Guitarist Ben Gateno will perform a free concert at Lincoln Trail College at 7 p.m. Feb. 16.
A native of southern Minnesota, Gateno earned Master’s and Doctoral degrees in performance from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY. Following graduate school, he studied for one year with renowned teacher and performer Antigoni Goni in Brussels, Belgium. After his return to the U.S., Gateno spent five years performing extensively as a member of the Minneapolis Guitar Quartet.
A versatile musician, Gateno enjoys presenting solo guitar programs that feature a wide range of styles and genres, with a special emphasis on classical, country blues and ragtime. In 2020 he released “A Time When Things Were New,” an album featuring solo guitar music from the 1920s.
In 2021, Gateno joined the roster of educators and performers at Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop. For SGGW, he has produced two books of acoustic blues and ragtime transcriptions and “Stomping Along the Fretboard,” a series of three extended video lessons.
Since then, he has also been the electric guitarist for the Crop Circles, the backing band for singer-songwriter Luke Hendrickson.
Gateno resides in Rochester, MN, where he maintains a busy private teaching schedule.
The concert at LTC’s Dement Auditorium is free but tickets must be reserved in advance because of limited seating. Contact The Arts at LTC’s Box Office at 618-546-2300.