Pierre Bensusan To Return To Charlotte & Ashesville On 2022 CD Release Tour

French-Algerian acoustic guitar virtuoso, vocalist and composer Pierre Bensusan will once again tour North America. In early 2020, Bensusan was in the USA, Ready to Play both Charlotte and Asheville, but unfortunately a fledgling pandemic cut his North American tour shot.

Early in his 2022 tour, he is back and pleased to perform again at last for area audiences and fans:

Friday, March 4rd at 8pm at The Stage Door Theater (at Blumenthal Performing Arts Center)
155 N College Street, Charlotte, NC 28202 Ticket price: $22 in advance /$25 at door Online Ticket ordering: https://www.carolinatix.org/events/detail/pierre-bensusan-3 or phone 704.372.1000 (Blumenthal Performing Arts Box Office)

Saturday, March 5th at 8:30pm at Isis Music Hall (co-presented with Mountain Spirit Acoustic Series) 743 Haywood Rd Asheville, NC, US 28806
Ticket price: $20 in advance /$25 at door Online Ticket ordering: https://isisasheville.com/event/an-evening-with-pierre-bensusan-3-5-2022/ and phone 828-575-2737

"After a two year hiatus, staying home, playing, writing and longing to share the music live with you once more, it will be a blast to finally go on tour again throughout the USA & Canada." Bensusan continues: "I'm overjoyed to at last perform my songs from the « Azwan » album, and share my brand new book « Guitar Collection » published by Hal Leonard"

The first leg of this 100 date concert tour which includes guitar clinics runs from March through May, from NC heading West through the southern states, all the way to the West Coast, then up-coast to BC. The second leg will resume in September through November, starting in WA, going East through the Northern states, the Dakotas, Manitoba, The Great Lakes, the Mid-West, Ontario, New York, Quebec, New England, East Coast, back to NC.

LATEST NEWS!

French National TV Appearance: Watch Pierre's stunning December, 2021 live performance on France's TV program "3 Hauts de France" of "HEKIMOGLU", a traditional Turkish melody which he arranged.

A Ground-breaking Collaboration: Bensusan announces: "I've been honoured and was very happy to be invited to play on Donny Osmond's 63rd and brand new album titled "Start Again". It was a bit as if a little angel came to visit in the midst of what seemed like an eternal hiatus due to the pandemic. The track in which Philippe Saisse on keys and myself play along with Donny is a soulful ballad called "Footprints". The guitar part was recorded in my studio by Christophe Goudot. All together it is an amazingly groovy, absolutely great pop R&B album and Donny's voice is as beautiful as it is powerful; full of feelings, rich and spectacular. I was also so pleased to learn that Donny has been a fan of my playing for many years. More projects together are coming..." Listen to "Footprints"

ABOUT PIERRE BENSUSAN:

It's as if the guitar has been given free reign to play itself! French-Algerian acoustic guitar virtuoso, vocalist and composer Pierre Bensusan, nicknamed "Mr. DADGAD", has taken his unique sound to all corners of the globe. Winner of the Independent Music Awards for his triple live album "Encore", voted Best World Music guitarist by Guitar Player Magazine reader's Poll, and winner of the Rose d'Or at the Montreux Festival for his debut album, Pierre is recognized as one of the greatest guitar players of the 21st century.

Born in Oran, French-Algeria, in 1957 when France was decolonizing its Empire, Pierre Bensusan's family moved to Paris when he was 4. He began formal studies on piano at the age of 7 and at 11 taught himself guitar. Influenced in those early days by the folk revival blooming in Britain, France and North America, Bensusan began first to explore his own diverse musical heritage and then moved to the horizons beyond. He signed his first recording contract at 17 and one year later his first album, "Près de Paris" won the Grand Prix du Disque upon his debut at the Montreux Festival in Switzerland.

Described by the L.A. Times as "one of the most unique and brilliant acoustic guitar veterans in the world music scene today", Pierre's name became synonymous with contemporary acoustic guitar genius, long before the terms New Age or World Music were invented. He has literally created a style of playing with the ability to make a single guitar sound like an entire band as he brings the audience on a mesmerizing musical journey. And yet, Bensusan is more than what any musician or music lover expects from a guitarist. He is a composer as well as a bilingual and original and improvisational vocalist, with his own scat technique.

Immortalized by the tune 'Bensusan' written in tribute by the late Michael Hedges, and referenced as an important inspiration to many other great musicians, Pierre Bensusan is a one-of-a-kind artist whose music transcends genre and time, with an uninhibited sense of musical freedom and expression, a sense of something both playful and serious, otherworldly yet right here; right now. His "manner" of playing defies classification - crossing world, classical, jazz, traditional, folk, pop and more. None can be isolated as simply "World Music", "Celtic", "Arabic" or "French"; rather, they represent Pierre's genuine vocabulary and the best part of our world in its current state, a world sharing itself. Not to be missed!

ABOUT THE CD "AZWAN":

During a three year hiatus from international touring, Pierre Bensusan had been writing exciting new material and perfecting his guitar-playing for his new instrumental CD "Azwan"- released in 2020. Among many accolates, Roots Music Report included it in their "Best of 2021" list for World Music.

"I chose to work with a French producer, Jean-Marie Ecay, who happens to be one of the most in-demand electric guitarists on the French jazz scene (tours with Jean-Luc Ponty, Richard Galliano) so that I could take advantage of his ears, experience and suggestions to bring the music in a different direction." says Bensusan.

As well, the scores from "Azwan" plus a selection of popular performances pieces, technical considerations and insights were published in a new book "The Pierre Bensusan Guitar Collection", released worldwide by Hal Leonard (*except by "Fingerstyle China": for China, Hong Kong & Taiwan).

Listen to & learn much more about Pierre at: http://www.pierrebensusan.com

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