ACOUSTICON NEWS -
Don't miss AcoustiCon's next multi-media concert experience at the Ormond Beach Performing Arts Center. The show entitled "Sorella Mystica" is engaging and thought-provoking for audiences of all ages. The blend of original musical compositions and video is stimulating, provocative, and inspiring; truly the new wave in live concerts, and a refreshing change from the expected. You can find more information on our
EVENTS Page
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The Event
AcoustiCon, known for virtuoso guitar and soaring melodies, perform their highly acclaimed multimedia concert: "Sorella Mystica". This high-tech event fuses AcoustiCon's live original compositions with beautiful visual art. It is a concert program recognized for its musical integrity and soul stirring emotion, combining exquisite melody lines with the finest of fine art photography, digital graphics and video, and state of the art projection; all totally in sync. It is the most engaging concert you will ever hear, incorporating a rare sense of beauty. The projected video tells a story or simply sets a mood for every song. Performed by accomplished musicians, the concert offers a guitar-oriented musical journey through delightful landscapes, at turns powerful, calm and beautiful.
The Musicians
In 1998, guitarist Brad Sayre and bassist David Simmons joined forces to create a unique and original form of acoustic guitar music that led to the conception of AcoustiCon, a progressive acoustic duo combining elements of classical, jazz and rock. Together they have released three CD's, written soundtracks for over a dozen films and have won nine Songwriters Showcases of America Awards, including "Recording Artist of the Year" and "CD of the Year". Guitarist Brad Sayre is the only two-time winner of the "Best Guitarist Award". Billboard magazine credits Sayre for "developing his own powerful and fluid style, demonstrating there will always be room for the guitar virtuoso."
The Photographer
The fine art photography of Barbara Simmons is an integral part of AcoustiCon's live multimedia performance. Known for her hand-painted infrared photography, Barbara shares production and director credits with the group. In order to effectively take her photography from the gallery to the big screen of the concert stage, Barbara works with negative scanners and a host of computers and software to prepare her images for projection. Barbara chooses to shoot in infrared for the majority of her work because it adds a magical touch and dreamlike feel to her art and to the AcoustiCon stage production. All of the talent and elements that encompass AcoustiCon make for a performance that will move your spirit and take your breath away!
AcoustiCon has been drawing in audiences for the last eight years with their unique and powerful form of instrumental music which combines elements of classical, jazz, and rock. Independently, AcoustiCon has sold thousands of their three CD releases. Billboard magazine once said of AcoustiCon's guitarist, "with Brad Sayre developing his own powerful and fluid style that demonstrates anew, there will always be room for the guitar virtuoso." AcoustiCon has won nine awards from the Songwriters Showcases of America. Awards include "Best Guitarist", "CD of the Year", and "Recording Artist of the Year". Writing the soundtracks for over a dozen films and numerous commercials, has led AcoustiCon to develop their highly acclaimed multi-media show entitled “Sorella Mystica,” which combines the fine art photography of Barbara Simmons, video, video graphics, live cameras and projection, all totally in sync with AcoustiCon's live musical performance. The show has received critical acclaim for its musical integrity and soul stirring emotion.
What has contributed to AcoustiCon's national attention, besides their guitar technical prowess and songwriting skills, is that recordings and live performances are all done with acoustic instruments. People just cannot believe their eyes or ears when they find out that the sounds they are hearing are coming from acoustic instruments. Through the advent of new technologies, AcoustiCon is able to create rich electric sounds with acoustic guitars.
While Brad Sayre has performed as lead guitarist and vocalist for Dr. Hook “featuring Ray Sawyer”, Melanie, Danny Joe Brown, MTV’s Messendger, touring in over 14 countries worldwide, he has found his true calling with AcoustiCon. His open hand finger style technique led Grammy Award Winner Jesse Cutler of “The Cutler Edge Radio Show”-Real Radio to say that Brad is “the first finger style guitarist to be compared to Joe Satriani, Steve Vai and even Jimi Hendrix.”
Award winning Bass guitarist, David Simmons, is the other half of AcoustiCon's song writing team. David is also a producer and studio engineer. Beginning his musical training on the classical guitar, David is known for using complex chord structures and classical fingering techniques to create lush textures and soaring melodies with the bass guitar. His work with AcoustiCon has been featured in many Nature Documentaries and as well as writing and recording the theme music for Chuck Norris’s UFAF Martial Art Instructional Videos.
Releasing their first CD in 1999 entitled "Journey to Damascus", AcoustiCon set the standard for what fans would come to expect from these talented musicians. According to the Daytona Beach News Journal "AcoustiCon titled one of their songs "Seeing is Believing." "Hearing is Believing" would have been better to describe the improbable feat the two musicians, Brad Sayre and David Simmons, accomplish on their sterling CD, "Journey to Damascus." That feat? With Sayre on guitar and Simmons on acoustic bass, AcoustiCon takes the mellow vibe of the Windham Hill label and juices them with edgy, jazzy rock."
In 2001 AcoustiCon released "Anno Domini" to rave reviews. Proggnosis Magazine stated "With a rare and beautiful sense of melody, AcoustiCon offers a guitar oriented musical journey filled in well thought, highly enjoyable landscapes, where calm but powerful orchestrations accompany the emphasized guitar soloing. The music here is contemplative, introspective and, in the end, the perfect soundtrack for those moments when you need to find your inner peace or simply chill out after a hard days work. The perfect communion between Classic music, easy listening jazz, acoustic prog and ballad rock is what you will find in Anno Domini. This is music as pure as falling snow."
While the Entertainment writer for the Daytona Beach News Journal described "Anno Domini": " Cross-breed the guitar music of such Windham Hill mellow fellows as Will Ackerman and Alex DeGrassi with such rock guitar instrumentalists as Joe Satriani and Steve Vai, and you have an idea of the soundscapes on "Anno Domini" the new AcoustiCon CD."
In 2005 AcoustiCon expanded upon their unique style of music by collaborating with world renowned Native American horse behaviorist, author, and musician GaWaNi Pony Boy. According to Backstage Pass Magazine "never has a band been able to give a modern rock edge so smoothly to American Indian philosophy." Combining AcoustiCon's powerful style with a Native American feel made "Native Peoples" Magazine take notice and say that AcoustiCon "gives the music an enormous larger than life sound. The album has a sweeping cinematic feel with complex multi-layered arrangements."
Currently AcoustiCon is writing new songs for an upcoming CD release while touring consistently performing at festivals, art shows, and performing art theaters throughout the country.
