​​“There are a lot of electric players that just cannot play a nylon-string guitar”: Al Di Meola on why he opts to practice on an acoustic guitar – even when preparing for electric-heavy tours

Al Di Meola’s love affair with the nuances of acoustic guitar has been public knowledge for decades, recently culminating in the release of Twentyfour, which showcases the jazz fusion extraordinaire honing in on his quintessential jazz-flamenco sound.

He is so inextricably linked to the acoustic guitar – particularly the nylon-string guitar – that even in the midst of tours where he mainly plays electric guitar, he still chooses to perfect his craft on an acoustic.

“Most of my practice is on the acoustic guitar because it’s still the most challenging,” he tells Jordi Pinyol. “When I go to electric I find it easier, but it’s a different animal altogether.”

“There are a lot of electric players that just cannot play a nylon-string guitar,” he asserts. “It’s just, it’s very hard. It’s more work for the hands to play a nylon guitar. And I think the response time on a nylon is not as fast, so you have to work a little bit harder to execute, especially the fast phrases.”

However, he acknowledges that there are various inherent perks to an electric guitar, particularly its “lyrical“ or “vocal-like ability” due to the instrument’s natural sustain, which makes certain techniques easier to execute.

In fact, when brandishing an acoustic, Di Meola tends to play more rhythm-oriented pieces than he would on an electric guitar. As he aptly puts it, “each instrument has its qualities that are different from one another.”

Di Meola is currently on the Electric Years tour – which, as you might have guessed from the name, celebrates the earlier, more electric-leaning records of his career.