Category Archives: Acoustic

LIVE 166 • Morning in Paia (Instrumental, K22ce)

Acoustic, Fingerstyle, Live, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Here’s another take of my guitar instrumental, “Morning in Paia.”  Alternately titled “Paia Morning” or “Paia Kakahiaka,” the song began life as the harmonic laden intro/outro figure and grew into the mellow yet energetic song here.  Paia Morning captures some of the mellow yet entrancing vibes of a morning in Paia, Maui: from a cool morning stroll to Paia Bay Coffee or Anthony’s, to hanging out at Mana Foods, then perhaps a visit to Paia Bay before wrapping up with lunch at Flatbread Company or Café des Amis.  Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor K22ce (solid koa grand concert with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD Light gauge set) and a Telefunken M60 small diaphragm condenser microphone.  Music by Nick Borho, all rights reserved.

LIVE 185 • Firefly Melody

Acoustic, Fingerstyle, Live, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Firefly Melody was born following a recent group of improvisations around ideas from my song Welsh Dragonfly, which were collectively dubbed the Dragonfly songs.  While the Dragonfly songs were influenced by the bucolic acoustic music of Led Zeppelin, Firefly Melody sought to continue from that same area but expand in a slightly different direction.  In this case, I sought to maintain the mellow mood and reimagine the music with some inspiration from the guitar parts of Nick Drake.  Following that path, Firefly Melody emerged.  From there, Hummingbird Prelude and Hummingbird Melody came next, completing what I’ve dubbed the Serene Summer Suite.  Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor 50th Anniversary Builder’s Edition 812ce LTD (Rosewood/Sinker Redwood) and a Neumann TLM 102 microphone.  Music by Nick Borho, all rights reserved.

LIVE 132 • Fair Wind (912ce)

Acoustic, Fingerstyle, Live, Open Tunings, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Here is a more recent version of my song “Fair Wind.”  The song is named for a boat of the same name that ran snorkel / dive cruises to Kealakekua Bay out of Keauhou Bay – still does – and my parents took me and my friends for a cruise on it for a number of my birthdays.

Recorded with a 912ce (Rosewood/Spruce, with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD Light strings) and a Line Audio CM4 microphone.

LIVE 140 • Bron Yr Aur (K22ce)

Acoustic, Classic Rock, Fingerstyle, Live, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Bron-Yr-Aur is probably my favorite Led Zeppelin acoustic song.  Written by Jimmy Page about a tranquil cottage in the Welsh countryside, the song is meditative and bucolic; it always puts me in a different place whenever I hear it or play it.  This version was recorded on my Taylor K22ce.

Recorded with a Taylor K22ce (solid koa grand concert with Elixir Nanoweb 80/20 Bronze HD gauge set) and a Telefunken M60 microphone.

LIVE 111 • Harvest Moon (alternate take)

Acoustic, Classic Rock, Fingerstyle, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Here is an alternate take of my fingerstyle arrangement of Harvest Moon, the titular song from the great early 90’s Neil Young album.  In era when some of his peers were merely coasting along, Neil was doing some of his best work.  Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor 412ce LTD (Rosewood/Spruce, with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD gauge set) and a Neumann TLM 102 microphone in Honolulu, Hawai’i 9/7/15.

LIVE 103 • Bron-Yr-Aur (912ce)

Acoustic, Classic Rock, Fingerstyle, Live, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Bron-Yr-Aur is probably my favorite Led Zeppelin acoustic song. Written about a tranquil cottage in the Welsh countryside, the song is meditative and bucolic; it always puts me in a different place whenever I hear it or play it. This version was recorded on my Taylor 912ce.

Recorded with a Taylor 912ce (Rosewood/Spruce, with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD Light strings) and a Neumann TLM 102 microphone. 

OPEN 105 • How to Tune Your Guitar to Drop D Tuning

Acoustic, Fingerstyle, Open Tunings, , , , , , , ,

This lesson shows you how to tune your guitar to Drop D tuning, which from low to high (in pitch) is D-A-D-G-B-E.  Drop D is the most common alternate tuning – any tuning other than Standard tuning – and differs from standard only on the sixth string, which is tuned down (or dropped) to D.  Open D is great for playing songs in the keys of D, A, and G.  The tuning has been used by all types of players in all genres for all types of songs, but folkies and hard rock/metal people probably use it the most.  You also see Drop D used in a decent number of guitar arrangements in classical music.

GEAR 516 • Koa as a Tonewood

Acoustic, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Today we explore the use of Hawaiian koa as a tonewood, also discussing the wood’s origins in mauka forests in Hawai’i, its historical uses in native Hawaiian culture to modern day usage, and forestry stewardship.  Koa is a bright, relatively dry tonewood with punchy low-mids; clear, sparkly highs; and sweet chiming overtones.  Not only is koa a good sounding wood with a strong heritage, but it is also a beautiful wood that can exhibit stunning figuring.  Koa guitars are excellent for jazz, folk and rootsy fingerstyle, and slack key among other applications.

https://youtu.be/MJUlYsBF-m8

Recorded with a Taylor K22ce (solid koa grand concert with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD gauge set) and a Neumann TLM 102 microphone.

GEAR 515 • Taylor Koa Series Guitars (feat Taylor K22ce)

Acoustic, Uncategorized, , ,

This video provides an overview on Taylor’s Koa Series guitars, featuring a Taylor K22ce with solid koa top, back, & sides.  Though Taylor uses koa on various models throughout its line, the Koa Series is Taylor’s dedicated koa line and features solid koa back & sides on all models in the series.  In recent years, Taylor has moved to a more organic look with solid wood appointments and earthy edge burst finishes.  The guitars are bright, but in a good way – the note separation is great for complex chords, making it a good fit for jazz; the punchy low-mids are good for folk and rootsy fingerstyle; and the sweet overtones make the guitar perfect for slack key among other applications.   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duP4B7zjlMI

Recorded with a Taylor K22ce (solid koa grand concert with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD gauge set) and a Neumann TLM 102 microphone.

LIVE 083 • Wonderful Tonight (Alternate Take)

Acoustic, Classic Rock, Live, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Here is an alternate take of my fingerstyle rendition of Eric Clapton’s Wonderful Tonight. Eric wrote the song about his then-wife Pattie Boyd, who had already inspired great songs from Eric and previous husband George Harrison. This song has been the theme to many a high school prom, and its simple yet tasteful melody has held up over the years. In keeping with that, my arrangement here is fairly straight forward: it doesn’t move around the neck very much or have any unusual chord voicings. Hope you enjoy it.

Recorded with a Taylor 412ce LTD (Rosewood/Spruce, with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD gauge set) and a Neumann TLM 102 microphone in Honolulu, Hawaii 4/27/15.