Classical Guitarist Doing What He Loves- by Glenda Sanders, Daily
Sun
THE VILLAGES- "I didn't know you could get that much
out of a guitar," Villager Charles Graves told his wife Maxine during intermission
at Wednesday's Gift of Music performance by guitarist Jeff Scott.
Until he entered college and
discovered the great classic composers, Scott didn't know he would be able
to bring a blend of technical expertise and passion to Bach and Tarrega.
Scott didn't come from a musical
family. Inspired by rock bands, he pantomimed holding and strumming
the guitar along with recordings of his favorite groups. At 14, bitten
by the bug, he acquired his first real Guitar- electric- and started playing.
"Once I found it, I was completely
immersed in it," he recalled before last night's concert. At first
he was mostly self-taught, playing hours on end after school. He
took some lessons, but it was not until after four Years later, when he
entered Balwin Wallace in Berea, Ohio, where he would earn his degree in
Classical Guitar Performance, that he became hooked on the classics.
Scott credits the college program
for introducing him to the classical composers and compositions that opened
a whole new world for him. If limited by mad fates to one form of
music, this versatile guitarist, who finished last night's concert with
Spanish classics by Albeniz and Jazz standards by Duke Ellington and Dave
Brubeck, said without hesitation that he would stick with the classics.
"Classical- it's the most difficult,
but also the most rewarding," he said. "After Bach, everything is
simple."
Determined to make his living through music, he moved
from Ohio to Florida three years ago, in hopes of finding a "better environment
for a working musician."
Taking advantage of the opportunities
in this tourist and entertainment-oriented area, he plays with rock bands
and jazz groups as well as performing as a classical soloist. He
is a member of the LaMotte and
Cochran Band, billed as "Central Florida's premier Wedding/Top40/Dance"
group, and has performed in musicals in which he played guitar, sang and
acted.
Part of the joy that comes through
in his musical performance is spawned by his personal joy over being able
to do what he loves. When friends ask how things are going for him,
he tells them, "I play the guitar, and I live in Florida!"
He plans to continue playing
as long as he finds audiences. "My goals are to enjoy what I'm doing
and go as far as I can," he said. "I love what I do."
DAILY SUN The Villages NEWS , Thursday April 1, 1999
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