Group 2
Improve your Left-Hand-Fitness with Slurs!
The Fitness of the left hand is responsible for how comfortable you feel on the guitar. Regular slur practice will improve your stability and agility and opens your hand for more fingering possibilities! Two Weeks, Fingers 1234, a gazillion different possibilites! Let me show you my workout tips for the left hand and let us improve together!
Fellow Participants in Group 2:
Osvaldo Novais
Dave McLellan
Amine
Derek
Paul Kennedy
José Espírito Santo
Jesús Rodríguez Pérez
Nora Torres-Nagel
Khiem Nguyen
ERNESTO
Stefano
Amy G
Gerasimos
Some tonebase productions to get you started
Martin Zimny - Left Hand Workout with Villa-Lobos Etude #3
Martin Zimny - Getting Slurs Right from the beginning
Artyom Dervoed - Slurs from Nothing
How to get the most out of this course
- Start by watching the introduction video and practice the exercises given in the video.
- Write a post with your experiences with Slurs.
- At the same time, start practicing the first bars of Etude #3 by Villa-Lobos. If you are new to the piece, start with my livestream on this piece!
- Share two videos per week and help your course partners through feedback on their submissions!
Zoom Check-In: Friday, June 24th at 6 pm CET (9 am PT)
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Quick Announcement: We're doing the Zoom Check-In 2 hours earlier than planned to not interfere with Manny's livestream on friday! Please comment if you've read that!
Slurs Group 2
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Derek Yes! I expect ALL of you to listen to Manny's Livestream afterwards!
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Dave McLellan Yes, 12pm ET is correct!
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Ok
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Got it...
Best regards slur world!
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Just a little late to the game, but I watched Martins lesson for HVL #3 and have been working the first few measures. It is a great workout. I got the check in time 12 noon EDT on the 24th too. Looking forward to moving along together
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Paul Kennedy Great, happy that you enjoyed the lesson!
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Hey everybody, I've recorded this video with 5 of the main issues I have identified! Enjoy and let my know what you think! See you tonight at the 60min Zoom Check-In!
Slurs Group 2
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Martin Hi everyone. I will miss the zoom checkout today due to a dress rehearsal for concert this evening. Have fun and enjoy slurring!
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Good evening from Italy, thanks Martin for your suggestions. I could practice only a little bit but I felt the meaning and utility of this exercise. I hadn’t time to record myself yet but I will try being with you today, in less than one hour, if I understand well the meeting time here in Central Europe!
Ciao,
Stefano -
Dear Martin , here is my practice of Villa-Lobos Etude 3, first take.
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Khiem Nguyen Great! I would recommend to sharpen the rhythm a bit, so you can really feel how the energy from one finger translates into the other one! You are not playing my fingering, though ...
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Martin thank you for your feedback Martin, I will try to sharpen the rythm. I followed the blue fingering in your attached Villa-Lobos Etude 3 though.
I really did not notice that it wasn't your recommended fingering. There are so many fingering colors in your notation. I just picked the blue one which seems to be the easiest for me. I am sorry for that though, I wasn't playing bad student 
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Khiem Nguyen It's actually only in bar 5 where you don't play the hinge bar! It makes this passage much easier imho!
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Khiem Nguyen The red fingering in bar 1 is the fingering for the second repetition, it sets you up better for the second bar because you don't need to shift anymore!
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Martin thank you very much for your clarification, Martin. I will try to apply your fingering from now on. :)
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How is everybody doing? Have you already noticed any change in your left hand? Could you apply your slurs already to some pieces? Slurs Group 2
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Martin I am applying my slurs on Capricio Arabe (Tarrega). When we transition to the major section, there are slurs that go with barre' also. It is quite challenging. They are in measures 32, 33, 34 in the attached screenshot. I would like to ask for your feedback on my slurs execution in the video below. Thank you very much.
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Having a great time re-tweaking the numerous upward and downward slurs in Bach’s Prelude to Cello Suite no. 1. (Wow, have you counted them.) I’ve noticed that I’m listening to the effects now and am much more aware or points of impact of the downward slurs in the melodic line and varying the effects of the downward or upward slurs in the numerous scale passages in the piece. Thanks for the enlightenment.
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Amy G I am very happy to hear that! You are raising a very important point: In order to improve, we need to develop an awareness first, so that we can always pinpoint what needs improvement!
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Sorry that I haven't been more active in the forum. I have been doing at least one of the assignments every day. Mostly assignments 1 to 3 and then if I have time (or maybe later in the day) I sometimes have a go at 4 and 5. I have found that it has improved my slurs in a number of pieces that I have been playing. In particular a Bolero by Calatayud which has a little run of descending slurs, 2 without base note and one with. I'm finding my hand position is better and the slurs a lot clearer. I'm up in Scotland for a few days (brought a guitar to practice with) so I am still doing the assignments each day! Hope to post a video on Monday when I'm back
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A little later than planned. Still working on these. I've attached videos of assignment 3, just as far as the 9th position, for all of the finger variations. Think they are a little rushed
