Classical Guitar & Sacred Poetry
An instrumental classical guitar piece, paired with a recited poem — performances and commissions by Vita Monastero & Fred Vasquez.
Featured Products
• 100% combed and ring-spun cotton (Heather colors contain polyester)
• Fabric weight: 4.2 oz/yd² (142 g/m²)
• Pre-shrunk fabric
• Side-seamed construction
• Shoulder-to-shoulder taping
• Blank product sourced from Guatemala, Nicaragua, Mexico, Honduras, or the US
Let there be light.
Before the Rosary. Before the evening's first Guitar Poem. Before the house wakes and the day lays claim to you. Light this, and let an ordinary room become a place set apart.
Fifty to sixty hours of quiet. Ten fragrances — including unscented, for those who prefer their prayer undistracted.
100% natural soy wax, 100% cotton wick
9 oz, in a clear glass jar, 2.8″ × 3.5″
Made in the US
Every psalm began as a first draft.
Vita's poems start on paper, in pencil, long before they are ready. Yours can too. Keep your intentions here — the verse that stopped you at Mass, the line that came at three in the morning and would not let you sleep.
Hardcover, 5.5″ × 8.5″, 80 lined cream pages
Elastic closure and ribbon marker
Inner pocket, sized for the holy cards you keep finding
WHAT WE MAKE
The Guitar Poem
What Vita and Fred call the Guitar Poem pairs an instrumental classical guitar piece with a recited poem. Both the piece and the poem are not necessarily related — often composed centuries apart, by creators unknown to each other. Yet poetry and music have always intersected. The metrics, tone, and emotions of the poem are enhanced by the guitar, and the guitar by the poem: the piece becomes more poetic, and the poem becomes more musical.
Throughout its long history, the guitar has accompanied spoken-word poetry in this manner. Since the Guitar Poem is not a new idea, Vita and Fred reformulate it in their own way — one that draws upon their own influences and faith.
“Vita & Fred hope to serve as instruments of evangelization to God’s people.”
Vita & Fred
Alive in Faith
Some of Our Most Popular Work
Watch More
Filmed performances of sacred poetry and classical guitar. Watch the full collection on YouTube →
THE ARTISTS
Vita & Fred
POET & NARRATOR
Vita Monastero
After working for 33 years in both catholic and elementary schools, Vita retired from her teaching career. During her teaching years in Catholic School, Vita served for many years as the Religion Coordinator for school events.
She has been published in many teacher journals, has written and published poetry, and has been a participant in speech festivals.
In her parish, Vita is a Eucharistic Minister, a choir member, and serves as a member of the Divine Mercy prayer team. Vita also lectors in two parishes. In 2005, she was professed as a Secular Franciscan.
With the ministry of Guitar Poems, Vita and her husband, Fred, hope to serve as instruments of evangelization to God's people, and to see this genre of classical guitar and spoken word embraced by others and carried on for many years to come.
CLASSICAL GUITARIST & ARRANGER
Fred Vasquez
Fred Vasquez, M.M., M.A.T., recently retired after a long career as a music educator at Newtown High School (NYC DOE). He is also a classical guitarist, music historian, arranger and church lector.
Fred was born in New York City to an Argentine mother and a Peruvian father. He has been playing the guitar since age 10. He was raised in an environment of guitar, music, sports and languages.
Fred went on to earn his Master of Music degree in classical guitar studies at SUNY Stonybrook and his Masters of Arts in Teaching degree at Lehman College CUNY. He also pursued Doctoral studies in Latin American musicology at Stonybrook. Fred performed as a classical guitar recitalist in numerous notable venues and recital halls throughout New York and Peru. He was also an Adjunct Lecturer in Music History at LaGuardia Community College (CUNY).
At Newtown High School Fred formed an award-winning classical guitar program that flourished for decades. Through the years he and his students made a number of classical guitar documentaries for QPTV. He was cited for exemplary teaching and service to the community by NYS Senator, Jose Peralta. He was awarded the title “Educator of the Week” by Univision and the NYS Lottery.
Now, Fred is happy to develop the Guitar Poem genre for the purpose of evangelization, and to provide alternatives for using the classical guitar and poetry.
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New Guitar Poems, commissions, and performances are shared regularly.
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