Considering that the ’80s, Peppino D’Agostino has actually produced an extensive vision of the acoustic guitar as a performance instrument, using not just the steel-string’s native idioms of folk, blues, and nation however likewise nylon-string customs from Italy, Spain, and Brazil. Like numerous fellow explorers of fingerstyle guitar, D’Agostino utilizes unconventional tunings, percussion, and other prolonged strategies to open brand-new vistas on the instrument. His guitar structures feel driven, initially and foremost, by tune– not fingerboard balancings.
Initially from Italy, D’Agostino began in the U.S. as a street artist and dining establishment guitar player in San Francisco. He still makes his home in the Bay Area, visiting globally with his signature Seagull guitar. D’Agostino’s discography vouches for his varied interests, consisting of cooperations with classical guitar player David Tanenbaum, Italian songwriter and pop manufacturer Corrado Rustici, and electrical rock guitar player Stef Burns. D’Agostino’s latest album, Connexionshowcases his variety and proficiency as a player/composer.
In addition to his carrying out profession, D’Agostino is a respected instructor, producing lessons over the last few years for TrueFire and Guitar by Masters, in addition to interactive ratings through Interlude. With his spouse, Donna, he runs Music World Retreatswhich uses music camps in the U.S. and Europe for guitar players in addition to mandolin, ukulele, and violin gamers. Upcoming guitar occasions consist of a Martin Taylor retreat in California and a bluegrass immersion in Sicily with Bryan Sutton and Chris Eldridge.
I overtook D’Agostino by phone to get more information about his newest journeys with guitar.
When you were finding out to play in Italy, existed a particular artist who drew you into important steel-string guitar music?
You understand, when I began, I utilized to play electrical guitar– I was a huge fan of [John] McLaughlin and a few of the early Santana, that type of things. Then someone brought a record from the U.S. in 1974: it was John Fahey, Leo Kottke, and Peter Lang on Takoma Records. The music was truly undefinable. It was not blues, it was not nation– it was various. I was instantly drawn in to that and begun, like individuals in my generation, to attempt to reproduce it. Naturally there was simply the turntable at that point, so, you understand, up and down with the needle.
The amusing part is that I didn’t learn about open tunings. I was attempting to recreate what Leo and Peter Lang and Fahey were doing utilizing basic tuning, so obviously I freaked. Then perhaps I check out someplace about altering the tuning.
Did you find other crucial guitar players at the time?
I’ve been constantly extremely thinking about several designs, and for the Chet Atkins, Jerry Reed, Lenny Breau fingerstyle, I need to provide credit to [French guitarist] Marcel Dadi. He was playing Chet Atkins tunes, and inside the vinyl there were constantly the tabs.
At that time likewise, Stefan Grossman was residing in Italy, and I keep in mind going to visit him. He was living near Rome, and he had this label called Kicking Mule. That’s how I found individuals like John Renbourn and Dave Evans, who I believe was a genius. There’s an album called Unfortunate Pig Dance that is beautiful.
Compared to a great deal of critical guitar players, you focus a lot more on tune. Does melody guide your composing procedure?
In basic, yes. I believe it’s since I matured singing Italian tunes that are extremely melodic. When I began playing guitar, I was playing the chords and accompanying my voice since that’s what my peers desired, so that moved in the future when I began composing crucial music.
You understand, as I’ve developed as an artist, I utilize all aspects. There’s a piece called “Jump Rope” that was generally influenced by stressing the upbeat. With another piece, “Beyond the Dunes,” I was extremely influenced by a 7/8 time signature. [in those examples] I established something based upon rhythm.
Acoustic guitar is such a naturally balanced instrument that you require genuine level of sensitivity to establish strong tunes.
What’s intriguing is that I believe it’s gotten in touch with open tunings. All of us understand that DADGAD is preferred, however I utilize tunings that are truly weird. I believe I do that so I do not fall under patterns, and it’s linked to tunes. There’s a piece that I composed called “Nine White Kites” with an extremely unusual tuning that is C# G # E F# B D #, so it’s a C# small sus. And playing because tuning is sort of like actioning in the dark. You do not understand scales, chords. I was simply following my fingers and what they discovered by themselves. Due to the fact that of the obscurity of this tuning, I had the ability to discover that tune.
Does it ever work the other method around, where you have a tune in your head and discover a tuning that assists you play it?
No, however you simply provided me a great concept!
Just recently, I’ve been thinking about utilizing innovation like [the notation software] Sibelius: simply go to ball game and by hand move the notes, and after that move to the guitar. [Brazilian guitarist and composer] Sérgio Assad does this a lot in fact.
Exist any tunings you’ve found just recently that you especially like?
Yeah, there’s one that a mix of 2 chords. The 6th, 5th, and 4th strings are F, A, and C, so there you have an F significant chord. The 3rd, 2nd, and, initially are E, G, C, which is a C chord. It’s a mix of F significant and C significant. That’s the tuning that I utilize on a piece called “Dancing with Shadows,” which is on my most current album. I’m going to attempt more of that in the future, when you generally have 2 various chords together near each other.
There is typically such a divide in between the nylon- and steel-string guitar worlds in regards to method, collection, and mentor method, however you’ve crossed over a fair bit. What have you gained from the nylon-string or classical side that notifies what you do on steel-string?
I’ve been fortunate enough to have fun with terrific classical gamers such as David Tanenbaum and Sérgio Assad– these are truly a few of the very best gamers on the planet. Marc Teicholz likewise, who becomes part of the professors at San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
What I’ve gained from classical artists is the attention to the information. They devote their lives to how they provide the notes, if a note is played open or on [a fretted] string … There’s constantly a factor behind how they play. That’s something you do not see typically in the acoustic guitar world– that level of accuracy and devotion to the cleanness of notes and likewise to the shipment.
The other thing is, with modern structures on classical guitar, I believe there’s a lot more harmonic depth than in the acoustic guitar world. Harmonically there’s a lot more expedition, which is motivating to me rather of simply remaining within 6 or 7 chords.
Let’s speak about your guitars a bit. Have there been any modifications to what you’re utilizing onstage or for recording?
Basically, my primary instrument is my [Seagull] signature design that I established with Robert Godin about thirty years earlier. It’s a six-string guitar with a broader neck. They worked for 2 or 3 years with a university there in Montréal to develop bracing that makes the instrument extremely well balanced in between the bass, midrange, and treble. This is the guitar I utilize live and in the studio.
Has the guitar progressed at all for many years?
Yes, as far as the bracing and likewise the appearance. It’s now bourbon, a dark color, and visually we actually like it. Pretty quickly really, Godin will develop the 30th anniversary of my guitar. It will be a trainee design, and it’s going to be more economical, so I’m eagerly anticipating seeing what they develop.
This is an electro-acoustic instrument. The current design has an L.R. Baggs Anthem pickup, which I’m really pleased with, although in particular scenarios I play simply acoustically [with a mic]Possibly this is the impact of classical guitar players– they do not like to utilize anything.
It’s a various sort of method when you utilize just a great condenser microphone. The acoustic noise is more detailed to truth. If you plug in, it ends up being something various– lovely, however various.
With Music World Retreats, you host a range of music camps, consisting of some concentrated on fingerstyle guitar. Lots of fingerstyle gamers are solo oriented– they are not always accustomed to having fun with other individuals. Belongs to the camp bringing individuals together to experience music in a more social method?
I like this concern. You understand, among the locations where we bring the Music World Retreats is to Sicily. In August, the very first one was a mandolin retreat with Mike Marshall and Caterina Lichtenberg. Mandolin gamers, they play together all the time. During the night, we typically go to this premium dining establishment, and the chef is actually amusing. Every night with the mandolin gamers, at the end of the supper, after lots of white wine and things, everyone was pleased and they all played together? The following week, we had the fingerstyle workshop with Adam Rafferty and myself. We went to the exact same dining establishment and the chef pertained to me and he stated, “Boy, this is a various type of group. They’re major, you understand? They do not play together!”
I’m actually mindful that fingerstyle guitar players are typically in their space– it’s a lonesome one-person experience. I attempt to break that in these workshops. Adam Rafferty produced an ensemble of Bach pieces with 4 parts, so that they can all play together. And I even made a plan of Joe Zawinul’s “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy” with 4 parts. We press the trainees to experience what playing together suggests, since a lot of them do not understand and some are actually shy. When we motivate them, you can see how much enjoyable they have.
What He Plays
Peppino D’Agostino plays his signature Seagull guitar, called the Peppino Signature CWwhich has an extra-wide neck (1.9 inches at the nut) that’s almost as large as on a classical guitar.
When he plugs in, he utilizes an L.R. Baggs Anthem pickup through a Baggs Venue DI that enables him to run a different amp output onstage and have more control over his phase volume. When he carries out with a mic just, he utilizes an AKG 460 pencil condenser.
He utilizes Dunlop 80/20 bronze light gauge strings (.011–.052) that he alters for each program.
He in some cases utilizes a Dunlop thumbpick, depending upon the music. “If I play a classically oriented piece, I utilize the pad of my thumb to have more control of the volume, expression, and characteristics,” he describes. “If I play quick bluegrass, pop, nation, or ragtime and I require to stifle the bass string noise, then I’ll utilize the Dunlop thumbpick. In addition, I rest the side of my right-hand man near the bridge to damp the 6th, 5th, and in some cases the 4th strings.” — JPR
This post initially appeared in the March/April 2024 problem of Acoustic Guitar publication.