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PRESTON REED
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Preston
Reed has virtually reinvented how the
acoustic guitar is played. Reed practices
a flamboyant self-invented style,
characterized by percussive techniques and
simultaneous rhythm and melody lines that
dance and ricochet around each other,
giving his music a level of excitement
that is unparalleled among today's
guitarists.
Playing an array of guitars from acoustic
to electric to classical Reed's vast range
of explosively original music will forever
change your expectation of a
guitarist.
First-time listeners find it impossible to
believe that they're hearing just the one
musician, in real time. Reed attacks the
entire instrument in a never-ending search
for the orchestra he knows is lurking
inside. At full tilt, his fingers, thumbs,
fists and hands at once suggest a drummer,
keyboardist, bassist and several
guitarists at work.
The most impressive thing about Reed's
technique, though, is that it doesn't draw
attention to itself. His compositions are
far from abstract virtuosic displays; even
without lyrics he creates vivid,
engrossing scenes. Sometimes the effect is
almost onomatopoetic. Reed generates
visual stimuli with every tweak of his
instrument, thus augmenting his wordless
compositions with an aura of the poetic.
Each tune is a story in itself with a
potent, cinematic atmosphere and an almost
tangible thread of communication between
Preston Reed and the listener.
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Reed's
entry into this guitar odyssey was
inauspicious enough, his path thereafter
largely self-discovered. A few chords
learned from his guitar playing father, a
brief, very brief, flirtation with the
ukulele, clandestine practice sessions of
his favourite Beatles and Stones songs on
dad's guitar .... and then a too-strict
classical guitar teacher led to premature
retirement.
At 16, however, Reed heard Jefferson
Airplane's rootsy blues offshoot, Hot
Tuna. His interest was rekindled big time.
Acoustic guitar heroes John Fahey and Leo
Kottke were studied, their styles absorbed
but not imitated, and at this point things
really begin to get interesting because,
at 17, Reed, by now precociously
proficient, played his first live gig,
supporting beat poet Allen Ginsberg at the
Smithsonian Institute.
Just getting on a train from his native
Armonk in New York State to Washington was
a cool adventure. And it was just the
first of many, not least of which was the
one which resulted from his signing his
first deal with a major record company,
MCA, through the auspices of his friend,
country singer-songwriter Lyle Lovett.
Determined to make the most of this
opportunity, Reed pushed himself to go
beyond the standard fingerpicking styles
he'd perfected. The result was the
beginnings of Reeds startlingly innovative
style, with its percussive, two-handed
fretboard attack, that you hear today and
which has caused guitar luminaries such as
Al DiMeola and the late Michael Hedges to
describe Reed as "phenomenal" and
"inspiring". His playing has spawned a
generation of imitators, yet Reed remains
one of a kind.
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Reed's
compositional talents extend to film
soundtracks and prestigious commissions
for the Minneapolis Guitar Quartet, and as
well as appearances alongside Bonnie Raitt
and Linda Ronstadt his major performances
include an historic live satellite
broadcast on Turkish National Television
in 1997 with renowned saz player and
composer Arif Sag which reached an
audience of 120 million in 17 countries,
prompting a flood of international
telephone calls to the station from
stunned viewers.
Since 1979, he has recorded thirteen
albums and three videos and charmed
audiences on three continents. He
continues to tour with the same hunger and
relish that informs his guitar playing.
The secret, he says, is to relax and let
the guitar patterns run by themselves.
Which explains how, at full tilt, he may
sound like a full-on heavy metal band but
he still won't have broken sweat.
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Contact
Preston via
email:
Preston
Reed
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