Altiplanos

For a follow-up to his acclaimed debut on Favored Nations, 2001's solo instrumental recording "Intuite", French acoustic fingerstyle guitar virtuoso Pierre Bensusan has put together a 10th solo album, showcasing a varied program of gorgeous vocal numbers, provocative improvised pieces, intimate ballads and strikingly original composed works on Altiplanos. "I didn't want to go back and do another solo thing in the same vein as "Intuite"," says Pierre. "I wanted to bring another element to this new recording, the vocal. So I have two songs sung in French -- "Demain des L'Aube" and "La Nuit Des Meteores" -- All together, the music hits in different places than the last album, with more textures and colors." Altiplanos brilliantly showcases Bensusan's highly original and orchestral six-string style, which is marked by deft left-handed hammer-ons, percussive fretboard tapping, a remarkably nuanced touch and an uncanny sense of melodic ingenuity on the steel string acoustic guitar.