Popular 17th Century Dance Form on the Classical Guitar
Rujero is a dance form that is similar to the pavane (usually a slow court dance of the 16th & 17th centuries, often in duple time) but often played at a more "hectic" pace. Actually, I have recorded this piece (see youtube video below) a bit slower than is normal in keeping with the "beginner" theme of this site. Feel free to speed up the tempo because it still sounds great!
The composer, Gaspar Sanz, was a Spanish composer and guitarist born in 1640 and died circa 1710. He became a professor of music graduating from Salamanca University, the second oldest university in Spain. Sanz was also a dedicated priest who took holy orders and his music cannot be separated from his lifelong strong faith. Indeed, it added a wonderfully rich and spiritual dimension to his music.
The piece itself is very satisfying to play with its strong melody, including the beautiful grace notes in bars 1, 3, 5, 9 & 15. The key is D major, which makes the piece all the more "bright & happy" for want of a better expression :))
Overall there are 16 bars and it's almost a "call and response" in terms of the two 8 bar sections and even each 4 bar section, 1 to 2 and 3 to 4. In terms of musical expression it is a good idea to play these aforementioned phrases "tasto" (towards the headstock) and ponticello (towards the bridge). This aids the "call and response" effect and adds to the musicality of your performance, which is always a good thing.
Additionally, because Rujero is in the key of D major, you're basically playing in the second position (your first finger starting at the second fret). That explains some of the fingerings where you're using your first finger on the "D" note on the second string, 3rd fret and the "C#" on the 2nd fret, 2nd string. Indeed, I've tried to use the "stronger" fingers of the left hand to aid in the articulation of notes throughout the piece.
Henry Purcell was an English Baroque composer. He has often been called England's finest native composer. Purcell incorporated Italian and French stylistic elements but devised a peculiarly English style of Baroque music.
Although he was a Baroque composer (who wrote for the lute) there are several, quite useful and varied, lessons for the classical guitar player contained within this minuet. For instance the Use of the closed "b" on third string, fourth fret, is useful for developing the use of the little (often weaker) finger.
It also allows for the re-enforcement of fret note knowledge. Also when using the thumb on the bass notes you need to make sure the note is plucked sufficiently hard enough to last a dotted half-note, or entire bar in other words.
You need to be aware that you're not cutting a note off too soon, which affects the quality of the piece in terms of "voicing" and harmony.
Another very good lesson for the beginner to intermediate player is the quick transition to and from a barre chord in bars 19 and 27. Not having to hold the barre down for an extended period of time means your fingers won't get too fatigued or sore but you'll be able to play a barre chord in context.
Additionally, while on the subject of Chords, you might want to play a chord roll in bars 20 and/or 28 if you deem it appropriate, just for the fun and practice of it. Be careful though as too many chord rolls, especially in baroque music, can tend to sound too amateurish.
There are also small shifts of position as in bars 17 and 25. If you think about it before hand, as you're approaching the shift, your playing will become a lot smoother and legato in sound and you'll be much less prone to making mistakes.
If you practice this little minuet slowly and carefully it won't take long to work up a pleasing performance for your friends, family or guitar group. It's quite an easy, yet satisfying piece to play.
Here is a video of the minuet by Henry Purcell (Note: Press "play" button then pause it so it loads properly. Then press "play" again when fully loaded. It should take several minutes to load)...
This allegro etude by Giuliani is a powerful exercise for right hand arpeggio technique.
Giuliani had made a name for himself as a virtuoso of guitar by the time he was nineteen. He was also adept at the flute and violin and by the time he died had added the title of "highly talented composer" to the list of achievements.
Indeed, he left a legacy of over 300 works for guitar and instrumental combinations, which catered for the beginner to the most advanced guitarist.
This etude for classical guitar will help you obtain independence of the right hand fingers and develop great speed and accuracy if praticed slowly to begin with then gradually increasing in speed. This allows the hand to stay steady and play the chords of A minor and D minor in a clear, clean manner. It also provides the balance for the bass to be played using increasing dynamics as a melody riff. View the video below to see what I mean.
Even when the left hand has to come off the strings to change chords it is done with the least amount of movement. My old teacher used to call it... "economy of movement." And he was right.
Also, here is a video of the complete piece...
Even the right hand arpeggio in this etude is played with a very relaxed hand asd very little movement. This allows for good speed and a full, unstressed sound. Look at my right hand in the video for instance. You can see the fingers of the right hand brushing softly up against one another. You can tell from this position that my hand is very relaxed.
The phenomenon of this piece continues unabated from the renaissance right up to the present day and its popularity has never really waned.
Green Sleeve, or Greensleeves is a traditional English ballad written by an anonymous composer. It is often said that King Henry VIII wrote Greensleeves about Anne Boleyn but this isn't really probable due to stylistic differences of the time.
My main reason for choosing this piece for study, other than its popularity and hence its enjoyment, is:
Its (reasonably easy) extensions of the left hand;
The use of dotted note rhythms;
The chance to play and "roll" selected chords. I say selected because if the rolling technique is overdone it really sounds quite tiresome. Played judiciously their effect are quite marked;
Having said that, you need to ensure all other chords are played "together". Indeed, the Green Sleeve tune is quite chordal and you need to be aurally aware of what you're doing with the tune;
Being in the key of A minor also gives it a melancholy twinge which is quite appealing.
Play this tune at a leisurely pace.
First of all, the "extensions" you'll need to master are in the 8th and 16th bars. You need to hold the G sharp with your first finger whilst you reach out with the 4th finger of the left hand and play the F sharp on the fourth string, fourth fret.
The G sharp is played again immediately after the F sharp so you'll have to hold onto the note by extending or stretching. PDF Tab Download
If you have difficulty doing that you'll need to practice those bars often and slowly. Using a book like Pumping Nylon or Kitharologous could help... Be carefull when playing the Green Sleeve tune that you get the dotted rhthyms right. The time signature is 6/8 and the rhythm or count (minus the anacrusis) is often 1 2 34 5 &6...
See how I've made orange the counts that are played. More importantly notice that the 5 is not played but the & of the 5 which is what gives it its dotted rhythm.
You'll notice in the video (see below) that I employ the use of two types of rolled chord in the piece. The first is a thumb-strum where my right hand thumb glides quickly across the strings on the "G" chord in bar 10.
You can see the rolled chord symbol in front of the chord in the notation version. For the uninitiated, it looks like a kind of wriggly worm :))
The next roll I employ is in bar 14 where the same "G" chord is played. The difference is that my thumb and fingers are sounded on the strings slightly one after another.
It takes a bit of skill and practice to make achieve a consistent "roll' like this but it is a skill certainly worth the effort.
This waltz by Carcassi is typical of him when writing excellent beginning works for classical guitar. As I’ve said on another page...
"When Carcassi was born in 1792, Carulli was already making a name for himself as a 22 year old, Sor was a rapidly improving 14 year old at the Monserrat monastery and Giuliani was receiving tuition on the violin, flute and guitar as an 11 year old.
Who was to know that in time that he would join these luminaries as one of the most famous names in classical guitar history?" But back to the waltz at hand.
First of all you can see that it’s in 3/8 time. If you’re not sure about reading notation this just means that each bar of music must equal three eighth notes duration.
Or, with variations as you can see lower in the music, you might have six sixteenth notes (played twice as fast). Although I can’t dedicate too much room here to understanding notation you might want to take a look at this page on music notation...
Another study point you’ll want to take notice of is the use of the "a" finger at various points in the piece. Remember that the right hand (if you’re a right handed guitarist) markings (Spanish) in classical guitar music are: P I M A. Which stand for – Pulgar which equals the thumb, Indice which equals the index finger, Medio which equals the middle finger and Annular which equals the ring finger. The first letter of each word is used to denote the particular finger in use. A lot of beginners try to avoid the use of both the "a" finger of the right hand and the 4th or pinky finger of the left hand. I’ve purposely added both, and do so a lot in the music I arrange to counteract this very thinking. Don’t forget – what you don’t use...you lose!
So its good practice to make these fingers part of your skill via everyday playing.
Take a look at a video of the piece here before we discuss some further pertinent points. And look out for the back end of the video where I play each separate part slowly and in close-up to make it easier for you to work out how to play it...
In the past a lot of my students have also tried to avoid developing their right hand thumb movements. If you take the time to practice the use of your thumb it pays off handsomely in the end.
This Carcassi waltz is a perfect vehicle for practicing thumb movements, especially in bars 11- 17 where you’re playing 16th notes on arpeggio chords and the thumb has to strike a bass string sufficiently hard enough for it to last the whole bar.
Even though three eighth notes is not that long it makes a world of difference to your sound if you strike the string properly and don’t accidentally put your thumb back on the string.
To this day I have a slight problem with bending my thumb at the first joint when striking a bass string. This all stems from a faulty technique that was not picked up by my first teacher and thus it persists to this day.
If you’re an beginner and you have a problem with your thumb movements you should practice little exercises that isolate the use of the thumb to help develop a solid technical foundation.
Another thing to remember is this piece is in the key of A Major. That means that you’re playing sharp notes of F, C & G. Even though the piece is played at the lower end of the fretboard you still need to remember the C# on the 2nd string, 2nd fret, and the F# on the first string, second fret and the G# on the first string, 4th fret. Many times people forget and play a C, G or F natural instead of the sharp and it really sticks out.
Also, you’ll notice in the 16th note section how my left hand moves from chord to chord. It’s done using a guide finger and it’s good practice to use this technique as it makes your sound more "fluid" and legato (smooth and connected).
One more point for when you print out the sheet music of the Carcassi waltz below and that is the use of the Dal Segno sign. You’ll notice at the end of the music the marking... "D.S. al fine" and then you see a funny little squiggly sign.
That just means got to that sign at the beginning of the music and play to where it says "Fine", which is at bar 26. But remember, once you go back to that sign at the beginning of the piece you DO NOT play the repeats. Just go straight through to where it says "Fine".
This has been classical tradition for many hundreds of years now to do it that way and it's worked perfect up till now.
This Kuffner Etude is great for practicing slurs, a.k.a. hammer-ons and pull-offs. You also get to use the little finger of the left hand occasionally throughout the piece. A lot of students I've had in the past try to avoid using the little finger because it is obviously a "weaker" finger, but I maintain the more you use it the stronger it will become. Indeed, Joseph Kuffner wrote many of these little study pieces purposely to strengthen the fingers and secure guitar technique.
Also, this particular Kuffner etude is in A major so you have to be careful to place your fingers on the right notes because of the three sharps, namely: F, C & G. For instance, the very first note in the very first bar you play a C#, but with your first finger of the left hand. It means you are starting off in the "second position" on the guitar neck/frets and need to move your hand accordingly.
You also use a variety of right hand fingerings. I've taken some license with this arrangement to give you a mixture of right hand finger practice, especially with the two-note combinations. For example, in bar 4 you use a combination of "i & m, m, i & m, m" as opposed to bar 7 where the notes are the same but the right hand pattern is "i & m, a, i & m, a.
You can see what I mean when the camera changes to the right hand perspective in the repeat sections when you watch the video below...
This little piece by Felix Horetzky will help with practicing music in 6/8 time. That means there are six eighth note beats per bar (or the mathematical equivalent). The "accent" of the beats or pulse thus become: strong; weak; weak; medium; weak; weak.
Felix Horetzky was born in Poland in 1796 and died in 1870. He learnt guitar when young but it wasn’t until his mid-thirties that he went to Vienna to study guitar under Mauro Giuliani.
He had to play in public performances to make enough money to continue his studies. He also landed a plum job as guitar teacher to the Austrian archduchesses of the Imperial Family, no less, which helped enormously when paying the bills to say the least.
Horetzky went on to tour many countries and was particularly successful in the cities of Paris and London where his popularity reached a peak. He even went on to teach and live in Scotland for some years.
Horetzky wrote many pieces for the guitar. Indeed, it is estimated he wrote up to one hundred and fifty pieces for the guitar alone. It is interesting to note that the andantino is supposed be the diminutive of the andante and thus should be played at a slower tempo. Over the years it came to be played at a faster speed between andante (walking pace) and the faster moderato.
Here is a short outline of tempo markings with their Italian names to help you see the basic tempos...
Grave - very slow
Largo - slow and broad
Larghetto - not quite as slow as largo Adagio - slow
Lento - slow
Andante - "walking pace" or medium slow tempo
Andantino – Faster than Andante but slower than Moderato
Moderato - moderate, or medium pace
Allegretto – Between moderato and allegro Allegro - fast
Vivace - lively and brisk
Presto - very fast
Prestissimo - very, very fast
I hope this page is helpful for you when playing the music.
