Fingernail Lesson for Classical Guitar By popular demand, a lesson about filing and shaping your nails. This is all about how I shape my nails and might be of interest and a starting point for students. Make sure to see…
This is a video lesson for my ebook: 20 Favorite Exercises for Classical Guitar – For beginner to intermediate classical guitarists (Includes: notation, TAB, fingerings, practice tips). This exercise, No. 6 & 7 – Slurs for Classical Guitar, aim to expose the beginner player to what…
Here is a lesson and some exercises for the left hand position and development on the classical guitar. This is one of the most common and important lessons for beginners and intermediate players. I’m using example exercises (No. 2 Vertical…
Here are a few lessons on right hand alternation for the classical guitar. This is one of the most important concepts of right hand fingering for classical guitar and essential for beginners to accomplish. Intermediate students should also review this…
Here is a basic warm-up for beginner to early intermediate classical guitarists. I made this with some of my students in mind who might rebel if it was longer than one page! I recommend that teachers get their students to…
Here’s a little video lesson regarding tension and relaxation for classical guitar or musicians in general. It’s more of a discussion than anything else but I hope you find it useful. One of the books I mention is an interesting section…
Over at Stephen Aron Guitar Studio he talks about eliminating the hard parts and editing the score for performance. I think the main point behind this discussion is the question: what is best for the music? Now, we can’t go too…
Scott Morris gives a lesson on Barring Technique (the Barre). This comes via the excellent GSI (Guitar Salon International), thanks! Their blurb: “In this lesson Scott addresses the topic of barring – when and how to bar, and also when…
9 opinions on performance and career by cellist Yo-Yo Ma, via The Strad. I thought the last point on performance was particularly good. Here’s a little excerpt: On performance‘Leon Fleischer put it well when he suggested that a performing musician…
The other day I posted a video regarding articulation and phrasing with Graham Fitch and received a number of questions as to the exact meaning of articulation in music. The previous post covered: Phrasing in music. So in this post I want to discuss…
Let’s start with a definition from the Oxford’s Music Dictionary: phrase. Short section of music of a musical composition into which the music, whether vocal or instrumental, seems naturally to fall. Sometimes this is 4 measures, but shorter and longer…
As guitarist Scott Tennant states in his technique book “there’s no substitute for preparation.” That is true, you certainly don’t want to perform something you haven’t practiced well. The more you prepare the better the performance will go. However, there’s more…