A traditional Chinese children’s song arranged for guitar by Johannes Moller. Recorded in Fort Lee, NJ at Fort Lee Historic Park. View of upper Manhattan, The Hudson River, and the George Washington Bridge
La Pajarera
“La Pajarera” from 3 Mexican Folk Songs by composer Manuel Ponce. Played on a Yamaha CG-TA transacoustic classical guitar in Cabo San Lucas
Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring
“Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring” by J.S. Bach (1685-1750). Played in the Adirondack mountains after a 5-mile hike. Arranged for guitar by Leo Kottke
“Snowflight” in Central Park
“Snowflight” by Andrew York in Central Park, New York City. Played on a KLOS carbon fiber travel guitar in freezing rain.
Asturias
Excerpt from “Asturias” by Spanish composer Isaac Albéniz (1860-1909). Played on the balcony of my Airbnb during a thunderstorm in Barcelona
Frank Zappa in Times Square
Here’s Frank Zappa’s “Waltz for Guitar’ played in the middle of Times Square. Notes from the composer: “This is a 12-tone crab canon written when I was 18. There’s actually another version for two guitars, so it’s a double crab canon. I don’t know where it is though. I’d been doing 12-tone music for quite some time before I did this, but it was the first time I’d tried to write something for the guitar. I couldn’t play it, and I never got to hear it until I got the Synclavier. And because it’s printed on the Synclavier, that also means I got to push the button and listen to it. It’s kind of short and boring.” —Frank Zappa