Adelaide Guitar Festival

Adelaide International Guitar Festival: Pepe Romeo & Yamandu Costa

There was a quiet air of optimism ahead of the packed out opening to the Adelaide Guitar Festival with Spanish classical guitar maestro Pepe Romero and young upcoming Brazilian star Yamandu Costa. The involvement of the Adelaide Art Orchestra added another level of expectation and excitement.

UnknownThere was a quiet air of optimism ahead of the packed out opening to the Adelaide Guitar Festival with Spanish classical guitar maestro Pepe Romero and young upcoming Brazilian star Yamandu Costa. The involvement of the Adelaide Art Orchestra added another level of expectation and excitement.

Yamandu Costa opened the night and was immediately rolling through romantic arpeggios. The full sound for a solo act was breathtaking. His bass strings were very deep for a classical guitar, leading to a fuller, more resonant sound. The techniques varied with faster picked chords and minor chord arpeggios bringing added layers of intensity. The sudden unexpected singing was random but beautifully juxtaposed against the intense finger picking. Some material had an almost old school Brazilian element, definite shades of influence from legend Antônio Carlos Jobim.

Costa’s ‘lullaby’ was beautiful and gentle with a number of sweet sounding runs. The gentle singing although fleeting really lifted to another level. The addition of the orchestra didn’t only make the overall sound lush but heightened the moodiness, the intensity and the dynamic range. The dreamlike aura of the Brazilian jazz sounds ensured a fantastic first half of the show and Costa certainly met, and perhaps exceeded expectations.

Flamenco veteran Pepe Romero had a significantly more conventional classical guitar set up than Costa and had a more measured, slow building start. With the orchestra’s assistance he played a sadder, more evocative number second song in, with delicate textures punctuated by clarinet on a bed of soft violin.

Romero gradually built up the tempo and the intensity of the performance, incorporating a more pronounced involvement of the orchestra than Costa. The master class in Flamenco guitar by the confident guitarist was exemplary and varied, perhaps not reaching the emotive heights of Costa, but nevertheless impressing all and sundry with the sheer virtuosity and talent.

The flawless show by both performers, assisted by the Adelaide Art Orchestra, truly encapsulated what the Adelaide Guitar Festival is really about – bringing the world’s best guitarists to Adelaide audiences. The performances drew standing ovations and will certainly be remembered for a long time.

Reviewed by Gavin De Almeida

Friday 18 July

Festival Theatre

 

 

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