Ce / WIN Ye | VY. U here fp FOR BEGINNERS TO INTERMEDIATE Sa ue ea ean ca if technique, progressing throtigh the most common keys and incorporating some d's most popular ¢lassical’Progressive CLASSICAL GUITAR METHOD by Jason Waldron Edited by Gary Turner and Brenton White Visit our Website www.learntoplaymusic.com The Progledaive svied oF Mik Hatilciion SSR CDs cl DESG* CDTRACK LISTING G* 4 Tuning 2 Lesson 1, Ex. 1A-Ex.2 3 Lesson 2, Ex. Ex 10 4 Lesson 3, Ex. 11 - Study 2 5 Lesson 4 Ex. 13 - Study 5 5 Lesson 5, Study 6- Study 8 7 Lesson 6, Ex. 15» Study 12 8 Lesson 7, Bx. 18 Study 19 9 Lesson 8, Ex. 21 - Study 20 40. Lesson 9, Bx 27 - Study 22 41 Lesson 10, Study 23 - Study 25 42 Lesson 11, Ex. 31 ~ Study 29 43 Lesson 12, Sudy 3 Lesson 12, Study 31 Lesson 13, Ex. $4 Study 95 Lesson 14, £x. 37 = Study 38 Lesson 14, Study 38 Lesson 15, Study 39 & Study 40 Lesson 16, Ex. 40 - Study 43 Lesson 17, Ex. 44 - Study 45 Lesson 18, Ex. 47 = Study 49 Lesson 19, Ex. 50 ~ Study 52 Loscon 19, Study 63 Lesson 20, Ex. 53 = Study 56 Proviows PROGRESSIVE CLASSICAL GUITAR METHOD LS.B.N. 978 0 947183 127 Order Code: CP-18312 Acknowledgements Cover Photograph by David Summerhayes Photographs: Phil Martin Artwork: James Stewart Distributed by: LTP Publishing Pty Ltd Email: info @learntoplaymusic.com.au or visit our website: www.learntoplaymusic.com COPYRIGHT CONDITIONS No part of this book can be reproduced in any form without written consent of the publisher. © 2008 L.T-P. Publishing Pty. Ltd. For more information about the author visit: www.jasonwaldron-guitarist.com.auIntroduction Guitar Parts Notes on the Fretboard History of the Guitar . Section One Rudiments of Musi Notes in the Open Position Sitting Position .. Right Hand Notation, Right Hand Fingernails Right Arm Placement ... Right Hand Position and Gripping Technique Lesson1 The Free Stroke, Open String Notes: G, B, and E Open String Exercises ... Lesson 2 Free Stroke with P, Open String Notes: E, A and D .. Chords Lesson 3 Rest Stroke, Alternation .. Lesson4 —_ Left Hand Notation, Left Hand Placement Finger and Thumb Position Reading Music Lesson 5 — Notes on the Third String Lesson 6 — Notes on the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth String Lesson7 Right Hand Independence Exercises. Music in Two Parts........ Counting and Saying the Name of the Notes Lesson 8 — Chromatics or Accidentals .. Approach to Practice. Section One Summary Section Two . Lesson9 — The C Major Scale Chords: C, F and G7, Chord Arpeggios ‘Waltz (Carulli) Study in C (Anon.) .. Lesson 10 Musical Form Study in C (Anon.) . Study in C (Carulli). Duet in C (Kuffner) .. Lesson 11 A Melodic Minor Scale, Chords in the Key of A Minor Estudio (Aguado) Allegro (Guiliani) . Duet in A Minor (Kuffner) Greensleeves (Traditional)Lesson 12 Lesson 13 Lesson 14 Lesson 15 Lesson 16 Lesson 17 Lesson 18 Lesson 19 Lesson 20 Appendix One Tuning. Appendix Two Scales and Key Signatures Appendix Three Glossary of Musical Terms . Triplets. Prelude (Anon.) Spanish Study (Albeniz} G Major Scale, Key Signatures Chords in the Key of G Major Study in G (Anon) ... Study in G (Aguado) .. Study in G (Sor) . Study in G (Kuffner) Relative Major and Mi E Melodic Minor Scale Chords in the Key of E Minor Minuet (De Visee).... Bouree in E Minor (Bach) Study in E Minor (Sor) Modulation... English Dance (Carull ‘Study in E Minor (Carulli) The D Major Scale ... Chords in the Key of D Major, The Half Bar .. Prelude in D (Carulli Allegretto in D (Guiliani) Duet in D (Kuffner) The B Melodic Minor Scale Chords in the Key of B Minor The Full Bar... Etude in B Minor (Sor) Minuet in B Minor (Krieg The A Major Scale .... Chords in the Key of A Major.. Waltz in A (Carulli) ... Study in A (Kuffner) Minuet in A (Bach) .. Waltz Allegro (Carcassi) The F Major Scale... Chords in the Key of F Major Minuet (Diabelli) ... Minuet in F (Anon.) English Country Gardens (Tradit Etude in F Major (Guiliani)... The D Melodic Minor Scale Chords in the Key of D Minor Study in D Minor (Carcassi) Theme from ‘Folias De Espana’ (Guiliani Allegretto (Carulli) Section Two SummaryProgressive Classical Guitar is designed to take the beginning student to a standard of playing ability and musi- cal knowledge where he/she will play comfortably and with confidence in the lower positions of the classical guiter. \Within the two main sections of this book a lesson by lesson structure has been used to give a clear and carefully graded method of study. No prior knowledge on your behalf is assumed. Section One deals with basic musical essentials such as the staff, note values, common time signatures ete and leads onto a concise explanation of correct sitting position and the use of the hands. These techniques are demonstrated using solo and duet studies. The duets can be played solo (either top or bottom part), or with a teacher or fellow student, Section Two consists of studies and pieces grouped in the most common guitar keys, which will give you a thorough grounding and insight into the rich and delicate repertoire of the classical guitar. From the beginning itis important to have a correct approach to practice. You will benefit more from several short practices (eg. 15-30 minutes per day} than one or two long sessions per week. This is especially so in the early stages because of the basic nature of the material being studied. As an approach to practice you should divide your time between the revision of past work as a (warm-up), the study of current pieces and the introduction of new work. (See page 43.) It is essential to develop the correct classical techniques and thus you should progress through this book SLOWLY and CAREFULLY. incorrect technique will actually SLOW DOWN your development as itis very difficult to break bad habits. It is the author's belief that the guidance of an experienced teacher will be an invaluable aid to your progress, particularly in the early stages. Confrontation between ‘nail users’ and ‘non nail users’ in the 19th century.Upper Bout Sound Hole Body Lower Bout—NOTES ON GUITAR FRETBOARD ape eh te cere ad on Sto 7 = = as ae o | 3q 4 —o = 0g 2h ow] ay ep eg 5 = = = 7 ayo S| Sq aH! 3 | vq +t ° =| eae Burs 1s} a—t«s to-}—o—1 aa to. e—t«e tv-+—v. 4 Bus Ho y—tev tot—o—| ¢ ta} —4_| 3 | 5 tol 4a tv] v | suing wis eat 4q to. 9. a: 4a tv-+—v. ay #9. °° 4a fa—[ a | Buns my 8. 49 H. 4 43 ta. 0. 4a to. 0- 4v 49-1 © | Bung pig a—|—4a tv W- 8. 49 $4: 4 3. 2- 8 | Buns puz 3a——a fa |}—0. 9: 8 4a #v-+-—-v 3 | Suns ist a rr o 3 ? 7 > 3 T SONIUIS N3dO‘Atthough the guitar as we know it today is a relatively young instrument, the history of its predecessors stretches back several thousand years, The Assyrians, Persians, Chaldeans and Hebrews all had versions of plucked stringed instruments and an in- strument called the rebec was brought to Spain with the Moorish invasion in 711, Many changes took place over the years but by the late 18th century the guitar shape had developed into the 6 stringed instrument we know today, as opposed to the smaller 4 and 6 string versions popular during the 17th century. It was early in the 19th century that several great figures appeared in Spain and Italy who were to establish the guitar as a respected concert instrument The greatest of these was Fernando Sor who was born in Barcelona, Spain in 1778, Throughout his lifetime {he died in 1839) Sor played concerts, taught and composed hundreds of works for guitar including studies for beginners through to virtuoso pieces played by most concert guitarists today. Such was his talent and high standing in the musical world that the French music critic Fetis called him the ‘Beethoven of the guitar: Notable contemporaries of Sor included his friend and duet partner Dionisio Aguado (born Madrid 1784, died 1849) who wrote many short attractive pieces and studies, and the Italians Ferdinand Caruli (1782-1853) Mat- teo Carcassi (1770-1841) and Mauro Giuliani (1781-1828), ‘All were great virtuosi who enriched the guitars repertoire and, most importantly, wrote methods to further its development Unfortunately the guitar lost popularity after this period and it wasrit revived until the late 19th century through the efforts of Francisco Tarrega in Spain and Agustin Barrios in South America Tarrega (1854-1909), although bom into a poor family, overcame great hardship to become a virtuoso player and composer for his beloved instrument, developing along the way the basis of the modem technique which is used by todays guitarists. Barrios (born in Paraguay 1885, died El Salvador 1944) was a supreme virtuoso who expanded upon the work of Tarrega in both a technical and compositional sense and became know as the ‘Paganini of the guitar’ be- cause of his astounding playing abiity interestingly, Barrios was the first guitarist to make grammophone recordings. One of Tarregass students, Miguel Liobet, carried on the work of his master in the first half of this century and he in turn was a big influence, through inspiration, on the illustrious career of Andres Segovia. ‘Through his untiring work over the last 70 years, Segovia (born 1894) has aquired a respectability for the guitar which has assured its place as a serious classical instrument, The great concert guitarists of today, including Alirio Diaz, John Wiliams and Julian Bream carry on the tradition of the earlier masters and through their concerts, recordings and teaching assure a healthy future for the classi- cal guitar,0 RUDIMENTS OF MUSIC ‘The musical alphabet consists of 7 letters: A B C D E F G Music is written on @ STAFF, which consists of 5 parallel lines between which there are 4 spaces, Music Staff ‘THE TREBLE OR ‘G’ CLEF is placed at the beginning of each staff line. ‘TREBLE OR ‘G’ CLEF, This clef indicates the position of the note G. [It is an old fashioned method of writing the letter G, with the centre of the clef being written on the second staff line) SS G NOTE ‘The other lines and spaces on the staff Extra notes can be added by the use of short lines, are named as such; usually called LEGER LINES; Be = al = When a note is placed on the staff its head indicates its position. eg: $= 7 = = This is a G note. This is a C note. ‘When the note head is below the middle staff line the stem points upward and when the head is above the middle line the stem points downward. A note place on the middle line (B) can have its stem pointing elther up or down,1 BAR LINES are drawn across the staff, which divides the music into sections called BARS or MEASURES. ‘A DOUBLE BAR LINE signifies either the end of the music, or the end of an important section of it BAR or MEASURE $ = BAR LINE DOUBLE BAR LINE ‘Two dots placed before a double bar line indicate that the music is to be repeated: REPEAT SIGN NOTE VALUES ‘The table below sets out the most common notes used in music and their respective time values (le. length of time held), For each note value there is an equivalent rest, which indicates a period of silence. WHOLE NOTE HALF NOTE © QUARTER NOTE EIGHTH NOTE SIXTEENTH NOTE (Semibreve) im) (Crotchet) (Quaver) (Semiquaver) COUNTS (or beats) 4 2 1 % Yh WHOLE NOTE REST HALF NOTE RE: QUARTER EIGHTH ‘SIXTEENTH (Semibreve rest) (Minim rest) NOTE REST NOTE REST NOTE REST (Crotchet rest) (Quaver rest) (Semiquaver rest) It a DOT is placed after a note it increases the value of that note by half, eg. Dotted HALF wore d= (2 + 1) = 3 counts Dotted QUARTER: wored (1 + ¥%) = 1% counts Dotted WHOLE NOTE®* (4 + 2) = 6 counts2 A TIE is a curved line joining two or more notes of the same pitch, where the second note(s) IS NOT PLAYED but its time value is added to that of the first note. Here are two examples: € ee —S 2 + 1 = 3 Counts 4 + 2 + 1=7 Counts In both of these examples only the first note is played, TIME SIGNATURES At the beginning of each piece of musio, after the treble clef, is the TIME SIGNATURE. TIME SIGNATURE ‘The time signature indicates the number of beats per bar (the top number) and the type of note receiving one beat (the bottom number). For example: AL — this indicates 4 beats per ber. 4, — this incicates that each beat is worth @ quarter note (crotchet), Thus in 4 time there must be the equivalent of 4 quarter note beats per bar, eg, Zs the most common time signature and is sometimes represented by this symbol called COMMON TIME. The other frequently used time signature is 3 TIME. J hescates 3 quarer note beats per bt, eg Z time has a MARCH’ feel and % time has a WALTZ feel When counting # time, accent (play louder) the frst and third beats ie 242 gaa accent In B time, accent the fist beat ony ie 3 v e18 NOTES IN THE OPEN POSITION ‘The OPEN POSITION on the guitar contains the notes of the open strings and the first three frets. Outlined below are the position of these notes on the staff and on the fretboard, 1 OCTAVE* 1 OCTAVE EF GA 6 ¢ 0 E F GAB ¢c DE FG 6th strings = 4 3 Ast string (thickest) (thinnest) hn octave isthe Satan between two notes tal have the same letter name and se 8 consecutve notes apat. The examale above uses E nots, showing fo octaves“4 SITTING POSITION Due to the obvious anatomical differences in each individual there has existed the opinion that every player's sitting position must be diferent. Although there is some truth in this, you must realise that there are always ccertain rules which should be learned, When these rules are well understood they can be interpreted as desired. The end result should be for the guitar to be an extension of the player's body and not, as is offen the case, an object to be fought with even before one note is played. IMPORTANT RULES It is most important for you to always practice with the same chair and footstool height and to place the foot- stool approx. 6” away from the left leg of the chair. Always sit on the front edge to avoid knocking the lower bout of the guitar against the chair. (see photo. 1). ‘The chair and footstool height should enable your left thigh to slope down at a slight angle towards the body (see photo. 1). The left leg should be at right angles to the floor (see photo. 2) and should not be allowed to be pushed away by the guitar. Viewed from the side (phot. 1) the back should be straight, head relaxed and not leaning forward over the guitar. Viewed from the front (photo. 2), the body should be straight and upright, the guitar resting at approx. 40° to the floor so that the head of the guitar is just below eye level but not too horizontal SITTING POSITION PHOTO 1 PHOTO 2 Left leg has slight downward slope Left leg is at right angle to floor. {as indicated by dotted line). The guitar head just below eye level.‘The right leg should be placed so that the foot Is directly under the uiter (photo. 2). The foot should not be flat on the floor, as this upsets your balance by pushing you to the left, which may cause baok- pains, Photo. 2is a correctly balanced position. Pho- to. 3 is incorrect. GUITAR HEAD TOO FAR BELOW EYE LEVEL. RIGHT FOOT INCORRECTLY PLACED. LEFT LEG NOT AT RIGHT ANGLES. Viewed from above (diag. 1), the guitar must be placed at aight angle to the left leg. Your upper body should be turned slightly to the left from the waist, to enable the upper bout of the guitar to rest against the right side only of your chest, and not flat against it. This 's vitaly important as only this position wil allow total freedom of movement for the left arm and hand, 6 PHOTO. 3: INCORRECT SITTING POSITION. DIAGRAM 1: SITTING POSITION FROM ABOVE.16 ‘The angle of the upper arm in photo. 4 is 90° to the floor. in photo. 5 the left arm is being forced back due to 1. not turning from the waist and 2. keeping the guitar flat on the chest. PHOTO. 4: CORRECT If you follow the rules outlined above, the guitar will be supported in four positions: 1. the left leg (raised) 2. the right leg 3. the right arm (on the lower bout} 4. the right chest The correct sitting position will provide a fixed posi- tion for the guitar and allow complete freedom of movement for the left arm. PHOTO. 5: INCORRECT. ELBOW FORCED BACKWARD. PHOTO. 6: POINTS OF CONTACT7 RIGHT HAND NOTATION ‘The right hand fingers ere named such: pulgar (primary) - thumb indicio - index finger medio - middle finger anular -ring finger agus The litle finger is not used in classical guitar playing, DIAGRAM 2: RIGHT HAND NOTATION RIGHT HAND FINGERNAILS It is widely accepted that the right hand fingernails be used to pluck the strings as this will give you a greater control over the volume and tone of the notes you play It is therefore assumed that you use nails for the dura- tion of this method. If, however, for one reason or another nails cannot be gtown or kept, you will have to focus attention on the fingertips in piace of the nails. Nail length and shape is mainly dependant on personal prefer- ance but the most common shape is that which follows the curve of the fingertip. (diag. 3). Experimentation and listening for the best tone aver a long period Is advised. Remember, the nails are to the guiterist what the stylus is to a record player and must be looked after accord- ingly. They should be filed and shaped regularly, working from the underside of the nal. (Use very fine ‘wet or dry’ sandpaper}. Shortest DIAGRAM 3: NAIL LENGTH The final test for the nails is in the playing ‘fee and sound and because nails tend to grow slighlly differently over periods of time, you should be flexible in your approach to nail shape.18 RIGHT ARM PLACEMENT {In dealing with correct right hand position, you must first consider the right arm and its relaxation and resting Place on the guitar's body. ‘The right arm must be considered a dead weight, ie, shoulder relaxed with the arm resting on the front edge of the guitar just forward of the elbow joint. Allowing for slight differences in arm length, the forearm rests on a point just backward of an imaginary line drawn from the bridge as seen in (photo. 7). With the arm in this position; relax the right hand and grip the strings just back of the soundhole FOREARM RESTING POINT PHOTO. 7: ARM PLACEMENT ‘The consequences of incorrect arm placement, can be seen in (photos 8 & 9) PHOTO. 8: INCORRECT PHOTO. 9: INCORRECT CONTACT POINT TOO HIGH. RIGHT SHOULDER DROOPING. RIGHT SHOULDER RAISED. CONTACT POINT TOO LOW.19 RIGHT HAND POSITION AND GRIPPING TECHNIQUE Having established a comfortable sitting position and arm placement, you should proceed as follows. ‘Allow the right hand to relax at the wrist as a dead weight. The most natural and common position for the knuckles is to follow a line parallel to, and directly over, the bass strings (photo. 10). ‘The top of the wrist should be slightly arched to follow a parallel plain with the soundboard (photo. 11) PHOTO. 10 PHOTO. 11 METHOD OF PLACEMENT Place a on the 1st string so that itis perpendicular to the string (photo. 12). Piace p on the 6th string at an angle of 46° to the string, thus forming a right angle triangle es seen in (photo. 13). Finally, place # and m on the 3rd and 2nd strings respectively, allowing them to slope intowards @ (photo 14) PHOTO. 12, a FINGER PHOTO. 13, p PLACEMENT PHOTO. 14 i and me PLACEMENT PLACEMENT Note that the fingers are not straight but are gently curved (photo. 11) and that p is STRAIGHT and extended away from the fingers (photo. 10). ‘Assuming that the fingernails are fled and ready for use as described earlier, you should make sure that each finger GRIPS its string tightly between the flesh and nail. This ‘gripping’ is vitaly important and you should regard it, together with the above hand postion, as a starting point for allright hand technique.Aesson One ‘The FREE STROKE is so named because the finger, having plucked one string, passes freely over the neigh: boring string. The sound is produced by the nail only. The finger should move ACROSS the string, rather than pull out from it. This movement will enable the hand to remain steady (ie. only the fingers move). THE FREE STROKE With the right hand in correct position and fingers gripping the strings as described on the previous page, pluck the 3rd string with # (photo. 15, 16). Leave p, m and @ gripping the 6th, 2nd and ‘st strings for support and steadiness, PHOTO 15: FREE STROKE PREPARATION PHOTO 16: FREE STOKE COMPLETION 7 Repeat this procedure for m and a. Make sure to retain correct hand position by checking photos. 10 and 11 The notes you have just played are written below. ‘Arnumber in a circle ie @ indicates the third string. G B E OPEN 3RD STRING (@) OPEN 2ND STRING (2) OPEN 1ST STRING (©) i Finger m Finger a Fingerat OPEN STRING EXERCISES ‘Try the following exercises continuing to rest p on the 6th string for support. Practice ‘strongly, only use small finger movements i. at no time should the fingers be more than 1" (13mm) {rom their respective strings. ‘These exercises introduce the QUARTER NOTE (or crotchet) d , which is worth one count. In time (Ex. 1A) there are three quarter note beats per bar and in 4 time (Ex. 2) there are four quarter note beats per bar. EXERCISE 1A, i m a Sages sete. Count 1 2 3 d 2 3 EXERCISE 18 a m i ayo tate EXERCISE 1¢ m a i moa tet EXERCISE 1D a i m ao of om oe EXERCISE 1E i a n feces ase eect ‘The folowing exercise in tina inches two and three open string notes played together. Use the same procedwe as outlined above; be sure to keep both (or all) fingers together at the tips and make the notes sound as one. EXERCISE 2 Cut 1 2 3 4 4 2 & 4 te22 Aesson tye RIGHT HAND THUMB p FREE STROKE In the following exercises the thumb (p) will be playing the bass notes written below. E A D OPEN 6TH STRING (©) OPEN STH STRING (®) OPEN 4TH STRING (@) p P - Just as p rested on the 6th string for support during exercises 1 and 2, 80 should 44m and a grip the third, second and first strings during the following exercises. Use a circular motion as ilustrated in (photo. 17) and be sure to exercise the entire length of the thumb from its base (photo 18). The thumb MUST NOT bend when making its stroke, and should pick with a downward motion, strking the strings on its left-hand side. EXERCISE 3. Use p throughout. ‘The following exercises introduce HALF NOTES (or minims) and WHOLE NOTES (or semibreves}. The haif note js worth two counts and the whole note is worth four counts. Follow carefully the timing, as written underneath each bar. HALF NOTE WHOLE NOTE J : Count 42 Count 123423 EXERCISE 4 Use p throughout. 12 3 4 4 2 8 4 41 2 3 4 423 4 Exercise 6 introduces the DOTTED HALF NOTE, worth three counts (see page 11). Once again, follow the count written underneath each ber. EXERCISES Use p throughout, Cont 423 4 2.8 423 4 235-12 3 42 3.423 123 ‘The folowing duet introduces the EIGHTH NOTE (or quaver) 4), which s worth half a beat. Two eighth notes equal one quarter note ie.) = J, more commonly witen as JJ The line joining the two eighth notes is call a LIGATURE. The plus sign (+) is used to count groups of eighth notes, as indicated in bars § and 6. (In pronunciation, erences FJ] ifr eeeanny Wee auaer pa Say: ‘one and two and three and EXERCISE 6 DUET STUDENT: Count 1 2 TEACHER:24 ‘A CHORD is three or more notes played together and an ARPEGGIO is a ‘broken’ chord, le. the playing of a chord one note at a time hord Arpeagio Chord Arpeagio Exercises 7, 8 and 9 combine the thumb and fingers playing in arpeggio style. Play through each exercise twice, as indicated by the repeat signs and end with an E whole note. EXERCISE 7 Pim i p_itm i ete Count + 2 + 3 + 4 + ete EXERCISE 8 ip F moe p ft moa oe Cont 7 + 2 + 3 + 4 + ete EXERCISE 9 pam i Pai ate, FF Count { + 2 + 3 + 4 + eto If you are already familar with some basic open chords you may wish to play them in conjunction with these exercises. However, be sure to concentrate on right hand technique! In this exercise the thumb and fingers play simultaneously. EXERCISE 10 Sa J ea ao *Francisco Tarrega26 PHOTO. 19: PHOTO. 20: REST STROKE PREPARATION. REST STROKE COMPLETION. THE REST STROKE The rest stroke (indicated by V ), is so named because the finger having plucked the one string, comes to rest against the neighbouring string. Grip # on the first string, making sure the right hand is correctly positioned. Pluck the string by allowing the tip joint to collapse and come to rest on the second string on the flesh approx. (6mm) from the fingertio. . Relax the tip and allow 7 to retun to a position close to (but not gripping} the first string, ready to strike again Repeat this exercise with m and a, remembering to keep the right hand as stil as possible ALTERNATION In order to achieve speed and evenness, both vital for later development, you must practice alternating right hand finger combinations in scale and single line melodies. Each of the exercises to follow should be played first with fan, then ae, then iat A very important aspect of right hand finger action during rest stroke passages is for the fingers to perform a walking motion. AS 4 plucks, mis close to the string and ready to strike. AS / springs away after resting on the adjacent string (previously explained) » proceeds to strike while i waits to start over again. Used continu: ously this sets Up the ‘walking’ action In the following exercises and studies use the rest stroke throughout. Altemate using im and then repeat with ma and ia, Say the names of the notes being played out loud, as this helps you to memorize them.27 EXERCISE 11 Gomi om i om et moiom fom Cour Ags esate ieee rena seem tesa dices orecisiaeMiesaiiecee as icedl Repeat Exercise 11 using ma & then ia. EXERCISE 12 fo hoe Tm 7 miiomim tf mim i m 3 1 2+8 1 243 128 123 cont 123 123 123 Repeat Exercise 12 using ma & then ia. 12 STUDY 1 DUETS Count 1 2 3 STUDY 228 Aesson Four LEFT HAND NOTATION ‘The left hand fingers are named as such: 1 > First finger (index) 2 - Second finger (middle) 3 - Third finger (ring) 4-- Fourth finger (ttle) LEFT HAND PLACEMENT Relax your left arm completely from the shoulder and allow it to hang loosely, (photo. 21) DIAGRAM 4: LEFT HAND NOTATION PHOTO. 21 Bring the left hand to the fingerboard and place the fingers on the first string as shown in photos 22 and 23. Your fingers should be ON THEIR TIPS and placed directly BEHIND the frets (not on top of them). PHOTO. 22 PHOTO. 2329 Note that while the second, third and fourth fingers remain basically vertical to the string, the fist finger curves quite severely away from the second. This extra stretch is caused by the greater distance between frets in the lower positions (ie. closer to the nul). Be sure that your wrist remains quite straight, as ilustrated in photo. 24. Photo. 25 shows bad wrist and thumb position, PHOTO. 24 CORRECT PHOTO. 25: INCORRECT LEFT HAND THUMB ‘The left hand thumb should remain under the first finger, pressing the middle of the neck, as shown in photo. 26. This makes finger stretches easier and more comfortable. Even if the first finger is not being used, this ‘relative’ position should be maintained. (photo. 27). PHOTO. 26 PHOTO. 27 NOTES ON THE FIRST STRING NOTE: E F G FRET: 0 1 3 G FINGERING: 0 1 3 + 3rd Fret EXERCISE 13 Use rest stroke and play 3 times: im, ma, ia30 NOTES ON THE SECOND STRING ¢ Nore: B c D FRET & FINGERING: 0 1 3 D EXERCISE 14 Play im ma ia. Use rest stroke. STUDY 3 Try a combination of the first and second string notes: STUDY 4 Giuliani Op. 30 In bar 4 of this study the quarter note rest (a one count period of silence indicated by 2) is introduced. This rest is achieved by releasing the pressure of your third finger on the D note, (3rd fret, 2nd string). Quarter note rests are also found in bars 8, 10, 12 and 16.3 ‘STUDY 5 THEME FROM BEETHOVEN'S 9TH SYMPHONY READING MUSIC Itis extremely important for you to learn the notes, rather than memorize pieces. The ability to sight read music makes pieces easier and quicker to learn, and enables you to play with other musicians Before commencing any study or piece of music, you should: 1. Check the time signature. 2. Tap out the rhythm of the notes and count aloud as you do so. 3. Name the notes. When you commence playing, KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE MUSIC, and DO NOT look at the guitar. *As explained on pg. 12 C(Common Time) can be used to represent 4 ime, The Author in duet with Alirio Diaz.32 Aesson Five NOTES ON THE THIRD STRING G = 7D r COUNTING AND SAYING THE NAMES OF THE NOTES ‘The importance of counting a piece before and during its performance cannot be stressed enough. This can be done as each part or line of music is studied separately. Saying the names of the notes not only reinforces the learning of them, it also forces you to concentrate completely on the music.39 lesson Cight CHROMATICS OR ACCIDENTALS SHARPS, FLATS and NATURALS are known as CHROMATIC signs or ACCIDENTALS. A SHARP #,, placed BEFORE a note on the staf, raises the pitch of that note by one fret (also called a SEMITONE) — 3RD STRING 3RD STRING 2ND STRING 2ND STRING OPEN ASTFRET 1STFRET © 2ND FRET G Ge c cH A FLAT 5, placed before a note on the staff, lowers the pitch of the note by one fret. eg. A Ab D Db <==» z- 3RD STRING 3RD STRING 2ND STRING 2ND STRING 2ND FRET 1STFRET 3RD FRET © 2ND FRET ‘When an open string note is flattened, the new note is located on the next lower string. eg, eb Bb Db = f be 2ND STRING 3RD STRING —_—STH STRING 4TH FRET 3RD FRET ATH FRET ANATURAL §, placed before a note, restores the note to its original pitch (sound) after having previously been raised or lowered, therefore cancelling the sharp or flat eg. Ab A ce c € = a RD STRING RD STRING 2ND STRING 2ND STRING 4STFRET = 2NDFRET © 2ND FRET 1ST FRET All accidentals must be placed on the same line or space as the note and must come BEFORE it.The following diagram illustrates all of the notes on the guitar up to the fourth fret. You will notice that it is possible for the same notes to have two different names. eg. Ff has the same position on the fretboard as Gb. These are called ENHARMONIC notes. EADGBE,. F simotsons CF ist ‘SHARPS FLATS RAISE THE LOWER THE NOTES’ NOTES’ PITCH PITCH Here is the full range of notes up to the 4th fret (called the FIRST POSITION), including all sharps and flats. ‘The enharmonic notes are indicated by brackets. E F rH cb] a [op mb] a [ag wb]a The following exercises utllze every note in the first position (the first four frets), plus the open strings. You wil notice that each one has been split into two sections, firstly ascending and descending using sharps, and then ascending and descending using flats. Thus although the two sections appear different in terms of musi- cal notation, the same notes are being played ‘As you ascend through each exercise, leave the left hand fingers on the string, as this allows them to be re- moved easily when descending, It also helps to train the left hand to cover the span of four frets and as such 's an excellent daily warm-up exercise. Use im, ma,and ta REST STROKE finger combinations for Ex. 21-23 and FREE STROKE p for 24-26. EXERCISE 21 o et EXERCISE 22 no EXERCISE 23 EXERCISE 24 EXERCISE 25 EXERCISE 26 be Photos 28, 29 and 30 show the left hand position on the first, third and sixth strings. When playing the notes ‘on the sixth string, the left hand wrist is slightly arched to allow the fingers to remain in a similar curved position. a PHOTO. 29 PHOTO. 30STUDY 20 HALL OF THE MOUNTAIN KING Grieg The following study introduces FIRST and SECOND ENDINGS (iine 6). On the first time through, ending one is played, as indicated by the bracket;[7. This section is then repeated (as indicated by the repeat sign, at the beginning of line 5), and ending two is played: [2. Be careful not to play both endings together. There are many sharps and fits in this piece, so be careful to play the correct notes and to use the correct fingering (Le. first finger frst fret, second finger-second fret etc). Use p free stroke throughout Use im rest stroke43 APPROACH TO PRACTICE 4s in all aspects of guitar and musical development the art of practising must be approached in a systematic and disciplined way. Of great importance is the beneficial use of practice time. The student should ‘map out € dally programme consisting of work studied so far and try as much as possible to stick to the programme concentrating on the main problems troubling the student at any given point of time, (a check through ‘Section One Summary’ will show what has been studied and a programme can be organized from this). For instance, the right hand independence exercises (pg. 36) are good ‘warm up exercises where the student can concentrate wholly on the right hand, its position, small movement of the fingers and thumb, clear strong sounds etc. Next, practice right hand alternation exercises (as explained on pg. 26) on all strings, followed by the chromatic scales on pg. 41 making sure to keep the left hand correctly positioned. ‘The amount of time spent on each technique (and any subsequent technique added as the student progresses through the method) are dependent on the available time and concentration span of each individual Remember that the least mistakes made during practise means less work must be done to correct them, there- fore think carefully and concentrate on all aspects of your practice, both musically and technically. ‘Speed is of no consequence or importance at this stage but will develop via a secure and organized technique Its also a good idea to get into the habit of writing down on music manuscript paper every piece as itis studied helps greatly to reinforce the learning of the piece Dionisio Aguado Miguel Llobeta4 Section One Summary ‘You have now completed the first section of this book, and written below is a summary of what has been studied. You should revise the contents of this list thoroughly, before commencing Section 2 RUDIMENTS OF MUSIC — staff — treble clef — notes: open strings and first position — repeat signs, including first and second endings — note and rest values: whole note, half note, quarter note and eighth note — dotted notes — ties 4352 — time signatures: 4, 4, 4 — sharps, fiats and naturals (chromatics) — music in two parts — lead. notes CLASSICAL GUITAR TECHNIQUES — sitting position — right and left hand notation — fight arm placement — right hand and left hand positioning — free stroke — rest stroke — alternation — left han thumb positioning — right hand independence.Sechon o Before commencing Section 2 itis essential for you to read Appendix Two, covering scales and key signatures, ‘The information contained in this appendix need not be memorized immediately, however it is important thet it be THOROUGHLY UNDERSTOOD and over a period of time, committed to memory.46 Aesson Tine ‘THE C MAJOR SCALE Scales should be MEMORIZED and PRACTICED DAILY. Always play SLOWLY and EVENLY at first, gradually building up speed, Practice the scale using both rest stroke and free stroke. Play three times, using im, ma, ta. To accomodate the right hand in its movement from the 6th string to the 1st string you should raise or lower the forearm as seen in photos 31 and 32, This adjustment allows the right hand fingers to remain in the correct shape for playing across the six strings without reaching or hooking, PHOTO. 31 (Plucking ©) PHOTO. 32 (Plucking @) EXERCISE 27 One octave, C major scale. 783 es —~ ~~ = cp € ¥ GA & C7 ~B A G FOE DC Ll JL ONE OCTAVE ASCENDING ONE OCTAVE DESCENDING The following exercises contain all the notes of the C major scale in the OPEN POSITION ie. the open strings and fretted notes up to the third fret EXERCISE 28 é EXERCISE 29a7 CHORDS IN THE KEY OF C MAJOR Every major key contains three principle chords: 1 the TONIC () 2 the SUB-DOMINANT (IV) 3 the DOMINANT SEVENTH (V7) ‘The most common sequence of these 3 chords is from tonic to sub-dominant to dominant 7th and back to tonic. In the key of C major, C i is the tonic, F IV is the sub-dominant and G7 V7 is the dominant 7th. Thus the basic chord sequence is: C - F - G7 - G, illustrated below: TONIC CHORD, — SUB-DOMINANT =— DOMINANT 7TH TONIC CHORD. ‘CHORD, CHORD, c F G7 c I IV VI A You will notice that the F chord requires the first finger to ‘bar’ across two strings in order to hold down both the C and F notes. This will be quite difficult at fst, but can be made easier by titing your first finger slightly TO ITS LEFT SIDE when placing the bar. (See photo. 33). Remember the UH thumb must remain under the first finger (See photo. 34). PHOTO. 33: F CHORD PHOTO. 34: THUMB POSITION (4th Finger not used) CHORD ARPEGGIOS The following exercise involves playing the chords of C, F and G7 in arpeggio fashion. ‘To create the correct sound of an arpeggio all fretted notes MUST BE HELD DOWN for the duration of that chord. eg. in bar 1 the C bass note is held for the entire bar. Use FREE STROKE and concentrate on achieving a smooth change between each chord, EXERCISE 30 c F G7 c piima_m i eto,48 STUDY 24 WALTZ Caruli PLAYING NOTES: This is an excellent and simple right hand arpegsio study. Play strongly and evenly, remem- bering to observe the time value of the dotted half notes by holding them for the full bar. pag (mt at tim ta i baimi STUDY 22 STUDY INC Anon PLAYING NOTES: Carefully observe all right hand and left hand fingering, and keep the right hand steady in correct position (refer to photos 10 and 11). ‘Alead:in note (refer to lesson Seven} is used, commencing on the ‘anc! section of the second beat, as indical- ed by the count in In the second half of the study leave the 4th finger on the G note (fst string) until bar 15, The 4th finger is acting as a PIVOT. A pivot finger is one which remains in position while the other fingers move. Itis a very important technique, making many pieces easier to play. fo omtim toae at a a mom om ime tom i Counti2+ 1 + 2 + ete mim am fom tom tmiom ¥ amim et pee op. — pet 3Aessoy Ter FORM refers to the pattem (or plan) of individual sections of music within a piece. The most common section lengths are 4 or 8 bars. One of the most common types of form is called BINARY FORM, where the order of the sections is AB. Sometimes these sections are repeated (ag. ABB as in the following studies), but the basic binery form is maintained. You will also notice that the two section do not have to be identical, but must retain similar characteristics, You should always determine the form of a study or piece, as this will make it easier to learn. MUSICAL FORM STUDY 23 STUDY INC Anon PLAYING NOTES: The third finger is used as a pivot in bars 1-2 and 4-6, which will make the arpeggio chord changes much easier and smoother. In bar 15 the scale run is played REST STROKE, es indicated by the 'v symbol. This change from free stroke to rest stroke may require additional practice. The quarter note rest in Bar 8 is achieved by placing the right hand fingers back onto the strings. (rest stroke) a PS Seago iid Peete ee page50 STUDY 24 STUDY INC Carulli PLAYING NOTES: This study combines the use of chords, arpeggios and single notes. Be sure to maintain ‘a consistent tone and volume throughout. You will notice that the stems of the bass notes (played by p) point both downward and upward, eg. bar two. This is a common technique of writing music, to help distinguish the bass line and yet maintain the appearance of an arpegaio ? m m Ge it eee pees seen ee mae lane 4 Count 1 2 3 4 + 2434 4+ete imi imi imi imiiima BI imiiimit om am51 ‘STUDY 25 DUET INC Kuttner PLAYING NOTES: You may wish to try playing the ‘teacher’ part of this duet. It is more difficult, particularly the chord changes in bar 3 (which re-occur in bars 7, 11 and 15). You should practice these chord changes separately, Det om pimp m aN id : tT Bo "2 ma mpima Ft te = — *2 string bar, see page 47.52 Aesson Clever THE A MELODIC MINOR SCALE ‘As with the © major scale exercises in Lesson Nine, practice the A melodic minor scale with both rest and free strokes, remembering to alternate. EXERCISE 31 ONE OCTAVE A MELODIC MINOR SCALE ° Ae CD ee iG) A Gh ee ep cian l ONE OCTAVE ASCENDING _ ONE OCTAVE DESCENDING | The following two octave A melodic minor scale introduces a new note, A, on the Sth fret on the first string. (bar 4.) Take special note of the fingering used in this bar. For the F#, Gf and A notes your hand has moved to the 2ND POSITION (ie. covering the 2nd to Sth frets). This shift from first to second position is necessary to accomodate the top A comfortably, EXERCISE 32 TWO OCTAVE A MELODIC MINOR SCALE Bice of © Ff af A ah Ll ‘TWO OCTAVES DESCENDING | CHORDS IN THE KEY OF A MINOR In the key of A minor, the tonic (\), sub-dominant (IV) and dominant seventh (V7) chords are Am, Dm and E7 respectively. ‘SUB-DOMINANT DOMINANT TONIC CHORD, ‘CHORD, 7TH CHORD, TONIC CHORD Am Dm 7 Am *These notes are played together even though they are on opposite sides of the stem.53 EX, 33 uses these chords in arpeggio form. Note the 4th finger pivot between the Dm and 7 chords. When a note is sharpened it REMAINS SHARP until cancelled by either a natural sign or a bar line. Thus the last note in bars 3 and 7 is GB even though there is no sharp sign placed directly before it. EXERCISE 33, Am Dm Ev Am STUDY 26 ESTUDIO ‘Aguado PLAYING NOTES: The term ALLEGRO means to play fast, but you should always practice slowly and carefully at first, then GRADUALLY build up speed. Two other very common tempo indications are ANDANTE - a siow, easy walking pace, and MODERATO - a moderate pace In bar 3 the first note (B) is played on the third string (at the 4th fret), as indicated by@ A number in a circle ALWAYS indicates a string number, NOT a fingering, D.C. al FINE (ine 4) means to return to the beginning (DC. stand for Da Capo, which means ‘the lead!) and play through to FINE (finish) which, in this case is at the end of the second line. Allegro p im i etc D.C. al Fine54 STUDY 27 ALLEGRO Giuliani PLAYING NOTES: ‘Allegro by Giuliani, is one of the most popular arpeggio pieces in the key of A minor. Con: entrate on volume and tone, making sure that # does not ‘hook’ the third string during the pi pi sections Remember that once a note is sharpened it remains sharp untl the end of the bar (eg, there are 4 G# notes in bar 5) ‘The HALF NOTE REST, indicating two beats of silence, is introduced in the last bar. Pp imi Gime Pipi pips55 STUDY 28 DUET IN A MINOR Kufiner PLAYING NOTES: Practice both parts of this duet, At this stage you should also go back through all previous duets and play the ‘teacher’ part. ae cemacaa sa cee cto teva aie eel eacmiat mot me ee ; mo oiom i om tmtiom Ne OeSTUDY 29 GREENSLEEVES English traditional PLAYING NOTES: ‘Greensleeves’ introduces the DOTTED QUARTER NOTE, worth 11% counts. It has the same time value as a quarter note tied to an eighth note. ie: J _ ‘When a dotted quarter note is followed by an eighth note, as in bar 2, the count is as follows: a) 12+ ‘The awkward stretch required in bar 14 (for the F# note) should be practised separately.87 desson Twelve TRIPLETS A TRIPLET is a group of three notes played in the same time as two notes of the same kind. In the following studies, eighth note triplets are introduced, which are indicated thus: aya V3 ‘These eighth note triplets are played in the same time as two eighth notes (ie. Téa), and are counted as such: z z = = Count 1+a 2ea Sta ata tea 2+a asa It can be seen from these examples above that each note is worth % of a beat. The triplet indication, “3~, can be written either above or below the note group.58 sTUDY 30 PRELUDE ‘Anon PLAYING NOTES: The following prelude is in the key of C major and uses pim throughout. In every bar ‘except bar 9, plays the second string and m plays the first string. Pay special attention to the string change in bar 9, where ¢ plays the third string and m plays the second. The triplet incication is written in bar 1 only, and assumed for the remainder of the piece. 1, WHOLE NOTES = _ e& = = é : Try the following variation, which uses pmi in place of pim. VARIATION: pmipmipmipmi ete, SBN oN TS =589 STUDY 31 SPANISH STUDY Alboniz PLAYING NOTES: Spanish Study begins with eighth notes but in bar 17 changes to triplet timing for the re- mainder of the piece. The melody is played on the bass strings, using p. In the triplet section the second finger remains on the A note (third string, second fret) throughout. Free stoke throughout60 Aesson Thirteen THE G MAJOR SCALE In the G mejor scale al F notes are sharpened. Rather than add a sharp to every note, however, an easier method is used whereby a sharp sign is placed on the F line (the top one) of the staff at the beginning of each line, This is referred to as the KEY SIGNATURE: thus the key signature of G major is F sharp. You wil notice that the Ff is necessary in order to maintain the correct interval sequence of the major scale: ‘one‘Tone-Semitone-Tone-Tone-Tone-Semitone (which, in tur gives rse to the familar sound of DO RA ME FA ‘SO LA TE DO). EXERCISE 34 TWO OCTAVE G MAJOR SCALE ‘The key signature of G has one sharp (FH) TWO OCTAVES ASCENDING . 6 Le dé od fs —E o c B A G FEE DCB A B TWO OCTAVES DESCENDING EXERCISE 35, eS SS Gsegeeustee *) i 7 Wy :