Master guitarist and singer, Claude Bourbon at Caltech Saturday, April 28

Claude Bourbon will be making his debut at Caltech. He is definitely a citizen of the world. Claude is Swiss, born in France, and now lives in England. He spends the bulk of his time touring, performing all over Europe and throughout the United States. A classically trained guitarist, he is known for his exceptional dexterity, playing blues, Spanish and Middle Eastern styles, but just like his constant travelling, there are no boundaries on his influences. You will hear Gypsy, Eastern European, with a splash of Paco de Lucia, Delta Blues and more. He is liable to follow a bluesy piece like Gershwin’s Summertime with Ravel’s Boléro. As well as being an absolute master of his Gibson 6 string guitar, Claude sings and is a compelling personality on the stage. Dave Baily wrote in a review of a show at St. Kyneburgha Church in Peterborough, England:

“His fingerpicking is exquisite and if I closed my eyes I could clearly hear two guitars playing. Just when I recognized a theme he moved on with a mesmerizing cascade of notes which kept on flowing. He added a driving bass, for a version of “She knows how to stretch it”. By the time he sang the first verse he had ‘stretched it’ from Spain to the Caucuses, and from the concert hall to the bar room. His forte is obviously his wonderful guitar work, but he does occasionally burst into song and what you then get is something between Bob Dylan and Cat Stevens, combined with a French accent! C’est magnifique.”

Tickets for this show are $20 for adults, $5 for children and Caltech students.  You can purchase tickets at the Caltech Ticket Office, 1200 E. California Blvd (southeast corner of Wilson Avenue and California Blvd)  between 10AM and 4:30 PM, Monday-Friday or by phone with a service charge at (626) 395-4652.   You can get them online (for a fee) until Thursday here.  You can also buy them at the door (cash or check).

A note about parking for our concerts if you haven’t been to a show for awhile:  There will be the usual limited parking right behind the large Beckman Auditorium- It is OK to park in slots with names on weekends and evenings, but the lot may fill up.  This is the best place to park for the handicapped (try to come a little early- email us at [email protected] if you need help planning your visit). The parking lots between Michigan and Wilson have been mostly closed- a new building will soon begin construction.  The most reliable parking will be on Wilson Avenue, either on the street or in the two parking structures just south of Del Mar Avenue, across the street from Beckman Institute.   One structure is just north of the Institute at 341 S. Wilson Avenue, and the other, 405 S. Wilson, is just a bit south of the Institute.   Rest assured that after 5PM on weekdays, and all day on weekends, you can park for free in these structures, despite signs that allude to the more restricted parking rules during the day on weekdays.   You can even park at slots that have names on them!  From the structures, walk around the big lawn in front of Beckman Institute and you will recognize where to go.  On this map, we are suggesting that you park in structures #123 and #124 in the upper left.    Beckman Institute is building #74, just to the east (right).  If you need help figuring this out, try calling (626) 616-4559.