Rare opportunity to hear harp-guitar played live at Buxton Fringe

Jonathan Pickard will perform two concerts at Buxton United Reformed Church on July 10, starting at 1pm and 7.30pm.

Through music and story-telling, Jonathan will take audiences through a journey through classical, Celtic and Spanish guitar into the magical ‘new worlds’ of the harp-guitar.

Jonathan said: “Harp-guitars aren’t new, just extremely rare, with a beautiful and unique sound - an extended guitar with extra banks of ‘harp-like’ strings creating a wonderful fusion of sonic textures and possibilities. They have been around for centuries – longer than their six string cousins in fact. It's a very simple idea – combining fretted and unfretted strings, but it makes a huge difference and makes you realise the only limit to what one can play or build is the imagination.

"With each new instrument I design I use different string configurations/materials/features and each one produces new possibilities and challenges.”

Jonathan has been playing harp-guitar for ten years and performed live on stage at Wembley Arena. His videos have been broadcast on the cable TV channel Classical Music TV in more than 150 countries.

The Somerset based museum studied classical guitar and jazz piano at Bath Spa University.

Tickets for his Buxton concerts cost £9 (adult), £5 (child, under 16) and £8 (concessions), available from www.buxtonoperahouse.org.uk

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