Tobin Roye, Brazillian Guitarist

The soft "clomps" of footsteps could be heard in the darkness. Behind the curtain and into the light appeared a man with a guitar in hand, and confidence in his walk. Two mics stood center stage at Harlen Adams theatre and the man approached them and sat down on a black stool between the mics. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, he spoke into the mic softly introducing himself as Tobin Roye, and his affliation with the Chico State campus. He continued on with the introduction stating his past achievements in schools of music across the country. After his brief intro, he told the audience a little bit about his first song, Romantic Waltz #1, by composer Edmar Fenicio.

The crowd, full of mostly grey-haired heads and a few students, became hushed under the anticipation of the first performance. Gently, Roye led into the song with skilled precision. The song began to take shape and the audience softened after their apparent anxiety of the song. As the song carried on, Roye also became more and more relaxed as the music had a more organic feeling to it.

Because I have had classical guitar lessons in my childhood, I was able to sincerely appreciate and enjoy my evening in the theatre being serenaded by a talented guitarist. I realized that many of the songs he played that night had a very "jazzy, lounge" feel to them. Not at all like elevator music like some would assume, but a mixture of classical spanish guitar and modern jazz. Perhaps this is some of the style of Brazilian guitar playing.

After what seemed like a brief few minutes, the intermission brought the first act to a close. Immediatly, the lights in the house went up and people went scrambling out the door. At first, I didn't know what to think-maybe people were in desperate need of a bathroom break, or they severely disliked the performance. Soon enough though, people began shuffling in again and the lights dimmed a second time.

Once again, Roye gave a brief description of the song that he was about to play and then quietly gave his attention to the guitar. This time, the song exuded a robust and lively feel to it. As I was listening, I felt transported to a small street corner in Spain, listening to the bright harmonies of a classical guitarist. After a slew of songs in this style, Roye paused briefly and stood as three guitarists appeared from behind the curtain. The audience applauded exubertently and as their clapping subsided, the now four guitarists began Granada, and the energy of the popular flamenco song filled the auditorium. At this point the audience's level of enthusiam was well apparent as their gaze was locked intently on the performers.

Eventually, the evening came to close with a exciting rendition of Sevilla which was played once again by all of the guitarists and in my perception, brought down the house. As the house lights slowly filled the room while the audience cheered, I sat there quietly in my chair taking in the experience of the night. Because of my appreciation for this type of music, I certainly felt like the only one, if one of the few, people that really appreciated the art and intensity of the music. Once again, I am grateful for this music and will definitely return when the oppurtunity arrives.