Personal/Biographical
Who or what events inspired you to play the guitar? Was music a part of your household when growing up?
I come from a musical family. My uncles from Naples, Italy played violin, guitar and accordion. Monsignor Carlo Ponticelli was also a poet, published author and speaker. He had a profound influence on my music. My mother is a pianist and singer. My two sisters and my brother and I have all played guitar since childhood.
How old were you when you began to play? Do you feel that your starting age is a critical factor in playing your current style?
I started guitar at eight. There was always music and singing in the family. My sister Elvira sings on both my CD's. She is a great Neapolitan singer. I also played viola early on but stopped to play more guitar, ride my bike and play soccer. My father played professional soccer for eighteen years in Italy, so we were all into soccer as well. Having music integrated into everyday life as a kid was a big help later on when I began playing professionally.
Child-size guitars probably weren't yet available when you started to play. Did you begin with a uke or go right to a full-size guitar?
I began playing guitar in 1974 and we had a guitar from Italy my uncle Carlo brought for us, all four kids sharing the one full-size acoustic. We still have that first guitar!
What styles interested you when you first began to play? How do those preferences influence your current music?
I began with the rudiments, reading notes and chords. We always had good teachers; we played Travis picking, folk tunes, and blues and later around 12, I had my first band. We liked to play lots of rock and blues. I still play with a band, so I guess having those garage bands to play in was a good training ground for later ensembles.
In high school and college we had a great big band, and reading chord charts and playing in this ensemble format gave me a great foundation. I still use ideas from that experience in arranging music for Swing Gitan.
You play various fretted instruments and styles of guitar. I noticed on your website that you are actually a Winfield Mountain Dulcimer Champion. How did that come about?
Playing in R&B blues bands was natural in Chicago, but after a few years of that, the music just got too loud for me. I began to look for inspiration from acoustic music and the instruments showed me the way. The Irish scene in Chicago is also huge. I began going to Irish sessions and learning the tunes on tin whistle and banjo.
Then I stumbled across a mountain dulcimer for sale and the sound drew me in. I taught myself to play by going to a handful of festivals across the country. When I made it to Winfield in 1992, I bought a basic $200 mountain dulcimer from Lynn McSpadden of McSpadden Dulcimers out of Mountain View, Arkansas. Man, that dulcimer has a sound! I told him I would be back to win the national competition and he laughed. Well, in 1994 I returned and won after playing for just two years. It is a sweet instrument with a hauntingly beautiful sound.
What are the advantages of being a multi-instrumentalist? Are there any drawbacks that you can think of?
I have spent a considerable amount of time with the Irish whistle, mandolin, mountain dulcimer, double bass, banjo, Irish drum, baritone uke, the Indian esraj and even the Australian didgeridoo. Lately I have been working with the violin. There are so many sounds and timbers that can be experienced with these other "tools". Sometimes in recording I just grab a few of them and start layering to create a sound that I’m looking for.
On each instrument, my goal is different. The violin sounds great in the open position, and I will be there for sometime. I usually hang the instruments I wish to explore on my wall and now and again walk by and play the one I am focusing on for a few minutes or sometimes a few hours, as the Spirit moves me. There are no drawbacks to being a multi-instrumentalist; when it comes to these other instruments, I look at them as hobbies like painting or biking. When it comes to music, I am first a guitarist, then a multi-instrumentalist.
Who were your principal influences and teachers? What is the extent of your formal musical education?
I started folk guitar lessons with my brother and sisters at the Mount Prospect Park District where our teacher was Steve Derlocker. I had another good music teacher in school, Darlene Koldenhoven. She taught us about rhythms, singing and performing. I learned lots about jazz from another great teacher, Stu Pierce. My father drove me one hour each way for lessons every other week to study with him for two years. He was great. I also graduated with a BM in Jazz Studies from Depaul University. I listened to lots of Clifford Brown, Charlie Parker, Pat Martino, Sonny rollins, Barney Kestle, Charlie Christian, Miles Davis, George Benson, Art Tatum and Bud Powell.
You studied flamenco and classic guitar as well, right? How did your ear get turned on to Gypsy jazz?
I studied flamenco guitar with Rafael Requieni and Manolo Sanlucar at the University of Cordoba, Spain, and with Chuscales and Pedro Cortes at the University of Albuquerque in New Mexico. In Chicago, Thomas de Utrera and Felipe Lopez Velasquez were also very helpful. Playing with a local Arabic and Gypsy Kings cover band, The Bandolers, and a few local flamenco dance companies was a good experience, but I had already been to the DjangoFest in Samois-sur-Seine, France and was forming a Gypsy jazz band.
I had been listening to Django since I was about fifteen when my teacher stu Pierce gave me a list of players to check out; Django was the most mysterious of them all. Going to France and playing with the Gypsy people was really the best way to grasp the spirit of the music.
Are you currently teaching the Gypsy jazz style?
It’s a hard thing to play this music in a town where you don’t have a tradition of musicians that play as in Europe. I have always taught to support myself and began teaching a Gypsy jazz class at the Old Town School of Folk Music about ten years ago now and running. A few of my students have played in my band Swing Gitan and Carter O'Brien is still performing with us. I also taught workshops at the Djangofests in San Francisco, Seattle, New York and a festival I put together last summer in Chicago.
What are the key areas a student of Gypsy jazz guitar should pursue? In your role as a teacher, what areas do you emphasize with your students?
It is good to have a solid foundation of repertoire and rhythms- all of them from flamenco rumba, Gypsy waltz, swing, tango...
What is the best way to enhance ones chord palette?
You must learn loads of tunes, and books are good for that, but a good teacher is the best way.
Is there a method you would recommend for learning to apply chord substitutions typical of Gypsy jazz?
The "grab chords" as I like to call them, are the best to start with. They are the ones that allow the hand to stay in a grip-like position; they provide the foundation of Gypsy jazz rhythm playing. A typical progression makes use of the left-hand thumb. The wrist stays close to the neck and this facilitates chord connecting. I like to study collections of sounds too, like inside/outside playing. I learned this from a masterful sax player and teacher- Chicago legend, Joe Daley.
Did any Mel Bay books figure into your development as a guitarist?
I do remember seeing them around the house as a child, maybe Grade 1 and 2 of the basic beginning ones [Modern Guitar Method]. I remember using them to teach my students at Beautiful Music, a store I taught at for four years.
How has your family affected your music?
My family has always supported me in my music. My father and mother always emphasized music when we were young. Music was always regarded as a gift from God to be enjoyed and respected. My brother Carlo and I used to play for hours; we played in church, at home and on the front porch. I remember my mother almost every night singing and playing piano. My sisters were always singing, dancing or playing piano, violin and guitar ... It was a good environment to grow up in.
Flamenco players insist that it’s essential to study in Spain and to accompany flamenco singers and dancers in order to master the style. Is it necessary to go to Europe to master the Gypsy jazz style?
It was great for me to be in Spain and see the "real" Flamenco. Also in Gypsy jazz it is good to see and play with great musicians. My experiences in France playing with Stochello Rosenberg, Tchavolo Schmitt and others was essential in my own development in learning to get the sound I was looking for. Gypsy jazz is a music of the heart and is best passed down that way- one on one. Listening to recordings and watching videos is also essential, especially if you can't make it to the Gypsy gatherings.
How did it occur that your group Swing Gitan was invited to perform in France? Who are the principal Gypsy jazz players in Europe and the US? Do you speak a common musical dialect? That is, could you sit down and jam together and not miss a beat?
Since my first visit to Samois in 1996, I have returned there five times; my band was spotted by Patrick Saussois while performing at the DjangoFest Northwest
http://www.djangofest.com/ [in Langley, WA near Seattle] and we were invited to France on the spot.
When playing in a jam, it’s the tunes that hold us together. So many times I found myself playing for hours with various musicians none of whom spoke the same language, besides music. Some principal players are Stephan Wrembel and John Jorgenson in the US and in Europe, there are many: Tchavolo Schmitt, Dorado Schmitt, Stochello Rosenberg, Bireli LaGrene, Rafael Fays, Robin Nolan.... there are so many.
What’s the future of Gypsy jazz in the USA?
There are many new festivals appearing all over. In Chicago I put one together last year with Stephan Wrembel, John Jorgenson and Tim Kliphuis, an amazing violinist from Holland. There are always new players coming up everywhere you turn. Our next fest in Chicago is planned for October 2005.
Technique
Do you have any particular teaching/learning techniques, such as maintaining a log of practice time?
I try to learn with other people, principally band mates. Maintaining my practice space a place I look forward to going to is also important. I keep my music accessible.
What’s your opinion of tab vs. notation?
It is good to be able to read both.
What are the key elements of your style?
Repertoire is key. Swing Gitan has hundreds of tunes on its set lists. I do lots of listening. In college we would listen for six hours a day. Many students get trapped in trying to unlock a code or break it down to scales and chords, when in the end it is heart and sound that really moves us.
Gear
What are your preferred instruments and strings for playing Gypsy jazz?
I have enjoyed playing Dell’Arte, Pattenotte, Anastasio and Morin guitars. The strings I like are the Argentine 11-46 and the GHS custom Gypsy jazz set.
How about your favorite pick, pickups, and amp? Do you have any product endorsements? Our band uses AER amps and Big Tone Pickups built into the bridge from Dell’Arte Guitars. I make my own picks from tagua nut but also like the Michael Wegen picks. We do not have any endorsements as of yet; I sure would like to get that going though, especially with the strings.
What is the difference in sound between the large D-hole and the small oval-hole Gypsy jazz guitars?
The large sound hole guitar is the best for rhythm playing, but both [models] can be used for soloing. Your choice should be based on the tone you like. I like the midrange dry sounds from the f-hole models myself. The main difference is the scale length. Most are 67cm, quite long for most people as 64cm is what most people are accustomed to. The current guitar I play is a Morin with a 66cm scale length.
You mentioned that you own several guitars. Do different types of guitars in your collection inspire different types of music?
With the guitar it is amazing; to play flamenco music you really need the right sounding instrument. The American Martin D18 is a classic for bluegrass but for Gypsy Jazz?... Well, you need the right sound and you can seriously hurt yourself trying to play with the wrong setup! Gypsy jazz guitars have thinner strings to compensate for the extra tension of the long scale and also for the vibrato. National Steel guitars are wonderful for slide - but then again, the great Argentine guitarist Oscar Alemán played one for jazz. He was a contemporary of Django's and they played together in Paris at jams. He also recorded with Josephine Baker. Too bad he and Django didn't record together. He does have his own CD's though, and they’re great!
Current Events
Do you have any upcoming performance dates, tours or workshops?
Swing Gitan is performing at festivals across the country; check the web page at www.swinggitan.com. The first Tuesday of every month I host a Gypsy Jazz Jam at Martyrs' in Chicago, and Swing Gitan performs afterward. Other upcoming dates include:
Friday Jan. 7th at the famous Green Mill Jazz Club, Chicago.
Saturday Jan. 15th with the Paris Combo at the Old Town School of Folk Music, Chicago.
Wednesday Jan. 19th at the the Hot House, Chicago.
Friday Jan. 28th at the Mountain Music Shop in Mission, Kansas in conjunction with a
Saturday Jan. 29 workshop.
What is your advice to students who are considering becoming career guitarists?
For guitarists to find work, they must have a strong individualistic sound and repertoire. The hardest thing is to find a voice. Play from your heart and don't look back.
Have you issued any recordings or method books?
I have two Cd's available: Alfonso Ponticelli and Swing Gitan and Caravan, as well as a book, Gypsy Jazz Licks and Tricks, Vol. #1.
Apart from music, what are your interests?
I love to swing dance with my wife Michelle and also practice Tae Kwon Do. I enjoy painting and cartoon drawing, and I’ve always loved biking and soccer. I love cooking as well!
Thanks for a great interview, Alfonso!
My pleasure, Stephen.
To learn more about Alfonso Ponticelli, please see the Swing Gitan website www.SwingGitan.com or send email to info@gypsyjazz.us.
Alfonso Ponticelli
info@gypsyjazz.us
www.SwingGitan.com
312-409-1601
