Nick Altschuller

As a flamenco guitar star from Minnesota and “usually the only guy in the nail care aisle,” Jonathan “Juanito” Pascual, 39, is used to standing out. After high school, he lived in Spain, earning money by playing on the subway and learning his craft at flamenco studios. “The older players wouldn’t look at me,” Pascual says. “But one day they heard me playing the blues, and within a week, half a dozen guys were like, ‘Hey, man. You wanna play together?’” Now based in Belmont, Pascual’s style blends the classic Spanish sound with American elements of rock and jazz. Success has him booking gigs around the world, from Carnegie Hall to a Prairie Home Companion cruise.  On Nov. 3, he appears with his New Flamenco Trio at Somerville Theatre. “It’s what I’ve been working toward since I was a teenager,” says Pascual. “It’s the power trios of Hendrix and Cream, but through the lens of flamenco.”