For his concert on Sunday at the Hopkins Center, guitarist William Ghezzi began rehearsing five folk songs by Miguel Llobet long before the independence movement in the late composer’s native Catalonia ran afoul of Spain’s central government this fall.
“I wasn’t trying to be political about it,” Ghezzi, who lives in West Lebanon, said on Tuesday. “They’re just very pretty pieces.”
He’s arranging those pieces, along with jazz ballads and a suite of English folk songs, around the centerpiece of his recital: Johann Sebastian Bach’s 15-minute Chaconne, which the Baroque composer wrote for violin.
“When I’m building a program, I like to provide some contrast,” Ghezzi said. “That’s what I love to do with a program, provide as much contrast as possible.”
Ghezzi has been mixing and matching since his mother gave a guitar to her then-14-year-old son for Christmas in 1967. While he started playing folk and rock, Ghezzi’s horizon suddenly broadened when he saw classical-guitar guru Andres Segovia leading master classes on Pittsburgh’s public television station.
“They were playing a guitar in a way that … well, the Beatles didn’t play like that,” Ghezzi recalled. “It really had a profound impact on me.”
The music struck a chord deep enough for Ghezzi to major in music at Temple University, and to continue to take private lessons in classical guitar. After pursuing a career in music for more than a decade, he eventually enrolled at Drexel University, where he earned a master’s degree in information studies. In 1995, he landed at Dartmouth College’s Baker Library, where he is now librarian for digital production and metadata, and where his wife, Ridie, also is a librarian.
Soon he learned about the Vaughan Recital Series, and found an outlet for his first passion.
“It’s a great opportunity to hear some really fine music,” he said.
And to play it.
William Ghezzi performs works of Bach, John Duarte and Miguel Llobet at Dartmouth College’s Faulkner Recital Hall on Sunday afternoon at 4. Admission is free.
To learn more, visit williamghezzi.com.