🎯 The Etude Challenge: Study Pieces, Serious Progress - Week 2

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!

31 replies

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    • Dale_Needles
    • 4 days ago
    • Reported - view

    As we start the second week of the Etude Challenge, I am coming to you from Terceira Island of the Azores.  As I mentioned last week, I am not able to post anything current, but am sharing examples of the wide range of Abel Carlevaro's Estudios that he wrote. Here are two Microestudios that are included in his set of 20 Microestudios which were published in the 1990s.

    https://youtu.be/8_W1WAMyao0?si=Y3GA4g8q71-uyCaG

      • BLaflamme
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Great choice for this challenge Dale, always a pleasure to listen to your Carlevaro! 💪... Maybe I should include myself in this challenge with a few of them! 

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

      Great studies. Well done 👍

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

       It's always great to hear your performance of Carlevaro. They also provide a modern context for these challenges. I hope to join you in that regards, maybe today.🤫

      • Dale_Needles
      • 16 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       

      Thanks, glad you guys like the Carlevaro studies. I only wish I was working on some new ones, but am looking forward to finishing off the final five Microestudios (16-20) when I return home from this trip at the end of April.

    • Eric
    • 3 days ago
    • Reported - view

    Sor Op 29 No 24 - C section March 3

      • Ron.3
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Eric I'm really enjoying (and learning a lot from) watching how you solve problems. Your solutions are very elegant and very inspiring. Can't wait to see the full performance!

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

        Thanks Eric. Watching you playing is always a pleasure but listening to your comments and explanations on how to approach the score is so interesting and insightful. 👍

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

       Like others here, I enjoy these short videos describing your approach to specific problems that arise in the music you are learning. I love your attention to detail - and it certainly explains (in part, at least) how you manage to play everything so well! I personally wouldn't work so hard to maintain a legato line, but my reasoning is historical rather than musical. It seems to me (and I might well be wrong about this) that the general problem of the melodic line being interrupted by a sudden position shift occurs so often in the music of Sor that either he had a remarkable left hand facility (almost certain!) or he was less concerned about legato than guitarists generally are today. So - again personally - I would follow what I think is the natural fingering here, i.e. a full bar at the third fret followed by a quick transition to the second position at the end of the measure in question. (With my skill level, the legato would definitely be interrupted!) This isn't an argument against what you are doing, which will certainly yield a more musical result. I'm just describing my own approach. Concerning the question of the apparently missing accidentals in the Meissonnier edition, I can tell you that Matanya Ophee  (in the Chanterelle edition of the Sor studies) agrees with you, although his editorial decision is not explained. I also prefer the natural - not least because it eliminates an otherwise nasty chord! Curiously, the apparent mistake persisted through to Simrock edition (not dated, but likely published well after Sor's death) whose editor actually provided a fingering for the chord, indicating that the F was understood to be sharp. It's too bad we can't ask Sor to resolve the matter!

      • Eric
      • 2 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Thank you David. Regarding my odd fingering choices, you are no doubt correct about the more straightforward fingering Sor likely had in mind. I do find it enjoyable, however, to consider other possibilities.

      As for the missing natural signs, thank you for those insights about the various editions. Both my mind and my ears tell me that Sor must have intended F-naturals in those two measures. And yes, short of dabbling into the Dark Arts, we cannot ask the man himself.

      • Debbie
      • Yesterday
      • Reported - view

       I’m enjoying your work on this piece, Eric. As for your fingering change on the G chord shift the tonal sound of the open b bothers me. I think it would take just a little practice though to make it blend tonally so that it doesn’t jump out. The fretted b on the third string sounds better but, like you, I’d probably look for a different fingering. At the very least, it’s fun to explore. 
      In working on my Sor study I’ve been studying a few of the earlier facsimiles and there are indeed discrepancies. One must wonder if the candles were burning low or Sor was just exploring different ideas. In any case, the f naturals definitely sound better!

      • Amateur guitarist/lutenist
      • David_Krupka
      • Yesterday
      • Reported - view

       The mistakes probably have less to do with Sor than with the publishers' typesetters, who weren't necessarily musicians. (There would also have been a copyist involved somewhere along the line, I imagine.) We're fortunate in the modern era to have editions that have been carefully prepared by scholars and/or eminent performers. (Having said that, I also like to look at early editions of any work I am learning.)

      • Debbie
      • Yesterday
      • Reported - view

       it’s really easy to make mistakes. I use software to make arrangements and often have to go back and make corrections I didn’t notice. So it’s easy to understand how that could happen. It’s just that my explanation is so much more romantic 😂 

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

       Thanks for sharing your meticulous approach to approaching a piece. I share Ron's 'very elegant and very inspiring' observation. Thanks for sharing this.

    • Gunter
    • 3 days ago
    • Reported - view

    I play a few etudes frequently, and this afternoon I recorded a selection. I am very nervous when playing, even if I play for my camera. So, there are a few "additional" measures in two of the recordings...

      • Eric
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Well played, Gunter! These “standards” are not only beautiful, but they never stop teaching us, no matter how long we play them.

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

       Ver nice performance. Bravo 👍

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

       These are a wonderful collection of etudes very well played, Gunther. I especially like the Sor pieces. I used to play the op. 35.22 years ago (well decades... actually last century). Your performance has inspired me to look it again. Thanks for sharing these.

      • Ron.3
      • 19 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Well played Gunter. These are great studies - like Jack I played them a long time ago and they're always worth revisiting. Thank you!

    • Debbie
    • Yesterday
    • Reported - view

    Hi everyone, This is kind of a longish video so I don't expect anyone to watch it, lol. It's my baseline of where I currently am with the piece and I discuss some challenges. I've just started hand therapy and my therapist told me to play less guitar this week so I'm a bit rusty. I also notice tension when I record so I'm going to record every day until the end of the challenge. That doesn't mean I'm going to spam you all every day with a recording. I'll just upload if progress is noticeable. It's mainly for me to practice feeling more comfortable recording. I've also uploaded my sheet music if anyone is interested in seeing the changes I've made. It's based on Segovia's version with some edits from various facsimiles, notably Milhouse, London 1815, Meissonier, Paris 1816, Simrock, Bonn 1824. Future videos will just be playing through without talking so they will be shorter. 

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

       That is really sounding beautiful, Debbie. I am so sorry to hear of your hand injury and need for therapy. Your must have made great progress with that as your performance is so good. Your persistence is an inspiration. Looking forward to seeing your progress.

      BTW my favorite performance of this piece is by Petrit Ceku. It is also filmed in an interesting setting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPL-sEHo4lg

      • Ron.3
      • 18 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       Beautifully playing Debbie (yes I did watch the whole video!) It's not an easy piece (at least not for me!). I hope the therapy is helping. Thank you for sharing the the sheet music - I will certainly look through it. This has always been one of my favourite Sor studies - I used to play it many years ago, but I can no longer make some of the stretches so I haven't attempted it in a while.  As Jack said your persistence is certainly inspiring!

      • Debbie
      • 18 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Thank you for your kind words, Jack. I’ve only just started therapy. I’m hoping it will keep the nerve damage from progressing  but unfortunately the muscle atrophy won’t heal. Although I have exercises to strengthen the surrounding muscles. It’s quite depressing if I’m completely honest. I specifically bought this guitar (610 scale) so I could continue to play pieces like this that require more extensions but, even so, there are still pieces I can’t play. I love that  performance of Petrit too and also Kyuhee Park’s version. 

       

      • Debbie
      • 17 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       thank you Ron! You could always get a short scale guitar like mine 😄 I suppose a capo would also do the trick but somehow a short scale Torres model seems to add a historic touch 😂 Thanks for the encouragement. I’ll keep plugging away. 

    • mgshirk
    • 21 hrs ago
    • Reported - view

    Here is my first play-through of Guiliani's Op.98 No. 4. Several things need improvement.

    1.  will continue to pick up the tempo to Allegretto

    2. clean up some of the rough spots (missed notes)

    3. stop rolling chords in B  section

    4. clean up tone

    Till next week  

Content aside

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