WEEK 4: Fernando Sor for Everyone!!
WELCOME TO THE MAIN THREAD FOR THE LAST WEEK OF "Ferndando Sor" PRACTICE CHALLENGE!
- Select a mesmerizing piece from Fernando Sor! Whether it be a delicate Sor etude, a powerful solo work , or a little miniature, the repertoire is in your hands
- Dedicate yourself to consistent practice and share your musical evolution with our community. Aim for daily practice sessions and upload a minimum of two videos each week to document your progress. This will not only fuel your dedication but will also allow us to partake in your musical expedition within our tonebase family!
- Contribute your most cherished performance or recording that resonates with the "Sor Guitar Soiree." Your contribution will not only motivate but also help curate a diverse anthology of pieces for our members to discover and enjoy..
↓ Happy Sharing! ↓
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Mouvement de prière religeuse Op 31 No 23
Nothing fancy here, just my all-time favorite Sor study. I’ve played it a thousand times, but I why not 1001?
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Eric Phillips You're a proper, dedicated Sor fan, aren't you Eric. That's what I gathered watching you on the forums. And why not, he's such a fundamental figure. It's taken me a while to warm up to him I must admit, but I'm still getting to know him and I'm liking it.
As for your performance, it's always great. I can't offer expert opinion as I'm still new to the intricacies of classical music, but my ears tell me what sounds great, and you my friend sound great as always.
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary Yes, I do have a special love for Sor's music. It seems to me that, no matter where we may be on the classical guitar journey, Sor has a tremendous amount of very high quality music for us to play and learn from.
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Eric Phillips well done Eric, calm and meditative. I was thinking about playing it 2 weeks ago when YT suggested me Goran Sollscher's version... but I opted for Op.35.
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Eric Phillips right on, I also think Sor's has a lot to offer for any level and of high quality music.
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Eric Phillips You give this work a lot of space which serves its meditative nature, to paraphrase Blaise. Beautiful performance. Perhaps your religious studies were at play here.
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Blaise Laflamme Thanks, Blaise. I heard Goran Sollscher's version too, and loved it!
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Jack Stewart Thanks, Jack. Om
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Eric Phillips What a lovely, meditative piece! Beautiful tone and singing melody. Well done, Eric. I can tell this speaks to you.
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Hi, everyone, it's already week 4! Sorry, I think I missed week 3, but I watched all the submissions and I loved them all. Here I am, with my third submission, my first attempt of the whole piece. I'm not yet satisfied with many aspects but I've tried to incorporate the suggestions you guys have made after watching my previous videos.
I messed up the rhythm right at the start and i still struggle a bit with the chord shifts towards the end. I've tried to adjust the dynamics and middle voice (thanks to Eric who pointed it out), but it's still a work in progress.
I wonder if this is my final submission of this piece for the challenge, but I'm thinking of one last attempt after this. Let me see if I can improve on it this week.
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary Very beautiful, Nijwm! This is so legato, which takes a lot of very close attention to detail. My favorite moment is when you begin the repeat. You come in very softly, and you wait just a small fraction of a section longer than I would expect, which is extremely effective. Well done!
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary bravo Nijwm, I agree with Eric that you've done an incredible job about the legato and chord shifts, the overall sounds so smooth, nice job!
As a side note take care of the low D on the G chord near the end. -
Eric Phillips Whenever I reach the repeat, I remember your previous advice. Thanks for that
.Btw, who better to get some repertoire recommendations of Sor from than you. Could you give me some? I'm not much familiar with his repertoire yet, except for a few.
I'm looking for some intermediate level pieces and not too hard to play, some gentle, tender pieces and perhaps conveying feelings of loss/sadness, sombreness or longing for something.
Blaise Laflamme Thank you for the feedback, I'll keep that in mind. On measure 44, I've been playing a D ( incorrectly) instead of G. You helped me notice it
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary Two pieces that come to mind right away are Op 60 n 14, and Op 31 n 4. They are both in minor keys, and are early intermediate level, perhaps just a little easier than one you have been working on.
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary You have a very delicate touch in this piece, Nijwm, which gives a reverence and innocence that suits it wonderfully. Beautiful.
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Jack Stewart Thank you for such high praise, Jack.
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary Lovely Nijwm. This flows beautifully, except for the extended time you take in between 8 measure sections. They should continue flowing into each other. I really enjoyed your dynamic contrast in the repeat of the B section.
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Marilyn Blodget thank you. Yeah, the extended gap, that's great advice, I'll work on it.
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary Very nicely done Nijwm. Your legato sounds really good.
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Selections from Opus 44
Of Sor’s six opuses of studies, this is probably the opus least often played, so I thought I would give it a little love. Here I am playing numbers 9, 11, and 14.
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Eric Phillips Thanks for the discovery and well played as usualé I've never read through this Opus and I don't recall knowing any of them.
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Eric Phillips These are very nice. I think my favorite is #11. I find it more complex harmonically and emotionally.
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Eric Phillips Charming miniatures. I wonder if he wrote them for his students. An audio timeline of his compositions would be very interesting. There is a great 3 part biography of Sor by Lou Marinoff on YouTube, that I think you would enjoy. Very nicely played, as usual, Eric.
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Hi guys, I need to ask you something unrelated. I just noticed sympathetic resonance at the 7th fret of my guitar. If I play an E on the A string, the low E on the 6th string ring out. This is is true till the 3rd string. Is this normal? I have a factory made Yamaha- CG122 MS.
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary Yes, this is very normal, and it happens on every guitar, from the cheapest to the most expensive. Most of the time, it is very desirable, giving the music more resonance, and even occasionally making legato possible when it otherwise would not be. Sometimes, however, you will not want the sympathetic resonance, and so you will need to touch the vibrating string (typically a bass string) with a finger of either the right or left hand, whichever is available. It’s just one of the quirks of our instrument that we all love.
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End of the Year Challenge: Finish Strong!
