Players

YouTube Channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/midnight01776
Music Player
http://www.myspace.com/alancath

"Fancy Al Cath" - the story behind the name..

I have been playing and singing all my life. But when I started performing in 2006, I performed instrumentals exclusively. Apparently inspired by my guitar work, esteemed and talented Open Mic host Dan Cloutier just started introducing all my performances this way. I guess it has a hook to it, because soon thereafter I found myself being introduced that way at every performance. For a long time I vowed I would never use the moniker myself, but after it was clear that it was going to stick, I decided what the heck - seems like as good a branding exercise as anything I could come up with on my own, so why not run with it?

Fingerstyle Acoustic Guitar Lessons

Get more out of your guitar than just strumming...

I can show you how to play full, rich-sounding solo arrangements that showcase the acoustic guitar as a single self-sufficient instrument. Amazingly, it's not that hard to do - especially when someone shows you what to do. It's not about stunt work; just care, finesse, and great tone.

I specialize in searingly beautiful instrumentals in both standard and non-standard tunings (Laurence Juber, Ed Gerhard), and intricate fingerstyle guitar as vocal accompaniment (James Taylor, Bonnie Raitt).

Laurence Juber, formerly Paul McCartney’s lead guitarist in Wings, #14 on the top 100 acoustic guitarists in the world. Juber opens and closes Beatles conventions the world over with his rich, astonishingly complete-sounding instrumental arrangements of Beatles classics like Money Can't Buy Me Love, Yesterday, Let It Be, Yesterday, Here Comes The Sun, Strawberry Fields Forever, In My Life, For No One, This Boy, and more (search YouTube for Juber).

Besides his Beatles material, I also perform and teach many of Juber's other arrangements of traditionals and standards (Pink Panther, Danny Boy, Somewhere Over The Rainbow, Joy of Man, Pavane), and several of his original compositions (Love At First Sight, Cat Hill, Buffalo Nickel, Catch, The 5:55, When Harry Finally Got To Heaven).

Ed Gerhard's style, arrangements and compositions are quite different than Laurence Juber's, but just as striking. I perform and teach his mesmerizing interpretations of The Water Is Wide and Moon River.

If you aspire to this type of playing style - if you're searching for something more than just rhythm or lead - come work with me for an hour a week. I will show you how to play these irresistibly beautiful instrumentals that never fail to impress, and/or how to use your guitar to add tremendous dimension to your vocals.

I am in Sudbury, MA. My schedule is quite flexible (weekday evenings or weekends are OK), and the rate is reasonable. Email me at al@alancath.com and we'll set up a time to talk on the phone.

Acoustic guitar as entertainment

Music for special events...

My instrumental guitar music is ideal for mature situations like wedding cocktail hours, corporate functions, or dinner parties where you're looking for something entertaining but non-intrusive going on in the background.

Much of the material consists of intricate, full-sounding guitar arrangements of popular, recognizable material that most everyone loves - from classic Beatles tunes like Let It Be, Yeserday, Here Comes The Sun, Strawberry Fields Forever, and In My Life, to standards like Somewhere Over The Rainbow, Moon River, The Water Is Wide, and Danny Boy (see video at right).

What is the goal?

I have a lifetime of musical involvement in one form or another, first keyboards, later guitars (6-string acoustic and electric, 12-string, pedal steel). My style is not about high speed gymnastics - it's about touch and finesse; it's about making making every note count. My goal as a musician is to evoke strong emotion in the listener; I go straight for the heart.

After a recent performance at the Sit 'n' Bull Pub, emcee and professional musician Seth Connelly told the crowd, "I have spent a lot of time putting love into a guitar, but I don't remember when I've heard so much love coming out of one."

That... is exactly what I strive to accomplish.

Although my musical interests are as varied as their influences, there is always a common theme in what I choose to play - highly musical, sensitive renditions that you are likely to recognize and guaranteed to enjoy. To keep things interesting, I like to switch back and forth from vocal tunes with story-telling lyrics and active guitar accompaniment to intricate acoustic finger style instrumentals that are as fun to watch as they are to hear. I also switch guitars to best accommodate the varied material and tunings I use.


The Canvas Gallery - San Francisco, CA 8/06

Musings on other subjects...

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Tell me something I didn't know...

...one of my favorite questions, because after all - I get to learn something new right there on the spot. Chris Matthews asks this question of all his panelists at the end of his Sunday morning news show "Hardball". And they always have an answer ready, of course. Would you?

Here's something you probably didn't know: Leo Fender did not know how to play the guitar.
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Commuter Cars Corporation Does The Tango

The Tango Electric Car is a must see. If you're in a rush, at the very least - look at the pictures. It's so cool and so weird - just to look at. To me it looks like an italicized phone booth on wheels (although a phone booth generally fits only one). The Tango fits two (like the dance; hence the name, I imagine).

When will mine be ready?
Phone booth? When was the last time you saw one of those?
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LinkedIn

My LinkedIn Personal Profile. Some are skeptical about the benefits of this on line network for professionals, but at a recent MentoNet meeting (mostly all technology CEOs - see separate post about MentoNet), every person I met was on there, and most had a lot of connections (80+). Could all those corporate big dogs be wrong? Best of all, I was able to use LinkedIn to instantly view their CVs. On the flipside, some have told me that they removed their profile because it exposed them to heavy assault by search firms. Could easily be. My current position is that the benefits outweigh the drawbacks,and encourage invitations to connect.

Articles about LinkedIn:
A MySpace For Grown-ups
Ten Ways To Use LInkedIn
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