Steffen Basho-Junghans (born Steffen Junghans; 27 November 1953 – 1 December 2022) was a German guitarist and composer.

Biography

Basho-Junghans was born in North Thuringia in the former

German Democratic Republic German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

on 27 November 1953. At the age of 17 he taught himself to play

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

and in 1978 formed the

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

band Wacholder. In 1979, influenced by the American guitarist

Leo Kottke Leo Kottke (born September 11, 1945) is an acoustic guitarist. He is known for a fingerpicking style that draws on blues, jazz, and folk music, and for syncopated, polyphonic melodies. He overcame a series of personal obstacles, including parti ...

, he began performing solo instrumental music on 6- and 12-string guitar. Throughout the 1980s he became influenced by artists on John Fahey's

Takoma Records Takoma Records was a small but influential record label founded by guitarist John Fahey in the late 1950s.

label. During this period he discovered the music of

Robbie Basho Robbie Basho (born Daniel R. Robinson, Jr., August 31, 1940 – February 28, 1986) was an American acoustic guitarist, pianist and singer. Biography Basho was born in Baltimore, and was orphaned as an infant. Adopted by the Robinson family, ...

, and consequently became interested in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese

haiku is a type of short form poetry originally from Japan. Traditional Japanese haiku consist of three phrases that contain a ''kireji'', or "cutting word", 17 '' on'' (phonetic units similar to syllables) in a 5, 7, 5 pattern, and a ''kigo'', or se ...

poet

Matsuo Bashō born then was the most famous poet of the Edo period in Japan. During his lifetime, Bashō was recognized for his works in the collaborative '' haikai no renga'' form; today, after centuries of commentary, he is recognized as the greatest ma ...

, who had influenced Robbie Basho. Steffen Junghans incorporated the name 'Basho' into his own, as a mark of respect. Throughout the 1980s he lectured on acoustic guitar history and performed numerous concerts. Basho-Junghans has released recordings on the German label Blue Moment Arts; the American labels

Sublingual Sublingual (abbreviated SL), from the Latin for "under the tongue", refers to the pharmacological route of administration by which substances diffuse into the blood through tissues under the tongue. The sublingual glands receive their prima ...

, Strange Attractors and

Locust Locusts (derived from the Vulgar Latin ''locusta'', meaning grasshopper) are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase. These insects are usually solitary, but under certain circumstanc ...

; the Italian label Sillyboy; the Australian label

Preservation Preservation may refer to: Heritage and conservation * Preservation (library and archival science), activities aimed at prolonging the life of a record while making as few changes as possible * ''Preservation'' (magazine), published by the Nat ...

; and Kning Disk in Sweden, appears on several compilations. His music, unorthodox explorations between traditions and experimentation, is influenced by

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Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

New music New music may refer to: Musical styles and movements Pre-20th century * Ars nova, musical style in 14th-century France and the Low Countries * '' Le nuove musiche'', collection of monody by Giulio Caccini * New German School, music style in late 1 ...

and European classical music. Basho-Junghans died from cancer on 1 December 2022, at the age of 69.

Discography

*''12-String Solo'' MC (Blue Moment Arts, Blue Moment Arts, 1989) *''In Search of the Eagle's Voice'' CD (BMA, 1995) *''Fleur De Lis 1 & 2'' 2x CD (BMA, 1996) *''Song of the Earth'' CD (Sublingual Records, 2000) *''Inside'' CD (Strange Attractors, 2001) *''Landscapes in Exile'' CD (Blue Moment Arts, 2001) *''Waters in Azure'' CD (Strange Attractors, 2002) *''Rivers and Bridges'' CD (Strange Attractors, 2003) *''7 Books'' dbl CD (Strange Attractors, 2004) *''Unknown Music I: Alien Letter'' CD (Sillyboy, 2005) *''Unknown Music II: Transwarp Meditation'' CD (Preservation, 2005) *''In the Morning Twilight'' CD (Kning Disk, 2006) *''Last Days of the Dragons'' CD (

, 2006) *''Late Summer Morning'' CD (Strange Attractors, 2006) *''"IS"'' LP (Architects of Harmonic Rooms & Records, 2009) *''Unknown Music III: O Som Naha'' MC (Beartown Records, 2010)

References

External links

Profile at Blue Moment Arts website/+ Robbie Basho-ArchivesProfile at Strange Attractors websiteA feature article on Basho at the Foxy Digitalis website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Basho-Junghans, Steffen 1953 births 2022 deaths German male musicians Fingerstyle guitarists Avant-garde guitarists Musicians from Thuringia Deaths from cancer in Germany

Biography

Discography

See also

References

External links