This is Classical Guitar

Marco De Biasi performs his 18 Studi progressivi (18 Progressive Studies) which are easy to intermediate works he describes as: “Didactic work for early-year students. The pieces use only tonal or modal elements. The sound is modern and close to the music that young people often listen.” I’ve posted videos of Marco De Biasi’s excellent playing and compositions a few times and I highly recommend checking out his advanced works as well. See more at his website or personal YouTube channel. Here’s what he mentions about the studies:

“A few years ago, during the Covid period, together with my friend and luthier Marco Maguolo, a seemingly simple project was born, but unfortunately it was only partially realized. Here is the series of 18 Progressive Studies. Everyone of those study is played with a different guitar of him.” – via his YouTube

The sheet music for these studies are published by Edizioni Musicali Sinfonica here.

I will continue to update this post as he releases videos.

The post Marco De Biasi Plays 18 Studi progressivi first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

Claudio Hernandez Bravo presents a beautiful vihuela recital “The Spanish Golden Age” with repertoire by Mudarra, Milán, Narváez, Valderrábano. This comes via The Lute Society (UK) and their YouTube channel (subscribe). Here he’s playing a Vihuela de Mano (Gabriel Aguilera, 2019).

Programme

• Alonso de Mudarra (1510-1580)
  • Fantasía para desenbolver las manos
  • Fantasía de pasos largos para desenbolver las manos
  • Fantasía que contrahace la harpa en la manera de Ludovico
• Luys Milán (1500-1561)
  • Fantasía del primero y segundo tono
  • Fantasía del quinto y sexto tono
  • Fantasía del primero y segundo tono
  • Fantasía del quarto tono
  • Fantasía del octavo tono
• Luis de Narváez (1490-1547)
  • Fantasía del segundo tono
  • Una Baxa de contrapunto
  • Fantasía del primer tono Il
  • Mille Regrets, La canción del emperador del quarto tono de Josquin
  • Fantasía del primer tono
  • Veynte y dos diferencias de Conde Claros
• Enríquez de Valderrábano (1500-1557)
  • Fantasía XIII de contrapunto
  • Soneto Lombardo, a la manera de danza
  • Siete diferencias sobre Guárdame las vacas
  • Diferencias sobre el tenor de Conde Claros

The post Claudio Hernandez Bravo Vihuela Recital first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

A lesson on five benefits of practicing arpeggios and other textures on single strings for the right hand in classical guitar. The benefits range from increased accuracy, economic or efficient movements, tone control in each finger, rhythmic evenness, multilayered muscle memory awareness, and tremolo.

All the examples are from my technique book but feel free to use any of your own exercises or repertoire to accomplish the task. Here’s the YouTube link if you want to watch it there.

Video Times and Benefits

• 00:00 Intro
• 1:45 – Accuracy and economic or efficient movements
• 3:50 – Tone and volume control
• 6:13 – Rhythmic Evenness
• 7:35 – Multilayered muscle memory awareness
• 9:36 – Tremolo
• 10:32 – Final Advice and Conclusion

Benefits

Accuracy and economic or efficient movements – Small confined moments on a single string are good practice in general but also require you to be precise or you’ll accidentally hit another string. Converting exercises such as Giuliani patterns or arpeggios to a single string can really help with accuracy and your overall awareness of finger movement. Using the 2nd string is great because there will be strings on both sides of it which makes it more of a precision exercise than the 1st string.

Tone control in each finger – Playing on a single string allows you to test and compare the tone quality and volume of the different fingers. This is an excellent opportunity to even out your sound and dynamics making sure each finger is in control of the sound.

Rhythmic Evenness – It’s much easier to hear rhythmic inaccuracy when all the notes are the same.

Multilayered muscle memory awareness – This is fancy talk for ‘play it in multiple ways’. Practicing your arpeggios or other textures in a new way can embed a new layers of muscle memory and possibly also teach you about your technique and muscle movements as well. Practicing in the same way doesn’t always help you improve quickly or securely. Having secondary layers of muscle memory is a solid way to expand and solidify a technique.

Tremolo – Many students can play arpeggios well and if they can transfer that motion to a single string can allow the student to realize that they can actually play tremolo if they equate it to a similar technique.

Try it out and leave your comments below. You might be surprised how difficult it is at first which is a good sign that it is something to work on.

The post Benefits of Practicing Arpeggios on Single Strings first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

Isaac Bustos performs En Los Trigales by Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo (1901-1999). This comes via his great YouTube Channel. It’s been a long time since I’ve heard this piece which is surprising as it’s such a great guitar work. Great performance by Bustos with some really fun articulations throughout and nice phrasing with all the mysterious lines.

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Pablo Garibay plays his arrangement of Letter From Home by Pat Metheny (b.1954) on classical guitar. This comes via Garibay’s YouTube channel (go subscribe). The song is from Methany’s sixth studio album under the same title. This is the final track on the album and a beautiful and more subtle moment on the colourful album. Great performance and arrangement by Garibay with an excellent rhythmic feel and that wonderfully relaxed and flowing phrasing.

The post Pablo Garibay Plays Letter From Home by Metheny first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

Fake Press On Nails for Classical Guitar – In this video I demonstrate how to apply fake press on nails and look at three types of false nails that use double sided adhesive tape. These are are a no-glue nail option that works great for guitar and is easy to remove and reapply. These do not damage your nails like glue products do, take only a few minutes to apply or remove. Whether you have a nail break and want something temporary or you are switching to using false nails all the time, I hope this video helps. Here’s the YouTube link if you want to watch it there.

Video Topics and Times

• 00:00 Intro
• 1:27 Guitar Nails Kit
• 2:32 Luckyfairy Short Oval Round Nail
• 3:10 Sally Hansen Perfect Press-On
• 4:40 Demo Application of Nails
• 6:31 Filing and Shaping the Fake Nails
• 7:50 How Long do They Stay On
• 9:46 Close Up
• 10:16 Discussion on Removal
• 11:08 Health Concerns and Caution
• 11:58 Warning about Rasgueado
• 13:15 Conclusion

Products Used in Video

Keep in mind that almost any acrylic fake nail would likely work if it is a hard tip single-material style product. I like the Luckyfairy ones but I’ll be trying others as I experiment.

Guitar Nails Kit (An industry standard) – These are okay, very versatile. They have a strong clear tone which sounds good. I find them a bit thick and cumbersome though, the back of my nail hits the upper string sometimes. These are used by many pros though and last a long time in terms of wear.

Luckyfairy Short Oval Round Nail (I’m using these for concerts) – These are cheap false nails I found on Amazon. There are 100 similar brands which are likely all the same product. I find the tone loud, clear, and beautiful and I feel they are a bit thinner than Guitar Nails Kit. I really like these and will be using them in concerts as they are a bit louder and more clear than the Sally Hansen ones below.

Sally Hansen Perfect Press-Ons (I use these for practice and recording and love the feel) – The exact shape and colour I use is the “Ombre-lievable – Ov121” medium ovals. You can find these at your local department store or online. These feel the best to me but the sound is more mellow, less clear, and less loud but still good enough for me. They are very thin so they form to your natural nail better and I find they last a very long time on your nail. Longer than you’d want them to actually. But they are softer so strong players might wear them down too quickly. Warnings: I do not use the glue included, bad for your nails! Do not get the French tip ones as the material is different. I can’t find my exact ones on the American Amazon maybe due to some rebranding but here my search for them on Amazon which I think is about the same.

Health Warning

Do your research and wear false nails at your own risk. I’ve been warned that when moisture gets under false nails you are creating an environment for infection (bacterial, fungal). So people recommended to me to change them every day. Now, I wear mine for around 5 days and haven’t had an issue yet but you should do your own research and make your own decision on this aspect.

How Long Do They Last?

Taking the above health consideration into account of course. I leave mine on for 4-5 days. As an experiment I’ve left them on and the thin well-forming Sally Hansen ones lasted a week and then I removed them so they might have lasted longer. I find the thicker nails (Guitar Nails Kit) start loosening in 4 days. It also depends on how much water, soap, or oils you get in there.

Warning about Rasgueado

As mentioned in the video, if you catch the back of the nail (near the cuticle) during rasgueado strums it is terrible and horrific. This is a serious concern that you can’t ignore. I filed down the edge as much as possible and that seems to do the trick for practice if I’m being relatively careful but in performance or for caution I’d recommend also putting a nail strengthener or hardener on the edge so the string can not catch.

Pros and Cons

• Pros
• Perfectly uniform nails with a nice curve and no imperfections.
• Easy to apply
• Break a nail? No problem, just replace it.

• Cons
• Although generally quick, it is a pain to do it every few days.
• Finding the ones that work will take experimentation
• Annoying that you can’t seem to order the specific sizes you need but instead entire sets where I don’t use 60% of them.
• Rasgueado danger
• Infection danger

The post Fake Nails for Classical Guitar (Press On) first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

About This Page: This page lists modern and contemporary works I’ve performed along with links to the videos and sheet music by external publishers when possible. This is not like my other sheet music pages but I do love modern works and wanted to showcase a few and offer support to publishers. Obviously I can’t list every modern work so I’m starting with just ones I’ve performed and especially with ones I have videos for.

Copyright: Most modern works are copyright so I generally don’t publish them but feel free to follow the link to the legitimate external sheet music after watching the video performance. When I list CMC I’m referring to the Canadian Music Centre where you can find the score.

Levels in Order: Beginner, Late-Beginner, Easy-Intermediate, Early-Intermediate, Intermediate, Late-Intermediate, Advanced

In-Progress Videos: I’m still working on this page and finding old videos, I may have to re-record some. This page is a work in progress so check back often.

• John Gordon Armstrong (b.1952)
• Improvisions*

• Richard Rodney Bennett (b.1936)
• Impromptus, Advanced

• Leo Brouwer (b.1939)
• Etudes (Estudios Sencillos) – Progressive Intermediate to Advanced
• Brouwer Etude No. 1 and Lesson 
• Brouwer Etude No. 2 & 3 and Lesson 
• Brouwer Etude No.4 and Lesson 
• Brouwer Etude No. 5 and Lesson
• Brouwer Etude No. 6 and Lesson
• Brouwer Etude No. 7 and Lesson
• Brouwer Etude No. 8 and Lesson
• Brouwer Etude No. 9 and Lesson
• Brouwer Etude No. 10 & Lesson
• Brouwer Etude No. 11 & Lesson
• Brouwer Etude No. 12 & Lesson
• Brouwer Etude No. 13 & Lesson
• Brouwer Etude No. 14 & Lesson
• Brouwer Etude No. 15 & Lesson

• Aaron Larget-Caplan 
• Honey Cadence, Intermediate

• Carlo Domeniconi (b.1947)
• Domeniconi Klangbilder No.1-24, Beginner to Easy-Intermediate

• Roland Dyens (1955-2016)
• Impressions soleil couchant (à Francis Poulenc), Intermediate
• Les Balancelles from Le 100, (top vid is mine), Intermediate

• Angelo Gilardino (b.1941-2022)
• Pastorale, No.15 from Studi facili, Intermediate
• Studi di virtuosità e di trascendenza, Advanced
• Studi No.6 Soledad (Omaggio a Francisco Goya)
• Studio No.18 Rosario (Omaggio a Manuel de Falla)
• Studio No. 12 Omaggio a Sergej Prokof’ev
• Studio No. 15 Canto di Primavera – Omaggio a Igor Stravinsky
• Studio No. 22 Omaggio a Alexander Skrijabin

• Jacques Hétu (1938–2010)
• Prelude from Suite pour Guitare Op.41

• Doug Jamieson (Canada)
• La belle jarretière verte

• Frank Martin (1890-1974)
• Quatre pièces brèves for guitar

• Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992)
• Cinco Piezas

• Manuel Ponce (1882-1948)
• Sonata III
• Theme varie et Finale

• Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)
• Sarabande, Late-Intermediate

• Erik Satie (1866-1925)
• Gymnopédie No. 1 by Satie, Late-Intermediate
• Gnossienne No.1 by Satie, Late-Intermediate

• Rodney Sharman (b.1958)
• Impromptu, CMC

• Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959)
• Prelude No. 4
• Prelude No. 1
• Etude No. 1
• Etude No. 7
• Etude No. 10

Electric Guitar:

• Scott Edward Godin: Gwan (electric guitar duo), CMC

• Steve Reich: Electric Counterpoint (solo w/pre-recorded tape)

Guitar Duo

• Carlo Domeniconi (b.1947)
• Sonata in tre movimenti Op. 14

• Carlos Fariñas (1934-2002)
• Musica para dos Guitarras

• Rey Guerra (b. 1958)
• Los Caminos (suite) 

• Jacques Hétu (1938-2010)
• Concerto for Two Guitars (first movement)

• Celso Machado (b.1953)
• Video of Work I need to identify again!
• Xaranga do Vovo
• Modinha Brasileira
• Imagens do Nordeste

• Marc Mellits (b. 1966)
• Etudes for 2 Guitars (1999)

• Georges Migot (1891-1976)
• Sonata a deux Guitares

• Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992)
• Otoño Porteño
• Primavera Portena

• Manuel Ponce (1882-1948)
• Scherzino Mexicano

• Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (1895-1968)
• Prelude and Fugue in Am (with Adrian Verdejo)

Guitar Trio

With Victoria Guitar Trio (Adrian Verdejo and Michael Dias).

* Canadian works available via the CMC

Dedications and Commissions (see our album Concentric Rings)

• Scott Godin: On Poetics *Written for the Victoria Guitar Trio
• Scott Godin: Inside the Theodosian Walls *Arranged & Dedicated to the Victoria Guitar Trio
• Jordan Nobles: Concentric Rings *Written for the Victoria Guitar Trio
• Benton Roark: Mystic Viel *Written for the Victoria Guitar Trio
• John Sherlock: Musiquita* Written for Adrian Verdejo
• RD Wraggett: The Nagual’s Dream for Guitar Trio and Tape *Written for the Victoria Guitar Trio
• RD Wraggett: Yesterday’s Canon *Arrangement dedicated to the Victoria Guitar Trio

Contemporary and Modern Works

• John Gordon Armstrong: Flight from The Stars Within Us*
• Marco Di Biasi (b.1977): Trio Studio No. 6 & No. 7 with Douglas Hensley and Michael Dias
• Richard D. James (Aphex Twin): Avril 14th, arr. Verdejo
• Anthony Genge: Streams I (Hensley/Dias)*
• Lou Harrison (1917-2003): Elegy for Harpo Marx
• David Leob (1939): Between the Sea and Sky
• Jordan Nobles: Temporal Waves (arr. for trio)*
• Patrick Roux (b.1962): Carnaval*
• Rodney Sharman (b.1958): September*
• Rodney Sharman (b.1958): Suspended Waltz* (arr. Dias)
• Toru Takemitsu (1930-1996):  Bad Boy (1961)
• John Weinzweig (1913-2006): Conversations for Three Guitars*

Quartets, Concertos, Chamber Music

Jordan Nobles

• Temporal Waves (quartet)*

John Oliver

• Prismophony (quartet)*

Jacob ter Veldhuis

• Jesus is Coming (quartet + tape)

Stephen Goss

• Under Milkwood Variations (quartet)

Leo Brouwer (b. 1936)

• Cuban Landscape with Rumba (guitar quartet)
• Toccata (quartet)

Paul Dresher (b. 1951)

• Guitar Quartet

Bryan Johanson (b. 1951)

• Twang (guitar quartet)

Justin Haynes (b.1973)

• empty orchestra [various]*

Celso Machado (b.1953)

• Folguedo for eight guitars [Various & w/ Celso Machado]

Manuel Ponce (1882-1948)

• Sonata (guitar, harpsichord)

Robert Strizich (b.1950)

• Fractal Sketches (guitar ensemble)

Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959)

• Bachianas Brasileiras arr. Roland Dyans (guitar ensemble)

The post Modern and Contemporary Works for Classical Guitar first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

Making a Rosette for Classical Guitar – Great to see this video of luthier Evan Kingma making a rosette for classical guitars via his YouTube channel. Such intricate and beautiful work! He’s what he had to say via his description:

In this video you can see the design and creation of one of my rosettes. For my Model 1 guitars, all of my rosettes are personalized for each client, and every single one is totally unique. The client for this guitar requested a rosette inspired by Japanese Gold Folding Screens and this was the design I came up with. I don’t normally put spacers in between the mosaic tiles of my rosettes, but I felt it worked quite well with the theme and the spacers here are meant to represent the seams where the screens fold up.

The post Making a Rosette for Classical Guitar first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

Émilie Fend performs a concert including repertoire by Giulio Regondi, Manuel Ponce, Dilermando Reis, and Silvestre Fonseca. This comes via Siccas Guitars and their YouTube channel where you can also see which guitars are being played in the description. I’m so impressed with Fend’s playing which has a wide variety of expressive abilities, tonal palette, and natural phrasing. A joy to hear.

• Repertoire and Times
• 00:00 Nocturne “Rêverie” Op.19 by Giulio Regondi
• 09:54 Melodia de uma noite by Silvestre Fonseca
• 14:06 Sonata III (Allegro Moderato) by Manuel M. Ponce
• 19:55 Sonata III (Chanson) by Manuel M. Ponce
• 23:21 Sonata III (Allegro non troppo) by Manuel M. Ponce
• 28:50 Se ela Perguntar by Dilermando Reis

The post Émilie Fend Classical Guitar Concert first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

In this video I discuss the reason why I don’t make ‘play along’ videos but make context lessons instead. This is a question I get asked all the time online. You’ve all seen play-along videos, they show the score and where to put your fingers for each measure of the piece. They don’t have much value to me or my students, especially in regards to long term development. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not being critical of along-along videos, some people love them, they just don’t hold the same educational value to my students. This comes via my YouTube channel.

➔ Need a curriculum to follow? See my Curriculum Page.

➔ You can start with my free beginner method.

➔ How to create a balanced practice sessions.

Topics in this Video

• 00:00 Intro
• 0:51 Play-Along versus Context Lessons
• 2:32 The Benefits of Context Lessons
• 4:54 What if a student doesn’t know where to put their fingers?
• 6:07 What if a student doesn’t have an educational background?
• 7:37 Conclusion

The post Why I don’t make Play Along Videos and Use Context Lessons Instead first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

Ukrainian classical guitarist Marko Topchii performs Zahir by Francesco Sgambati (b.1990) which was the winning entry of the DGF’s 4th composition contest. Performed Live at the 2024 Groningen Guitar Festival. The score for ‘Zahir’ will be published soon at Donemus. This comes via the Dutch Guitar Foundation via their Youtube channel. Great piece with plenty of contrast, motivic interest, and explorations of the guitar’s soundscape.

The post Marko Topchii Plays Zahir by Francesco Sgambati first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

The Life and Times of Catharina Pratten
Emma Rush
Write-up and Liner Notes

Emma Rush has an interesting new album out with a repertoire theme centred around Catharina Pratten. As she mentions, “The Life and Times of Catharina Pratten includes seven previously unrecorded tracks by the Victorian guitar icon, first recordings of works by her father Ferdinand Pelzer, her husband Robert Sidney Pratten, her colleague Leonard Shulz, and her student Frank Mott Harrison, and music by Francisco Tárrega, Giulio Regondi, and Ernest Shand…Pratten was a composer, guitarist, educator, publisher, conductor, and instrument inventor based in London. She was incredibly influential and was the most important guitar figure in Britain in the 19th century…Visit my store for hard copies, bandcamp for digital copies, or stream on all the major platforms!” You can also listen to the album via Spotify.

The Life and Times of Catharina Pratten includes beautiful playing by Rush and repertoire that weaves a story of Pratten’s life, inspirations, and influence on the era. A must listen!

Also check out this video of a work from the album. This comes via Rush’s YouTube channel. 

Repertoire

• 1 Daisy by Catharina Josepha Pratten (1824-1895)
• 2 A Lost Love
• 3 Variations sur un Thème Russe by Ferdinand Pelzer (1801 -1860)
• 4 Étude No.1 Allegretto Moderato by Giulio Regondi (1822-1872)
• 5 Absence by Catharina Josepha Pratten
• 6 The Duke of Cambridge’s Grand March by Robert Sidney Pratten (1824-1873)
• 7-8 The Last Compositions of Mr. Leonard Schulz by Leonard Schulz (1814-1860)
• No.8 Cantabile
• No.3 Allegretto a l’Espagnole
• 9 Lágrima Francisco Tárrega (1852-1909)
• 10 Capricho Árabe
• 11 Evening Song by Catharina Josepha Pratten
• 12 Dreaming of Thee
• 13 Coquette
• 14 Le Ruisseau Frank by Mott Harrison (d.1945)
• 15 Danse Capriccio Op. 28 by Ernest Shand (1868-1924)
• 16 Funeral March Op.89
• 17 Lucia di Lammermoor by Catharina Josepha Pratten

Tracks 1, 2, 3, 6, 1o, 11, 12, 13, and 14 were recorded on a guitar from
the 185os that was likely made in London. The luthier is not known.
It has a handwritten label inside that states: Madame R. Sidney Pratten,
38 Welbeck St., London Cavendish Sq.

The post The Life and Times of Catharina Pratten by Emma Rush first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

The amazing Liying Zhu performs the first movement Allegro from Five Bagatelles for Guitar by English composer Sir William Walton (1902-1983). This video comes from the amazing GuitarCoop and their fantastic YouTube Channel. I am always impressed by Zhu’s playing with beautiful phrasing and the contrast between her silky legato lines and clear articulation and virtuosity. One of the best players of our time.

The post Liying Zhu Plays Allegro from Five Bagatelles by Walton first appeared on This is Classical Guitar.

What Chair Do I Use for Classical Guitar? In this video I look at the best two chairs for classical guitar that I’ve found so far. One is a drum throne and the other an antique piano stool.

The Drum Throne I use via Amazon – Keep in mind that I hate how this one squeaks, but maybe all of them do? I should order a different brand to see if there is one that is silent.

Antique piano stool with talons – These were super common and they are readily available via ebay, etsy or your local antique store. I found mine at an antique store randomly while paying for some furniture, it was right there and newly refinished so I grabbed it at a great price.

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Canadian guitarist Ben Diamond performs Collectici Intim by Spanish composer Vicente Asencio (1908–1979). This comes via Diamond’s YouTube channel (go subscribe now). Movements: I. La Serenor; II. La Joia; III. La Calma; IV. La Gaubança; V. La Frisança. Great performance by Diamond with nice elegant melodic playing in the first movement and clarity in the voicing in the busier movements.

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