Latarski Selected for Top 100 Guitarists You Should Know

Don Latarski, head of guitar studies at the School of Music and Dance selected for inclusion in 100+ Gifted Guitarists You Should Know by True Fire Community. Vintage Guitar Magazine describes Latarski as, “a guitarist of great taste and chops to match.” As a finger-style guitarist, Latarski has forged a unique style of playing that draws heavily on the blues and jazz traditions.

Vintage Guitar Magazine describes Latarski as, “a guitarist of great taste and chops to match.” As a finger-style guitarist, Latarski has forged a unique style of playing that draws heavily on the blues and jazz traditions. Originally from the Detroit, Michigan area, he has been in Oregon since 1973. He has shared the stage with a number of artists including Mason Williams, Bobby McFerrin, Charlie Baty, Paul deLay, and the Eugene Symphony Orchestra.

He has written numerous books on the subject of guitar playing and has released 14 recordings. He is currently Head of Guitar Studies at the University of Oregon, teaching a variety of classes in Theory, Jazz, Funk, Blues and Recording Technology. He also operates a recording studio, Crescent Records.

“While many musicians with such prodigious gifts would find the temptation to showboat irresistible, on Deep Play the song and the groove always come first. This kind of performance requires musicianship of the highest order and, on occasion, some high-wire, without-a-net guitar. Even when whompin’ on the whammy or bending strings almost to the breaking point, he’s ever mindful of the intrigue of a remark left unspoken, the way a deft sketch engages the eye in a manner that a detailed painting cannot, the seductive mystery of spaces between notes. Less is more.” – Tom Wheeler, former Editor of Guitar Player magazine

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