Fast Fingers Extend Their Reach

Miguel De Hoyos is looking to make a strong first impression.

The guitarist-composer has carved out a modest career in Mexico playing classical, flamenco, folk and pop standards. But he’s never performed north of his current hometown of Rosarito Beach.

De Hoyos takes his first step over the border on Saturday night when he gives a solo acoustic concert of eclectic, neoclassical world music at the San Juan Capistrano Regional Library.

“When I first started playing in public about eight years ago, I played Russian, South American, Spanish, Mexican and American folk music,” De Hoyos said during a recent phone interview. “My style includes a little bit of everything, and I’ve noticed that people seem to like the variety.”

“Sevilla Suite,” his new, self-released collection of originals and standards, often sounds as if two or even three guitarists are at work. But it’s just De Hoyos, whose fleet fingers particularly dazzle on his rendition of “Dueling Banjos” and the intricate chord changes in “Concierto de Aranjuez.”

He plays lead, harmony and bass parts throughout the all-instrumental CD--an approach passed down by his father. The elder De Hoyos, a chemical engineer by profession, began giving his son lessons at age 13.

Years earlier, the boy had resisted the pressure to play along in a musical family.

“When I was 8 or 9, my dad asked me, ‘Would you like to learn to play?,’ and I said, ‘No.’ He asked me a couple of years later, and still I said, ‘No.’ It wasn’t until I saw him and my older brother Carlos playing together that I became interested. They were amazing to watch.”

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Once it commenced, instruction was thorough, De Hoyos said.

“The first song I learned from him was ‘Malaguena’ by [Cuban composer] Ernesto Lecuona, and I still play it every time I perform,” said De Hoyos, 37. “My father taught me to appreciate where the music came from, its history and culture. He stressed how important it is to understand how songs are connected to a particular people, time and place.

“As far as technique, he showed me how to separate each part of a song--step by step--and then put it back together solely as a guitar composition. My own predilection is for classical works,” De Hoyos said. “I really enjoy taking them and converting them into my own guitar-based arrangements, like I did with ‘Flight of the Bumble Bee.’ ”

De Hoyos’ influences also include Spain’s Paco DeLucia and Minolo Sanlucar, as well as Mexico’s Gilberto Puente and Jorge Muniz.

Two years ago, De Hoyos, his wife and their two children moved from his native Monterrey to Rosarito Beach to be closer to three of his sisters. He has since landed steady work there, playing up to two sets a night, five nights a week in restaurants and bars. The audiences, he said, have been enthusiastic.

De Hoyos says fans who have also heard his recorded music sometimes approach him after shows to ask, “Well, where is your partner?” Chuckling, he added: “Because I play with such speed, some people want to touch my hands, wanting to know if my right hand is a hummingbird.”

For his appearance in San Juan Capistrano, De Hoyos faces at least one new challenge:

“Well, normally I do not sing,” he said, adding that he began to learn English only two years ago. “But on Saturday, I intend to sing some tangos and Mexican folk songs. I am a little nervous, but at the same time, it’s very exciting.”

* Miguel De Hoyos performs Saturday at the San Juan Capistrano Regional Library, 31495 El Camino Real. 7 and 9 p.m. $3-$6. (714) 248-7469.