Their music is as diverse as their cultures. From the Mediterranean, Canada, Scotland, and the United States, these artists of the steel-string guitar create a spellbinding acoustic performance. Four of the most dynamic and powerful guitar artists in the world, each a master of the acoustic steel string guitar, combine their talents into one amazing ensemble. Men of Steel is Beppe Gambetta (Italy), Dan Crary (US), Tony McManus (Scotland), and Don Ross (Canada).
Beppe Gambetta is acknowledged as Europe's premier guitar stylist. He is a gifted acoustic guitarist and vocalist. His distinctive sound is a multi-cultural tapestry of traditional, original and classical music tunes and songs. Beppe's compositions and arrangements reflect a colorful mosaic of musical influences. Beppe's charm, engaging personality, and remarkable versatility on acoustic guitar captivate audiences without exception.
Dan Crary is a musical legend, a pioneer of one of the most intricate, yet powerful forms of American music, a flatpicking stylist with an international reputation for taste, innovation and brilliance. With 50 years as a performer, Crary is one of the few artists whose work can be said to transcend the boundaries of style and genre.
Tony McManus is ranked alongside the guitar world's all-time greats. Born near Glasgow, Scotland, Tony's fiendishly dexterous, dazzlingly original playing draws on traditions from the entire Celtic diaspora — Scotland, Ireland, Brittany, Galicia, Cape Breton, Quebec — along with still further-ranging flavors, such as jazz and east European music. McManus is increasingly being acknowledged also as a pioneering figure in bridging the realms of Celtic music and other guitar genres.
Don Ross is one of the most respected musicians in Canada and one of the top guitarists in the world. The son of a Scottish immigrant father and a Mikm'aq aboriginal mother, he was born into a musical family. By age 10 Don was already playing in alternate tunings and exploring fingerstyle techniques. Don has won the Walnut Valley Festival’s National Fingerstyle Championship twice. Preferring to follow his musical intuition in writing original material, Don's music displays a high degree of emotion and intensity. Don is one of today's true innovators of guitar composition and technique