We are living in scary times.  And I won’t pretend I don’t feel despair – I do.  But since we can’t control our future, and since our days are counted, sharing what we hold as beautiful and gives us joy is probably one of the few things which we can do which really makes sense.  For me there are many such sources of joy, especially music.  I love music, and I especially love guitar music.  And one of my favorite composers of all times is Astor Piazzolla (I think of him as a fusion of Baroque, Jazz and Argentinian Tango).  Piazzolla was not only a brilliant composer, but also a brilliant musician.  But his instrument was the Bandoneon, which is beautiful by itself, but lacks the lyrical power of the guitar, at least in my humble opinion.  And the guitar is the instrument which most speaks to my heart.  And there are many very good guitarists out there which beautifully played Piazolla’s music (I think of Cacho Tirao, Manuel Barrueco, the Katona Twins and many others).  And yet one of them, Al Di Meola, stands out in my mind.  Al Di Meola is certainly a very talented guitarist, and a (sometimes) inspired composer.  But where he truly shines is, I think, when he interprets Piazzolla.  Simply put, I think that Al Di Meola “gets” Piazzolla.  Di Meola gets the tension, the drama, the agony, the beauty, the nostalgia, the despair and the serenity.  I want to share two of Al Di Meola’s most beautiful renditions of Piazzolla’s most brilliant compositions.  I hope that they will bring you as much joy as they did to me.

The Saker