NEW PUBLICATION! I finally published a study score of Agustín Barrios Mangoré’s tremolo masterpiece Un Sueño en la Floresta. I love a compact score! I’ve reduced what editors usually publish in editions of 12+ pages to 4. It is easier to see structure, to manage page turns, and to mark sections for work. There are detailed fingerings for the left hand, optional fingerings, and smaller indications about barring and guide fingers. I have found that these fingerings work best for me and my students. This edition is available through the Six String Journal Payhip store and is 50% off for the remainder of July!
I recently recorded several of my favorite pieces by Paraguayan composer, Agustín Barrios Mangoré. Here are two of them, well-loved and well-known to most of you. Julia Florida was the first Barrios piece I learned decades ago and I still love playing it. And, of all of Barrios’s waltzes, his Vals Op.8, Nº3 is probably my favorite. Thank you to Stefan Nitschke for such a beautiful sounding guitar.
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.
Thought I would share some of Guitar Salon International‘s beautifully produced videos of the young Polish virtuoso, Mateusz Kowalski. In the first video, Mateusz plays one of Agustín Barrios Mangoré’s less played tremolo pieces, Contemplación, with both a magical touch and an enviable ease of execution. In the second, he rips through the finale of Mauro Giuliani’s Rossiniana Nº1, Op. 119 with true operatic fanfare. Mateusz playing is hypnotizing on many levels. Musical and meticulous, it is no surprise that he is starting to receive recognition from various competitions across Europe. Enjoy!
I stumbled upon this video of Maya Kazarina, a tremendously gifted young guitarist, filmed during the final of a competition she obviously won! Here she plays Agustín Barrios Mangoré’s well known tremolo piece Una Limosna por el Amor de Dios with sublime tremolo and Nikita Koshkin’s Usher Waltz with the brilliance and ease of someone well beyond her years. Enjoy!
Here is a moving performance of Israeli guitarist, Tal Hurwitz magnificently interpreting Agustín Barrios Mangoré’s Un Sueño en la Floresta. The elements of this video are spectacular. From Tal, who seems to invoke Barrios’ spirit effortlessly, to the hall’s acoustics, to the rich sounding guitar (Friedrich?), to the production (Sanel Redzic), all the elements of the video come together into a piece of art.
While there is no doubt of Tal’s mastery, I’ve seen very few who so effortlessly and musically perform Heitor Villa-Lobos’ Etude Nº2.
And to contrast from the south American composers, we can step back into the delightful world of Dionisio Aguado’s Rondo, Op. 2, Nº2.
Young Turkish guitarist, Celil Refik Kaya, is taking the guitar world by storm. He has won numerous victories in some of the most important international guitar and concerto competitions with displays of stunning musicianship and brilliant technique.
In addition to playing some of the most demanding repertoire with what seems like a magical touch, Celil is a prolific and gifted composer as well, and equally at ease playing with top notch orchestras as he is playing solo.
In the interview below he shares some insight and tips with Six String Journal readers about his musical journey so far…
When did you start playing and why? What drew you to the guitar initially?
I started playing guitar when I was six years old because my father used to play classical guitar and many other instruments. He has been professionally playing Rebab which is a traditional Turkish bow instrument. My father was my first teacher and when I heard him play, the sound of the guitar was magical to me and not comparable to any other instrument. The year that I started playing guitar I wanted to be like Andres Segovia and John Williams who were my childhood idols. Besides playing classical guitar, I play many other traditional Turkish instruments such as Rebab and Oud which I learned from my father.
What repertoire do you enjoy playing the most?
I enjoy playing 20th and 21st century South American composers as well as 20th century Spanish composers. Besides those, I enjoy playing my own compositions.
What guitar or guitars do you perform on? Strings?
I have guitars made by Garreth Lee and Glenn Canin. Both are phenomenal guitar makers. I play both of my guitars depending on the setting of the concert. In fact I recorded my first album Jorge Morel Guitar Music from Naxos, with Gary’s double top guitar which has incredibly beautiful warm sound. I recorded my second album with Glenn’s guitar and it features the music of Carlo Domeniconi which will be released by Naxos. For both of my guitars I use D’Addario EJ46.
Which guitarists/musicians have had the most influence on you?
As a performer I was influenced by Andres Segovia, John Williams, Alicia de la Rocha, Maria Callas, Itzhak Perlman. As a composer I admire Puccini, Rachmaninoff, Ponce and Tedesco.
What recording/s are you most proud of?
To me every recording has its own unique quality.
Which recordings do you consider have the finest recorded sound for guitar?
Recordings that I have done with producer and guitarist Norbert Kraft were the finest I would say. When we listen to all of the Naxos guitar recordings that Norbert recorded, they all sound phenomenal.
What are some up and coming projects you are excited about?
I will be recording the last two volumes of Agustin Barrios Mangoré which I am very much looking forward to. Starting from September 2017, I will be a fellow of Harvard’s Dumbarton Oaks in Washington D.C. I was recently invited for this prestigious fellowship program and I am looking forward to my performances in D.C. as part of my fellowship program.
Technique and Performance
How much do you practice? And, do you structure your practice in any particular way?
How much I practice really depends on my schedule and what is coming up. I practice as much as I need to which can really change according to the importance of the concert or difficulty of the new piece that I include in the program. When I competed in competitions, I practiced about 8 hours a day which I divided as 2 hours arpeggios and scales and 6 hours repertoire. For concerts I practice 2 to 3 hours a day.
Are there aspects of guitar that you struggle with or that you find you are still working on?
Not in terms of technique. In terms of musicality every dedicated musician grows musically until the end of their lives.
Do you deliberately memorize music or have a technique that helps assimilate music into memory?
I memorize the pieces naturally very quickly. Therefore I don’t have a specific method that I use for myself. For my students I recommend them to read the music from the end to the beginning or sometimes making them play specific passages of the piece only. Because most of the time, guitar players play with the muscle memory rather than really knowing what notes or fingering they play and this can cause many problems such as memory slip and lack of control.
Have you published any editions or do you plan to publish your own editions in the future?
My transcription of Valses Poéticos by Enrique Granados was published by FDP publications in Austin and my original works such as Sonatina, Longing, Suite of the Witches and Dream were published by d’Oz publications in Canada. I am working on the next projects for publishing including some of my solo guitar pieces and chamber works.
Do you have a favorite drill/routine you use to warm up?
I generally warm up with playing passages slowly from the pieces that I am going to play in my concerts.
Do you have any pre-concert rituals?
I usually eat a banana and chocolate before performing. It significantly helps the energy and concentration.
Advice to Younger Players
What single most important piece of advice about practicing would you offer to younger players?
Practicing consciously and slowly. Whatever they are practicing, awareness of every single note and its quality should be the goal. Sometimes when a young player practices, they continue playing even if the passage is not perfect. It is very beneficial to have a self critical mind in that sense.
What repertoire do you consider essential for young/conservatory students to assimilate? Why?
I am always a fan of traditional classical guitar repertoire rather than only new works. There are many composers that young players don’t play anymore and I consider them the core of the guitar repertoire. Turina, Tedesco, Ponce, Torroba and many others are fantastic composers who wrote the skeleton of the guitar repertoire. Their works are not only challenging both musically and technically but they are also audience favorites. If a person hears classical guitar for the first time, it is very likely that they will like 20th century Spanish composers. What these composers achieved with the emotional expressivity of their works is not replicable.
Recordings that every young guitarist should be familiar with and why?
Every young guitarist should be familiar with the recordings of Andrés Segovia, John Williams, and Julian Bream. Today, the level of guitar playing is so much higher than before, but the foundation of the guitar technique and soul is hidden in those recordings. To understand rhythmic stability and inner pulse they should listen Williams. Although the aesthetic of musical interpretation has changed significantly, Segovia’s playing conveys great musical expressivity. Listening to these artists provides a great foundation. Besides listening to other great guitar players, learning harmony, counterpoint, music analysis, listening to orchestral recordings, chamber works, and great instrumentalists (non- guitarists) will transport young players to another level. After a certain point it is important to listen to more non-guitar recordings.
Tangent
What is the last book that you read?
The last book I have read was “A Composer’s World” by Paul Hindemith.
Do you try to stay healthy? Exercise? Follow a particular diet? Have a favorite pre-concert food?
I don’t follow a particular diet but I am trying to eat everything in balance. Since I am Turkish, the majority of the time I eat Turkish food and my wife loves it, too. Before concerts, I don’t have a particular pre-concert food as long as it is not too heavy.
What is your favorite way to spend time when not practicing?
I like to spend my time in coffee shops with my wife reading books and sometimes composing. Besides that, I also practice Wing Chun which is a branch of Kung Fu.
Though the following video is in Spanish, David Russell offers a bit of an intimate motivational talk after a festival in Ecuador.
What I love hearing from him and what I hope students take away from this is the key and central point of hard work. As David says, “There are no shortcuts.”
Other bits of wisdom from the talk:
“Demand the most from yourself without losing sight of why you started in the first place.”
“Like compound interest, the hard work you do now will pay you back many times over in the future.”
Any guitar related New Year’s resolutions? If one of them was to improve your tremolo technique, then this post is for you.
As we all know, tremolo is tricky. As I mentioned a while ago in the Tremolo, Part 1 post, the elements in place necessary for tremolo to achieve musical expressivity, and come across as fluid and natural, are rhythm precision, consistent intensity from note to note, uniform tone, and speed. Here are several tried and true ways of working on tremolo that always make my fingers feel more confident with tremolo.
Training for Finger Return and Speed
We can work on speed indirectly by changing the right hand pattern. This demands the return of each finger to prepare for its next stroke. Choose a large section of a tremolo piece you are working on and play it with the following fingerings:
To develop the return of i practice pimi and piai.
To develop the return of m practicepmim and pmam.
To develop the return of a practice pama and paia. I would argue that pama is the most beneficial as a usually has a developmental deficiency.
After a masterclass at Antonio Lauro Festival in Venezuela 20+ years ago, phenomenal guitarist David Russell was fielding questions about technique. I think someone asked him how he did tremolo if he broke a nail. With his usual enthusiastic demeanor, he sat down and demonstrated, “If I break a, I play tremolo like this [pimi]. If I break m, I play tremolo like this [piai]. And, if I break i, I’m screwed!”
Training for Improved Rhythm
Another technique to improve pulse, rhythmic consistency, and control from note to note is a bit more difficult to master but well worth exploring. Set your metronome to a slow tempo at first and then practice a section of a piece or the tremolo pattern (pami) on open strings by setting the click to coincide with a.
Then apply the same technique by setting the click to coincide with m.
And, finally, apply the same technique by setting the click to coincide with i.
Here is a masterclass where David Russell demonstrates the technique with his foot instead of the metronome (15:41), and, incidentally, talks about a whole variety of relevant guitar issues – practicing technique, memorizing effectively, etc… You’re in luck if you speak Spanish.
Training for Improved Finger Placement
And, once you’ve practiced the techniques above, try playing expanded bits repeatedly focusing on planting the finger next in line after playing what’s in the brackets.
Play what is in the brackets. Plant a. Rest. Repeat 3x or more.
Proceed to the next group.
Continue with emphasis on the next finger for planting.
Play what is in the brackets. Plant m. Rest. Repeat 3x or more.
While listening to Manuel Barrueco’s podcast, he was asked about whether slow practice was a good method. Here was his response:
“[Slow practice] is a very good method, perhaps it’s the best, I’m not sure if it’s the best, but it’s one of. I think slow practice is extremely helpful in a lot of ways. It helps with memory because it breaks down muscle memory. It also allows one to look at the technique very closely. And look at any excess motion, bad movements, and tension in the technique. Also, it gives the hand and the fingers time to learn how to do their job. Also, their is another aspect that is often underrated which is that it is good musically. By practicing slowly, it allows you to slowly hear the harmonies and the lines and everything that is going on in a piece of music. So I wouldn’t be surprised if it is the best technique to practice in.”
With that in mind, try practicing a piece like the Allegro from Agustín Barrios’ La catedral at 60bpm per sixteenth note.
Young Turkish guitarist, 
Six String Journal 