Gipfeltreffen | Hopkinson Smith & Wolfgang Muthspiel

Hopkinson Smith | 8-course Renaissance lute
Wolfgang Muthspiel | acoustic guitar, electric guitar

The title of this evening might sound somewhat provocative, but it is hits the nail on the head: Hopkinson Smith is one of the most important lute players on the globe. Born in New York, he has been releasing one award-winning album after another since the 1970s. The music magazine Gramophone called his version of Bach’s violin partitas “the best recording of these works on any instrument.” But he also has a soft spot for “early baroque maniacs“ (Smith) such as the eccentric Venetian G.G. Kapsberger or the “singer-songwriter of the Renaissance” John Dowland.

Wolfgang Muthspiel, born in Judenburg, Styria, has been a mainstay in the international jazz scene for more than 30 years. You will find his name side by side with Gary Burton, Brad Mehldau, and Chris Cheek. When New York organises a guitar summit, he is quite likely among the invited guests. And his latest album “Etudes / Quietudes” is quickly becoming a reference work in acoustic guitar literature.

Smith & Muthspiel: one has a degree from Harvard, the other from Berklee College, the Mecca of jazz schools in Boston. The fact that both are teaching in Basel formed the geographical starting point for this – indeed – summit meeting commissioned by Imago Dei. The two will begin by playing solo for us and then perform with their combined talents