Around 8 years ago, I was invited by David Spelman to be a part of an intriguing event:  A Guitar Marathon focusing on the music of Spain, curated by my dear friend and “guitar guru” Pepe Romero.  At first I wondered:  what on earth is a “guitar marathon”?  I had visions of guitarists chugging Gatorade, 30 consecutive relay-race performances of the Chaconne, oxygen masks for the faint of heart.  What it turned out to be (at the 92ndSt. Y uptown) was a cavalcade of incredible players, presenting beautiful Spanish guitar music from the Renaissance to the present.  I’ll never forget the scene backstage:  hanging out with legends like Paul O’Dette, Eliot Fisk, Ana Vidovic, and of course, Pepe. And for the audience, the wide variety of styles and players made for a day of delicious guitar overdose, like watching three seasons of “Breaking Bad” in one go.

William Kanengiser:I’m sitting here with the great maestro Pepe Romero, discussing his All-Bach recital on January 10 that will kick off the 2014 New York Guitar Festival. Pepe, quite a few years ago, you did a series of All-Bach recitals; is this one at the Brookfield Place Winter Garden the first one in a long time?

When drummer, bandleader, and composer Paul Motian died at age 80 in the autumn of 2011, it was, for jazz critic Steve Futterman writing inThe New Yorker, “like waking to find that your favorite neighborhood bookstore—the one that stocked the edgy stuff that no one else would touch—had closed overnight.” Motian’s music lives on in duo performances bySteve Cardenas and Jacob Sacks,Ben Monder and Bill McHenry (Motian band alums) Gilad Hekselman and Jeff Ballard,Brandon Ross and Stomu Takeishi,Vic Juris andMary Halvorson, theNels Cline & Julian Lage Duo, andJoel Harrison and Tyshawn Sorey.

"Feel the Noise!" – curated by Joel Harrison.

An evening of trios that explore evolving concepts of rhythm, curated by Joel Harrison.

The West African-inspired Asheville, North Carolina-based ensembleToubab Kreweplays Malian-accented world-pop that’s imbued with laconic, Southeastern minimalism. Their cross-cultural flair will take a turn to the East as the band premieres an original score to Japanese directorYasujirô Ozu’s boisterous 1932 comedyI Was Born, but…. Two young brothers, outsiders in a new town, skip school to dodge a bully and fret over their father’s lowly social standing as an office clerk.

Formerly lead guitarist with The Black Crowes and current front-man for North Mississippi Allstars, Memphis-bornLuther Dickinsondeploys his aggressively Southern sensibility toWalter Ruttman’s 1927 documentary portrait of a Berlin long gone by, Berlin: Symphony of a Great City. A painter and a chamber musician before becoming a filmmaker, Ruttman cast an impressionistic eye over a single day-into-night of life observed in the German capital.

The extraordinary Brazilian guitarist/singerBadi Assadpremieres her score for one of the best-known films of China's cinematic golden age:Wu Yonggang’s 1934 debutThe Goddess, the story of a prostitute working the seamy streets of Shanghai to afford an education for her young son.

“Marc Ribotdid such a fabulous job with Chaplin's classicThe Kidat the 2010 Festival,” NYGF Founder David Spelman remembers, “bringing out not just the humor, but the deep humanity of the film, that I knew we wanted to have him back, but this time with a film that might summon up an even wider emotional palette.” This season, Ribot returns with a new score for Joseph von Sternberg’s passionate 1928 dramaThe Docks of New York, which tells the New York waterfront story of a boiler room stoker’s romance with a suicidal dance-hall girl. Ribot has frequently collaborated with Tom Waits and John Zorn; his most recent band is the trio Ceramic Dog.

FREE for the first time in our Festival's history, this six-hour Marathon (taking place on MLK Day) celebrates the classical guitar in North and South America, contrasting rich traditions with bold experimentation.

Pepe Romero’s distinguished career, both as a solo performer and charter member of the "Royal Family of the Guitar," encompasses some 60 albums, multiple White House invitations, Carnegie Hall concerts, and world premieres by Rodrigo and Moreno Torroba, in addition to receiving a Knighthood by King Juan Carlos I of Spain. This New York Guitar Festival appearance marks Romero’sfirst ever all-Bach recital in New York. Touring the world in celebration of his 70th year, Romero will givehis only New York concert this seasonat the New York Guitar Festival.

A big thanks to all of those who came to this year's Guitar Marathon. As we didn't include the repertoire in the printed program, we're providing details here. Be sure and check out the artists' websites and look for their commercial recordings on iTunes, Amazon, etc. The event was recorded and we may be making audio and video available though various outlets soon. . .

Night One: First thoughts. . .  It was a lot of work to get here, and the show is SOLD OUT. Things are going as planned for once! And this is after Rockwood Music Hall talked me into lowering the admission price and then canceled the show for a 24 hour period only three weeks ago because of lack of presales. Shame!

In 2011 I curated three nights at Cornelia St. Café that I dubbed the “Alternative Guitar Festival.” David Spelman, founder of the NYGF, attended two of those nights and was sufficiently enthused to invite me to organize a similar gathering for his festival this year.

Ceramic Dog is a post-everything band combining the energies of two masters of downtown New York City mayhem: guitarist/vocalist Marc Ribot (Tom Waits, John Zorn, Robert Plant, T-Bone Burnett, Elvis Costello) and bassist Shahzad Ismaily (Laurie Anderson, Will Oldham), with West Coast indie/experimental genius drummer Ches Smith. Ribot is a widely recognized original on the guitar, with influence across multiple genres of music, including rock, jazz, punk, Latin, soul, 80s No-Wave, avant-garde and noise. Opening the show will be Matt Mehlan's revolving ensemble musical project Skeleton$, also known as Skeletons and the Girl-Faced Boys and Skeletons and the Kings of All Cities.

Charlie Chaplin’s Pay Day & The Idle Class plus short animations from Harry Smith’s Early Abstractions. The Peruvian-influenced psychedelic pop of Chicha Libre mixes Colombian cumbia, dreamy surf guitar, and Andean melodies.  They present their scores to Chaplin’s Pay Day (1922) and The Idle Class (1921). Gyan Riley is an equally strong presence in the worlds of classical guitar and contemporary music. He’s performed throughout Europe and the U.S., both as a soloist and in ensembles with Zakir Hussain, the San Francisco Symphony, the Falla Guitar Trio, and his father, the composer/pianist/vocalist Terry Riley.

Our 5th biannual Guitar Marathon at the 92nd Street Y’s Kaufman Auditorium is co-curated by Paul O’Dette and the NYGF’s David Spelman. Some of today’s finest classical guitarists and lutenists will reveal the different facets of the music of J.S. Bach and his contemporaries. The event runs from 2—10pm, with a break at 5pm. “An epic event” is how the The Wall Street Journal classified our first Marathon, and Jazz Times called it “a veritable guitar orgy.” Half and full-day tickets will be available in August.  Presented in association with WNYC Radio and broadcast on 93.9 FM.

One of the top fingerstyle, steel-string guitarists, Grammy nominee Alex de Grassi is renowned for his impeccable technique and compelling compositions. He’s explored a variety of world music influences and drawn acclaim for his 14 recordings on Windham Hill and other labels. He presents his original score for Chaplin’s 1918 masterpiece Shoulder Arms.  James Blackshaw is a London-based prodigy who's released seven albums of mesmerizing 12-string compositions. His style is often described as "American primitive” and incorporates elements of Indian raga, improvisation, and psychedelia. He presents his original score for The Fall of the House of Usher (directed by James Sibley Watson and Melville Webber).

American icon and songwriting giant Loretta Lynn has entered the very heart of what country music describes: hard times made good through sharing music. Her career has been an autobiographical journey of what is truly one of the toughest spirits at work in music. |www.jormakaukonen.com|www.lauracantrell.com|www.gesmith.com|www.jenchapin.com