Altiplanos

It’s hard to believe that Altiplanos is only the tenth album released by legendary French-Algerian fingerstyle guitarist Pierre Bensusan since his Montreux Festival award-winning 1977 debut. But this master craftsman of the guitar wouldn't dream of committing material to disc without first honing it to perfection: each of the fourteen tracks is a gleaming gem of the composer's art. As on his previous albums, dreamy solo originals played in Bensusan's trademark DADGAD open tuning predominate, but there are also two interesting vocal numbers: 'La Nuit des Météores', co-written with his wife Doatea, and 'Demain, dès l'Aube', incorporating extracts from the Victor Hugo poem 'À Villequier'.