Six String Journal’s Complete Technique Course on Sale

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Have some time to work on your technique over the holidays? Through December, my course Complete Technique for Classical Guitar will be on sale through Six String Journal’s Podia page. Use this COUPONCODE for a 20% discount.

Six String Journal’s Complete Technique for Classical Guitar Course was developed for the advancing beginner with some experience, the advancing intermediate guitarist, and will even benefit those with lots of playing experience. Though music theory isn’t necessary, a rudimentary understanding of rhythm is helpful.

The course consists of primary movement videos where I will teach the foundational movements that you’ll need in order to master classical guitar. These videos cover topics such as free-stroke, rest-stroke, arpeggios, alternation, scales, hand coordination, slurs, and shifts. These are followed by several series of secondary videos where I’ll apply the techniques and movements in various ways to help you engrain them into your own practice. Stringing the secondary videos into a sequence will teach you how to form an effective practice routine that will maximize your results and get you closer to your musical goals.

Course Includes

  • Hours of focused technique lessons with an award-winning classical guitarist, the founder of Six String Journal, and sought-after educator. 
  • Over 50 extensively detailed but digestible videos demonstrating essential foundational movements, technique tips, exercises, routines, and how to implement them into your practice, carefully edited in small bite size videos for easy assimilation and viewing.
  • Printable PDF summarizing the entire course with a condensed visual of the material presented. 
  • Loads of bonus content from Six String Journal’s Mastering Diatonic Scales.

The King of Guitar, Marco Tamayo

Published on by Leo Garcia2 Comments

Cuban-born virtuoso Marco Tamayo gave a spectacular concert in Palo Alto last Saturday as part of the Peninsula Guitar Series to begin his short US tour. He dazzled the audience with works by Couperin, Bach, Sor, Grieg, Tchaikovsky, and Barrios. His playing was about as virtuosic as I can imagine but with a refinement of age and seemingly unlimited amount of nuance and stylistic brilliance. Here are some recent videos that I’ve come across recently that say it all but if you have a chance to go to a live concert, I guarantee it is a whole different experience.

From a short concert in Brussells playing Narváez, Giuliani, Moreno-Torroba,

You can learn from Marco on Tonebase. Use the coupon code SSJ-30 to receive 30% any memebership!

The Keys to Right Hand Control

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In the videos below, I go through a progression of movements in the right hand that lead to better control of both rest stroke and free stroke. Grab your guitar and follow along. Hope this helps!

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Mini Spanish Guitar Concert, Part 2

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I’ve been dying to capture the voice of the wonderful guitar Stefan Nitschke built for me this year. It is his interpretation of the guitar built by Hermann Hauser that Segovia played for many decades and now resides in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Though I’ve only had it for a little over a month it is coming into its own quickly with a little encouragement of Segovia’s repertoire. : )

In this second half, I’m playing two of the most celebrated Spanish guitar pieces in the repertoire despite the fact that they are originally piano works.

Mini Spanish Guitar Concert, Part 1

Published on by Leo GarciaLeave a comment

I’ve been dying to capture the voice of the wonderful guitar Stefan Nitschke built for me this year. It is his interpretation of the guitar built by Hermann Hauser that Segovia played for many decades and now resides in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Though I’ve only had it for a little over a month it is coming into its own quickly with a little encouragement of Segovia’s repertoire. : )

Four Essential Ways to Work on Tremolo

Published on by Leo GarciaLeave a comment

In the video below, I demonstrate four great ways to help your tremolo improve. Two of them I’ve outlined in my book Mastering Tremolo, which if you haven’t picked up, you should : ). But the last two I came across in Abel Carlevaro’s hand-written notes to himself in one of his editions of Agustín Barrios Mangoré’s Una limosna por el amor de Diós. Below you’ll find links to Mastering Tremolo and a NEW study score of Barrios’s Una limosna. Hope it helps.

Mastering Tremolo on Amazon

Mastering Tremolo on Podia

Una limosna por el amor de Diós (Agustín Barrios Mangoré) study score

2023 Cedar Jean Noel Lebreton for sale

Published on by Leo Garcia2 Comments

For Sale. This is a brand new 2023 Jean Noel Lebreton Cedar Doubletop Concert Classical Guitar. Beautiful cedar/cedar doubletop with nomex and balsa. Elevated fingerboard, Schaller Grand Tuners. French polished top. Considered to be the best doubletop builder in France. Jean-Noël utilizes both balsa and nomex in his doubletops. This particular guitar is a great cedar doubletop: rich thick and powerful basses paired with warm and energetic trebles. The response of the instrument is excellent. Sound comes out immediately and is extremely well-balanced. What is wonderful about this guitar is that it reacts like a great traditional cedar guitar but has the extra energy and depth of a great doubletop. Action is low and easy to play. 650mm scale and 52mm at nut. Comes with the original EK case.

More Details:

Cedar (balsa/nomex doubletop), Indian Rosewood Back and Sides, Elevated neck/Ebony Fingerboard with additional 20th fret, Armrest, French Polish Top/cellulosic lacquer back and sides, 650mm/52mm. Comes with the case it shipped in (EK). Buyer pays $100 towards shipping (domestic US only). I’ll pay the balance. International shipping possible but extra. $8850

Essential Right Hand Arpeggios

Published on by Leo GarciaLeave a comment

What arpeggio patterns would you practice if you had a limited amount of time? This is a question I receive from students often. Depending on your level, experience, time, repertoire, there are many answers. To keep it on the simpler side, I propose the following: pim , pmi, pima, pami, pimi, pmim, and finally pimami.

In the following three videos, I talk about how I like to practice these arpeggios. I go over how to warm up, when to use various planting techniques, what I think about as a I play them, what to listen for, how to expand some of them, and how to involve the left hand, hoping to clarify many questions that pop up in lessons.

Get your guitars out to try out some of the ideas as I demonstrate them and let me know if they help.

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New Publication: Mallorca by Isaac Albéniz

Published on by Leo GarciaLeave a comment

Over the years, I’ve heard many great guitarists interpret this piece. Fortunately, many of them have also published arrangements. So when I finally decided to learn it this summer, I consulted the piano score and read through as many guitar editions as I could get my hands on: Segovia, Pepe Romero, Abel Carlevaro, David Russell, Rafael Andia, Paulino Garcia Blanco, Stanley Yates, among a few others. I listened to many players as well: Julian Bream, Marcelo Kayath, Jose Antonio Escobar, Alicia de la Rocha, to name a few. There are many great performances on YouTube as well. Each edition and player has something interesting, some way of doing something that is clever or that works well. Some simplify difficult passages and some editions are more or less “guitaristic” than others. And all of those editions work well. But I cannot help trying to find my own way of doing it. The edition here is the way I play it now. You can find the score here on my payhip page.

Marcin Dylla plays Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s Capriccio Diabolico

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Marcin Dylla playing Castelnuovo-Tedesco is always wonderful. Marcin Dylla playing Castelnuovo-Tedesco on a Torres is magical. Watching Marcin play is like watching a magician cast a spell. Here, the synergy of artist, music, and instrument truly conjures the ghosts of the past.