RENOWNED
GUITARIST STEVE HOWE
TO HOST ‘CROSS STYLES MUSIC RETREAT’
AUGUST 19-23
AT FULL MOON RESORT IN NEW YORK’S CATSKILL MOUNTAINS
Renowned
guitarist Steve Howe is set to host the first Cross Styles Music
Retreat from August 19-23 at Full Moon Resort in the heart of the
“Forever Wild” Catskill Forest Preserve, just one half hour west of Woodstock,
New York. Guitar players of all ages, levels and styles are invited to join Steve
Howe and other guest guitar instructors for this unique music camp--the first of its kind for the longtime Yes guitarist and
founding guitarist for supergroup Asia. After a full day of activities,
evenings at the retreat will culminate with intimate, once-in-a-lifetime jam
sessions.
“This year I’m getting back to doing some solo dates, and
the Cross Styles
Music Retreat is an extension of that,” Steve explains. “I'll be enjoying the different things the event
will demand of me, as opposed to just doing shows. It's a wider breadth of
'guitarness,' and it indulges me in my singular fascination--the guitar.
Hopefully, my team and the audience can do a little mingling and learn more
about each other.”
Throughout the Cross Styles
Music Retreat, Steve will lead workshops that explore the
development and technical aspects of his playing, writing, recording, and
performing. Steve will also perform selected pieces, and discuss
influences and experiences. A Q&A session and meet & greet are
also planned. To complement the event, Steve will be joined by two other
fine guitarists, Ray Matuza and Flavio Sala, who will each
provide in depth advice and analysis to explore and learn from.
“As I'm self-taught and don't
read music, I come at doing workshops from a different perspective than many
who teach,” Steve adds. “I’ll be bringing my experience to the fore
through performances, interactions with campers, and
daily master classes.”
The camp’s itinerary and
guests--including fingerstyle and jazz guitar aficionado Ray Matuza,
Italian classical guitarist Flavio Sala, and Martin Guitar’s Dick
Boak--reflect Steve’s own genre-bridging approach to the instrument.
From his
early days in the late-‘60s London psychedelic scene to pioneering work with
eminent prog-rockers Yes and Asia, countless collaborations, and nearly 20 solo
albums, Steve Howe has embraced both acoustic and electric guitars--and
fretted instruments of all varieties. Named Guitar Player magazine’s
“Best Overall Guitarist” for five straight years from 1977-1981, Steve has
expanded the boundaries of rock guitar over the past half-century,
incorporating classical, jazz and country techniques into his writing and
playing.
Ray Matuza brings over 35
years as a performer, educator and writer to the Cross Styles Music Retreat.
In addition to work with Steve Howe, Ian McDonald (King Crimson,
Foreigner) and others, Ray is a regular contributor to Fingerstyle
360 online guitar magazine, and an aficionado of fingerstyle and jazz
techniques. Ray will offer workshops on finger exercises and
scales, improvisation, practical use of harmony and chord construction, and
methods of efficient practicing, as well as overseeing the daily jam sessions.
Internationally acclaimed
classical guitarist Flavio Sala has toured and given master classes on
four continents, and created and curates the annual International Web Music
Talents competition. In his workshops, Flavio will introduce techniques
and fingering for classical and flamenco guitar.
Dick Boak--author,
guitar designer, and archivist for Martin Guitar--will offer an
interactive history of the 180-year-old guitar company. He’ll be showcasing
several important examples of instruments in the evolution of Martin acoustic
guitars, including some from Martin’s priceless museum collection and some of
the prototypes from Martin signature model collaborations with Steve Howe.
His presentation will focus on Martin’s colorful history, the development of
the modern acoustic guitar, Martin’s historical contributions to the definitive
acoustic guitar design, artist signature model collaborations, and on specific
guitar shapes, sizes and tonewoods that lend themselves to particular musical
genres.
Additional
guest instructors for the Cross Styles Music Retreat will be announced
soon. For more information and to reserve your spot, go to: http://crossstylesmusicretreat.com.
Cross
Styles Music Retreat offers a variety of pricing options, based on the
variety of available accommodations. Packages are on sale now at crossstylesmusicretreat.com,
and start at just $1195, including lodging, access to all workshops,
seminars, gourmet meals, performances, and camp activities.
All
activities will be held at Full Moon Resort in Big Indian, NY, which
features an eclectic array of comfortable, rustic country-inn accommodations as
well as primitive camping. All accommodations are just steps away from daily
camp activities. Guests can enjoy the spring-fed swimming pool, on-site access
to the Esopus Creek, and explore the splendors of the Catskills on the nearby
network of hiking trails. Dedicated to the
celebration of nature, music and the arts, this one hundred-acre wonderland of
mountains, fields, and streams is a world of its own.
Cross
Styles Music Retreat is part of the successful Music Masters Camps Series (www.musicmasterscamps.com) held at Full
Moon Resort.
Steve Howe
(photo by Glenn
Gottlieb)
Graphic novel artist and percussionist Denis Rodier has joined forces with ex-Talisma guitarist Martin Vanier to release their own progressive rock musical project called Specimen13.
