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. 🎸⚔️

176 replies

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    • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
    • 4 days 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.

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • 4 days ago
      • Reported - view

      couldn't agree more.

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • 4 days ago
      • Reported - view

      of course 😄👍

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • 4 days ago
      • Reported - view

       I agree. They're on my wishlist right now. Will definitely tackle them, hopefully soon. Lately, I've been getting bogged down, trying to get a good tempo on HVL's Prelude 4 arpeggios. Maddeningly difficult to get even- sounding PIMA arpeggios with the constant chord shifts.

      Are you submitting any piece yourself, David? It'd be great to hear it.

      • BLaflamme
      • 4 days ago
      • Reported - view

       I mostly never call or get a call with... it's my on-the-go hub, all sync across my devices... I can even edit my audio and videos with! 😂

      • BLaflamme
      • 4 days ago
      • Reported - view

      they're indeed overpriced! 🤯

      • Amateur guitarist/lutenist
      • David_Krupka
      • 4 days ago
      • Reported - view

       I'm certainly hoping to, Nijwm! I've had a lot of difficulty with my left hand over the last few years, but I'm finally managing to play repertoire that is not too difficult. Unfortunately, I need to spend quite a lot of time now to get a piece properly under my fingers. (What used to take only a few days to learn now seems to require weeks - but at least I still enjoy practicing!)

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Sorry to hear about your left hand. It must've been frustrating. Hopefully, you get back to your best soon and play music you love. Good luck.

      • Retired
      • Jack_Stewart
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       This is very good, Nijwim. Your phrasing and tone are beautiful. Great beginning  (or as I would say if this was my recording, great final version 🙄).

      I also like the 'Film Noir' quality.

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Thank you, Jack. 'Film noir quality' haha. I like your wit and humour. Actually, the background in the video was kinda messy with unpainted walls and stuff lying around. So, I turned the background into black and white.

      • mike.12
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Nice start!

      • joosje
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       that sounds already so great, Nijwm. I think you have been working quite a bit to get it to this level. Nice even tone and balance of voices. 

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Thank you Joosje. Yeah, I've been working on it on and off for about 2-3 years. The main challenge for me have been some awkward fingerings and shifts, plus balancing the voices. It's been a long process but very enjoyable and rewarding.

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       thank you!

      • Dale_Needles
      • 2 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Very nicely played and love your tone on this piece. Looking forward to more.

      • Eric
      • 2 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Well done, Nijwm! I can hardly believe how far you have progressed so quickly. Looking forward to more.

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • 2 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Thanks, Eric. I've been learning from the best here on TB and the TB community! I'm enjoying the learning and the journey.

      • Marilyn
      • 17 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Very nicely played!  I have the same piece on my music stand at the moment!  You’ve really mastered the fluidity, and your melody sings beautifully.  Bravo!

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • 14 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Thank you! Are you also planning to submit this piece for the challenge? I'd love to hear it.

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

      Thank you for the encouragement, Blaise!

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

      Thanks so much!

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

       Thank you! I'm sorry to have missed the last challenge and look forward to doing this one, and more in the future.

Content aside

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