Week 4: "Samba Strings Showcase"
Welcome to the Main Thread for the last week of "Villa-Lobos Voyage" practice challenge!
Select a mesmerizing piece from Villa-Lobos or a composer connected to his Brazilian heritage. Whether it's a soulful Villa-Lobos composition, a rhythmic Brazilian-inspired work, or a piece by another artist inspired by the Brazilian musical tradition, the choice is yours!
Commit to regular practice and share your progress with the community. Strive to practice daily and upload at least two videos per week to showcase your musical voyage. This not only keeps you motivated but also allows you to share your artistic journey with our tonebase family.
Share your favorite performance or recording that captures the spirit of the "Villa-Lobos-Voyage Challenge." Your submission will inspire others and create a vibrant collection of potential pieces for fellow members to explore.
↓ Happy Sharing! ↓
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Dear friends, it seems I have miscalculated the length of this challenge! Would you be fine with doing the Watch Party this Friday (September 9th) and kick off the next challenge, the Monsters of Nylon?
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martin Great by me. I am very curious what that next challenge is about.
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martin Great.. I may still try another recording
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martin Fine by me!
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I love the music of Manuel Ponce. This one seems to have Latin-American influences.
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Barney One of my favourite Ponce pieces Barney. Beautifully played, well done!
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Ron Thanks Ron!!
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Barney That’s an old favorite of mine too! Thanks for sharing, Barney! I enjoyed it!
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Marilyn Blodget Thanks Marilyn!
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Barney Well played as usual, Barney, and with your beautiful tone. Have you ever worked on Ponce's Folias Theme and Variations? That is my favorite piece by Ponce and one that Carlevaro played a lot.
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Dale Needles Thanks Dale! I have only learned Var. IX from Ponce's Folias Theme and Variations. I found it (the Andantino movement) as I sought to discover what the gorgeous piece was that played during the intro to televised Segovia Spain Masterclasses that aired on channel 13 (in New York) many decades ago. This Ponce piece is wonderful (you have great taste) and quite long as you know. Maybe I'll look at it sometime in the future.
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Barney Yes, definitely a piece worth checking out. It is on my list to relearn next year. What is nice about learning it, is that all the variations are quite short, and you do not have to play all of them. Here is an outstanding early recording of Carlevaro playing it and you will note he does take some of the variations out. (957) Abel Carlevaro -Variaciones sobre Folías de España y Fuga - Manuel Ponce - YouTube
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Dale Needles Carlevaro's performance of this is superb!! Thanks for sharing. (I bookmarked it). I noticed among many other great things, his amazing vibrato.
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Barney a classic of our repertoire played with such a great tone and style, bravo Barney.
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Barney That was beautiful, Barney. I don't know this piece but will look into it. it has a very haunting beauty which you bring wonderfully. Thanks.
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Blaise Laflamme Thanks Blaise!
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Jack Stewart Thanks Jack! Go for it; it's a fun one to play.
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Barney beautiful playing as always, Barney. Nice change of subject to add some Mexican charm to this challenge. It’s a great (little) piece. The harmonisation of the theme is so clever. Thanks for posting.
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joosje Thanks Joosje!
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Barney Wonderful job Barney! Very enjoyable! I did not know until just now that Ponce was Mexican. That would certainly explain the Latin-American vibe! I also just learned that he was the first internationally recognized Mexican classical composer. Fascinating!
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Steve Pederson Thanks Steve! Yes, and Ponce did great stuff for Classical guitar.
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Villa Lobos Choros #1 has always made me feel like tapping my toes. I incorporated a number of ornaments suggested by Ari Arango in his Tonebase video. I can't yet toss them off as effortlessly as he does, but it's a goal, along with cleaning up some intricate finger work and memorization.
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Marilyn Blodget Your Choros #1 sounds excellent. I'm not a fan of the extra ornaments, but the rest is coming along great! (It's always easier once these pieces are memorized, and often that's not possible in the short time for the challenges.) This is another old favorite from several decades ago... yes, fun to tap toes to.
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Marilyn Blodget Great performance Marilyn. Well done! I've also been playing through it and I cerrainly need to do more work on the intricate bits. I used to play it a long time ago, but I reallise my fingers are not so flexible these days!
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Barney Thanks Barney! Today I memorized it. Amazing how that helped with the hard parts. When I first learned it, I never recorded it. I wonder if it was ever really as good as I remember it.
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End of the Year Challenge: Finish Strong!
