🎯 The Etude Challenge: Study Pieces, Serious Progress - Week 3

Attention tonebuddies! It's time to embrace the music that was literally designed to make you a better guitarist. Welcome to The Etude Challenge — four weeks dedicated to the art of the etude!

Etudes occupy a unique place in the classical guitar repertoire. They're technical workouts disguised as beautiful music — pieces that sharpen your skills while rewarding you with something genuinely worth performing. From the elegant simplicity of Carcassi and Sor to the rhythmic brilliance of Brouwer's Etudes Simples, the virtuosic fire of Villa-Lobos's 12 Études, and everything in between — there's an etude out there for every player at every level.

This challenge is your chance to pick one (or more!), commit to it, and share your journey with the community.

🎯 Whether you choose to:

  • Tackle a classic — Sor Op. 35, Carcassi Op. 60, Giuliani Op. 48
  • Go for something bold — Villa-Lobos, Barrios, or Coste
  • Explore the modern side — Brouwer, Carlevaro, or Bogdanovic
  • Revisit an old friend — Polish a piece you learned before and bring it to a new level

…this is your moment to dig in and grow. This challenge is open to all levels — whether you're working through your very first Sor etude or preparing a Villa-Lobos for the stage, you belong here.


📅 Challenge Dates

Start: February 23

End: March 20


💡 How to Participate

  1. Pick your etude – Choose one that excites you and challenges you. Not sure where to start? Ask the community for suggestions!
  2. Share your goal – Tell us what you're working on and what you want to achieve (clean run-through, memorization, performance tempo, etc.)
  3. Post your progress – Upload short clips, practice notes, or reflections as you go. We want to see the process, not just the polish.
  4. Engage – Listen to what others are working on, leave encouragement, and trade practice tips!

86 replies

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    • BLaflamme
    • 1 mth ago
    • Reported - view

    Hello Tonebuddies, while this is not really a «study» I think there's a lot in it that could be used for! As we were talking a lot about this prelude in previous streams and discussions, I wanted to share my version, a slower one with emphasis on the articulation of the bass line in contrast to the arpeggiated pattern. I also told  I would share it at some point, let me know what you think!

      • Debbie
      • 5 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Good thing your fingers forgot! Probably has to do with the fact that you've improved much since the early days!

      • Debbie
      • 5 days ago
      • Reported - view

       😂 No, I love Dowland! Just not that one piece! haha. They made me learn it in my freshman year and I think it gave me nightmares LOL

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

       Yes, I always thought the same thing. Today perhaps I would prefer the Adagio from the violin suite 1001 as the 'prelude' - but I'm not sure that would make sense without the Siciliano and Presto from the same suite. And that's a lot of music to perform! So yes, 999 and 1000 is probably well justified.

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

       I think it's a common mistake in conservatories to 'push' students to learn repertoire that is a little too challenging for them. For one thing, as you indicate, it likely just creates trauma. Much better, I think, is to encourage musical development (and stage confidence) by suggesting repertoire that the student will be able to perform effectively. (And in fact, quite a bit of Dowland is not especially difficult - 'Mr Dowland's Midnight' or 'Fortune' or even 'K. Darcy's Spirit' would be a much better introduction than the virtuosic Q.E. Galliard!)

      • Debbie
      • 5 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Agreed, David. There are some Dowland pieces I really love. Praeludium, Fantasia 7, and Lachrimae Pavan are my favorites. But honestly, when I listen to great players play the Queen's Galliard, I just don't like it very much. Same with the Bach Prelude. Now that I'm older and wiser, I only choose repertoire and studies I absolutely love. Btw, have you seen Liz Pallett's Dowland's Anniversary Collection? Not sure if you know who she is. She's a lutenist and her YouTube channel is luteweb. It's a fantastic collection so far.

      • BLaflamme
      • 5 days ago
      • Reported - view

       I would definitely play the following fugue version if the Adagio is used as a prelude, and yes in that case why not the whole Sonata!

      • BLaflamme
      • 5 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Maybe, but it was in my first pieces so my learning process was probably not well established and for what I recall I forgot it as soon as possible! 😅 When I tried it back a few months ago it was like new music, also clear and defined objectives helped a lot for my interest and learning process.

    • michel.2
    • 1 mth ago
    • Reported - view

    Très bien, Bach a joué magnifiquement dès le matin — la journée s'annonce bonne.

    Quel type de cordes sont utilisées ? Le son est superbe.

      • BLaflamme
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

       Merci Michel, c'est un nouveau jeu à l'essaie que j'ai installé il y a 2 jours... Les Knobloch EDB, basses Erithacus et aigues Bio-Nylon, elles sont vraiment intéressantes au son et au toucher.

    • Eric
    • 1 mth ago
    • Reported - view

    Sor Op 29 No 24 (Mar 13)

    Here it is again. I don't know if it is any better. It just seems to me like about the same quality, but with the mistakes in different places.

      • Retired
      • Jack_Stewart
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

       This is beautiful, Eric. I haven't gone back to your previous posting so I can't attest as to whether ir is an improvement, however this recording would be hard to top, I think. I don't know why but this etude passed under my radar all these years, but I now think it is a remarkable piece of music. Thanks for sharing.

      The only comment I might add is I find the coda not quite convincing. It might be the music itself (I found the Coda in McFadden's version almost comical at his tempo). I think it seems a bit disjointed, perhaps it could be played as a single long phrase. (I don't/haven't played this piece so take this with a grain of n of salt).. 

      BTW I just listened to Jefferey McFadden's recording of this study. He plays it almost twice as fast as you do. It is nice but I think Your tempo is much more expressive.

      • BLaflamme
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

       Beautiful Eric, very well crafted and played! If I could suggest you something, I would tell you to take care of mesure 23, beat 3 and 4, you place the C in the middle voice on the beat so we hear it in advance (that breaks the surprise) and you lift your finger on the last one (for the position change) and play a B instead of a C.

      • Eric
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

       Thanks, Jack. As far as I can tell, the score has no tempo indication. McFadden does have a tendency to play Sor very fast for my taste, but I guess if you got the chops, why not flaunt them. Needless to say, my chops are quite lacking, so slower is my only option. That said, I do like this piece better on the slow side. My favorite recording is by Belmin Okanovic.

      And yes, that coda may be the longest E minor chord in all of music.

      • Eric
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

      Wow, thank you Blaise! You are totally correct, of course, and I wasn’t even aware. I like it much more when I play it correctly. Thank you for listening so closely and letting me know.

      • BLaflamme
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

       It jumped to my ears immediately since the rest is very well executed!👌💪

      • Amateur guitarist/lutenist
      • David_Krupka
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

       Very fine playing, Eric. As for tempo, I think that Sor's music is of sufficient quality to permit a variety of interpretative choices. I like the hint of melancholy that perfuses your own performance. (And concerning favourite professional recordings, I'm waiting to hear Patrik Kleemola play this on his 1839 Lacote!)

      • Eric
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

      Go to 21:05.

      • Amateur guitarist/lutenist
      • David_Krupka
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

       Thanks Eric! I thought I had heard him playing this etude, but when I looked for it a week or two ago, I couldn't find it, and thought I must been mistaken. I'd forgotten it was in this short program. I'm very fond of his playing. Thanks for the link!

      • Ron.3
      • 4 wk ago
      • Reported - view

       What can I say - this is such a beautiful performance Eric! For me the tempo is perfect - I agree that (for my taste) McFadden plays Sor too fast. Even though I appreciate the ability to play at faster tempo, I feel many of the works lose some of their beauty. I was listening to Franz Halasz playing Villa-Lobos in his 2025 recording and I have the same comment (I've no idea how he plays at the tempo he does!)

      • Ernesto.1
      • 4 wk ago
      • Reported - view

      Bravo!

      • Retired
      • Andre_Bernier
      • 2 wk ago
      • Reported - view

       I can't say if this was better but this was certainly very enjoyable listening. Well done Eric.

    • Retired
    • Jack_Stewart
    • 1 mth ago
    • Reported - view

    Gilardino Study #24.1 Prelude. 3rd posting

    This is a bit better than the previous posting. I feel the phrasing and tone have improved, though still much work to be done there. The mistakes are also somewhat less jarring. I am still spending considerable attention on remembering the sequence of phrases. I suspect this piece will need a while to really sink in. 

      • Eric
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

       Another big leap, Jack! I am liking this music more and more each time you post. Great job!

      • BLaflamme
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

       Thanks for sharing this Jack, Gilardino's studies are very interesting, you're doing a great job! 💪

      • Retired
      • Jack_Stewart
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

       Thanks Eric. I am happy you are finding this piece interesting. I have liked it for quite a while but it has been a challenge (ongoing)  to actually find my footing in playing it. 

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