Stephen Liston

STEPHEN LISTON
1957-2008

.     When Stephen Liston took his first guitar lesson at age nine, he asked one of his early teachers if it was possible to play both melody and chords at the same time. He was assured it was not. "Guitarists either pick a melody or strum chords" was the reply.
.     In a fast rising career, Liston has proven that a guitarist can not only accompany himself, but create a whole world of sound as well. In his recordings it frequently sounds or seems like several guitars are being played simultaneously. At minimum, certainly more than one on many pieces.

.     At age 11, Liston moved with his parents to Malaga, Spain, and promptly spent money from his Westport, Connecticut, paper route to buy his first classical guitar. In Spain, where the guitar is the soul of their music, Liston studied with Raphael de Antequera. The heartbeat of the emotional stylings which have evolved in his playing can be attributed to this auspicious beginning.

.     Returning to New York as a teenager , Liston’s instructor became the famous jazz guitarist Sal Salvador, a luminary of the Stan Kenton Orchestra. Liston went on to study composition and arranging at Berklee College in Boston. His transcriptions and arrangements have greatly enlarged guitar repertoire.

.     The music of Stephen Liston is a unique blend of European classical and American jazz traditions, fleshed out by his interpretations of swing and ragtime. The result is versatility which defies categorization. He is equally at ease with Joplin and Gershwin as he is with Beethoven and Chopin.

.     In addition to his concerts, radio broadcasts and solo appearances, Stephen Liston has appeared on television and onstage with jazz legend Wild Bill Davison.