Leo Kottke-innovative acoustic guitar virtuoso, vocalist and fan favorite-will appear in concert as part of the Master Artists Series at Santa Fe College at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, January 11, 2014, in the Fine Arts Hall at the Northwest Campus, 3000 NW 83 Street, Gainesville.
Tickets are $15 orchestra, $12 balcony, or $9 for all Santa Fe students and employees. For ticket information, call the SF Box Office at 352-395-4181 or Bob Fetterman at 352- 395-4133. Tickets may be purchased on line at http://www.sfcollege.edu/finearts/.
Kottke, described as a “cult figure” on the All Music website, overcame hearing loss and tendon damage to emerge as a recognized master of the acoustic guitar. Of his distinctive finger picking style, Kottke has been quoted as saying, “I had been playing single note instruments and I wanted to hear a guitar played as a piano.”
With roots in folk music, jazz and blues, Kottke intersperses his playing with comical commentary and stories about life as a musician. His influences range from the country-blues of Mississippi John Hurt to the music of John Phillip Sousa and the percussionist Preston Epps. “I am evidence that you don’t have to sell a lot of records or succeed in the usual way to have a big audience and a job,” Kottke has also been quoted as saying.
“All of the Master Artists spend time with our students, and Mr. Kottke will meet with students in the backstage environment to talk about being a musician, touring, and other aspects of his career,” said Alora Haynes, chairperson of the Fine Arts Department at Santa Fe College. “We’re thrilled that he has chosen to return to Gainesville, where he once played to a sold-out crowd.”
Born in 1945 in Athens, Georgia, Kottke began his musical education on the trombone but switched to guitar at age 11. His career as a guitarist began with street performances and regular appearances at the Scholar Coffeehouse (an early home to Bob Dylan) in Minneapolis in the 1960s. His first album, “12-String Blues,” appeared on the independent Oblivion record label in 1968. In 1971, Capitol released his first major label recording, “Mudlark.” Kottke gained an international following in the 1970s through his recordings and his continuing appearances at folk festivals in Europe and Australia. His latest album, “Sixty Six Steps,” is collaboration with Mike Gordon, bassist for the rock band Phish, and was released in 2005 by RCA Victor.
Kottke’s awards include two Grammy nominations; a Doctorate in Music Performance by the Peck School of Music at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee; and a Certificate of Achievement in Not Playing the Trombone from the University of Texas at Brownsville with Texas Southmost College.
The Santa Fe College Master Artists Series is co-presented by the Santa Fe College Foundation and the college’s Fine Arts Department. The series is sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Council on
Arts and Culture and visitgainesville.com , a Tourist Development Tax Grant from the Alachua County Board of County Commissioners in conjunction with the Alachua County Tourist Development Council.
For more information, contact Kathryn Lehman, 352-395-5355 or 352-214-8178 or email kathryn.lehman@sfcollege.edu