Leo Kottke and Julian Lage at Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts

Two generations of guitar mastery come together for a special evening of music.

By Blaine Schultz, Shepherd Express

Leo Kottke helped define fingerstyle guitar playing. His album 6- And 12-String Guitar aka “the armadillo record” was released at the dawn of the ‘70s and became hugely influential.

Kottke’s connection to Milwaukee was recently highlighted by founder-director of UWM’s finger-style guitar program John Stropes’ recently published 6- and 12-String Guitar: A Companion, a handsomely designed, two-volume set of Kottke transcriptions plus commentary and interviews with the guitarist. “Frankly, I was overwhelmed by a musician doing something so interesting,” Stropes said, recalling the 1969 album’s impact.