Yasmin Williams’ Spirited Solo Guitar | Acoustic Guitar Sessions

Yasmin Williams is known for extending the boundaries of solo fingerstyle guitar, with progressive techniques and original compositions that blossom out of traditional folk and roots touchstones. On her latest record, Acadia, she expands her distinctive sound world even further, and adds a real sense of community, sharing tracks with such artists as Dom Flemons, Kaki King, Aoife O’Donovan, and saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins.

For this solo Session, captured at Acoustic Guitar HQ in San Anselmo, California, Williams performs two songs from Acadia, “Cliffwalk” and “Hummingbird,” and finishes off the set with an old favorite, “Juvenescence” (from her 2021 release, Urban Driftwood). Williams doesn’t just play fast all over the neck—her spirited fingerstyle is dynamic, exuberant, and at times exhilarating.

Williams also shares some compositional and creative insights about Acadia, and shows off her one-of-a kind Skytop Grand Concert (“It’s an incredible instrument … I wouldn’t trade it for anything!”).

More from Yasmin Williams and Acoustic Guitar:

Learn to Play ‘New Beginnings’: A Contemplative Study by Yasmin Williams

When learning a new piece, it might be tempting to plow right through from beginning to end, but this can be counterproductive. Instead, it’s best to tackle “New Beginnings”—or really any composition for that matter—section by section, ideally with a metronome. 

Expanding the Boundaries of Black Country Music

Multi-instrumentalist and historian Dom Flemons hosts a roundtable discussion with Jerron Paxton, Tray Wellington, and Yasmin Williams.

Solo Guitar Composition | The Acoustic Guitar Podcast

Diego Figueiredo, Gwenifer Raymond, and Yasmin Williams share their unique perspectives on composing for solo guitar.