Tim Sparks at Ballymore tonight

Tim Sparks was given his first guitar when a bout of encephalitis kept him out of school for a year, and the music he heard around him was traditional country blues, and the gospel his grandmother played on piano in a small church in the Blue Ridge mountains, so that's what he taught himself to play.



Nominated by an uncle for a scholarship at the North Carolina School of the Arts, he studied all kinds of music, increasingly turning to classic jazz for inspiration. He adapted compositions by Jelly Roll Morton, Scott Joplin, and Fats Waller to the guitar. Early influences were Doc Watson, Arthur Smith and, most importantly, Duck Baker, who opened up an horizon of possibilities for fingerstyle guitar.
    
While recording three albums with the seminal vocal jazz ensemble Rio Nido, Sparks also became proficient in jazz styles from Brazilian to Be Bop, which brought him several regional music awards including Best Acoustic Guitarist, Best Latin Jazz guitarist, and Best Jazz Guitarist.

Later he acquired an interest in European and Mediterranean styles, particularly the music of the Balkans, culminating in the recording of his 'Balkan Dreams Suite', a remarkable collection of odd-meter guitar arrangements.

He plays the Ballymore Inn tonight, Monday, Nov 21. Of particular to Kilcullenites should be show opener Deirdre Starr who takes the stage at 9:30. So come along and enjoy a fantastic night's entertainment.

Doors open 9pm. Further info from Larry Roddy 045 864017.

Roy Thompson.