Enveloped by stunning views of the Mojave mountains and desert, the Hilton Lake Las Vegas Resort and Spa is a Mediterranean-style oasis of calm for people hoping to recharge their batteries and get some much-needed leisure. From January 16 to January 20, 2026, however, this quiet lakeside complex will become a hub of creativity under the banner of Nuno’s Six String Sanctuary – a place for guitar players to meet, watch, talk, and develop together.
It’s the Extreme guitarist’s first venture into the world of personally curated guitar camps and he’s put a lot of consideration into how its attendees will be able to develop over the course of its 96 hours. This is reflected in the wide breadth of talent he’s enrolled as mentors for the event, with world-class names like Steve Vai, Eric Gales, Richie Kotzen, Rick Beato, Mateus Asato and Taj Farrant.
Then there’s the house band consisting of Marco Minnemann, Derek Sherinian and Vincen García, as well as the after-hour jams with players like Doug Doppler, Larry Mitchell, Luís Kalil, Teresa Topaz and Dave Weiner. From workshops, performances and jam rooms to lunches and dinners, it’s shaping up to be an unforgettable event.
“This is like Kryptonite for me,” Nuno laughs, connecting with Guitar World a month ahead of his inaugural guitar camp.
“I can play in front of 70,000 people, but doing this Six String Sanctuary is a bit like going into a warzone. It’s something I haven’t done much because I don’t see myself as the kind of teacher who does these master clinic things. I’m more about the philosophy of everything than the technicalities.”
As fate would have it, appearing clinics for Steve Vai and Tom Morello helped convince Bettencourt that he did, in fact, have something to offer and that there would be many hoping to learning from his bespoke insights and experiences.
“I did Steve Vai’s event because he personally asked me,” continues Bettencourt. “I did another with Tom Morello as well. What I found out was that there are different ways to approach it. You don’t have to talk about the technique or theory.
“People can get that anywhere, they can punch it up online whenever they want. There are videos that will show you how to play my solos better than I ever could, probably because I don’t even remember how to play the fuckin’ things. My Six String Sanctuary will be more about the mythology of it all – from the experience and the passion to the hustle.”
It almost sounds like a more holistic approach to creative guidance…
People will be asked ‘Why are you here?’ because it’s about the why of it all. Why do you play guitar? That’s the most important question. What do you want and why do you do it? Is it because it brings you joy or because you want to take down your heroes?
It all boils down to what the event name stands for, it’s a place for people to come with no pressure. Your level of playing doesn’t matter. You could have started last night or been playing every day for the past 40 years. This is just a hang. A place to come, talk and share. The idea is that everyone will leave with some answers and inspiration, while also creating some joy and memories.
The mentors you’ve chosen all have this magical quality about them – certainly one that goes beyond sheer technique.
We’re all part of a culture – we’re almost an ethnicity when it comes to guitar. I can relate to them and they all touch me as players, composers, arrangers, lyricists and singers. I wanted to bring all the tools to the table. They’re all like-minded players. They all have a superpower that they can offer.
You will get something different from everybody. Most of them aren’t the most technical players in the traditional sense. They are writers and composers, even singers. Everyone I brought in has a fire for what they do and will be sharing that passion.
You are one of the most respected guitar players on the planet. What do people usually want to learn from you?
Well, I was nervous when Steve roped me in for his camp. He’d been asking for years and I was like ‘Hell no, I have nothing to share with anybody that you or Guthrie Govan down the hall don’t already have’. But Steve believed in me, telling me that I just needed to get in the room and be myself, talking to the audience just like I’d chat to him on the bus.
I don’t even know if I picked up my guitar once, because we were just talking. I found that all these kids, grown-ups, girls, boys and whoevers in the room had never been heard before, or at least had that kind of intimacy, discussing the DNA of it all.”
As someone at the forefront of modern blues, Eric Gales is a really strong addition to the line-up…
He was one of my top choices, no offense to the other guys. When it comes to proper blues, it’s super hard to stand out. Blues can be very strict in what it allows. It’s a bit like players get told, ‘Here’s the box and good luck not repeating what everyone else has done!’ We hear the licks and can instantly tell when they came from B.B. King or Stevie Ray Vaughan…
So even though blues can seem easier on a technical level, it’s actually harder because you have less to work with?
For sure. Someone like Eric has to play something that’s strong enough to say ‘Hey, I’m over here!’ Sure, the classic blues licks are what a lot of people start out playing. It’s simple and basic, so how do you make it complex? How do you create your own simplexity?
It’s a very special combination that Eric has, taking tradition and adding layers of complexity, touch and feel to it. Every time I hear him play, I’m like, ‘Yeah, this is special.’ He’ll throw in these crazy chords like Hendrix used to do. Blues is where rock and roll begins and ends, but how can we get on the surfboard and take a few more risks?
Rick Beato isn’t someone who normally appears at these kinds of events. Was it hard getting him to sign up?
He was a hard one. Luckily, I got to know him as a friend after he interviewed me. I told him how much he intimidated me because he knows too much about what I’m doing. It’s like he can see the Matrix while the rest of us are hoping for the best. I don’t want to know how the melons are grown, I just want to eat the melons.
To have him at my Six String Sanctuary means a lot. He’s like the Yoda of it all. He’s a great player, writer, producer and one of the most respected in his field. He can sit down with David Gilmour or take apart an Eagles or Steely Dan song in a respectful way. He also has the courage to say when things don’t sound so good. He was the first person I thought of. He has this language, skillset and toolkit that I don’t have.
Similarly, Richie Kotzen is so much more than a guitarist – like Prince, he can sing, write and play other instruments…
If I was starting out as a guitar player and that voice came out of me, I never would have picked up a guitar. I’d be fronting a legendary rock band playing stadiums! Richie’s voice is so soulful and his guitar playing is ridiculous.
He’s a great writer, and then you have to remember he plays without a pick – doing all that stuff with just his fingers, which I could never do. People coming to this thing need to know that whatever room they go into, they will get something uniquely different. They are all Jedis.
Taj Farrant is one of the younger names appearing, and undoubtedly a guitar hero in the making.
I’m excited about Taj because he’s going to bear the torch for a lot of people. He’s got it all – passion, writing, playing, performing – all of it. He is performing and writing like a 30-something. Tom Morello saw me play at clubs when I was 17 and he was like ‘What the fuck, how can you play like that so young?’ There’s no real magic to it. The answer is simple maths.
You can play for five years but only two hours a day, or for one year 16 hours a day. You just have to do it. It all comes from the 10,000 hours. There’s nothing worse than someone saying, ‘You were born with a gift.’ No, go fuck yourself, I got up every day and picked up that guitar when I was supposed to be doing other things.”
Mateus Asato is another great addition. He has all the technical dexterity but lets melody and harmony guide him first and foremost.
That willpower is probably what’s most impressive about him. It takes a lot of courage to not [try to] impress everybody with what you’re able to do. What blew me away most about his Instagram posts was his compositional skills and chord structures.
There’s a beauty in his melody and playing. That, to me, is his superpower. He’s able to do things that the other people can’t. He has this masterful control of harmonic beauty, but if you say ‘fuck you’ to him, he will say ‘fuck you’ back in a big way. You don’t want to get him angry [as a player] because he will tear you up!
It sounds like there will be a lot of opportunities to listen and learn.
This camp is giving people access to genuine guitar masters. And it’s not just guitar lessons, you’ll be living with these guys. You’ll eat with them, see them in the hall and share a building with them for four days.
If people feel they didn’t connect with one player, that’s fine, but there might be just one thing that really spoke to them. You might go to see Vai and then wonder ‘Why did Eric Gales blow my mind, what just happened?’
I remember after one of the Generation Axe shows, this big musclehead came up to me holding a cream Strat with scalloped frets. I knew exactly who he was there to see. He looked almost angry, saying, ‘You know, I came to see Yngwie…’ And I said ‘Okay’, thinking he was about to knock me out! And then he told me that he walked away from my performance as a new fan and that he loved what I played and said. He was almost apologizing to me.
It’s almost like the biggest epiphanies come when you’re least expecting them…
You’ll come to see your favorite player, but you’ll hear all these other musicians who might blow your mind just as much, or even more. It’s about leaving egos at the door and being here for the why. But the second you put on that guitar, it’s a superpower. Nobody can fuck with you with that thing on. It can change your life. It can change other people’s lives. It’s a powerful thing.
We are equal, doing it for the love of our instruments. I’m no more special than anyone else. The real truth is that, as great as all of us mentors are, none of us could ever sound like you. The moment you touch that guitar with your fingers, it can only be you because there is only one version of you. It’s important to remember that.
- For more information and to buy tickets, head to Nuno’s Six String Sanctuary
