Acoustic guitarist Leo Kottke [ tickets ] has announced an ambitious schedule of winter and spring dates for 2000. He will play the Taft Theatre in Cincinnati on Dec. 11, then will begin a major tour of theaters and art centers throughout the country starting in January.

Although Kottke reportedly suffered hand pain starting in the mid-'80s--a common problem with guitarists who practice and perform as much as he does--the problem isn't keeping him off the stage anymore.

"He's been on tour for the last two months," said his label publicist. "He's touring like crazy."

His live shows are no-frills affairs, with Kottke sitting on the stage with his instruments, mixing music with funny anecdotes about fishermen, farmers and old-time musicians he has known.

The longtime Minnesota resident usually varies the pace of his set, throwing in a few blistering tempo tunes filled with running bass lines and counterpoint.

"There's an element of spectacle in my performances, but it's micro-spectacle, kind of like Kabuki. Lift an eyebrow in Kabuki and people faint.. sometimes," he said.

Kottke's latest album is "One Guitar, No Vocals," released last June on Private Music/Windham Hill. The six- and twelve-string guitar innovator goes back to his basic style on the 12-song disc: slow-poke porch numbers, bluesy forays with overtones of Mississippi John Hurt and Leadbelly, and reflective pieces, including two he wrote for the Burt Lancaster film "Little Treasure."