Virtuoso guitarist to entertain at The Canyon in Agoura Hills

NOUVEAU STAR—Flamenco guitarist Ottmar Liebert performs with his band Luna Negra at 9 p.m. Sat., Sept. 13 at The Canyon club. Ottmar Liebert, renowned nouveau flamenco guitarist, and his band, Luna Negra, will perform at The Canyon club in Agoura Hills on Sat., Sept. 13.

2008 brought two new releases from Liebert and his band, their first new recordings since the award winning 2004 outing, "La Semana."

The two binaural recordings include "Up Close,"which came out in May, and "The Scent of Light," which was released in June.

Last summer, Liebert and his players gathered in his private adobe studio in Santa Fe and recorded the nine songs on "Up Close."

The group delivered a virtuoso recording that suggests the listener is actually in the room with the band. Any change in volume, or left-to-right or front-to-back movement, was created by the musicians moving around a dummy head microphone in the center of the studio.

"Scent of Light" picks up the special sensibility of the binaural experience by spreading the sound across the full stereo field.

In the recording, Liebert steps away from the minimalist sound of his last release, "One Guitar," and creates a layered recording with multiple guitars, basses, keyboards and percussion. The 10 instrumental songs are narratives—ambient responses to specific places Ottmar has visited.

In "Morning Light," the listener witnesses the Zen dawn emerge over the rugged mountain landscape of Kham, Tibet, a mystical venue that Ottmar visited in October 2006. The music carries a "smell and taste" that triggers unexpected memories and is meant to be a shake-up of the mind and body.

"Firelight," with its slicing rasguados and flamenco funk, could be Earth, Wind & Fire run through a Spanish Laundromat. "Three Days Without You" takes you deep in to the flamenco cellar, then surfaces in a wild mixutre of crossing harmonics and classical Liebert riffs. Tracks range from over 5 minutes to almost 12 minutes

"The Scent of Light was recorded between Spring of 2005 and Spring of 2008," says Liebert. "While 'One Guitar' was as minimalist as can be, 'Up Close' was the most minimalist one can be with a band, and it was time to make the image large again."

As for the album cover photo, Liebert says, "I visited the abandoned state prison near Santa Fe about a year ago and the cover picture was taken there, in one of the cells. There was a riot there in 1980, and 33 inmates were killed. You can imagine the vibe; yet, it's part of history of the place where I live. The light is incredible, even though the prison is slowly falling back into the desert with its misery and rubbish. The light has a scent, yes?"

Since 1990, Ottmar Liebert has released a total of 22 albums, including live releases, Christmas CDs, 11 CDs of original music, a DVD and remixes, for which he received more than 30 gold and platinum awards.

His debut album, the 1990s "Nouveau Flamenco" featuring the hit single "Barcelona Nights," sold over two million CDs in the U.S. and received platinum awards in three countries. It became the biggestselling guitar album of all time, marking Liebert as one of the most talented, influential and creative guitarist/performers to surface in years.

The Canyon club concert will begin at 9 p.m. with doors opening at 6 p.m.

Tickets cost $32.50 and can be purchased at The Canyon box office and TicketMaster, or by calling (818) 879.5016.

For more information, visit www.canyonclub.net.