Rainshadow Recording welcomes the return of Celtic guitarist Tony McManus to Port Townsend, for an evening of what concert coordinator Matt Miner deemed “stringed wizardry.”

McManus, named “one of the 50 transcendental guitarists of all time” by Guitar Player Magazine, for both broadening and transcending the boundaries of contemporary Celtic music, said he is delighted to be back in the Pacific Northwest.

“One of my first gigs in the United States was in Everett in 1996,” said McManus, whose most recent performance in Port Townsend was part of a 2022 tour through Washington and Oregon. “There’s a fantastic music scene here, from Jimi Hendrix through the alternative movement. Even when I play in places like Wenatchee, the audiences are fully engaged with what I’m doing.”

McManus likewise deemed The Palindrome a “classic independent music venue,” and said he looked forward to playing “new tunes for new friends and familiar faces alike.”

The novelty of McManus’ music is underscored by the roots of his passion for playing, since he grew up near Glasgow on traditional tunes from his family’s record collection.

It wasn’t until McManus had already tried his hand at the fiddle, whistle and mandolin that he took up the guitar at the age of 10, but in spite of his own low opinion of his skills on those previous instruments, he conceded that working with them led him to transpose the melodies he’d played on the fiddle and mandolin to the guitar.

“When it first happened, it wasn’t a conscious thing,” McManus said. “Now, when I’ve reworked tunes for bagpipes to play on the guitar, I’ve been much more conscious of trying to capture the essence of that music.”

After playing for a while as an accompanist, McManus went solo with a main-stage debut on the final night of Glasgow’s inaugural Celtic Connections festival in 1994, supporting Capercaillie in front of a 2,500-strong crowd.

McManus’ music has drawn on traditions from the entire Celtic diaspora of not only Scotland and Ireland, but also Brittany, Galicia, Asturias, Cape Breton and even Quebec.

“The more I’ve traveled around the world to perform my music, the more I’ve been exposed to other cultures and their music,” McManus said. “I’ve found myself incorporating bits of Swedish and Italian music, and even various flavors of jazz.”

Beyond experimentalism or even exploration, though, what fuels the foundations of McManus’ passion for playing is his desire to capture and connect to the broader human experience, to which people can relate regardless of their individual backgrounds.

“I want it to reflect the emotions and extremes of ordinary people’s lives,” McManus said. “It can acknowledge the harshness of what we go through, while also offering an escape from it.”

Tickets are available online at ticketstorm.com, or for cash or check at the door.

The show, on Thursday, May 16, at 7:30 p.m., is at The Palindrome at Eaglemount Cidery, on 1893 S. Jacob Miller Rd. in Port Townsend.