Santiago Dobles - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Santiago Dobles is a Venezuela

Venezuela

Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...

n guitarist

Guitarist

A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...

, songwriter

Songwriter

A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

, producer

Record producer

A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...

and son of Venezuelan symphonic composer

Composer

A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

Gustavo Dobles. He is best known as the founding member of tech-prog-fusion metal band Aghora (band)

Aghora (band)

Aghora is a progressive metal/technical metal band formed in 1995 by guitarist Santiago Dobles. In 2000 they released their first album, Aghora, recorded and produced by Santiago Dobles and Dan Escauriza in 1999, Miami, Florida. The album featured Sean Malone and Sean Reinert, both members of Cynic...

. He has produced with Dan Escuariza, and Neil Kernon. Kernon produced Formless cd. Dan did the self titled debut cd.

Biography

Santiago Dobles was born in Caracas, Venezuela. He started playing guitar at age 11. As a teenager, he studied under Jae Valentine and Robin Stone. At age 18 he attended Berklee College of Music

Berklee College of Music

Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...

in Boston, majoring in composition, film scoring and guitar. While at Berklee, he studied fusion guitar under the guidance of Jon Finn, Mark White, Mashi Hasu, & Bruce Bartlett. Outside of Berklee, he studied guitar with Paul Masvidal (of Death and Cynic

Cynic (band)

Cynic is an American progressive rock band, incorporating experimental music, alternative, metal and jazz fusion elements, founded in Miami, Florida and currently based in Los Angeles, California. Their first album, Focus, released on September 14, 1993, is widely regarded as a landmark release of...

fame), Paul Aldanee and through correspondence with Derek Taylor

Derek Taylor

Derek Taylor was an English journalist, writer and publicist, best known for his work as press officer for The Beatles...

(Shrapnel recording artist) and Derryl Gabel. He also studied sound engineering at Miami Dade Community College. Santiago practices yoga

Yoga

Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline, originating in ancient India. The goal of yoga, or of the person practicing yoga, is the attainment of a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility while meditating on Supersoul...

, Qigong

Qigong

Qigong or chi kung is a practice of aligning breath, movement, and awareness for exercise, healing, and meditation...

and Pencak Silat

Pencak Silat

Pencak silat is an umbrella term for the indigenous martial arts created in Indonesia. The leading organization of pencak silat in Indonesia is IPSI...

(teaching the latter two). His father Gustavo Dobles musician director and composer his Mother Solange Rivero TV Prorducer and Actors, TV directors TV producer and writes agent ( Aisha Enterprises, Inc) both Venezuelan

Santiago also released an instructional guitar "Chops from Hell" DVD entitled "Shut up and Play".

Musical Style

Santiago Dobles is known for his use of Bb Tuning, oriental scales

Swara

The seven notes of the scale , in Indian music are named shadja, rishabh, gandhar, madhyam, pancham, dhaivat and nishad, and are shortened to Sa, Ri or Re , Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, and Ni and written S, R, G, M, P, D, N. Collectively these notes are known as the sargam...

, rapid alternate picking and sweep picked legato arpeggios that can cover all seven strings in certain runs. A good example would be from "Garuda", off of their 2006 album Formless

Formless

Formless is the 2nd album from progressive metal band Aghora, released in December, 2006.-Track listing:# Lotus – 1:14# Atmas Heave – 5:10# Moksha – 5:29# Open Close the Book – 4:58# Garuda – 2:53# Dual Alchemy – 5:36# Dime – 7:00# 1316 – 5:30...

, where Santiago repeatedly plays a lick starting on the twelfth fret of the high Eb string and ending in an open (low) Bb string rhythm, a lick that spans across three octaves and a fourth. He also ends the song with a pair sweep picked legato arpeggios that cover all seven strings of his guitar.
in 2011 Santiago was the composer and producer for the insidental music for the telenovela Grachi ( Nick Latino America )

Equipment

Amplifiers : Madison Divinty II head and cab.
Pedals: Ibanez
Ibanez
is a Japanese guitar brand owned by Hoshino Gakki. Based in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan, Hoshino Gakki were one of the first Japanese musical instrument companies to gain a significant foothold in import guitar sales in the United States and Europe, as well as the first brand of guitars to mass produce...

Tube Screamer, MXR
MXR
MXR, also known as MXR Innovations, was a manufacturer of guitar effects units, co-founded in 1973 by Keith Barr and Terry Sherwood . MXR was based in the United States in Rochester, New York. MXR Innovations, Inc. was incorporated in 1974...

phase 90, MXR Dyno Comp, Boss
Boss Corporation
Boss is a manufacturer of effects pedals for electric guitar and bass guitar. It is a division of the Roland Corporation, a Japanese manufacturer that specializes in musical equipment and accessories...

DS1, Boss TU2, Digitech 2101 pro, Dunlop
Dunlop Manufacturing
Dunlop Manufacturing, Inc., known colloquially as Jim Dunlop, is a manufacturer of musical accessories based in Benicia, California. Originally founded in 1965 by Jim Dunlop, Sr., the company has grown from a small home operation to being a large manufacturer of music gear for over 40 years.- Way...

Crybaby wah-wah pedal
Wah-wah pedal
A wah-wah pedal is a type of guitar effects pedal that alters the tone of the signal to create a distinctive effect, mimicking the human voice...

, EBow, Pigtronix OFO 'Disnortion' Pedal.

Discography

With Aghora:

Aghora (album)

Aghora is the self-titled debut album by progressive metal band Aghora, released on March 24, 2000. "Jazz-metal" Is another style commonly associated with this band.-Track listing:# "Immortal Bliss" – 4:34# "Satya" – 5:55...

(2000)
Transitions (2006)
Formless

Formless

(2006)
TBA - (201?)

Guest Appearances:

The Absence - Riders of the Plague

Riders of the Plague

Riders of the Plague is the second full-length album by American heavy metal band The Absence. It was released on August 7, 2007 on Metal Blade Records.-Track listing:#"Riders of the Plague" – 3:59#"Dead and Gone" – 5:00#"The Murder" – 5:20...

guitars on track 3 (2007)
Alan Goldstein "Bass Sketches" - (2006)
Silenmara - Solo on Delerium Tremens off the album Collection of Conscience (2011)

Biography

Musical Style

Equipment

Discography

See also