Handel for Guitar: 33 Transcriptions for Guitar

Guitar Techniques

Article

ENRIQUE GRANADOS La Maja de Goya

Nov 18, 2020

Bridget Mermikides brings us her rendition of a piece made famous by this legendary classical guitarist. This issue’s piece stands as a tribute to the classical guitarist and lutenist Julian Bream OBE (1933-2020) who passed away this year. Bream’s c

Guitar Player

Article

Ida Presti

Jul 30, 2019

FRENCH CLASSICAL GUITARIST Ida Presti was a phenomenal player, and she has a fascinating story. Born in 1924, she began as a child prodigy and quickly rose to fame in the classical world in France. In 1952, she joined forces with her husband, Alexand

Guitar Player

Article

The Paganini of Paraguay

Mar 10, 2020

AGUSTÍN BARRIOS WAS born in Paraguay in 1885 and began his formal guitar studies at 13. He improved quickly and went on to give virtuoso performances that made him a legend throughout South America. His repertoire and writing were influenced by Ferna

Guitar Techniques

Article

FERNANDO SOR Study No.18 Opus 35

Jul 1, 2021

In this issue we are focusing on two fundamental techniques of the classical guitar: the free stroke (‘tirando’) and rest stroke (‘apoyando’), and how we control them in order to balance a melody with its accompaniment. While a pianist might achieve

Guitar Player

Article

Andrés Segovia, Masters of the Guitar

Aug 27, 2019

ANDRÉS SEGOVIA WAS a classical guitar pioneer who popularized the instrument in the early 20th century, when it wasn’t accepted as a legitimate classical instrument. Ignoring the guitar’s limitations, Segovia magnified its strengths and in the proces

Guitar Techniques

Article

Frédéric Chopin Tristesse Etude Opus 10, No 3

Jun 3, 2020

For this latest issue, we turn to a work by the extraordinary pianist and composer Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849). Despite his astonishing piano virtuosity, Chopin possessed the rare ability and sensitivity to compose works that employed - and even sacr

Guitar Techniques

Article

Remembering John Renbourn

Aug 28, 2019

After touring in the south west of England in the early 1960s, John Renbourn first came to prominence when he formed a duo with Bert Jansch, riding the wave of the great English folk revival, but blazing a trail for what became known as ‘folk baroque

Guitar Techniques

Article

FRANCISCO TÁRREGA Pepita

Dec 15, 2021

Francisco de Asís Tárrega y Eixea, or ‘Quiquet’ (Frank) as his friends called him, was born November 21st, 1852, and had a somewhat complicated start in life after a traumatic incident as an infant left him partially blind. One version of this backst

Pianist

Article

Gottschalk o Ma Charmante, Épargnez-moi! Caprice Op 44

May 20, 2022

Key D minor/F major Tempo Allegro moderato Style Romantic Will improve your ✓Rhythmic stability ✓ Syncopations ✓Detailed practising Born in Louisiana in 1829, Gottschalk’s playing impressed both Chopin and Liszt when he toured Europe. His music, thou

Pianist

Article

Composers And Catalogue Numbers: An Appreciation

Jan 19, 2024

But first, why ‘an appreciation’? Possibly for the hard work that goes into this aspect of musicology by the compilers and editors; possibly for the catalogues’ usefulness; maybe even for the aesthetic beauty of their systematic and diverse approache

Pianist

Article

Macdowell In The Woods Op 28 No 1

Mar 15, 2024

ABILITY RATING INTERMEDIATE Key G major Tempo ‘Lightly, almost jauntily’ Style Romantic Will improve your ✓ Pedalling ✓ Voicing ✓ Phrasing It was MacDowell’s ‘exquisite harmonies’ that Massenet rated particularly highly. ‘In the Woods’ offers a glimp

Pianist

Article

Sheet Music Reviews

Mar 18, 2022

Breitkopf & Härtel This 150-page book contains a fascinating array of piano works by Brahms’s friends. These include well-known composers such as Robert and Clara Schumann, but the majority of the book is devoted to lesser-known musical friends such

Guitar Techniques

Article

She Moved Through The Fair

Jan 10, 2024

ON VIDEO The traditional Irish folk music archive is a treasure trove of timeless beauties, and the song featured this month is no exception. The origins of the melody of She Moved Through The Fair (or Thro’ The Fair) are unclear. The Eastern influe

Country Life

Article

Stars Of The City Of Light

Mar 18, 2020

FOR the first time in some years, I will not be able to visit Paris for the Salon du Dessin in the Palais Brongniart, March 25 to 30, and the contemporary Drawing Now fair in Le Carreau du Temple, March 25 to 29. I would very much like to see what th

BBC Music Magazine

Article

Historical

Jan 21, 2021

Wilhelm Backhaus: The Complete 1940s Recordings brings together Bach, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert. Backhaus was still recording for HMV prior to the acrimonious circumstances which led to his move to Decca in 1950. The disc contains pieces issued

Vogue Living

Article

Charlotte Perriand & Fernand Léger

Apr 24, 2020

Great artistic strides have often accompanied the tumult of societal upheaval and the 1930s were no exception. A financial catastrophe of age-defining magnitude ignited a burgeoning of nationalistic sentiment, the terrifying rise of multiple populist