Tribute to Bach 2000 CD import $16.
Mundo Records, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Faithful to the grand design of Johann Sebastian Bach the composer and
orchestrator. Faithful to his own disciplined art of live Stick musicianship.
But how do you accomplish both? How does Argentine artist Guillermo Cides
mold his standard 10-string Stick into one of Bach's delicate voices, then
expand its sound and spirit to create violin solos and sections, harpsichord
counterpoint, acoustic Spanish guitar with slightly muted strings, English
bells with ringing strings, pipe organ, an intimate chamber quartet, and
finally Bach's full open air orchestra?
And how do you transform a Stick tapping fretboard to fulfill all of Bach's
instrumental voices using nothing but subtle "finger effects" and standard
guitar electronic effects to capture the spirit and substance of the music?
There is no MIDI here. All recorded sounds originate from the Stick strings
themselves. Some pieces are played in live solo, as with "Contrapuntus 1",
"Preludes and Fugues in D Minor", "Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major", and
"Preludes and Fugues in C Major" (the arpeggiated chordal accompaniment to
"Ave Maria" without the melody line). Others are orchestral in scope, with
much overdubbing and sophisticated audio signal processing, as with
"Suite No. 2 in B Minor", "Concerto for 2 Violins and strings in D Minor",
and "Brandenburg Concert No. 3 in G Major".
Cides never fails to ennoble and substantiate this new stringed instrument
in his bold recording concepts, now turned classical. This newly released
CD, complete with symbolic graphics and a booklet in tribute to Bach in
Cides' own words, is now available through Stick Enterprises. What a rich
contribution to the fretboard tapping community - many thanks to Guillermo
"El Cid" Cides.
Primitivo 1998 CD import $16.
Mundo Records, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Primitivo is a synthesis of ancient and futuristic musical cultures
all bearing the imprint of a single artist's style.
The compositions are forceful and graphically clear. The Stick is presented
with great sonic diversity by way of some complex and interesting audio
signal processing. The musical sources as I hear them include ancient
Argentine, classical Spanish, Baroque and modern day King Crimson (complete
with tape looking techniques in the recording production).
The Stick is multi-faceted on this album, as a primitive and somewhat atonal
instrument, as a rhythmic driving force, and as an almost acoustical
instrument in the pristine high melodic range.
Guillermo has masterfully used The Stick to reveal several levels of his
personality as an artist, from the primitive to the advanced technological
and with plenty of the Latin temperament thrown in.
El Mundo Interior de Los Planetas 1996 CD import $16.
Mundo Records, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Guillermo's romantic and passionate approach to music and The Stick shows
through in everything from the title (translated "the interior world of the
planets" is an Argentinean espression referring to the inner workings of the
soul) to its elaborate artwork, to the beautiful music within. This album
explores a very wide range of Stick sounds both clean and heavily processed
(Guillermo is not afraid to crank up the distortion when he wants to). There
are sharp attacks and volume swells, layered to the best musical effect. All
the music and sounds were created with The Stick, with the exception of a
drummer on two songs. Guillermo covers a spectrum of musical styles and plays
each with authority.