Al di Meola

On 25 June 2026 at Barbican Centre, London, Al Di Meola brings a set that traces his path from jazz fusion to acoustic explorations. First revealed with Chick Corea’s Return to Forever, he went on to carve a solo voice where jazz rock meets Latin rhythms and Mediterranean shades, switching between electric clarity and the more intimate grain of the acoustic guitar. His playing leans on precise rhythm work, quick lines and clear melodies, a blend he also pushed in dialogue with John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucía.

Across the years, Di Meola has folded tango, world textures and orchestral writing into his repertoire, from World Sinfonia and his take on Piazzolla to later projects revisiting the Beatles, OPUS and Across the Universe. On stage, these threads connect into arrangements that play with counterpoint, pulse and tone, moving from tightly structured pieces to more open moments. This concert at the Barbican draws from that catalogue without nostalgia, focusing on touch, timing and interplay, and on the way his compositions carry groove and detail in equal measure.