When I was younger I wanted to be a guitar-wielding, vocal powerhouse rock star. After a few fledgling attempts at musical production with impromptu rock bands, I realized that my dream was limited to the occasional, recreational strumming of an acoustic guitar.
Turn on the radio today, and toggle through the stations. You are bound to find variations of rock and pop. That should come to no surprise to anyone. I dreamed of pop/rock stardom, and I did so because that was what was cool. I was a musical conformist, and although at 14 years old I turned my attention to 60s and 70s rock, I was still focused on rock dreams.
Davide Rigodanzo is not, and that is what makes this 14-year-old fingerstyle guitarist so special. A self-taught guitarist who started playing the guitar when he was 11 years old, he has aspirations different from your normal 14-year-old music lover. Davide, a spitting image of Justin Bieber, represents keen maturity and a perspicacious appreciation of the acoustic guitar and music itself. I’ll leave you to read some of Davide’s words.
“My preferred style is fingerpicking. It is not simple to learn, but I think that this style meets the possibility to have an accompaniment (with finger) + a principal sound more emphasized with the pick.”
You don’t hear many 14-year-old aspiring musicians talking like that. As a music lover, I have much respect for those who play the acoustic guitar well. The instrument has been slightly perverted by pop simplicity – a few chords and voila, a chart-bursting hit. I am endeared to those who actually know how to pick notes and extract emotion from an acoustic guitar so it oozes out in smooth sound. Davide is able to do that.
He even gets the slaps and mutes right! Sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself. “Wonderful Tonight” is my favorite Eric Clapton song. Davide performs it with sophistication and feeling. The sound is crisp, and Davide strikes each note with intensity. He demonstrates a true sagacity in his ability to not drown the sound by playing too quickly or let the sound echo too often. It’s a wonderful mixture.
I’m happy to introduce Davide to the Music Court readership. It isn’t everyday I am contacted by a classical guitarist, especially one who is 14 years old. We should all take a page out of Davide’s playbook. Don’t simply pursue something because it is perceived to be chic or profitable. Do what you love!
The Music Court 
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