Al Petteway

A Grammy Award winning recording artist and performer, Al Petteway has played nearly every type of popular, folk and classical music. Though his primary instrument has always been the guitar, he has also studied lute, string bass, percussion and music composition. His compositions for acoustic fingerstyle guitar are strongly influenced by his love of Celtic music and his own roots in folk, rock and blues.

Al was awarded FORTY FIVE"Wammies" by the Washington Area Music Association including the top honors of "ARTIST OF THE YEAR" and "MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR". He was the recipient of two Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artist Awards for Music Composition and has performed at the Vice President's House and The White House. His playing is featured on more than sixty recordings by some of the World's best known Folk and Celtic musicians. In 2005, he was voted one of the Top Fifty Acoustic Guitarists of all Time by the readers of Acoustic Guitar Magazine and in 2008 he won Silver and Bronze medals in the magazine's Player's Choice Awards.  His CD "Caledon Wood" was voted one of the "Essential Albums of the Past Twenty Years" in Acoustic Guitar Magazine's 20th anniversary issue and his 2012 release "It's Only the Blues" was included on two of the Acoustic Guitar Magazine's Editor's "Top Ten Essential Albums of 2012" lists. In 2014 and 2015, he released two more solo albums "Mountain Guitar" and "Dream Guitars, Vol. II."

"Possibly one of the greatest acoustic guitarists of my lifetime, Al possesses an innate talent for something I call “Melodic Prosidy”. Prosidy is what a songwriter may possess, having the ability to convey lyrics in a natural, conversational manner. James Taylor, for example, would be the king of such a thing, as musical lyrics go. Al has this same gift, but expresses it in melodic lines that seem to be comfortable and almost anticipated, even upon a first hearing. It’s incredibly unusual, and is something that permeates every Al Petteway recording I’ve ever heard. Fascinating."
--Ricky Fitzpatrick , FIVE ON FIVE

"Al Petteway is quickly building a catalogue of some of the most beautiful instrumental guitar work ever recorded."
--DIRTY LINEN MAGAZINE

"An innovative instrumentalist known for his open tunings, Petteway offers a rich, dulcet sound that features a fusion of old and new."
--THE BOSTON GLOBE