"The SFGQ was the entree and dessert to a virtual feast...Together these four musicians synergistically produce a great spiritual and emotional energy which is communicated with the audience." Portland Guitar Society Quarterly Warm Breeze from the South Excerpt from the Reviews column from The Portland Guitar Society Quarterly Volume X, No. 3 By Cyndy Burton Summer, 1996 ...the Santa Fe Guitar Quartet was the entree and dessert to a virtual feast. The ensemble consists of a soprano guitar (a normal six-string tuned higher), a bass guitar (a custom six-string designed to play much lower than the low E of a standard classical guitar), and two standard classicals. This combination greatly extends the guitar's range, which results in an orchestral sound and expands the potential repertoire. The music maintains most or all of its notes often lost in guitar transcriptions. The program started with four South American pieces which easily could have been a continuation of the previous evening's fare. Then, with a sudden change of pace, the group launched into a spirited Concerto for Two Harpsichords by J.S. Bach followed by the "Finale" of Dvorak's String Quartet, Op. 96 (the American). In the second half, the quartet very ably described the three traditional tangos by various composers and three modern tangos by Astor Piazzolla. Piazzolla's Adios Nonino, a goodbye to the composer's father written upon hearing news of his death, was particularly moving. Together these four musicians synergistically produce a great spiritual and emotional energy which is communicated with the audience (reminiscent of Badi Assad in performance). The last piece on the program was Boccherini's Quintet in D major, written for guitar and strings. Although 200 years old, this piece somehow fit perfectly with the wonderful evening -- full of newness, restraint, and exuberance -- qualities this quartet personifies. [This group has] released recordings and [is] in the process of producing more. We intend to put them in our PGS library and we're looking forward to future Portland appearances.