Picking Up On Tradition

Beppe Gambetta’s love affair with American folk music began when he was 11 years old and heard a Doc Watson recording. The Italian guitarist-singer soon managed to rustle up music by Tony Rice and Clarence White, the legendary guitarist for the Kentucky Colonels and the Byrds.

Unable to find lesson books or guitar tablature for this thoroughly American-style music, he taught himself to flatpick by ear. And in 1977, when he formed the bluegrass group Red Wine, he gave Europe a sampling of this traditional musical form.

Today, Gambetta is a much-revered flatpicker who uses half a dozen variations of open tunings and has mastered a variety of dazzling techniques, including pull-offs, hammer-ons and slides. His “Manuale di Chitarra Flatpicking” was Italy’s first flatpicking text. And he disseminates his techniques at industry-sponsored workshops and at his annual flatpicking camps in the mountains of Slovenia and Switzerland.

On Monday, Gambetta will bring his artistry to Fountain Valley, where he will conduct a free acoustic guitar workshop at the Guitar Center.

His capacity to turn a traditional tune inside-out is typified by a somber piece called “Slow Creek,” which transforms the bluegrass standard “Salt Creek” into a dirge-like ballad.

But the guitarist is just as likely to draw from the world’s ethnic music as the Doc Watson canon. His vast repertoire plucks from Italian, Ukrainian, Sardinian, Appalachian, and Celtic influences.

“It’s good to know that flatpicking was born in America, but I don’t see why it must stay within any kind of geographic or stylistic borders,” the 44-year-old musician said in a recent telephone interview from Knoxville, Tenn., where he was holding a weeklong guitar class.

“Some of my variations on the form have been inspired by unexpected sources, like Hungarian folk melodies and Czech gypsy ensembles,” he said.

More recently, the genre-bending troubadour has returned to the musical roots of his homeland. Turn-of-the-century Genoa, in fact. The northern Italian harbor town, where Gambetta was born and still lives, is the focus of 1997’s “Serenata” (Acoustic Music Records.) Featuring Carlo Aonzo, a mandolin player with La Scala Orchestra in Milan, the ambitious, import-only release includes such folk and classical styles as mazurkas, tangos, serenades, boleros and czardas.

“Serenata” revives numerous songs from two of the era’s greats: guitarist Pasquale Taraffo and mandolinist Nino Catania. To capture the essence of the period, Gambetta and Aonzo conducted research, on and off, for four years. They unearthed scratchy records and musty sheet music, studied old photographs and talked to numerous musicians, some now in their 90s.

The duo also rebuilt a 10-string harp guitar and a pear-shaped mandolin to recreate the sound as authentically as possible. Then Gambetta mixed in background noises common to that time: street vendors selling roasted peanuts, the wail of ships’ horns, a church procession with bells, and barroom gamblers shouting, “Quattro! Cinque!” Gambetta even recorded the sounds of his Aunt Maria making pesto on a 200-year-old mortar.

If this labor of love was daunting at times, the finished product has left Gambetta beaming.

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“The research was done in tiny, tiny steps,” he said. “It was quite a challenge because we never found one person who knew a lot or had very many of the old records. There wasn’t even one incredible discovery . . . it was all little bits of information we pieced together over a long period of time.”

“But it’s nice to expose people to traditional music with this beautiful aesthetic . . . that we’ve kind of given a second life. I learned so much from the originals . . . and not just Pasquale, but also Giuseppe [Verdi] and Vittorio [Monti] and Joaquin [Valverde]. Every note reflected the passion of the people, all their joys and sorrows. We tried to bring ourselves into that moment as best we could.”

One thing Gambetta discovered was how the music of old wasn’t categorized as separate styles or sub-genres that often define--and divide--today’s listeners.

“Categorization has become so strong,” he said. “In the past, these musicians just played great music without any concern over boundaries. Now, we see a lot of people will look for or listen to music that is only ‘rock’ or ‘rap’ or whatever their favorite radio station plays. . . .

“The beauty of the music should touch everyone without prejudice.”

Gambetta’s advice: Open your mind and ears, which he likes to do each year at a Canadian folk festival.

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“I never know what to expect,” he said. “A couple of years ago, I heard these chanting monks from Tibet and some dance-crazy world music (players) from Madagascar. Last year, I was just amazed by this band from Quebec called La Buttine Suriante, which plays this wonderful mixture of jazz and traditional folk music.”

His deft touch apparently spills over to the kitchen, too. In 1996, Gambetta published 22 of his favorite dishes in the cookbook, “Beppe Cooks! Recipes From the Homeland.” Each entry comes with recommended vino and musical accompaniment. For example, Sugo Crudo--which he calls his “pasta of good health”--should be served with Ravello wine and the sounds of Riccardo Tesi’s “Un Ballo Liscio.” (Tesi played accordion on Gambetta’s 1995 release on Green Linnett Records, “Good News From Home.”)

“Dining is not simply preparing a meal,” Gambetta said. “It is an experience that borders on art. Cooking and eating, music and romance . . . it’s all part of the richness of life, and expressing your individuality.

“For me, the cookbook was not only fun, but it offered a good way to tell others about where I’m from.”

* Taylor Guitars presents “An Acoustic Guitar Workshop With Beppe Gambetta,” Monday at the Guitar Center, 18361 Euclid St., Fountain Valley. 7 p.m. Free. Advance reservations are recommended; seating based on space availability. (714) 241-9140.