Manus Noble, Ripon Spa Hotel

MANUS Noble "will be a household name" predicted Peter Brice on Radio 3. This prophesy moved a step nearer fulfilment with his brilliant recital to a packed hall in Ripon.

He thrilled his audience with an eclectic mix of pieces for guitar, including two by his former teacher Gary Ryan and two of his own compostions, showing the wide range of styles and sounds in which he is especially interested.

The guitar was well suited to the unusual selection. In brass bands terms, think more bright sound of trumpet than softer mellower sound of the cornet.

A variety of string tunings enhanced interest and was explained lucidly in his introductions to the pieces.

Of particular note was the Japanese piece by Yuquijiro Yocoh, Sakura theme and variations, which he plays at every concert with good reason.

Ryan's Hot Club Français was reminiscent of Django Reinhardt with a rhythm and intricacies that had feet tapping. In complete contrast, Neil Gow’s Lament for his Second Wife, arranged by David Russell, was a beautiful lyrical piece with the strings retuned to provide a pipe-like drone which was very effective.

Noble's composition Mirage introduced Arabic sounds and Isaac Albéniz Mallorca was a reminder of more traditional Spanish guitar music. For an encore, we were treated to an Artur Piazolla Tango.

Throughout he amused the audience with informal comments, including interesting information about his Stephen Hill guitars. This was a perfect family concert and the audience will hope to hear more from this extraordinary artist.

Susan Behrens