Peppino D'Agostino is not your conventional steel-string acoustic guitarist. He cannot be pinned down to a particular style. And that's exactly the way the internationally acclaimed virtuoso wants it.
The Italian native and longtime California resident's latest project is 'Bayshore Road,' a collaboration with his friend and studio partner, electric guitarist Stef Burns. Released in 2005, 'Bayshore Road' is D'Agostino's latest effort for guitar legend Steve Vai's label, Favored Nations, and it serves as a perfect example of his diversity. D'Agostino's style incorporates both standard and unconventional tunings as well as unique fingering and percussive effects.
"I'm not just an acoustic guitar player. I've played with classical and jazz guitarists," D'Agostino said. "What I'm trying to do is stretch the boundaries of this instrument. I think of myself as more than just an acoustic guitar player. I'm an entertainer, singer and guitarist who plays a lot of different styles. I also enjoying teaching guitar, and I've done instructional books and videos."
He has taught at guitar clinics the world over, and his instructional releases include 1984's country and bluegrass songbook 'Metodo Per Chitarra Flatpicking Country E Bluegrass' for Italian publisher Berben, 1997's 'New Acoustic Guitar' for Warner Bros. Publications and 1998's teaching video 'The Guitar of Peppino D'Agostino' from Homespun Tapes, to name just a few. Also, his song "Belladonna" was included in the 1999 songbook-and-CD package 'Fingerstyle Guitar Masterpieces' published by Acoustic Guitar magazine.
D'Agostino's attraction to the acoustic guitar occurred when he was 10 years old and heard his older cousin play the instrument in church. In 1966, he got a cheap classical guitar fitted with steel strings instead of the customary nylon strings and took a few lessons from his cousin first before teaching himself.
"The music scene in Italy at the time was really wild and strange. I was playing Italian pop songs which, the majority of the time, were English or American pop songs translated into Italian. I learned stuff like Beatles songs, 'Solitary Man' by Neil Diamond and 'Venus' by the Shocking Blue," he said. "I was strumming those chords, but also at that time I wrote my very first tune on just the first two strings. I still remember that tune."
"When I turned 14 or 15, playing an instrument became very social. It was 1970 in Italy and if you played guitar you would meet girls. You would try to impress your peers. It was very cool at that point. I did play electric guitar too. For a while, I played electric guitar in a band that did Santana stuff like 'Oye Como Va' and 'Samba Pa Ti.'"
When D'Agostino was 17, he formed an acoustic guitar duo with a friend, and he also found an album by the guitar trio of John Fahey, Peter Lang and Leo Kottke that changed his life.
"That's where I learned the fingerstyle technique. At the time in Italy, there really were no instructional books or videos. So what I did was spend hours dropping the record player needle on the album, listening to the parts over and over again. Eight hours a day. My mother went nuts!" said D'Agostino. "I was completely obsessed. I wanted to understand what they were doing and play that music."
The desire to absorb as much acoustic guitar music as possible even resulted in a potentially troublesome adventure. At age 23, while in the army, D'Agostino jumped a wall at camp and technically went AWOL one night in order to catch a concert by a variety of acoustic guitarists.
Before long, D'Agostino began studying Irish music, Brazilian music, traditional Italian folk music and classical music. He also enjoyed pop and progressive music from the likes of Genesis, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Gentle Giant and Mike Oldfield. The soundtrack work of his hero, 'The Good, the Bad & the Ugly' composer Ennio Morricone, was hugely influential. D'Agostino said his love of music also became a form of "salvation." He saw many friends get destroyed by drugs, particularly heroin, but music was his outlet.
D'Agostino's first album, 'Bluerba,' was released in Italy in 1981. It was a collaboration with Enzo Ponzio and Alfredo Morabito. 'Silk and Steel,' an anthology/collaboration with other Italian guitarists, followed in 1983.
In 1984, D'Agostino decided to move to the United States. He immigrated to San Francisco. He had tired of the music scene in Italy; as a guitarist, your only career options there were playing with pop or dance music stars or teaching classical guitar in schools. It was also impossible to get respect and coverage from the Italian media. Had D'Agostino been foreign, they would have fawned over him, but home-grown musicians were always ignored for some reason.
"I was a struggling street musician. I also painted houses and sold vegetables to support myself. I started playing on the streets of San Francisco in 1985. I played on Fisherman's Wharf and I also started playing in clubs. Before long, I met my wife and she was very supportive," said D'Agostino.
An agent saw him play and helped him get gigs, which led to a recording contract. He began releasing a string of solo and collaborative albums, including the soundtrack to the Italian film 'Ardena' after director Luca Barbareschi happened to catch one of his performances. After recording for few different labels, D'Agostino came to the attention of Vai and Favored Nations. The years of struggle finally paid off.
"Things are meant to happen the way they happen. I believe in destiny," said D'Agostino. "It takes time to build a name for yourself. It can't happen all at once."
D'Agostino's solo work is incredibly wide-ranging, yet his many collaborations with an astonishing variety of fellow musicians and composers illustrate the full depth of his talent. 'Bayshore Road' is just the latest example; D'Agostino's playing blends perfectly with that of Stef Burns, a longtime member of Huey Lewis & The News and a highly regarded rock guitar virtuoso. D'Agostino has also worked extensively with classical guitar master David Tannenbaum, chairman of the San Francisco Conservatory. He has also performed with the acclaimed children's choir Voena.
One of the many highlights of D'Agostino's career so far is his work with the World Guitar Ensemble as a composer and performer. The ensemble is based in Germany and includes guitarists from all over the world. However, D'Agostino is the only steel-string acoustic guitarist to become a member. He joined in 2003 and has performed with the ensemble at sold-out concert halls throughout Europe.
A busy touring schedule whisks him regularly around the world where he's shared the stage with such noted guitarists as Leo Kottke, Doc Watson, Chet Atkins, Badi Assad, Tommy Emmanuel, Martin Taylor, Laurindo Almeida, Michael Hedges, David Bromberg, David Grisman, Eric Johnson, John Lee Hooker and Egberto Gismonti as well as ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuru.
D'Agostino's skill and creativity is not only confined to composing and performing music. In 2002, in collaboration with guitar maker and instruments innovator Robert Godin, D'Agostino developed his signature guitar model, which employs the new compound-curve design. This instrument features a slightly wider fingerboard, and it's perfectly designed to suit his explosive rhythms and almost constant change of tunings. Furthermore, he developed a guitar accessories pouch called the D'Agostino Tool Bag with the renowned Jim Dunlop Manufacturing.
How does D'Agostino define success for himself?
"I feel that success is getting a standing ovation in Moscow after playing a bagpipe piece translated to guitar. I had a cousin who was suffering from a debilitating illness who was emotionally moved after I played some Morricone pieces and Parisian accordion music arranged for solo guitar. To me, that's success," he said.
"I want to stretch the limits of the acoustic guitar in terms of melody, harmony and rhythm, and add percussive effects while addressing those first three elements. Ultimately, my mission is to touch people in a heartfelt way both emotionally and intellectually."
