Biography
Bruce Mathiske stands out as an Australian virtuoso on solo guitar. His unusually wide finger reach lets him handle lead lines, rhythmic chords, and bass parts in a single performance, creating the sonic effect of several players at once and establishing him among the country’s leading instrumentalists. In Australia he has received two Best Guitarist honors along with additional distinctions for Best Soloist and Best Overall.
He started taking music lessons at age seven in the rural district of Swan Hill. Around fifteen or sixteen he moved to Bendigo and spent several years concentrating on classical guitar. After later relocating to Queensland he studied under Neville Khan and completed a diploma covering sight reading, composition, improvisation, theory, and arranging.
Chet Atkins ranks among Mathiske’s chief influences; the guitarist found a way to fuse his developing jazz leanings with Atkins’s solo approach. For six years he maintained a daily practice schedule of ten hours. His own solo recordings consequently merge Atkins’s stylistic imprint with his jazz preferences and his classical training. Additional sources of inspiration include B.B. King, Lenny Breau, Barney Kessell, Robin Ford, and Leo Kottke.
Mathiske has performed across North America, Japan, and Europe. Festival credits include the Cork International Jazz Festival, the Glasgow Jazz Festival, and the London Guitar Festival. One of his concerts was also taped for transmission on BBC Radio.
He started taking music lessons at age seven in the rural district of Swan Hill. Around fifteen or sixteen he moved to Bendigo and spent several years concentrating on classical guitar. After later relocating to Queensland he studied under Neville Khan and completed a diploma covering sight reading, composition, improvisation, theory, and arranging.
Chet Atkins ranks among Mathiske’s chief influences; the guitarist found a way to fuse his developing jazz leanings with Atkins’s solo approach. For six years he maintained a daily practice schedule of ten hours. His own solo recordings consequently merge Atkins’s stylistic imprint with his jazz preferences and his classical training. Additional sources of inspiration include B.B. King, Lenny Breau, Barney Kessell, Robin Ford, and Leo Kottke.
Mathiske has performed across North America, Japan, and Europe. Festival credits include the Cork International Jazz Festival, the Glasgow Jazz Festival, and the London Guitar Festival. One of his concerts was also taped for transmission on BBC Radio.
Albums
