#4891, Guitar-Like Instruments From the NY Guitar Festival

New Sounds | Aug 11, 2025

Hear music recorded over the 25-year collaboration with the New York Guitar Festival with ancestors and cousins of the guitar: West African Kora, Mohan veena, Turkish saz, Chinese pipa, and Arab oud.

There’s music for the Arab oud from Palestinian-American composer, performer, and Grammy-nominated oud and violin virtuoso Simon Shaheen, recorded at the 92Y at the 2002 New York Guitar Festival Marathon. Then, from the 2022 New York Guitar Festival performances in The Greene Space, hear fado-tinged music from bandleader, composer, and soloist Marta Pereira da Costa, the world’s first and only female professional player of the guitarra Portuguesa, (a double six-stringed, teardrop-shaped instrument traditionally played by men.) 

Also listen to new music by Dutch lutenist Jozef van Wissem entitled, written in tribute to the guitarist Julian Bream. It’s called, “Fancy a Nosecap”, the way he used to ask if anyone was up for one more drink before the night was done. Plus, hear the Mohan veena, a hybrid of guitar and sitar which with 20 strings and tuning heads invented by Vishwa Mohan Bhatt. Listen to work played by Canadian musician Harry Manx, who studied in India with Vishwa Bhatt as recorded in 2006. Then, there’s music from guitarist and Turkish saz player Brad Shepik, a work played on Chinese pipa by Min Xiao-Fen, and music for West African kora played by the late Keba Cissoko, all recorded in 2002. That, and more. - Caryn Havlik

#4891, From the NYGF, Ancestors and Cousins of the Guitar (First aired 6/05/2024)

ARTIST:  Marta Pereira da Costa, guitarra Portuguesa; Alexandre Diniz, piano
WORK: Terra [4:06]
RECORDING: NYGF 2022 in The Greene Space
SOURCE: thegreenespace.org/watch/william-tyler-and-marta-pereira-da-costa/
INFO: martapereiradacosta.com

ARTIST: Taj Mahal
WORK: Horseshoes [5:52]
RECORDING: NYGF 2006 at Merkin Hall
SOURCE: This performance not commercially available.
INFO: 
The tune appears on the Sounder Soundtrack, available at Spotify, AppleMusic, Amazon.com, YouTube

ARTIST: Dennis Koster
WORK: Bulerias [5:33]
RECORDING: NYGF Guitar Marathon, 92nd Street Y, 1/25/04
SOURCE: This performance not commercially available.
INFO: https://www.denniskoster.com

ARTIST: Simon Shaheen
WORK: Blue Flame [5:33]
RECORDING: NYGF Guitar Marathon, 92nd Street Y, 2002
SOURCE: This performance not commercially available.
INFO: https://www.almaartistbooking.com/profile/simon-shaheen

ARTIST: Jozef van Wissem
WORK: Fancy a Nosecap [3:35]
RECORDING: private recording for NYGF
SOURCE: youtube.com 
INFO: newyorkguitarfestival.org

ARTIST: Marta Pereira da Costa, guitarra Portuguesa; Alexandre Diniz, piano
WORK: Terra [4:06]
RECORDING: NYGF 2022 in The Greene Space
SOURCE: thegreenespace.org/watch/william-tyler-and-marta-pereira-da-costa/
INFO: martapereiradacosta.com

ARTIST: Keba Cissoko
WORK: Kaira [4:26]
RECORDING: NYGF Guitar Marathon, 92nd Street Y, 2002
SOURCE: This performance not commercially available.
INFO: https://www.newyorkguitarfestival.org

ARTIST: Harry Manx
WORK: Won't Be Worried Long (Charley Patton)  [5:10]
RECORDING: NYGF 2006 at Merkin Hall
SOURCE: This performance not commercially available.
INFO: 
https://harrymanx.com/

ARTIST: Brad Shepik
WORK: Invocation [4:55]
RECORDING: NYGF Guitar Marathon, 92nd Street Y, 2002
SOURCE: This performance not commercially available.
INFO: https://www.bradshepikmusic.com

ARTIST: Min Xiao-Fen
WORK: Tan Dun: C A G E [5:55]
RECORDING: NYGF Guitar Marathon, 92nd Street Y, 2002
SOURCE: This performance not commercially available.
INFO: http://minbluepipa.com

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