Finger-pickin’ good guitarist hits the road
Richard Gilewitz is a musician who can make you stop and wonder if the sounds coming from his acoustic guitar are real.
He is out of the ordinary and he loves New Zealand, because he sees it as an out-of-the-ordinary destination.
‘‘You know what? New Zealand has a respect as a country you don’t see with other places. I’ve played all over the world and I have never heard anyone say a serious bad word about New Zealand, it just doesn’t happen,’’ Gilewitz said.
The finger-style guitarist and one-time Nasa computer programmer was originally inspired to become a musician because his mother was a bluegrass music reviewer.
Gilewitz took a shine to the banjo but says as a child he wanted to be a drummer.
Gilewitz’s parents weren’t keen on having drums in the house so he briefly became a harmonica player. In the end he settled on the guitar and dedicated himself to the finger-picking style that has become his bread and butter as a touring musician. His own guitar hero is his long-time friend and contemporary Leo Kottke, considered one of the most important and influential acoustic steel-string fingerstyle guitarists ever.
He takes pride in the fact Kottke recorded a piece called Echoing Gilewitz a few years ago, based on a piece Gilewitz wrote in high school.
The Florida-based musician has a few friends in the music business who are ‘‘big-time’’ and they tell Gilewitz he does things the right way by taking his music to people in out of the way places.
They admire the way he makes his music accessible to people who would not normally attend a concert at a large venue in a big city.
‘‘There is not really a formula to where I go,’’ he says, ‘‘but it does make more sense to me to go to smaller towns and less frequented venues to bring something interesting to an audience that doesn’t normally see it.
‘‘My career is devoted to people like Karen Coltman who hear my music and then contact me to try to make something happen.
‘‘I met Karen at a small venue in central Hawke’s Bay randomly on my last tour and she contacted me about playing in Featherston.
‘‘Music has its heart in small towns, beyond big metropolitan centres. A place like New Zealand is very much a part of this, I love the place, Kiwis on the most part are resourceful, funny and interesting people in my experience, something quite different.
Gilewitz particularly admires the resourcefulness of New Zealanders because he himself has had to be extremely resourceful to keep his own career going so long.
As well as touring, he teaches guitar via Skype and in person. He also runs workshops on tour, writes columns for music magazines and has endorsements from guitar equipment companies.
When it comes to getting by he says that every little income stream counts toward the goal of remaining afloat in what can sometimes be an uncertain occupation.
Gilewitz is playing in Auckland, Napier, Featherston, Christchurch and Takaka as well as holding a series of workshops at Rockshop venues. See richardgilewitz.com/tours