Guitarist, composer and producer Tom “Fountainhead” Geldschläger (solo, Amogh Symphony, Defeated Sanity, Pitts Minnemann Project, ex-Obscura) is set to launch his guitar instructional product “Augmented Reality” on December 18. The product, available now for pre-order, is available in the standard and premium options.
Along with the pre-order launch, Tom has also released a live performance video for the song “Akroasis” which he originally performed on Obscura’s 2016 album titled Akroasis. The video, which is also a trailer for the upcoming instructional material, was recorded live on the rooftop of the Greenhouse in Berlin. Watch it below.
About his decision to pick the title song from Akroasis, and shoot an instructional video in an unusual environment, Geldschlager commented:
“‘Akroasis’ become both a fan-favorite and a constant source of questions from guitarists, asking me how to properly play it. I’ve even seen it voted for as one of the ‘greatest metal guitar performances of all time’ in several forums and blogs, which is of course amazing. Recording this version was also a good way to say ‘thank you’ to the people who’ve supported my work on the Akroasis album despite the attempts to discredit my reputation at the time of release. I wanted to give them the live performance of the song that I unfortunately wasn’t able to give them with the band. In the product itself, the lead guitar parts are then also taken apart and analysed note for note, bar by bar.
“I was looking for a way to make this one really stand out on the visual side as well. My manager had brought the fantastically talented Dina Veinstein into the project. Together, they suggested the rooftop shot, which ended up being extremely fun, although technically challenging. I think we shot between 5 and 7 uninterrupted live takes. My favorite one is the one you hear in the audio and see on screen for 90% of time, with a couple of more artistic shots from different angles thrown into the video to spice things up.”
Asked about his idea and vision with “Augmented Reality”, Tom commented: “From the very beginning, with every album, tour or product, I’ve tried to push the envelope and do something original and unexpected. So my vision with the ‘Augmented Reality’ instructional product was to not just release ‘another instructional video’, but to give guitar players actual practical tools for expanding their creative horizons on the instrument, enabling them to push the envelope themselves. The standard package focuses more on the ‘nuts-and-bolts’ of what it is that I do on the guitar, digging deep into the techniques and concepts that make up my style as a player, as well as taking apart some of my most popular performances. Then, the premium package takes all of that a step further, adding a huge amount of real-word examples from throughout my career, several hours worth of content and even personalized coaching. With that package, people will be able to apply the concepts and techniques in many different musical situations, jump-starting their capabilities and their confidence on the instrument.”
“Augmented Reality” was created with a varied group of guitar players in mind. In guitarist’s own words:
“I wouldn’t say that it is for advanced guys only, because the examples range from very simple things to stuff that even I have trouble playing. But overall it is for people who are not content with playing the same things that everybody else is playing – people who like to think outside the box. Beginners will certainly have trouble playing any of the solos that I’ve transcribed for the premium package, but even those people will find new ways of approaching the instrument and creating interesting solos which they will find beneficial.”
For more information about what “Augmented Reality” packages include you can visit beyondthestrings.de.
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About Tom “Fountainhead” Geldschläger:
Fountainhead is the alter-ego of guitar player, composer and producer Tom Geldschläger. Currently operating from his studio in Berlin, Germany, “the Steve Vai of the new millennium” has appeared on dozens of records as a guitar player, producer and mixing engineer. He’s recorded and toured with artists like Marco Minnemann, Defeated Sanity, Xell, NYN, Hannes Grossmann, Amogh Symphony, Counter-World Experience, Christian Münzner and Nader Sadek. Fountainhead has been featured in various music magazines around the globe, including Guitar Plus and Guitar World, and was the lead guitarist for the internationally acclaimed technical death metal band Obscura’s Akroasis album (to which he also contributed the 15-minute epic “Weltseele”). He is also a member of eclectic instrumental modern fusion quartet Pitts Minnemann Project. In both bands Fountainhead used fretless guitars predominantly, making him a figurehead of this otherwise rarely used breed of guitar to a new generation of guitar and metal fans — a “modern day guitar legend” indeed.
Fountainhead is currently endorsed by Steinberg Software, Loxx Products, Engl Amplification, Soultool Guitars, GoodTone Pickups, Mono Cases and Winspear Instrumental picks and cables, with Fountainhead signature guitars, pickups and guitar picks available commercially. He is also the co-founder of independent music label Vmbrella.
His solo releases Fear is the Enemy and Reverse Engineering have received rave reviews and secured him a dedicated following in just a few short years.
