Guitaromanie

Berta Rojas is a cultural ambassador for her home of Paraguay, and a fierce advocate for women in the classical guitar world. She is also one of my favorite guitarists. We have a short, but lovely chat about her work at Berklee, her concerts and recordings, and the amazing story of how her stolen guitar was returned to her.

Kami Rowan is a wonderfully dynamic and inspiring guitarist in North Carolina. We chat about her fascinating journey and explore her complete dedication to the art.

Happy Pride from Karl and Lane! With special guests, Julie Goldberg, Kami Rowan, and David Leisner.

The Guitaromanie Podcast will air one more episode this season: our Pride Episode next week, on June 30. We're taking the summer off and will be back at it again in the Fall.

Alan Mearns is a one-of-a-kind artist. Originally from Belfast, his work as a guitarist, composer, arranger, poet, and songwriter is fully ablaze with the spirit of exploration and a deep inner urge to bring beauty into the world.

Jonathan Leathwood is a fascinating and innovative performer currently residing in Denver. We talk about his story and his exploration of new works involving 10 and 6 string guitars, as well as the importance of improvisation.

William Kanengiser dropped by on his way to Cleveland and we had a lovely chat about the LAGQ's new recording, Opalescence, and we also talked about his latest innovative undertaking, The Diaspora Project. Bill has been on the vanguard of the American guitar scene for the past four decades. It was a real pleasure to hang out with him!

Joe Williams is the composer of a tremendous score to accompany Alfred Hitchcock's 1927 silent film, The Lodger. The film, with his score for 4 guitars and 'cello, will soon be available for streaming through the Alamo on Demand service and the Criterion Channel. We discuss this special event and get the story about how this project was born.

Laura Mazon Franqui might be young, but she's already built a pretty impressive career. She has some great ideas about what it means to be an artist, and we talk about her fascinating journey from Cuba to Miami to LA, and other points all over the world. Keep an eye out for her...she's setting the world on fire!

What a good time! I was joined by past guests, including Aaron Larget-Caplan, Andrew Mah, Brian Kozak, Chris Mallett, Fred Hand, Gerard Cousins, Jeff LaQuatra, Jim McCutcheon, Laura Mazon-Franqui, Peter Danner, Sharon Wayne, and Thomas Flippin.

Robert Thompson is a Nashville guitarist who, among other things, teaches at the guitar juggernaut that is Belmont University. He's got a wide ranging experience, and an interesting perspective on the guitar scene in and around Nashville.

Fred Hand is a beautiful human being - humble, compassionate, and absolutely inspiring. We chat about his career, his insights on the arts of writing and playing music, and his exciting new recording, Across Time. We listen to the 3rd movement of his Trilogy and his Ballade for Astor Piazzolla.

Thomas Flippin and Christopher Mallett are Duo Noire. They are trailblazers on the modern classical guitar scene, and represent a future that is full of excitement, evolution, and a profound sense of meaning.

Ben Verdery is a burst of sunshine. His infectious and unbridled joy is a great treasure to the world of the classical guitar and beyone. What an inspiring and seriously FUN chat!

Alice Artzt has a long and distinguished career as a touring artist and an important pedagogue. She released over a dozen recordings as a soloist as well as in duo and trio settings. She is a real treasure and has so many interesting stories to tell.

Gerard Cousins is a guitarist, arranger, and composer living in England. His recordings of the music of Phillip Glass have been released on Glass's label, Orange Mountain Music. He has also recently been collaborating with composer, Eric Whitacre. We talk about these projects, his work at the Spanish Guitar Centre, and an upcoming trip to the United States. He's charted an unbeaten path, and it was great to hear his perspectives.

Rupert Boyd is a New York based guitarist from Australia who has been doing some great work as a soloist as well as in chamber collaborations with the Australian Guitar Duo and Boyd Meets Girl, a 'cello and guitar duo with Laura Metcalf. We talk about the journeys his guitaring has taken him on, recording, and the nature of a life in the arts. He's engaging, humorous, and delightfully entertaining.

Daniel Boring is holding court in Philadephia, PA. He talks about how it's a great place to be a working guitarist, tells us about his bounce-around "strategy" for his career trajectory, and what it means to bring a wealth of experiences to a varied professional life.

Kevin Taylor is the founder of the Childbloom Guitar Program and serves as its company president. Through his pioneering work and unique approach to guitar education and professional development, he has enriched the lives of countless young people through music, while providing a real-world solution for guitarists to make a living.

Chris Wilke is a multi-faceted artist. His background embraces a wide scope of activity, from avant-garde performance and composition to unearthing masterworks for baroque lutes, and everything in between. He has a refreshingly open mind, and is a real thinker. We talk about his work at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and chat about all of his interesting projects.