Endorsing Artists
Mari Strings Inc.,
suppliers of strings to Sabicas, Mario Escudero, and other legendary players of the past, is happy to introduce you to some great players using Mari strings today. More information and musicians are coming to this page soon.
All the Best,
Bill Ostrie
Benjamin Woods
is one of the most talented and sought after flamenco guitarists in the United States today. His music is played all around the world and he has performed with some of the world's best musicians and today's most revered flamenco artists from Spain. Based in the Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay Area, he has the reputation of not only a great composer and band leader, but as a refined flamenco artist and accompanist, with full understanding of the authentic and deeply complex spanish formulas found in this guitar music. He is also an international recording star with albums in the top charts in Japan and Europe with his Flamenco/Metal band FLAMETAL.
Benjamin uses Mari #200ph Professional Classical Strings and is also proud to be sponsored by Godin guitars. You can find out where he is playing next by checking his myspace page (click here). You can listen to his solo and metal-fusion projects by visiting his website http://www.flametal.com.
is known for his masterful guitar work for the San Diego blues and rock bands Nude Blues and Be Natural. A guitarists' guitarist, Mike's skillful playing and powerful interpretation keeps him gigging constantly.
Mike chooses Mari #4000-SL strings for his electric guitars.
You can check out some of Mike's other projects and get in touch with him through Laughing Tree Productions.
Nationally acclaimed guitarist Jimmy Patton is renowned for his ability to play two separate guitars at the same time, playing both melody and accompaniment parts simultaneously. He performs his own arrangements of popular and jazz tunes, as well as original compositions.
In 2001, Patton claimed the title of "Best Unsigned Guitarist in the Nation," defeating over 3,000 guitarists across the entire United States. In this Guitar Center sponsored "Guitarmageddon" competition, Patton won a Harley Davidson motorcycle.
Patton has shared the stage with Grammy award-winning Stanley Jordan, Laurence Juber of Paul McCartney's "Wings," Adrian Legg, Preston Reed, virtuoso rock guitarist Tony Macalpine, as well as keyboardist Derek Sherinian of "Dream Theater." He studied under Fred Benedetti of Benedetti & Svoboda master guitar duo.
Jimmy uses Mari #300 Flamenco Strings and #200ph Professional Classical Strings on his nylon string guitars, and Mari Spiral 2000 Electric Guitar Strings in various gauges on his electric guitars.
You can hear some of Jimmy's incredible playing on his website. Check out this video of Jimmy Patton tapping on two guitars.
Rowland Schultz "Vikingo De Jerez"
http://www.myspace.com/vikingodejerez
Vikingo De Jerez, AKA Rowland Schultz, was born in Avalon on Sydney's Northern Beaches in Australia. His father Gilbert played the records of Paco De Lucia and Manolo Sanlucar from when he was a baby right up until he was 8 years old, when he started work for the family. By the time he was 13 he had left school and took a second job working for his Godfather John Smith, who formally introduced him to flamenco. John, also being an enthusiastic Flamenco aficionado, verbally shared all his knowledge of the flamenco forms whilst taking him to every flamenco show that came to Sydney from overseas. Once Rowland saw the gypsy flamenco guitarists of Spain perform he became completely consumed by flamenco and decided the flamenco guitar was his life passion and eventually a career. In seeing this John gifted Rowland his 1973 Faustino Conde Hermanos Guitar which lay in his attic. This Flamenco guitar later became his platform for teaching himself the difficult Gipsy Art-form. Rowland proceeded to search for a suitable teacher and after spending a brief time with a local classical guitarist who dabbled in flamenco, he decided that the best thing to do was to teach himself. He could clearly identify how the music should sound and sit inside the Compas from being in close contact with it from such an early age. He took all his Godfathers records tapes and tablature/partiture and spent the next 5 years teaching himself the difficult techniques on his own. Locked away in his room he would practice 10 hours a day going on to take the Oud and Arabic percussion up as secondary instrument's to absorb the Moorish roots of Flamenco.
Vikingo De Jerez, AKA Rowland Schultz, is inspired for his all original compositions by the Gipsy Flamenco artists of Andalucia Spain. Whilst also being an accomplished self taught Oud player, Rowland has infused the sound of the Oud within his original self taught Flamenco guitar technique along with incredibly fast paco-ado runs and choppy breaks that left even Antonio Vargas speechless, going on to say he is untouchable in technique, composition and Aire within the Australasia region. Flamenco aficionados around the country alike say "he drives a guitar like no other." This unique sound, self-taught style and drive in his composition has attracted massive worldwide attention and some collaboration interest from leading World Musicians and Flamenco Artists worldwide including Paco De Lucia's most favored Gipsy Flamenco singer Duquende, Ginesa Ortega, Arcangel, Misirli Ahmet, Yazid Bahri, Harri Stojka, Lulo Reinhardt, Antonio Vargas - amongst many others who have had big Ole's & excellent things to say about his all original Gipsy Moro Flamenco. You can read for yourself here:
http://www.myspace.com/vikingodejerez
