Fernando Sor Mini Challenge 
Hey tonebuddies! 
We're super thrilled to announce a community challenge that will tickle the strings of all you classical guitar enthusiasts! The Fernando Sor Challenge, a deep dive into the exquisite world of classical guitar compositions, brought to life through a fantastic upcoming livestream with the remarkable Eduardo Fernandez! Inspired by Fernandez's upcoming performance, we thought it would be incredible to resonate his works through our own interpretations! 
The Challenge:
We invite you to record and upload a video of yourself performing a composition by the legendary Fernando Sor. Immerse yourself in the soundscapes of classical guitar and share your unique talent, passion, and skill. Let's unite to appreciate and celebrate the multifaceted world of Sor's classical guitar.
How to participate:
Record a video of yourself performing a Fernando Sor composition. Upload your video to your chosen platform (e.g., YouTube, Vimeo, etc.). Share the link to your video in the comments section below. Don't forget to add a brief description about your chosen piece and what makes it significant to you.
Bonus Points: Share a link to your favourite Fernando Sor composition performed by a master!
Interact and engage:
Don't miss the opportunity to engage with your fellow tonebuddies members! Show your support by leaving comments, constructive feedback, and appreciation for their performances. Let's inspire each other to delve deeper into the world of Sor's music.
Reward:
While there isn't a physical prize, the reward lies in the opportunity to highlight your talent, gain valuable feedback, and forge connections with other like-minded guitar lovers who have an affinity for Sor's music. Who knows? You might even strike a chord with new friends!
Need inspiration?
If you're a newcomer to Fernando Sor's music, fear not! Tune into the upcoming livestream with Eduardo Fernandez for an incredible journey into Sor's compositions. Let his interpretations guide you and spark your imagination.
Find more tutorials here:
On your marks, get set, practice!
We are incredibly excited to witness your fantastic renditions of Fernando Sor's compositions. Let's come together and truly immerse ourselves in the magical world of classical guitar!
Happy practicing, tonebuddies! 
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Another Sor's study with a humble and faithful approach to Sor's technique (without nails):
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Steve Price Thanks very much. Your performance on #6 is awesome!
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ferran Thanks! I really appreciate it.
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Eric Phillips said:
Forum? What's that?I'm not sure myself... Google is telling me this... I prefer the 2nd meaning....
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Blaise Laflamme I sure hope nobody is being judged here!
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Eric Phillips haha... for sure no!
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Probably my favorite Sor study, Opus 35 Nr. 17 or Number 6 in Segovia's set. Recording these is really helpful. Listening to it I realize I need to pay attention to some of the note values more.
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Steve Price a beautiful one foe sure, great take on it!
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Steve Price Beautiful, Steve. This is a really nice etude. I think I used to give it short shrift but listening to your performance, I realize that is quite good. Thanks.
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Steve Price So nice! I really like the way you push and pull the rhythm without losing the pulse.
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Jack Stewart Thanks, Jack. Yes, this one played totally straight sounds a little flat to me but I was trying to copy an early recording of Segovia's where he really accentuates the phrases and plays around with dynamics and time. Thanks Eric Phillips . I'm glad I pulled off a little bit of that at least. He also alters his articulation, but with so much I'm thinking about while recording, it's hard for me to change that without tripping up.
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Blaise Laflamme Thanks, Blaise. I really appreciate it.
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Steve Price Very nice playing....this is a very beatifull study , in my opinion one of the most from the Segovia´s Sor studies complilation.....cool¡¡
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JUAN ALONSO Thanks so much, Juan. I really appreciate it and I agree it is one the most beautiful from the set.
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Sor - Walzer Op 32 No 2
This is the next piece in this opus I am working on. It has some speed bursts in it, but they are very guitaristic and so not too hard to play. There are some pull-offs to open strings that are challenging to play at a lower volume so as not to obscure the melody line above it. I'm not sure how well I did that, though.
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Eric Phillips Another great performance, Eric. This isn't my favorite Sor piece but I really enjoyed listening to your performance.
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Eric Phillips Well played, Eric. The pull-offs to the open string are fine - I didn't notice them as interfering in any way with the melodic line. (Perhaps the sound of the ligado projects upwards to the performer rather than outwards towards the audience(?)) I do have a question, though: in my edition (Simrock) of op.32, the fourth section is marked 'etouffez' - an effect which you omit. Is that an interpretive choice on your part, or is your edition different than mine? Just wondering. Thanks.
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Eric Phillips This is really nice, Eric. There's a lot going on in a short amount of time. Incidentally, this is also on the Segovia CD that I based my etude 6 on so I might have to give this a try.
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Eric Phillips sounds great, phrasing and articulations are clear... great work!
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David Krupka Thanks, David. The score I have does have the word, but I didn't even notice it, nor do I know what it means. Does it mean to mute the strings a little? To me it sounded natural to play the octaves loudly, almost like a trumpet blast.
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Steve Price Blaise Laflamme Thanks guys!
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Eric Phillips I would translate 'etouffez' as 'muffled' which I imagine implies muted in some way. (Palm muting, I suppose.) I don't know if Sor discusses the effect in his Method. (He does devote a fair bit of text to sound production, and the imitation of other instruments.) I seem to recall that Sor employs the effect elsewhere, in one of the Fantasias, I think. I notice that Jeffrey McFadden does mute the passage (the octaves only) in his recording for Naxos. Sachiko Miyashita, on the other hand, plays it 'straight' on her 'Virtuoso' CD. Both performances are highly engaging, to be sure. There's no question it works well as a trumpet blast - I suppose the alternative interpretation is to hear it as a distant horn call.
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David Krupka Eric Phillips Personally, I would recommend muting the octaves because anyone who plays a trumpet in a waltz should be banished from the ballroom.
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David Krupka Eric Phillips The recording I've been referencing is by Segovia and he just plays the notes staccato. And you know that's the way it's supposed to be since he was such a stickler for interpreting the score exactly as intended by the composer.
Seriously though, I checked out McFadden's interpretation and I'm back and forth on the muted octaves. I agree with Eric that it does really sound like a fanfare, but maybe a distant horn call could work. I'll have to check out Miyashita too.
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I have never played or even listened to Sor that much. So I took this challenge to explore some of his works and see what everyone else in the community is loving to play from him!
about 5 days ago I started learning the Etude op.35 n.18 and it took me some time to learn the score and play it reasonably from beginning to end so I can do this first recording (I am ashamed of doing so, but posted also in the new Etude Challenge so I can track my improvement: https://guitar-community.tonebase.co/t/60h42fl/week-1-etude-entree)
I notice that I am struggling to memorize the piece. I confuse the sequence and some variations. As I get lost in thoughts sometimes trying to remember what comes next, it creates a bareer to focus on executing the notes clearly. So there is a lot of conflict haha I guess this comes with practice. I'll try to post another video soon to see the progress.
I want to work more on some chord jumps with more proficiency so I can play a more continuous and clear melody. I am trying to have that tackled first so I can improve the musicality and also work on the Tempo.
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Fernando Ruiz Diaz Great work on this, Fernando! TY Zhang has an outstanding video lesson on this piece here at TB, and I highly recommend it. Here is a link to it, if you are interested.
I play Sor all the time, but I find his music very difficult to memorize. Maybe it is the subtle differences in the way he varies his musical ideas. I have found that I do better if I do not ever set out to memorize a piece, but only let it happen naturally through repetition in practice.
I hope we get to hear your progress on this over in the etude challenge!
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