A lot of talk has been swirling in Sacramento arts circles about the merits of the Three Stages performing arts complex at Folsom Lake College.

Will it be that much-needed outlet for music groups that find Sacramento halls acoustically mediocre and expensive? And will performing there capture a new audience – one from a decidedly affluent demographic?

Some organizations believe so, including the Sacramento Philharmonic and Sacramento Ballet, which already present at the new Folsom facility. Others, like the Sacramento Guitar Society, have pegged their future to Three Stages. That much was made clear when the society announced it is calling the center home, with six guitar concerts scheduled in 2011-12. The society kicked off its first concert there Saturday by presenting fingerpicking whiz Muriel Anderson and nuevo flamenco guitarist Raughi Ebert.

That performance was given at Three Stages' City Studio Theater, a 200-seat hall of limited charm. Unfortunately, Saturday's concert did not reveal whether the hall will be acoustically friendly for intimate music like classical guitar. That's because Anderson and Ebert performed amplified. So the assessment will have to wait.

What is apparent is that an audience for guitar music exists in Folsom, as the sold-out crowd Saturday made clear. And having musicians only several feet from the first row is a big plus for the hall.

Not that guitarist Anderson needs a small hall to reach an audience. She is nothing if not an affable and expansive performer, and she backs that up with the cred of super-clear and lightning-fast fingerpicking. On Saturday, Anderson performed mostly solo the first half of the program. She began on the classical guitar, with a journeyman take of "Recuerdos de la Alhambra," and a potent turn on "Leyenda." After some song melodies, she switched to the harp guitar – a curious-looking, two-necked instrument offering six extra bass strings. Her performance on it was the highlight of the evening.

Anderson put the instrument to good use on the original "View From Space," her strumming hand coaxing a luscious thread of harmonics from the instrument, while her left hand fingered chords and arpeggios. The extra bass notes rang through, deliciously.

Ebert joined Anderson in the second half, along with percussionist Raul Rodriguez and bassist Ariane Cap. The Anderson-Ebert pairing proved intriguing. Ebert plays the highly syncopated rumba style of nuevo flamenco made popular by bands such as the Gipsy Kings. The music was buoyant and saucy – what makes nuevo flamenco so infectious. Anderson and Ebert musically spoke as like minds.

The only drawback was the amplification, whose electric vibe dimmed the grit and intimacy of the off-the-grid charm of flamenco and classical guitar.

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