Enjoy an hour of music with Oregon Guitar Trio on June 4 at the Sunriver Library and on June 5 at the Downtown Bend Library. Both performances begin at 2pm and are free and open to the public.

“There are many benefits to being in a group as opposed to being a solo act,” says local musician and member of the Oregon Guitar Trio Matt Gwinup.  “With a group you have other musicians to work with and rely upon in a performance,” he says.

The Oregon Guitar Trio members met when Gwinup and David Kelley were studying classical guitar at Southern Oregon University under the tutelage of David Rogers, Director of Guitar Studies at SOU. They played together as part of a quartet until graduation and career changes separated the musicians.  The trio regrouped in 2014 and in spite of their geographic separation manages to gather to practice and perform around the state. Gwinup says that performing in a group takes away some of the pressure of being a solo performer.

“In a group you can take on more complex and intricate music than you could play alone,” he says, and that the workload of promoting the group and selecting music is shared between the members. “All of the members of the trio research and find new music. We exchange the music, practice it on our own, then we come together for some intensive 6-8 hour rehearsals before we perform,” he says.  During their Library performances the Trio will play chamber music from ancient times to modern, including original works and arrangements of popular tunes.

“During the show we will play a piano piece by Beethoven that David Kelley arranged for three guitars plus an original piece that he wrote,” says Gwinup.

For more information about this or other library programs, please visit the library website at www.deschuteslibrary.org. People with disabilities needing accommodations (alternative formats, seating or auxiliary aides) should contact Liz at 312-1032, lizg@deschuteslibrary.org.