Week 1 - A New Hope 🌟

Hello tonebuddies! 🎶

A long time ago, in a practice room far, far away... you picked up a piece. You were excited. You cracked it open, worked through the first page, maybe the second — and then something happened. Life struck back. A new piece caught your eye. The fingering felt impossible. The score quietly migrated to the bottom of a stack where it's been sitting ever since. 🎸

This May, we're bringing back the Unfinished Business Challenge — and we're kicking things off on May the 4th, because what better day to summon the Force and finally finish what you started? Every guitarist has an abandoned piece (or three). This is your chance to rescue one from the Sarlacc pit of your music folder and bring it home.

This challenge is open to all levels. Whether you left off at bar 8 or bar 80, whether it's a Bach fugue or a beginner study that got away — if there's a piece waiting for its return, it belongs here.


🌟 The Challenge

Revisit a composition you started but never finished — and this time, see it through. It might be:

  • 🎯 A piece you abandoned because it felt too hard
  • 🎯 Something you got halfway through before a new obsession took over
  • 🎯 A passage or section you never quite nailed
  • 🎯 A piece you learned years ago but never polished or performed

Share the story of why it got left behind and what it means to finally complete it. That's half the magic of this challenge.


📅 Challenge Dates

Start: May 4
End: June 12
Watch Party: June 12


🎥 How to Participate

  1. Pick your piece – Choose the piece (or section) that's been haunting you. The one you've been avoiding. That's the one.
  2. Share your goal – Post in the forum thread and tell us what you're finishing and why it got abandoned in the first place.
  3. Post your progress – Share updates along the way — rough takes, slow-tempo run-throughs, the gnarly passage you finally cracked.
  4. Engage with your fellow rebels – Cheer each other on, leave constructive feedback, and celebrate every piece that makes it across the finish line.

Bonus points: Share a recording of your favorite performance of the piece you're revisiting — the version that first made you fall in love with it.


🎬 Watch Party — June 12

The Watch Party on June 12 will feature recorded submissions from everyone who completed their Unfinished Business. Make sure to submit your final performance videos so we can celebrate your finished piece together! 🎉


💡 Need a Little Help from a Jedi Master?

If the reason you left the piece unfinished is still giving you trouble, tonebase is full of lessons, masterclasses, and courses from world-class guitarists ready to help you through the tricky parts. Search for the piece, the composer, or the technique — chances are, there's a Master ready to help.


May the 4th be with you, tonebuddies. Let's finish what we started. 🎸⚔️

26 replies

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    • BLaflamme
    • 22 hrs ago
    • Reported - view

    Let's start the challenge with a work that made me discover the musical universe of Michel Dalle Ave. I should have recorded this work a long time ago, so it's done!

      • LIVE
      • martin.3
      • 16 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

        Off to a flying start! 🚀 Beautifully done, and the recording quality is, as always, absolutely top notch. I'll admit Michel Dalle Ave is new to me, where do you find these beautiful gems? You always seem to surface composers I haven't heard before. Looking forward to the rest of your challenge submissions!

      • Derek
      • 16 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

      that's a beautiful piece Blaise and beautifully played. Thanks for sharing.

      • BLaflamme
      • 10 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Thank you Martin, I started learning how to record from your Tonebase recording course, I'm still your Padawan but over the years I found my way to progress a bit! I very like to discover and play new or less-known music and composers, there are fewer existing references and it frees creativity, I like to search through Oz or Bergmann editions for new stuff! I hope to finish a few more works over the challenge!!

      • BLaflamme
      • 10 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Thank you Derek!

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • 5 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

          What a flying start to this challenge.  What an intense and beautiful sounding piece, right up my alley. You set the gold standard for all of us, Blaise. Bravo.

      • Amateur guitarist/lutenist
      • David_Krupka
      • 3 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Beautiful performance and video, Blaise! As Nijwm says, you set the gold standard here! You mention above your pleasure in discovering the music of little-known composers; I imagine those under-appreciated composers are just as pleased to discover such a sensitive interpreter of their work!

      • BLaflamme
      • 3 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Thank you Nijwm, in any case, I hope to at least encourage motivation and participation! 🙏

      • BLaflamme
      • 3 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       I must admit that playing less well-known contemporary works opens the door to the most unexpected collaborations! This work by Michel should have been the first to be recorded but even before I had time to get started we were already collaborating on other works! 😅

      • Amateur guitarist/lutenist
      • David_Krupka
      • 3 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       You are following in the footsteps of the giants - first there was Segovia and Ponce; then we had Bream and Britten, soon followed by Williams and Dodgson. And now - Laflamme and Dalle Ave! If I'm not mistaken, Michel lives in France - have you interacted in person?

      • BLaflamme
      • 3 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Hehe... well... seen like that... but yes Michel is living in France, we never met in person but we regularly exchange by email and messenger in both chat or video call, I can say that over the last years we became good friends. I hope to travel there at some point in the future and inevitably have a good time with him in person!

      • Amateur guitarist/lutenist
      • David_Krupka
      • 3 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       I hope you manage to do that!

      • BLaflamme
      • 2 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       For sure it'll happen at some point, ideally if I can combine a few concerts there that'd be awesome!

      • Ron.3
      • 2 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       What a fantastic start to the challenge Blaise! Such a beautiful piece and, as always, wonderfully played - totally new to me too!

      • BLaflamme
      • 2 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Thank you Ron, I'm happy to make you discover Michel's music!

    • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
    • 5 hrs ago
    • Reported - view

    Difficult to match Blaise's opening post! But I offer my humble beginning to this challenge. Recorded on my phone, back in my village with insects and the evening noises in the background. Quite a few mistakes, memory slips and string buzz. Looking forward to your valuable feedback. Thanks for watching.

      • Amateur guitarist/lutenist
      • David_Krupka
      • 3 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       You're off to a great start, Nijwm - it sounds practically finished already! The tone you produce for the melody is outstanding. It's amazing how much progress you've made in just a few years. Are you planning to learn all three movements of this staple of the guitar repertoire? (I hope you do!)

      • BLaflamme
      • 3 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Wow Nijwm! I'm amazed by how you've musically progressed (and technically too)! As David said it's almost finished, your tone is beautiful, the music flows, your finger are strong and smooth... and already sounding great recorded with an iPhone... Imagine with a better setup! Bravo!! 👌💪

      • Ron.3
      • 2 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       This is great work Nijwm! It's such a beautiful piece and your tone is really good - well done!

    • “Do or do not. There is no try”
    • Michelle_P
    • 4 hrs ago
    • Reported - view

    Okay - I will bite the bullet here. I'm a newbie classical guitarist and it seems like only skilled players participate in these challenges. I'm hoping that other new players will see this and join in with me.

    My goal may be pitiful to some, but I REALLY want to learn Le Papillion (Giuliani, Op 50 No 13). My main problem is that. in addition to my many other playing issues, I play everything very, very slooooooooooowly. So, this piece has been a challenge for me. I have not practiced this for a while. And I am in Premium+ and plan to work on this with my coach, Juan David Vargas Mora.

    For comparison, here is the link to Martin's wonderful tutorial on how to play the piece - https://app.tonebase.co/guitar/courses/player/martin-zimny-giuliani-allegro-op-50-no-30?moduleSlug=martin-zimny-giuliani-allegro-op-50-no-30.

    While the previous submissions sound more to me like finished business and not unfinished at all, here is my admitted pathetic attempt, which I am calling le papillon torturé (the tortured butterfly). Attempt #1 - watch at your own risk  ;-)

    https://youtu.be/bZFpuBDEN3c?si=6vaXgjdpp_SHbpe2

      • BLaflamme
      • 2 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Welcome to the Challenge Michelle! And it is certainly not reserved for the most advanced, guitarists of different levels participate in each edition and all of us find kindness and encouragement! There is no scale of comparison or expectations between us, only your participation, your questions, your goals and your progress matter! If you allow me a comment on your work of Le Papillon, there is no mandatory speed, take what suits you to the extent that you master the context, and ideally use a metronome, this will allow you to create a framework in order to adequately organize the musical process, even if it is very slow, in the end when you are at the recommended speed then everything will take place in a safe and solid way. Can't wait to hear more from your progress!

      • Ron.3
      • 2 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Great to see you in the challenge Michelle! I agree with everything Blaise said and look forward to hearing your progress.

      • Amateur guitarist/lutenist
      • David_Krupka
      • 2 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       It's so nice to see a new face in these challenges, Michelle! I can't imagine anyone here will find your goal 'pitiful' - we were all once 'beginners', and we're all still learning (or at least trying to!). About tempo, I wouldn't worry in the least about playing too slowly. With time, fluency will develop on its own. What is most important is accuracy. You're off to a good start with this charming little piece by Giuliani - I look forward to following your progress over the next six weeks!

      • “Do or do not. There is no try”
      • Michelle_P
      • 1 hr ago
      • Reported - view

      Thank you for the encouragement, Blaise!

      • “Do or do not. There is no try”
      • Michelle_P
      • 1 hr ago
      • Reported - view

      Thanks so much!

Content aside

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