Adam del Monte, world renowned guitarist and composer, is set to showcase his talents at the upcoming Tucson Desert Song Festival and recently finished composing his first opera. He has a massive international career, which has explored his gypsy and Jewish heritage.

And it never would have happened if not for a 13-year-old boy.

Talking to Latin Post about his upcoming performances in Tucson, Del Monte took some time to describe the moment he realized his destiny.

The setting was Granada in the 1970s. Del Monte and his family were on an extended stay in the region.

"I was in a guitar shop and I saw a 13-year-old teenager playing the guitar," he narrated. "That impressed me and I was able to relate to this guy far more than I could to adults playing. And so it showed me that it was possible."

A month later he asked his father to teach him, leading Del Monte on an adventure that took him to England and Israel to learn Classical technique and then an eye-opening experience in Spain to teach him another art form.

Del Monte would spend months in Spain during the summers and immerse himself deeply in Gypsy culture where Flamenco was "a way of life."

"I call it a 24-hour university because you're constantly stimulated by the different sounds of flamenco," he noted. "Everything is constantly one big part of a whole. Only way to learn it is to be in it all the time."

That became a major point in his development and yet Del Monte would not even quote it as the turning point. That would actually come at the age of 22 when he became a father to twin boys.

He was living in Spain at the time and noted that his circumstances were not quite easy.

"It was very challenging to feed them, compose, practice and pursue my dream at the same time," he noted. "Up to that point I wasn't really going after what I wanted with great discipline or focus, if you will. Having kids was the necessary thing that I needed to get my act together.

And from there it has been one major success after another.

In February, the guitarist will head to Tucson for a special performance with the Tucson Guitar Society and Tucson Ballet for a joint performance alongside baritone Bernardo Bermudez.

As described by Del Monte, the program harkens back to Argentine folklore and the world of such artists as Eduardo Falu and Atahualpa Yupanqui.

"They are the original Argentinean singer songwriter cowboy personas," he noted, also explaining that these artists would play the guitar and sing at the same time. "In this case, I play the guitar, but don't sing."

He also emphasized that the new approach would have its own flavor with Bermudez's classical style adding different nuance to the interpretation.

"The interesting element is that usually this is done by one person, but here we are two people but still have to feel like one and the same while doing it," Del Monte noted. "I think that Bernando has classical training but he does an incredible job capturing the popular flavor when singing these songs. But there is an art song flair to it as well."

Of course this is not just a showcase for singer and guitarist, but a far larger presentation with dance incorporated as well, a challenge that did not go unnoticed by the guitarist.

"I think that creating a live situation where only a guitarist and singer have to carry the weight and substance for dancers to dance on has to be made very present," Del Monte explained. "I think the challenge will be to focus on the music and tie the texture and size with what the dancing will be doing.

"It is definitely an unknown, which makes it exciting and a great opportunity to create something new."

Aside from his work at Tucson, the guitarist recently finished an opera, the first of its kind.

Entitled "Llantos," Del Monte's work takes the audience back to the Spanish Inquisition where a group of gypsies seek out the help of a Jewish layer to save themselves. The result is an opera that combines classical and flamenco elements in both the vocal styles and orchestration. Del Monte noted that he has an orchestra that has full strings and woodwinds, but also includes guitar and "palmas" throughout as well. Vocally, the "musical style delineates the social classes in the opera."

The inspiration for opera actually came from an unexpected source, but yet another major theme in Del Monte's life - his family.

His wife, a pianist who works in the opera world, one day came to him and asked him whether or not he had ever considered writing an opera.

"She said it with such a smile and a twinkle in her eyes that I couldn't say no. So I said 'Yeah,'" he noted.

When she followed up he instantly improvised a libretto based on a paragraph he had read in a book a few years earlier. His wife approved mightily of the idea and for the next year he set out to research on the historical setting.

It wound up being a two-and-a-half year process that is currently in the hands of renowned conductor Gustavo Dudamel. The composer does not know when it will premiere but there is one thing he is completely sure of when talking about the opera.

"It is my magnum opus," he stated confidently. "For now."

Del Monte performs at the Tucson Desert Song Festival on Feb. 5, 6 and 7.