Australia’s premier guitar quartet, Guitar Trek, will be performing their first-ever show in Wagga next month. Photo: Supplied.
For 35 years Guitar Trek has been travelling the world, building its name as the country’s most prolific and influential guitar quartet.
Mastering the guitars, bass, classical instruments and even the dobro, the four members of Guitar Trek will finally be making their long-awaited Riverina debut at the Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre this August.
The talented quartet made up of founder Tim Kain and legendary guitarists Minh Le Hoang, Matt Withers and Callum Henshaw, has released eight albums and has completed tours to the USA, Eastern Europe, Singapore, Brunei, Thailand, the Philippines, Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam.
Inspired by the likes of Led Zeppelin, JS Bach, music of the Spanish masters, unbuttoned Brahms, the Beatles, the Greats of the Renaissance, George Gershwin, the Gypsy Kings and the sensuous rhythms of modern-day Brazil, Guitar Trek’s talents take performing to a new level, according to Riverina Conservatorium of Music’s Harold Gretton, who has been a guitar guru his entire life.
“They’ve existed since 1987,” he said. “They were formed by a former lecturer in guitar at the ANU (Australian National University) Timothy Kain.
“He started looking around for different types of musical formations that would accept guitars, in particular things like ensembles with string quartets, woodwind brass and so on.
“He ended up finding that there’s no real formation for guitars, so he contacted a guitar builder he knew, Graham Calder Smith. Together they commissioned a lot of different instruments like bass guitar, a baritone guitar and a Quinto guitar, to form a family of instruments which is basically what Guitar Trek is today.”
Mr Gretton said, for the next 35 years, Guitar Trek has been writing new music to accompany its unique composition and touring countries showcasing its one-of-a-kind sound.
“They’re such a fantastic group but they’ve never played in Wagga before,” Mr Gretton said.
“They’re on the radio all the time and they perform in places like Canberra quite regularly, but it’s not quite the same as seeing them in concert at a place like the Riverine Club.
“I’ve spoken to Tim and Matt (of Guitar Trek) a couple of times now and they are so excited to share their music with an audience that hasn’t heard it before or seen it live.
“That’s one of the greatest joys as a musician, reaching new audiences and experiences.”
Mr Gretton said the concert at the Riverine Club would be a must-see for anyone who loves the guitar and wants to learn everything the instrument is capable of.
“It’s going to be amazing,” he said.
“It’s the best of the best guitarists playing a huge mixture of music all in our own backyard, You don’t want to miss out on that.”
To secure tickets to Guitar Treks’ first-ever show in Wagga Wagga at the Riverine Club on Friday 2 August, visit the Civic Theatre’s website here.
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