Wednesday, June 15, 2016

New Fan Funded Tracks Added to the 'Archive of Future Ancient Recordings' by Ancient Future

Ancient-Future.Com Records Presents

The Archive of Future Ancient Recordings (A.F.A.R.)

New Tracks Added to the Fan Supported Recording Series by Ancient Future

Photo of Bui Huu Nhut Recording A.F.A.R.Photo of Abbos Kosimov Recording A.F.A.R.
Bui Huu Nhut Recording A.F.A.R.. Hi-Res Photo by Michael Braden (742 k):
http://www.ancient-future.com/images/nhut_purple_raga300dpi3.5x2.8.jpg
Abbos Kosimov Recording A.F.A.R.. Hi-Res Photo by Michael Braden (443 k):
http://www.ancient-future.com/images/abbos_kosimov300dpi3x2.4.jpg

6/16/16 Update Adds Six New Pieces

On 6/16/16, six new pieces and a video make their debut in the fan funded Archive of Future Ancient Recordings, which gives supporters access to Ancient Future recordings as they are created. There are four new tracks, two of which feature two compositions, the first serving as an introduction to the second. There are now 13 tracks totaling 86 minutes and 51 seconds of music in the archive. Two of the new tracks are live versions of pieces originally recorded during Ancient Future's major label days, and two are brand new studio tracks, including Ancient Future's first ever cover of a popular song, a world fusion version of Jimi Hendrix's Purple Haze showcasing Bui Huu Nhut on Vietnamese dan bau, a one string instrument with a whammy bar! The piece also features Uzbeki percussion master Abbos Kosimov, who performs frequently with tabla phenom Zakir Hussain, and it is the very first studio recording featuring Matthew Montfort on his Godin Glissentar fretless guitar.
Tres Tarantas Tres (Montfort. 4:32). Based on the flamenco form Tarantas, but with a rhythmic structure of three groups of three, this piece also makes a foray into impressionism ala Eric Satie. Lineup: Matthew Montfort (flamenco guitar).
Gamarock (Montfort. 12:10). Recorded live 4/29/15, this piece from Dreamchaser fuses Balinese gamelan with rock and roll. Lineup: Matthew Montfort (scalloped fretboard guitars), Vishal Nagar (tabla), Jason Everett (7 string fretless bass).
Prelude/Bookenka (Montfort/Doug McKeehan 6:50). Recorded 10/16/13 at the World Without Walls Reunion Concert at the Freight & Salvage. Lineup: Matthew Montfort (scalloped fretboard guitar), Doug McKeehan (piano), Kash Killion (bass), Ian Dogole (percussion), Mariah Parker (santur), Jim Hurley (violin).
Purple Nam/Purple Haze (Montfort/Jimi Hendrix. 4:44). A Vietnamese version of Montfort's Purple Raga sets up an adventurous excursion into Hendrix's classic rock piece with Vietnamese dan bau instead of electric guitar. Lineup: Bui Huu Nhut (dan bau), Matthew Montfort (Godin Glissentar fretless 11 string guitar, fretless bass), Abbos Kosimov (Uzbeki percussion), Mariah Parker (keys).

The Archive of Future Ancient Recordings (A.F.A.R.)

30th Anniversary CD Mystery Cover
The Archive of Future Ancient Recordings Hi-Res Square Cover Art (1.2 MB):
http://www.ancient-future.com/images/30CDafar1500sq.jpg

Ancient Future performed its first concert on February 11, 1979, at the Sleeping Lady Cafe in Fairfax, California. Since then, the band has gone on to perform hundreds of concerts nationally and internationally and release seven full length recordings and an HD video that have established Ancient Future as the trendsetting pioneers of world fusion music, a term coined by Ancient Future bandleader Matthew Montfort at the group's inception for music that combines ideas from many of the world's great musical traditions.
During Ancient Future's 30th anniversary year, a new Ancient Future band project was conceived: the Archive of Future Ancient Recordings (A.F.A.R.). The concept of the Archive of Future Ancient Recordings is to involve fans of world fusion music in supporting the production of an archive of live and studio recordings of cross cultural collaborations. The best of these recordings will be selected to be released commercially at a "future" date, at which point they will be on their way to becoming "ancient" recordings, hence the title.
To finance A.F.A.R., Ancient-Future.Com Records has been quietly providing financial supporters access to select files from Ancient Future's archives of alternate takes, live concerts and radio performances along with new studio recordings as they are created. To date, 18% of the fundraising goal has been raised at concerts, on Ancient-Future.Com, and through the Ancient Future Times, the band's email newsletter. The full archive of recordings is available during the project exclusively to supporters, and when the archive is complete, a portion of the recordings will be selected for commercial release on Ancient-Future.Com Records.
There are four supporter thank-you packages available ranging from $15 to $75, and while donations to the A.F.A.R. project are not currently tax deductible, donations of any amount are greatly appreciated and will be put to good use! There are a range of benefits for the various packages, including the A.F.A.R. email newsletter (which provides a window on the recording process as it develops), immediate access to downloads of the recordings placed in the archives, digital liner notes, limited edition CD-R's of the archives when complete with printed liner notes signed by Ancient Future leader Matthew Montfort, video and 24 bit audio files for hi-res playback on computers, and a 30% discount on the advance copies of the final commercial release. Detailed information on the various supporter packages and the benefits included can be found at www.ancient-future.com/afar.html.

Live Video of New A.F.A.R. Track

Prelude and Bookenka on Ethnocloud
A live medley of Prelude and Bookenka (The Adventurer), which was originally recorded on Ancient Future's Asian Fusion release,has been added to the Archive of Future Ancient Recordings. Fans can check it out on Ethnocloud at 720p now, and then get it in full resolution beautifully shot HD 1080p video and rich 96-kHz/24-bit audio as a thank-you for becoming a hi-res supporter of A.F.A.R.!
Ethnocloud Video URL: http://ethnocloud.com/Ancient_Future/?y_video=2024&b=942
YouTube Video URL: https://youtu.be/IlYfQ50MGDw

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Thursday, June 9, 2016

Global Guitar Summit California Summer Tour

Global Guitar Summit

Featuring Konarak Reddy (India), Matthew Montfort (USA), and Teja Gerken (Germany)

Composite Photo of Konarak Reddy, Matthew Montfort, and Teja Gerken

Sunday, July 31, 6:30 PM - 9 PM
Fenix
919 Fourth Street
San Rafael, CA 94901
Tix: $12 advance, $15 door. For advance tix and reservations, visit www.fenixlive.com/dining/reservations, call 415-813-5600 or email info@www.fenixlive.com
Venue website: www.fenixlive.com 

Thursday, August 4, 2016, 7:30 PM
Don Quixote's International Music Hall
6275 Highway 9
Felton, CA 95018
Tix: $12 advance, $15 door. Info: Call 831-603-2294 or email tmm@cruzio.com
Venue website: www.donquixotesmusic.info 

Saturday, August 6th, 6:30 PM
Gryphon Stringed Instruments

211 Lambert Ave.
Palo Alto, CA 94306
Tix: $20 suggested donation. Info: Call 650-493-2131 or email michael@gryphonstrings.com
Venue website: www.gryphonstrings.com 

Friday, August 12th, 8 PM
Sebastopol Community Center Annex
425 Morris St.
Sebastopol, CA 95472
Tix: $20 advance, $23 door. For advance tix and reservations, call Kevin at 707-824-1858 or email krussellmft@aol.com
Venue website: www.seb.org

This Global Guitar Summit presents three international acoustic guitar virtuosos who will perform solo and ensemble pieces. The summit features Indian nylon string guitarist Konarak Reddy, American scalloped fretboard and fretless guitar pioneer Matthew Montfort, and German fingerstyle guitarist Teja Gerken.
Global Guitar Summit 2016 Poster
Poster (100 k .pdf): www.ancient-future.com/pdf/pdf/global_guitar_summit2016poster.pdf

Konarak Reddy

Photo of Konarak Reddy


Hailing from Bangalore, India, Konarak Reddy is a legend among music aficionados in his home country. From the start, Konarak drew his inspiration from multiple sources, immersing himself in both Western classical theory on guitar and traditional Indian music on the sarod, which he studied with Gurus Debi Prasad Ghosh and Rajeev Taranath. Konarak later studied jazz improvisation at Boston's Berklee College of Music and the Musician's Institute in Hollywood, from which he graduated with honors. Today, his playing integrates Hindustani and Carnatic styles into contemporary solo guitar masterpieces, which frequently include live looping. Konarak was featured in a TEDx talk in 2013 (www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0ZP-hG7CN4), he frequently performs in Europe, and his own World Guitar Night, which has become an annual event in Bangalore, and featured international guitarists such as Andy McKee, Don Ross, Kevin Eubanks, Peter Sprague, Peter Finger, and others. His two albums, Searching for the Goddess and Solar Avatar have received critical acclaim. For more info, please visit www.konarak-reddy.blogspot.com.

Video

Konarak Reddy performing live in Budapest:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DMYe5YHq6U

Press

"He is known as one of India's most versatile guitarists. For over 35 years he's absolutely ruled the roost. Konarak Reddy has needed no introduction." - BANGALORE MIRROR BUREAU

Matthew Montfort

Photo of Matthew Montfort   

Matthew Montfort is the leader of the world music ensemble Ancient Future. Featured in the December 2009 commemorative Les Paul issue of Guitar Player Magazine, Montfort is a pioneer among guitarists who have had their fretboards scalloped in order to play various forms of world music that require intricate note-bending ornaments while still being able to play chords. Montfort immersed himself in an intensive study with vina master K.S. Subramanian in order to fully apply the South Indian gamaka (note-bending) techniques to the guitar. He has released two solo CDs: Seven Serenades for Scalloped Fretboard Guitar and Sympathetic Serenade, for which he is recognized as one of the world's 100 Greatest Acoustic Guitarists by DigitalDreamDoor.com , a curated "best of" site, along with such luminaries as Michael Hedges, Leo Kottke, Chet Atkins, John Fahey, Adrian Legg, Merle Travis, John Renbourn, Tommy Emmanuel, Doc Watson, Pierre Bensusan, Toni Rice, Alex De Grassi, Stefan Grossman, Artie Traum, Joni Mitchell, and Peppino D'Agostino. He is also known for his work on Glissentar (11 string fretless guitar), electric guitar, flamenco guitar, sitar, charango, mandolin, and gamelan. He has performed concerts worldwide, from the Festival Internacional de la Guitarra on the golden coast of Spain to the Festival of India in Mumbai. He has worked with many world music legends, including tabla phenomenon Zakir Hussain and Chinese zither master Zhao Hui. Montfort wrote the book Ancient Traditions – Future Possibilities: Rhythmic Training Through the Traditions of Africa, Bali, and India, which has been used by many musicians to improve their rhythm skills. For more info, please visit www.matthewmontfort.com.

Video

Matthew Montfort performing 'Soul Serenade' at Ancient Future's 30th Anniversary Concert:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLfKTbpgO1Q

Press

Download Guitar Player Magazine Story on Matthew MontfortDownload Guitar Player Magazine Story on Matthew Montfort
5 Page Guitar Player Magazine/GuitarPlayer.com Media Report (1.4 MB):
www.ancient-future.com/pdf/MatthewMontfortGuitarPlayerMag.pdf

"Because Montfort’s guitar has a scalloped fretboard, his fingers touch only the strings, enabling him to produce ornaments more characteristic of the sitar. This album reveals a thorough knowledge of Hindustani microtonal ornaments, transferred in ways that create one of the most distinctive guitar sounds in contemporary music. However, it also reveals a lifetime of exploration in world music, which can be immediately summoned in a flash of inspiration. When this level of mastery is reached, there is no need to rewrite. The first improvisation has the depth of a reworked composition." – Teed Rockwell, INDIA CURRENTS, March 2009

Teja Gerken

Teja Gerken

German-born Teja Gerken is a contemporary steel-string fingerstyle guitarist whose playing merges the styles of European guitar pioneers such as John Renbourn and Pierre Bensusan with the distinct sounds of American players such as Leo Kottke and Micheal Hedges. Known for his original compositions, many of which employ alternate tunings, two-handed tapping, percussive effects, and other extended guitar techniques, Teja will also bring Celtic, jazz, and classical styles to the Global Guitars show. For more info, please visit www.tejagerken.com.

Video

Teja Gerken performing "1948" live:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7khy_8uhCA

Press

"Releasing his second CD, Postcards, is San Francisco area fingerstyle guitarist Teja Gerken, who delivers solo instrumental compositions with enough surprises and innovative twists to delight aficionados of the world music and folk genres. His tunes employ physical techniques such as two-handed tapping, alternate tunings, and percussive effects, but his developed sense of melody is what will keep his CD playing in your mind long after the 'stop' button is pressed. Another impressive feature is that Gerken's playing is captured without overdubs; the intricate arrangements delivered as you might hear the artist in concert. Gerken is one of a rare breed - a guitarist's guitarist with equal appeal for the non-musicians out there. His Postcards album is highly recommended." – GUITAR9.COM