Timothy Kain
Timothy Kain. Photo © Jimmy Walsh

Kain and able

Classical guitarist Timothy Kain – who turns 70 in January – sees himself as a performer first and a teacher second, but he excels at both.

Begging his mother for a guitar for Christmas back in 1960, Timothy Kain promised that it would not impact on his studies since he would learn it by the time school went back in February. Some 60 years later, he says he’s still working on it!

I first met Kain when I was planning to study with him in the mid 2000s. At that stage, I knew of him as ‘the teacher that one must study guitar with’ this side of Mars, and...