WEEK 1: Vamos, Compañeros 
Welcome to the Main Thread for the first week of our musical Journey to Spain!! This is the place to share submissions of the first week! 
- Make sure you've read the guidelines before replying (<- click)
- Watch the kickoff livestream for help with the first section!
If you want to describe your process (optional), feel free to use the following template.
- Things you found easy:
- Things you found difficult:
- (Optional): a video of you performing it!
- (Optional:) questions
↓ HAPPY PRACTICING, HAPPY SHARING ↓
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Santiago de Murcia - Prelude and Allegro in D minor
Here's an update on this. I took it at a quicker tempo this time, although I slowed down too much at the end of the Prelude.
(By the way, today is my daughter's 17th birthday, so that's why you see the "Happy Birthday" sign on our fireplace.)
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Eric Phillips Very nice, as usual, Eric! You're right about the Bream version - very dynamic. But he does have the advantage of using a baroque guitar, although (as was his habit) he plays it with a thoroughly modern technique. I don't think he uses a reentrant tuning, either, although this may not be inappropriate for de Murcia. (I'd like to hear it played by a period specialist, but I can't find anything on YouTube.) Best wishes to your daughter! Seventeen can be a difficult age, although I'd happily relive it! Janis Ian's well-known song captures what many of us experienced.
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David Krupka Thanks for reminding me of this song. Really beautiful and sad, on many levels. I'm 52, but listening to that makes me feel like I'm still there!
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Eric Phillips congratulations to your daughter! 17!!!
nice playing as usual! Such a lovely piece. Great trill at the end
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joosje Thanks so much, Joosje. I love that baroque dissonance!
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Eric Phillips sounds great at this tempo and the slowdown is not that bad, and late happy birthday to your daughter!
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Blaise Laflamme Thanks, Blaise!
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Here's another piece by Calatayud (hat but no cigarette Martin :-)).
I enjoy playing these pieces but I've put them to one side for some more serious things - now I'm planning to play some more!
I'm hoping to use some of these easier pieces to practice putting some more 'interpretation' - contrast, timbre etc
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Derek Ole! A perfect choice for this challenge. A piece like that definitely calls for a good hat!
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Derek Nicely done. Coming from Mallorca, Calatayud's flamenco influence really shines in this piece.
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Eric Phillips Thank you Eric
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Dale Needles Thank you Dale
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Derek Cool Derek, that's great to hear some flamenco-like music!
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Blaise Laflamme thanks Blaise.
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Yet more Calatayud. Another one I've dragged out of the past. I didn't repeat the second section which needs a bit more work. I find the passage in thirds quite tricky to get the timing.
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Derek Well done, Derek! Love those big glissandos.
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Derek That's a fun one Derek. Thanks.
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Eric Phillips Thanks Eric - I'm not sure about the tempo but I enjoy playing this one
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Jack Stewart Thanks Jack
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Santiago de Murcia - Grave
Before leaving the baroque era, I will post one more piece by de Murcia. I like the way the different voices move in this one. It's also a good example of how music in a major key can be sad.
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Eric Phillips That is a very nice piece, probably my favorite of all of the de Murcia works you have presented. Its persistent movement of all of the voices reminds me of Sor's op 6.8 (Segovia #1), which is also one of my favorite of Sor's Etudes. Beautifully played.
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Jack Stewart Thanks, Jack. As an unrepentant Sor addict myself, that is exactly the piece I was thinking of too. It has that same choral quality.
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Eric Phillips That's a beautiful piece Eric - played to your usual high standard. Thanks for playing these pieces by Santiago de Murcia, although I have heard of him I haven't heard a lot of his music
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Eric Phillips well played Eric, I also like that kind of chord progression with appoggiatura.
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To end my posting for the first week, I thought I would keep to the Salamanca theme and post a simple little Pavana by Diego Pisador, a vihuelist who was born in Salamanca in 1509. The cover photo is of the main cathedral in Salamanca, again taken during my 2019 to the city.
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Dale Needles Love it, Dale! This one is in a little book of I've had for decades of vihuela pieces transcribed for guitar by Emilio Pujol. Playing those pieces always makes me happy. There is something so pure and perfect about them. Thanks for sharing this!
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End of the Year Challenge: Finish Strong!
