Ben Bolt

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Ben Bolt is an American classical guitar player and instructor.

Contents 1 Music studies 2 Accomplishments 3 Ben Bolt Quotes 4 External links

[edit] Music studies

Born in the United States, Bolt was playing lead guitar in rock bands at the age of 12 and performing professionally at the age of 16 in Miami. Once he completed high school, he went to study classical guitar in Spain.

Bolt first studied under the "father of the classical guitar", Andrés Segovia. The two met in the American Embassy in Madrid, Spain, on Bolt's 18th birthday. As Bolt was registering for the draft, maestro Segovia was getting his visa to tour the U.S. This fortuitous meeting was the beginning of their relationship. After studying with Segovia, the Maestro personally paid for scholarships so that Bolt could continue his studies abroad, as well as setting up lessons with his assistants while he was on tour. Andres Segovia once said, "Ben Bolt is an excellent guitarist with fine tone."

Later, Bolt met Abel Carlevaro in Paris. Carlevaro invited then 20-year-old Bolt to study with him under full scholarship at the yearly Master Classes held in Brazil. After Brazil, Bolt moved to Montevideo, Uruguay. He won first place in the Concurso Internacional Aemus by unanimous decision. Carlevaro awarded him the coveted "Premio de Merito" at the National Library of Montevideo for his outstanding efforts in music. In 1978, Bolt assisted maestro Carlevaro at the San Francisco Conservatory.

Bolt then completed his music studies under the direction of maestro Guido Santorsola, who bestowed him with an original composition for guitar entitled "Seis Bagatelas" as a graduation gift. After returning to the U.S., he became the first guitarist inducted as a National Patron of Delta Omicron's International Music Fraternity.

[edit] Accomplishments

He is credited with being the first classic guitar instructor to introduce the classic style of playing to the masses. Because of his worldwide success, his work has been mimicked throughout the publishing world.

Several Ben Bolt books have consistently appeared on Mel Bay's "Best Seller" list. He also appears on Mel Bay's videos of the complete volumes of The Modern Guitar Method, a huge commercial success, selling in the millions of copies. His publications are distributed internationally and have been featured at all the major conventions and music shows, including the National Association of Music Merchants in Germany. His video Anyone Can Play the Classic Guitar has become a reference for college students as the authority on the fundamentals of classic technique. He is endorsed by D’Addario Strings and Takamine Guitars. He has recorded classic guitar work for HGTV and can be heard in the background of programs such as America's Castles.

[edit] Ben Bolt Quotes

• "Remember this: The guitar doesn't have any debts. It doesn't owe you or me a dime. We owe it, period!"
• "Truth is guitar's middle name. All inspired moments are sheathed in it."
• "Very few people know how beautiful the classical guitar is. It is up to you (the student) to show the world how beautiful it is."
• "Sound reasons are the foundation of all music. The heart of music has its own reasons, which reason will never know."
• "There is no such thing as bad habits; therefore, bad habits never have to be broken. The problem is that guitar players employ correct techniques at the wrong time!"
• "One note played skillfully can light a concert hall."
• "In the end, it's the music that's left standing."
• "I always wanted to be a great guitarist, but life kept getting in my way. I suppose when you lose your life, sometimes you find it."
• "People laughed at me when I predicted Brian Bell would be my first Rock Star Student. Thirty six months later he signed with Geffen Records as guitarist for Weezer."
• "I never could understand how Andres Segovia knew who I was, and what I wanted to be? After all, I was the ripe old age of 17, and had done nothing, short of leaving my band in Miami."
• "Sometimes it's what you don't do that makes the difference!"
• "Searching for the answers to your questions, is like finding hidden treasure. The gold belongs to those who dive in, and dig!"
• "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always gotten."

[edit] External links

• [1]

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