Despite Andrés Segovia’s successes in the world, it took a long time before the classical guitar was accepted in Sweden. The guitar was mainly associated with troubadours and the Salvation Army. In his teens, to his mother’s despair, Erik bought a banjo and started playing in a Dixieland Band. It was after concerts with Segovia and Gunnar Lif that his interest was ignited in classical guitar. Eric travelled to the guitar teacher Eduardo Sainz de la Maza in Barcelona.