Guitarist Al Di Meola has commenced the West Coast leg of his current tour with his acoustic group World Sinfonia.

The 55-year-old Di Meola — who joined the jazz-fusion superstar band Return to Forever at age 19 — has of late been exploring the music of Latin America, Spain and Italy with the musicians of World Sinfonia, resulting in performances that All About Jazz raved were “pure emotion — satisfying, sensual, complex and joyful.”

A New Jersey native, Di Meola has recorded 26 solo albums throughout his career, selling some 6 million CDs, including four gold-certified albums, in a range of styles from avant to ambient. With World Sinfonia, Di Meola builds around a core of Argentine Tango, in a stylistic amalgam that moves audiences through full range of emotions.

World Sinfonia: Live from Seattle and Elsewhere, an album recorded in Seattle, San Francisco and Istanbul, and featuring Fausto Beccalossi (accordion), Peo Alfonsi (guitar), Gumbi Ortiz (percussion), Peter Kaszas (drums/ percussion), Victor Miranda (bass) and Husnu Selendiriki (Turkish clarinet) is available now.
Here are the group’s West Coast tour dates:

February 11: Granada Theatre, Dallas, Texas
February 12: One World Theatre, Austin, Texas
February 18: Rialto Theatre, Tucson, Arizona
February 19: Center for the Performing Arts, Scottsdale, Arizona
February 20: Green Valley Ranch, Henderson, Nevada
February 21: Anthology, San Diego, California
February 22: Orange Blossom Junction, Exeter, California
February 23 & 24: Anthology, San Diego, California
February 25: Coach House, San Juan Capistrano, California
February 26: House of Blues, Los Angeles, California
February 27: San Francisco Jazz Festival, San Francisco, California

For more information, go to www.aldimeola.com.