This is Classical Guitar

A lesson on voice separation in regards to deciding right hand fingering for on classical guitar. This is from my book: Right Hand Fingering for Classical Guitar: Concepts and Case Studies. This book aims to give students a basic criteria for justifying fingering choices and gaining confidence in deciding fingering for themselves. The combination of concepts and case studies offers a framework for approaching fingering in both logical and musical ways. Here’s the Youtube link if you want to watch it there.

This video covers Examples No.30-34 from the book (Page 21-23).

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Slovenian classical guitar Duo Aratik with Jure Cerkovnik & Aljaž Cvirn perform the Gigue from French Suite No. 5, BWV 816 by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). Recorded by Uros Baric and Baros Records. This comes via the Omni Foundation and their Youtube channel (go subscribe). Amazing ensemble playing by Duo Aratik with stunning rhythmic accuracy and motivic attention.

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Evangelina Mascardi and Ariel Abramovich perform Contrapunto sobre tenor de la Baxa from Libro IV de Silva de Sirenas (Valladolid 1547) by Enríquez de Valderrábano (c.1500-1557). Performed on a vihuela baxa by Marcus Wesche and vihuela alto by Francisco Hervás. This comes via Abramovich’s excellent YouTube channel (go subscribe). Great to see two of my favourite players come together for a duet. Charming performance filled with a beautiful rhythmic delivery and the wonderful plucky sound of two vihuelas.

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Italian classical guitarist Cristina Galietto performs a concert including repertoire by Johann Kaspar Mertz, Francisco Tarrega, and Franz Schubert. This comes via Siccas Guitars and their YouTube channel where you can read about the four Siccas Luthier guitars being played. Excellent performances by Galietto filled with so much character, intricate articulations, and beautiful phrasing.

• Programme
• 00:00 Intro
• 00:21 Unruhe by Johan Kasper Mertz
• 02:12 Fantasia (On Themes from La Traviata) by Francisco Tarrega
• 09:22 Ave Maria by Franz Schubert

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A lesson on deciding right hand fingering for arpeggio patterns over five or six strings in both ascending and descending situations on classical guitar. This is from my book: Right Hand Fingering for Classical Guitar: Concepts and Case Studies. This book aims to give students a basic criteria for justifying fingering choices and gaining confidence in deciding fingering for themselves. The combination of concepts and case studies offers a framework for approaching fingering in both logical and musical ways. Here’s the Youtube link if you want to watch it there.

This video covers Examples No.26-29 from the book (Page 17-20).

Video Lesson Times

• 00:00 Intro
• 1:45 Ascending 5 Strings
• 5:25 Ascending 6 Strings
• 9:53 Descending 5 Strings
• 15:16 Descending 6 Strings

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Question: How can I improve my slurs (hammer-ons, pull-offs) on classical guitar?

Answer Summary: Improving your slurs should begin with a review and examination of good guitar positioning and left hand hand alignment followed by accuracy and relaxation exercises. Once those topics have been reviewed and improved, the light reflex-oriented motion needed for slurs (hammer-ons and pull-offs) can be accomplished at higher levels. Let’s explore what’s needed in more detail.

See my full lesson on slurs: Slurs on the Classical Guitar

Slur Lesson

The first thing we’ll do is just look at a lesson video covering some exercises with slurs in case you need some general tips on playing slurs.

Guitar Position + Left Hand Alignment

A proper left hand position is absolutely necessary to play slurs.

The five main tips for beginners:

• Left wrist is straight (gentle arch), not over-extended
• Left palm and knuckles are parallel with the strings
• Left hand thumb is vertical and behind 2nd finger
• Left hand fingers are curved and on fingertips
• Left hand fingers play very close to the fret

Here are some lessons you should check out.

• Classical Guitar Position (How to Sit and Hold the Guitar)
• Left Hand Position for Classical Guitar

Relaxation and Accuracy

Having a relaxed and accurate left hand is also necessary to playing slurs. Consider the following three points which are also connected to playing with speed.

• Economy of motion is the act of eliminating unneeded movements. Keeping your fingers close to the strings and preparing your fingers directly over the frets increases efficiency.
• Accuracy is self-explanatory but should not be overlooked. Placing your fingers close to the frets allows you to play with less pressure and tension.
• Relaxation enables you to access reflexes connected to your body’s natural ergonomic movements. Focus on slow, accurate playing and relaxation. Allow speed to come naturally as a result of good practice.

Some lessons to explore:

• Left Hand Tension and Relaxation Lesson
• Speed and Relaxation

Slur Exercises & Technique Book

Check out my book Classical Guitar Technique: Essential Exercises, Scales, and Arpeggios. The 122 page book includes: Practice Routines, Tips, 100 Open String Exercises, 120 Giuliani Arpeggios, Scales, Slur Exercises, Shifts, Finger Independence, Barre, Tremolo, Common Harmonics, and much more.

Questions & Support

If you need clarification on this particular Q&A please leave a comment below. For new and existing questions please visit the main Classical Guitar Q&A page. If you are enjoying the free Q&As you can support the site here.

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A lesson on repetition of a single finger in right hand fingering on classical guitar. We often emphasize finger alternation but can we choose to repeat a finger sometimes? This is from my book: Right Hand Fingering for Classical Guitar: Concepts and Case Studies. This book aims to give students a basic criteria for justifying fingering choices and gaining confidence in deciding fingering for themselves. The combination of concepts and case studies offers a framework for approaching fingering in both logical and musical ways. Here’s the Youtube link if you want to watch it there.

This video covers Examples No.26-29 from the book (Page 16).

Covered in this lesson

• Repetition vs alternation in calm consistent passages
• Repeated motifs
• Sequences

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Canadian classical guitarists Drew Henderson and Tim Beattie performs Henderson’s arrangement of Sonada de Adiós by Joaquín Rodrigo (1901-1999). This comes via Henderson’s YouTube channel (go subscribe). Beautiful performance by Henderson and Beattie showcasing some sensitive and balanced dynamic control and carefully sculpted ensemble phrasing. Here’s an except from Henderson’s description, read more at his YouTube:

Rodrigo’s Sonada de Adiós/The Sounding of Farewell (Homenaje a Paul Dukas) was written for piano in 1935. It was published the year of Dukas’ death, in the French magazine Revue Musicale alongside Falla and Messaien’s homages to Dukas.

The composition itself is haunting, with Rodrigo’s hallmark blend of Spanish idioms with 20th century compositional devices. Rodrigo maintains a strong Spanish character, particularly through the persistent semitone motion between E and F, drawing the listener toward the Phrygian mode before the work finally settles in A minor. At the same time, there are some very interesting chord clusters, and parallel motions. There is a recording of Rodrigo performing the work himself which is incredible to hear.

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Theory Lesson No.4a: Note Anatomy, Steps and Skips, Treble Clef Notes, Bass Clef Notes. In this lesson we will learn about the basic visual building blocks of a note, movement on the staff by step or skip, as well as the basic note names on bass clef and treble clef. Although the next lesson will cover the concept of middle C, a brief discussion at the end covers the beginning of octave designation. You can find all the lessons at the Music Theory Lessons page. Here’s the Youtube link if you want to watch it there.

Introduction to Note Anatomy

Notehead – A notehead in music is the oval part of a note that indicates pitch by its vertical position on the staff. It can be filled in or hollow which indicates rhythm (filled for shorter, hollow for longer durations). This is not a rhythm lesson today we will cover rhythm in a later lesson. The notehead is placed on the lines or spaces of the staff to indicate a specific pitch.

Stem

A music note’s stem is the thin, vertical line attached to the note head that helps indicate the note’s duration and later will help indicate other things such as which voice it is part of. In single voice textures the step will point up if below the B line or down if above.

In a two voice texture the upper voice stems will point up and the lower voice stems will point down making the two distinct voices separate and easy to recognize.

Steps and Skips on the Staff

It is useful to when discussing music theory to be able to describe the movement of the notes on the staff. So here is some terminology that will be used throughout my theory lessons. On the staff, steps (stepwise motion) are movements from line-to-space or space-to-line while skips jump over one of those: line-to-line, space-to-space. 

Later on when we talk about intervals this terminology can mean something different but today we are just talking about movement on the staff. 

Naming notes on the treble clef and bass clef

We are going to do some basic note naming today just as an introduction. However, one thing I’m leaving out is orientating the pitch in relationship to middle C whichis a specific note that will help us in pitch and octave designation. I will be mentioning middle C today but be aware that I will be explaining middle C as part of a future lesson: Pitch Designation and Pitch Classes

Note Naming on the Treble Clef

G clef orientation – As we discussed in the last lesson, the treble clef is also called the G clef as it points to G as a reference point.

Using stepwise motion (see we are already using the word!) we can figure out the notes on staff with G as a reference and then utilize the musical alphabet in order.

When first starting to learn the notes using sayings and acronyms can be helpful. For the line notes I use: Every Good Bear Deserves Fish

The space notes spell: FACE

We can also extend the range of the staff with ledger lines either above or below the staff.

Note Naming on the Bass Clef 

F clef orientation – As we discussed in the previous lesson, the bass clef is also called the F clef as it points to F as a reference.

When first starting to learn the notes using sayings and acronyms can be helpful. For the line notes I use: Good Birds Don’t Fly Away

For the space notes we can use: All Cows Eat Grass

We can also extend the range of the staff with ledger lines either above or below the staff.

Preparatory lesson on middle C

In the next lesson we will discuss middle C and the grand stave in order to start understanding how pitch works in terms of octave designation. In other words, how does the register of the notes from all the clefs fit together? Here’s a brief prep into the topic.

We saw middle C twice today already – In a low ledger line on Treble Clef and a high ledger line in bass clef. The below two notes are the same exact pitch.

Both notes are the same pitch written in different clefs

This means that pitches between the clefs can overlap. Clefs are simply a way to organize pitch to sit comfortable on the staff for practical use.

We could also view it in grand staff which combines treble clef and bass clef

We can even write out the same pitches in both clefs. They look like they are different but these are all the same exact pitch and register.

We will cover this topic in greater detail in the next lesson.

Hope you found that helpful. Find more theory lessons on the Music Theory Lessons page. I’m offering these lessons free of charge but feel free to support the site here. If you need any clarification on this particular lesson please leave a comment below.

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Pièces caractéristiques pour guitare, Op.123 (1964) by Belgian composer Jean Absil (1893-1974). Performed by Bradford Werner. I’m trying to feature more music by modern and contemporary composers and external publishers on the site and this is a great piece to start with. I’ll be adding all ten movements to this post over the next few weeks so check back often. The sheet music is by Editions Henry Lemoine.

Jean Absil (1893–1974) was a Belgian composer, organist, and teacher known for his modernist style blending neoclassicism with modal and polytonal techniques. A student of Paul Gilson, Absil composed symphonies, concertos, and choral works, and served as a professor at the Brussels Conservatory, influencing generations of Belgian musicians.

Jean Absil wrote a good number of guitar works primarily for Nicolas Alfonso, a prominent Belgian guitarist and pedagogue. Alfonso was one of the leading classical guitarists in Belgium during the mid-20th century and collaborated with several composers, including Absil. I suspect this work was also written for him but I haven’t found any additional information yet.

Pièces caractéristiques Op.123 (Pieces and Youtube Links)

• I. Prélude
• II. Invention
• III. Pastorale
• IV. Humoresque
• V. Valse
• VI. Cantilène
• VII. Scherzo
• VIII. Chant du soir
• IX. Pavane
• X. Tarentelle

This video was performed on a Marcus Dominelli classical guitar with Augustine Regal strings and a GuitarLift Ultimate support. All my gear here. Subscribe to the free membership newsletter and if you’re enjoying the site you can consider supporting it.

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A lesson on rest and free stroke considerations in regards to sustain and muting in terms of right hand fingering choices. This is from my book: Right Hand Fingering for Classical Guitar: Concepts and Case Studies. This book aims to give students a basic criteria for justifying fingering choices and gaining confidence in deciding fingering for themselves. The combination of concepts and case studies offers a framework for approaching fingering in both logical and musical ways. Here’s the Youtube link if you want to watch it there.

This video covers Examples No.26-29 from the book (Page 17-20).

Covered in this lesson

• Sustain with Rest and Free Strokes
• Rest strokes on high melody during arpeggio textures (Spanish Romance)
• Using rest strokes to mute unwanted sustain

The post Right Hand Fingering Concepts: Rest and Free Stroke Considerations first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

Classical guitarists Émilie Fend and Goran Krivokapić perform Jongo by Brazilian guitarist and composer Paulo Bellinati (b.1950). This comes via Fend’s YouTube channel (go subscribe). Amazing performance by this new duo comprised of two of my favourite players. Their rhythmic precision, clear sound, and beautiful ensemble phrasing is top notch.

A short word via the Youtube description: “Dive into the vibrant rhythms of Brazil with Jongo by Paulo Bellinati. Rooted in Afro-Brazilian traditions, this energetic and groove-driven piece comes alive in an arrangement for two guitars, blending percussive drive, lyrical lines, and infectious rhythmic interplay.”

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Lutenist Elizabeth Pallett performs Go From My Window by John Dowland (1563-1626). This comes via Pallett’s YouTube (go subscribe). Pallett is recording a ton of Dowland as part of a collection celebrating his works and marking the 400th anniversary of his death. Beautiful performance with charming embellishments and setting. Filmed at Hellens Manor, Herefordshire, England.

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Classical guitarist Penelope Shvarts performs Prelude No.3 from 6 Preludes, Op.46 by Emilia Giuliani (1813-1850). This comes via Ex-Aequo 2025 Emerging Artist Residency in Austin, TX and their Youtube (go subscribe). Video by Drew Henderson. Emilia Giuliani (1813-1850) was an Italian composer and guitarist and the daughter of the guitarist-composer Mauro Giuliani.

Excellent performance by Shvarts with wonderful contrasts between the direct-extroverted outer sections and more expressive inner section. I’ll be making an edition of the 6 preludes in the future so it’s great to hear more recordings of the repertoire.

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A lesson on the concept of string spacing and ergonomics on classical guitar and how it relates to right hand fingering choices. A number of examples are examined as well as a comparison of the opening of Carcassi Etude No.1, Op.60. This is from my book: Right Hand Fingering for Classical Guitar: Concepts and Case Studies. This book aims to give students a basic criteria for justifying fingering choices and gaining confidence in deciding fingering for themselves. The combination of concepts and case studies offers a framework for approaching fingering in both logical and musical ways. Here’s the Youtube link if you want to watch it there.

This video covers Examples No.15-18 from the book (Page 12-13).

Covered in this lesson

• String spacing basics
• Ergonomics of larger spacing
• Comparison of Carcassi Etude No.1, Op.60

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Question: How is the weight of the left arm used in classical guitar technique?

When proper technique, sitting position, and curved fingers are in use, the weight of the left arm can be used to help pull the fingertips into the strings of the classical guitar. This helps relieve the tendency of students to use a vice grip between the fingers and thumb of the left hand. Although classical guitarists primarily use this advice when discussing barre technique, it is also subtly used for general playing technique. Let’s look at some various techniques and how this tip can help.

Left arm weight during barre technique

Provided your barre technique is solid you do not need to vice grip the 1st finger and thumb to press the strings to the fret. A great way to test this is to remove your thumb from the fretboard and play the barre using only the weight of your arm to press the strings down. There is a specific angle you want to discover for this (see the video below). Your shoulder might help a bit a well which we will discuss below.

Here is a video on barre technique and at 1:50 I demonstrate this concept.

Left arm weight when playing non-barre chords and melodic notes

Just as with barre chords, if you are using good technique positions and curved fingers, the weight of the left arm can help pull the fingertips into the strings to avoid the vice grip of the left hand. However, the use and amount of weight is much less than it is for barre technique because we want the fingers to be able to reflexively move on and off the strings without weight or tension attached. The left arm is supporting the hand to allow the fingers easy on-off motions from the strings. In melodic playing not much weight or pressure is needed at all. During thick chord shapes maybe a touch more is needed but still likely not as much as students think.

My advice is to monitor tension and vice gripping in the left hand and when you feel tension during a thick or difficult chord, try using a bit of arm weight and release left hand thumb pressure.

Learning to press less hard – This brings us to a more important discussion which is directly related to this question: how much pressure is needed? Students tend to use much more pressure than is needed to press the strings to the frets. Nylon strings are super easy to press down but once weird shapes and poor technique come into the mix the natural tendency of many students is to squeeze hard to correct for buzzing. Here is a video on the topic as well as exercises to avoid tension and vice grips.

Video Times:

• 0:00 Intro and Discussion 1
• 1:28 Vice Grip and Thumb Relaxation
• 4:00 Muted and Buzz Exercises
• 8:01 Review and Right-Left Disassociation
• 9:54 Conclusion

What about shoulder use and strength?

Is it all weight from the arm or is some shoulder strength used? When I teach I don’t like to mention shoulder strength because it implies an amount of force that is not needed for playing classical guitar. However, I reluctantly agree that some shoulder strength pulling a barre finger into the strings along with the weighted arm can help in some situations.

But I caution you to not think of it as shoulder strength. Think of it as supplementary directional energy. This is a subtle technique and I would never tell a beginner student to “put shoulder into it”. Instead, focus on good technique in the hands, accuracy (close to the frets), and weight of the arm instead of shoulder strength. If you train your technique in this way you’ll be able to figure out the subtle use of the shoulder in a context that is healthy and non-destructive to your foundational skills.

Need a Technique Book?

Check out my book Classical Guitar Technique: Essential Exercises, Scales, and Arpeggios. The 122 page book includes: Practice Routines, Tips, 100 Open String Exercises, 120 Giuliani Arpeggios, Scales, Slur Exercises, Shifts, Finger Independence, Barre, Tremolo, Common Harmonics, and much more.

Questions & Support

If you need clarification on this particular Q&A please leave a comment below. For new and existing questions please visit the main Classical Guitar Q&A page. If you are enjoying the free Q&As you can support the site here.

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A lesson on the concept of string crossing and ergonomics on classical guitar and how it relates to right hand fingering choices. In this lesson we cover ergonomic string crossings and awkward string crossings and relate the discussion to finger alternation. This is from my book: Right Hand Fingering for Classical Guitar: Concepts and Case Studies. This book aims to give students a basic criteria for justifying fingering choices and gaining confidence in deciding fingering for themselves. The combination of concepts and case studies offers a framework for approaching fingering in both logical and musical ways. Here’s the Youtube link if you want to watch it there.

This video covers Examples No.8-14 from the book (Page 8-11).

Covered in this lesson

• Ergonomic string crossing
• Awkward string crossing
• Avoiding awkward crossings or playing through them

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A lesson on the concept of finger alternation on classical guitar and how it relates to right hand fingering choices. This is from my book: Right Hand Fingering for Classical Guitar: Concepts and Case Studies. This book aims to give students a basic criteria for justifying fingering choices and gaining confidence in deciding fingering for themselves. The combination of concepts and case studies offers a framework for approaching fingering in both logical and musical ways.

This video covers Examples No.1-7 from the book (page 6-7).

Covered in this lesson

• Why do we use right hand finger alternation
• What are the benefits
• Repeating fingers
• The difficulty of random fingering

The post Right Hand Fingering: Alternation first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

Right Hand Fingering for Classical Guitar: Concepts and Case Studies. This book aims to give students a basic criteria for justifying fingering choices and gaining confidence in deciding fingering for themselves. The combination of concepts and case studies offers a framework for approaching fingering in both logical and musical ways. This is a pdf download.

Buy the pdf booklet from my store

• Right Hand Fingering for Classical Guitar on Werner Guitar Editions

Included in this pdf booklet

• 58 pages of text and notation examples
• Notation-only with fingering
• Text explanations and debates
• Comparisons of fingerings
• Free video lessons for each concept and example

Level – This book is for the intermediate student but can be beneficial to all levels either as an introduction to right hand fingering concepts or as a clarification of values for advanced students. Most conceptual examples are basic open string exercises attainable to beginners and all levels. However, the repertoire examples are mainly from the intermediate repertoire. Therefore, in order to gain maximum benefit from the case studies, a level of grade 4-7 is recommended.

Video Lessons and Contents

Videos to be release this January and February.

Concepts – This section forms a basic criteria for examining or choosing right hand fingering in a variety of musical textures.

• Alternation (Exercises No.1-7, page 6-7) 
• String Crossing and Ergonomics (Exercises No.) 
• String Spacing and Ergonomics (Exercises No.) 
• Rest Stroke and Free Stroke Considerations (Exercises No.) 
• Repetition of a Single Finger (Exercises No.) 
• Playing Arpeggios Across Five and Six Strings (Exercises No.) 
• Voice Separation (Exercises No.) 

Additional Thoughts – Clarity on how we approach fingering in a practical way and in the practice room.

• Spot Fingering (Exercises No.) 
• Feel vs Logic: Personal Preference and Cautionary Tips(Exercises No.) 

Case Studies and Comparisons – Using the concepts learned in the first section, multiple musical examples are examined and debated.

• Common Musical Textures (Exercises No.) 
• Alternation and Repeated Fingers (Exercises No.) 
• Playing Across the Strings
• Thumb Use and Voice Separation
• Additional Case Studies

Final Advice

• Curiosity and Exploration, a Natural Part of Learning Music

Student Q&A

If you have a question about the book leave a comment below and I’ll organize the answers here.

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Shiqi Zhou performs Fantasia, Op. 19 by Luigi Legnani (1790-1877) on a 2013 Pepe Romero classical guitar. This comes via Guitar Salon International and their YouTube channel (go subscribe). Very impressive performance with amazing layered dynamics and confident articulations. The accents and weighted articulation mixed with the phrasing is incredible in terms of performance depth and feel.

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