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. 🎸⚔️

93 replies

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    • BLaflamme
    • 2 days 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
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • Reported - view

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

      • BLaflamme
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • Reported - view

      Thank you Derek!

      • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • Reported - view

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

      • BLaflamme
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • Reported - view

       I hope you manage to do that!

      • BLaflamme
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • Reported - view

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

      • Retired
      • mgshirk
      • 14 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Great playing, Blaise. I would love to tap into your production skills. 

      • BLaflamme
      • 13 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Thank you Michael... well it's a bit like practice on the instrument... more you put time, eventually progress and results are there... it's already been 5 years since I started with Martin's recording course! 😅

      • Retired
      • Jack_Stewart
      • 12 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Beautiful, Blaise. Your phrasing and tone are always so wonderful. It is such a joy to hear your postings.

      Thanks for sharing new work for us.

      • BLaflamme
      • 11 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Thank you Jack, I'm glad you like it!

      • joosje
      • 5 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       wow, this is beautiful. With Your delicate playing and perfect sound you set the bar high, but it’s great listening and an inspiration. thank you for sharing this great music.
       

      • BLaflamme
      • 4 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Thank you Joosje, I hope to hear some of your unfinished business over the next weeks!

    • Nijwm_Bwiswmuthiary
    • Yesterday
    • 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
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • 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
      • Yesterday
      • Reported - view

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

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