blues and Americana to Chet Atkins style. His impressive credentials include appearances on television, radio, concert halls, and clubs including Carnegie Hall and the Tonight Show. He has played and/or recorded with Kenny Rankin, Chet Atkins, Hubert Laws, Buddy Montgomery, Van Morrison, Toots Thielemans, Tom Waits, and others. Jim has taught clinics in the U.S. and in Europe including Stanford and Jamie Aebersold Jazz Workshops. He was featured at the Django Reinhardt Festival in France with the great European guitarists, Roman`e and Martin Taylor. His solo CD was chosen by Guitar Player Magazine as a “Pick of the Year”.
Brooks Robertson just doesn’t need much more than two thumbs, eight fingers and six strings on a wooden box to carry his listeners away. Hailed by prominent exponents of his instrument like Nokie Edwards, Thom Bresh, John Jorgenson and Mason Williams, the young fingerstyle guitarist embodies the creative vision of a postmodern world: It’s the music that counts. Brooks utilizes his superb technical abilities to play bass, rhythm and melody simultaneously and surpass the borders of conventional genres. He merges hauntingly beautiful compositions, country rhythms and jazzy harmonies with funky licks into his very own art form – sometimes delivered with a punch, sometimes with a smile.
H. Michael Harrington
Michael.Harrington@colostate.edu
Director
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Rocky Mountain Guitar Camp
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