Grammy-nominated, platinum-selling guitarist and composer, Ottmar Liebert has always been a tireless creative thinker
and doer. Together with his touring and recording ensemble, Luna Negra ("Black Moon"), he has defined a style that
became known as "Nouveau Flamenco", which mixes elements of flamenco with jazz, to make seductively sensual music that
captures the spirit of romance. Defying musical categories, Liebert has released 23 albums since 1990, and has enjoyed
immense popularity that continues to this day.
His debut album, 1990's Nouveau Flamenco, featuring the stunning "Barcelona Nights," sold double-platinum and
has become the biggest-selling guitar album of all time, redefining Flamenco music and marking Liebert as one of the most
talented, influential and creative guitarists and performers to surface in years. From rumba to Bossa Nova to classical
to Christmas tunes to lullabies, Liebert has explored and expanded them all, putting his unique stamp and intellectual
yet visceral spin to music.
Liebert has said that "flamenco is a music both romantic and dangerous; it is an attitude as much as it is a musical
genre." Therein lies the philosophy that catapulted him to fame at the end of the '80s with an engaging mix of subdued
flamenco guitar and South American percussion, rock, jazz, and pop influences. Liebert's "attitude" actually suppresses
the more challenging and "dangerous" aspects of flamenco in favor of the romantic -- and the stylish.
Born in Cologne, Germany to a Chinese-German father and Hungarian mother, he traveled extensively through Europe and
Asia intent on fully absorbing each musical tradition he encountered. Liebert was, and remains, influenced by everything
around him, from museums to nature to books.
Released in June, 2008 The Scent of Light is Ottmar Liebert + Luna Negra's first studio album featuring the
band since 2004's La Semana. The recording picks up on the spacial sensibility of the recent binaural CD
Up Close by spreading the sound across the full stereo field to create superb listening depth. While Ottmar
has stepped away from the recent minimalism of his 2007 Grammy nominated solo album One Guitar, you still
sense the high resolution, beautiful clarity, and live combo dynamic. It's a layered recording, with the multiple
guitars, basses, keyboards & percussion subtly exchanging altitude, rooms, and dimensions. The excellent detailing
and positioning leaves a lot of space for the imagination to roam, resulting in a big sound, big pictures, big stories.
Ottmar Liebert is a renaissance man who nurtures his songwriting, guitar playing and albums like the children they
are. And he invites everyone along for the journey through life. "Music is about seducing someone to what you're
feeling, your vision." And with the universe as his palette, he concludes; "Music is a discovery for myself first,
and second for my listeners. My soul is my antenna, I am the instrument + the guitar is my amplifier."
Tickets on sale now. For more information about Ottmar Liebert and Luna Negra, check out
their website at www.lunanegra.com or watch the clip below.
