Making Beautiful Music...Together

Although classical guitarist Eliot Fisk and jazz guitarist Bill Frisell have known each other since they first met in Germany nearly 25 years ago, they’ve never performed together — until now. After both do a solo set tonight at DU’s Newman Center, they’ll join forces for a third.

Related Content

• Eliot Fisk on collaborating with Bill Frisell and improvisation
  January 21, 2011
• Jazz guitarist Dale Bruning looks back on his love of music and teaching
  March 22, 2012
• Bill Frisell on studying with Dale Bruning: "I don't know if I'd really be playing now if it wasn't for him"
  March 23, 2012
• Greg Garrison's Improvised Roots Series mixes Denver's best improvisers with national greats
  January 12, 2012
• Who said it: Andrew W.K. or William Shatner?
  February 14, 2012

More About

• Eliot Fisk
• Bill Frisell
• Newman Center
• Stephen Foster
• Robert Beaser

Like this Story?

Sign up for the Events Newsletter: What's happening in town? From underground club nights to the biggest outdoor festivals, our top picks for the week's best events will always keep you in on the action.

Privacy Policy Cancel Continue

Fisk and Frisell have been e-mailing ideas back and forth for a couple of months, trying to decide which songs to feature in this classical/jazz mash-up. They could play works by Frisell, Luciano Berio, Robert Beaser, Stephen Foster or even J.S. Bach, whom Fisk considers the most jazzy of the great composers. Fisk’s approach to classical music has a lot in common with the spontaneity and improvisation of jazz, he explains. And he thinks that Frisell’s elegant, stylish jazz playing is very classy — almost in a classical way.

“It’s basically two people coming together from really different parts of the musical galaxy and meeting in the middle in an exciting place,” Fisk says, “and I think that’s part of the electricity of the moment. I think we have a certain commonality of musical spirit and musical aspiration that works very well for doing such a thing.”

The show starts at 7:30 p.m. tonight in the Gates Concert Hall at the Newman Center, 2344 East Iliff Avenue; reserved tickets are $32 to $48. For more information, call 303-871-6200.
Fri., Jan. 21, 7:30 p.m., 2011