Bruce plays both background style instrumental guitar for events, and “show” style guitar (sometimes with vocals and stories).
Samples For Your Showy Event (Festival, House Concert…)

Fusing sweet harmonic to caffeinated percussive fingerstyle guitar and a Tom Waits voice with stories and humor.

(This is the place for checking out samples for listening rooms, stages, and the like where the focus is the music.)

Samples of Background Guitar For Your Event (Scroll down a bit to playlist “Guitar Instrumentals for Relaxed Ambience”)

Enhance any occasion.

Weddings, dinners, corporate events, cocktail parties… conversation-friendly

(This is the place to check out Bruce’s complementary, background-guitar music.  As opposed to the showier stuff he does on stage or for house concerts, etc.)

bruce biltmore wedding gigcourthouse wedding gig

Flexible amplification available, including state-of-the-art battery operated speakers, for electricity-free venues like the beach.

Some of the venues Bruce has performed background music include: beaches (East Beach, Hendrys), hotels (Biltmore, Bacara), parks (Alice Keck, Elings), churches (Unitarian, Presidio Chapel), house concerts (all over), art shows (Arroyo Hondo Preserve, art galleries), vineyards (Gainey, Oreana), galas (Ty Warner Sea Center, the Santa Barbara Mission)…

Samples below (scroll down a bit) are mostly original works, plus some adaptations of common, more traditional  selections.

A Trail of Big and Little Places Bruce Has Performed

Lunacy Music and Arts Festival, Live Oak Camp, Santa Ynez CA

Ojai Concert Series – Dancing Oak Ranch, Ojai CA

Live Oak Music Festival, Live Oak Camp, Santa Ynez CA

California Avocado Festival, Carpinteria CA

Bluebird Cafe, Nashville TN – Sunday spotlight

Songtree Concert Series, Goleta CA

The Play Ground Theatre, Duluth MN

Garlic & Music Festival, Arlington WA

I Madonnari Festival, Santa Barbara Mission CA

Festival of Art & Jazz, Courthouse Sunken Gardens, Santa Barbara CA

Firestone MTB Festival, Santa Ynez CA

Lemon Festival, Goleta CA

California Organic Festival, Santa Barbara CA

Whale Festival, Santa Barbara CA

Sandcastle Festival, East Beach, Santa Barbara CA

County Fair, Santa Barbara CA

Santa Barbara County Local Fest, Lompoc CA

Acadia Theater, Minneapolis MN

NorShor Theater, Duluth MN

Fleischmann Auditorium – Santa Barbara CA

Lobero Theater – Speaking of Stories – Santa Barbara CA

Elings Park Concert Series, Santa Barbara CA

Toro Canyon Concert Series, CA

Arroyo Hondo Preserve, Gaviota Coast CA

Presidio Chapel – Pure Guitar Concert Series, unplugged and candelit, Santa Barbara CA

Fiesta – Old Spanish Days, Pershing Park, Santa Barbara CA

SOhO, Santa Barbara CA

Kulak’s Woodshed, North Hollywood CA

The Crooked Bar, Sunset Blvd, LA CA

Hallenbeck’s, North Hollywood CA

Rogue Buddha Gallery, Minneapolis MN

The Kendall Cafe, Cambridge MA

Twiggs, San Diego CA

Local Hero, Ojai CA

Oasis, Taft CA

Rusty’s Surf Ranch – Santa Monica CA

Leaf & Bean, Bozeman MO

Cafe Paradiso, Eugene OR

The Green Earth Cafe, Bismarck ND

Dunn Bros, St. Paul MN

Higher Grounds, Grand Junction CO

McFoster’s Natural Kind Cafe, Omaha NE

Miramar Hotel, Montecito CA

The Santa Barbara Mission, 4th of July

Shoreline Park, Santa Barbara CA – Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

Friendship Center, Montecito CA

Gypsy Den, Santa Ana CA

Coral Casino, Montecito CA

University Club, Santa Barbara CA

Linnaea’s, San Luis Obispo CA

Blue Skye Coastal Cafe, Morro Bay CA

Cisco’s, San Luis Obispo CA

Cold Spring Tavern, Santa Barbara CA

Coach House, Santa Barbara CA

Northstar Coffee, Santa Barbara CA

Zoey’s, Ventura CA

Clock Tower Inn Hotel – Ventura CA

Muddy Waters, Santa Barbara CA

Mother’s Tavern, San Luis Obispo CA

Stir Crazy, Ojai CA

Old Town Market, Lompoc CA

Zelo, Santa Barbara CA

Elsie’s, Santa Barbara CA

Chad’s, Santa Barbara CA

EDF, Santa Barbara CA

El Capitan Canyon, CA

Campus Coffee Bean, Flagstaff AZ

Cushing Street Bar, Tucson AZ

Hipsters, Odessa TX

Neutral Ground, New Orleans LA

Family Wash, Nashville TN

The French Quarter, Nashville TN

Borders, Fairview Heights IL

Westport CoffeeHouse, Kansas City MO

Gaslight Tavern, Lawrence KS

Borders, Tulsa OK

Borders, Ballwin MO

House Concert, Henderson KY

Mi Cocina, Henderson KY

Chase Cafe, Chicago IL

Anodyne Coffee Roasting Co, Milwaukee WI

Ginkgo, St. Paul MN

Shoreline Pub, Pepin WI

Sir Benedict’s, Duluth MN

Caffeine Dreams, Omaha NE

Common Grounds, Denver CO

Penny Lane, Boulder CO

Sugarbeats, Salt Lake City UT

Blue Kat Company, Cedar City UT

Garage-Ma-Hall, Las Vegas NV

Santa Barbara International Film Festival

Sunlight to Candlelight Fair, Santa Barbara CA

Funk Zone Festival, Santa Barbara CA

Earth Day, Ledbetter Beach, Santa Barbara CA

Acoustic Routes, The Road Show Case, Las Vegas NV

SCAPE Art Festival for Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens

Frog and Peach, San Luis Obispo CA

Blue Rock House Concert, Menlo Park CA

Courtney House Concert, Grass Valley CA

Borders, Simi Valley CA

Unitarian Society, Santa Barbara CA, concert in The Sanctuary

Carlitos, Santa Barbara CA

The Pavilion at East Beach, Santa Barbara CA

Hemp Festival, County Courthouse Sunken Garden, Santa Barbara CA

Chase Palm Park, Santa Barbara CA

Pascucci, Goleta CA

Black Dog Cafe, St. Paul MN

Beaner’s Central, Duluth MN

The Cliff House, Isla Vista CA

Intermezzo, Santa Barbara CA

Legends, Santa Barbara CA

Rincon Beach Club, Carpenteria CA

Greek Orthodox Church, Santa Barbara CA

A’roma Roasters, Santa Rosa CA

The Pearl Lounge, Eureka CA

Buffalo Gap Saloon, Portland OR

Sue’s House Concert, Eugene OR

Eugene Saturday Market, OR

Amazing Grace, Duluth MN

Ruth’s House Concert, Maidenrock WI

Armando’s, Des Plaines IL

Ben & Jerry’s SuperSibs benefit, Evanston and Glenview IL

Commodore Bar, Nashville TN

Uncle Pleasant’s, Louisville KY

Jazz, Lee’s Summit MO

Cresson Dance Benefit, Cripple Creek CO

Main Street, Grand Junction CO

The Grind, Cedar City UT

Aldo’s, Santa Barbara CA

Riviera Fine Art, Santa Barbara CA

Surf Dog, Carpenteria CA

Natural History Museum Artwalk, Santa Barbara CA

Unitarian Universalist Church of Ventura Concert Series, Ventura CA

Claremont College, Claremont CA

Moose on Monroe, Mpls MN

Fiddler’s Dream, Phoenix AZ

Opening Bell, Dallas TX

Bar Car, Nashville TN

Preservation Pub, Knoxville TN

Uncommon Ground, Chicago IL

The Living Room – Googie’s Lounge, New York City NY

Synergy Cafe Lounge, Culver City CA

Arcada Court – First Thursday, Santa Barbara CA

Sojourner Cafe, Santa Barbara CA

Oceano Dunes Beach Race Benefit, Oceano CA

Rocks, Santa Barbara CA

Dubliner, St Paul MN

Cibo Fusion, Marion IA

Mars Cafe, Des Moines IA

Gainey Vineyard, Santa Ynez CA

Ventura Harbor Carousel Stage, CA

Center of the Heart, Goleta, CA

Blue Agave, Santa Barbara, CA

Oreana Winery, Santa Barbara CA

OpenMike’s Feature Act, Isla Vista CA

First Friday, Carpinteria CA

Zaytoon, Santa Barbara CA

Jeannine’s, Santa Barbara CA

Laetitia Winery, Arroyo Grande, CA

Bon Temps Creole Cafe, San Luis Obispo, CA

Tucker’s Grove, Goleta CA

Encanto, Santa Barbara CA

Cambridge Drive Concert Series, Goleta CA

Ty Warner Sea Center, Santa Barbara CA

Bacara Resort, Goleta CA

The Hub, UCSB, Isla Vista CA