WEEK 3: El Canto de la Guitarra 
Welcome to the Main Thread for the second week of our musical Journey to Spain!! This is the place to share submissions of the third 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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José Ferrer – Minuet Op 12 No 8
On to another great José of the Romantic era in Spain. José Ferrer (1835-1916) was a student of José Brocá. He taught in Paris for sixteen years, but later returned to his homeland, where he died.
This piece is from a group of twelve minuets dedicated to Francisco Tárrega, Ferrer’s “esteemed friend”. The two halves of the piece starkly contrast with one another in character.
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joosje Thanks, Joosje. Those slurred sixths in the second half make this feel like an exercise or study (but a very pretty one).
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Eric Phillips what a gorgeous piece!
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Eric Phillips that was well played Eric, that's a nice minuet and well different than Tarrega's music.
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Blaise Laflamme Thanks, Blaise!
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Eric Phillips another new and beautiful piece to my ears. Thank you!!!
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Emma You're probably getting tired of hearing all of them by now! I appreciate you listening.
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Fantasia / Alonso Mudarra
- Things you found easy:
- I practiced this piece a very long time ago - and finally gave up. There are so many possibilitis using string skipping to sound like a harp ( the so called "Campanella" ). The connection between the sections is not easy using string-skipping. Watching, for example, David Russel playing this piece, he played it in a different way, without string skipping, but keeping the instrument in vibration...
- I used the extra opportunity , playing the low "E" as a "Bordun" in bar 15, 24 and 35, to keep the instrument singing (hopefully
) - In bar 66 I played "#f, b, e, f#", changed "b with f#" - that reduced from three voices to two voices and is easier to play. I am 100% sure - nobody will miss this note
- Things you found difficult:
- the second part starts at bar 54. This part should have the same tempo as the first part of this piece. This is really challenging. Julian Bream burns at 90 MPH on the whole piece.... wow
. - Barré in bar 26-29 is challenging, but not impossible to play.
I played the second part much slower - that is just a trick, maybe not everybody will notice. Preparing for a real live concert, I want this part in the same tempo as part one. Maybe I will play the first part a little bit slower to align it to part two. This will take some weeks of practice again.
- the ending is written so fast- 16th Notes, - that is impossible to play for "normal" human beings . My idea was to start as fast as the second part demands and then slow down to the finale "Ritardando"
- I am sorry for the poor video quality - when recording with OBS (mp3 = 320kbps, Video = 1920x1080 ) and enough light, it looks ok - not really bad - but not as good as I want it !
... I imported into iMovie because of: 1. normalising the volume, 2. to adding some reverb, 3. adding Intro and end curtain... The video quality becomes so bad
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Olli you're doing very well Olli, not an easy piece at all. I hope to play this piece one day, if time permits! I'm surprised that iMovie reduced the quality of the video without a specific setting or export configuration, that should be at least the same. If you allow me, if you play closer to your backdrop picture and have a closer shot, with a camera or your phone, that would make an interesting overall (your backdrop is awesome!). You could also import your audio in Garage Band, or in Reaper, and apply your audio processing there (far better than iMovie) and after combine with your video in iMovie, or Resolve. I know it's a bit more work but that would certainly upper match with your level of playing.
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Blaise Laflamme yes, I agree 100% with you - I could do this... but I am too lazy for that
. I could use an IPad Pro also - but the inside camera looks also bad, and the outside camera could do 4k, but that means I do have to make additional work.... don't know if my good, old but goldy 2009 iMac can handle this....
And i do not know how to use my Focusrite Saffire usb device together with the iPad Pro....
For Tonebase, I think, the sound is important, so I will keep it as simple as possible...
But in future time I want to make a recording for youtube and that should be the best quality as possible .... I have to change my gear to do better recordings - you are right !
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Olli haha! If the Saffire is Class Compliant then it could be used with your iPad Pro. With a small hub that would add USB 2/3 ports, power and connects with USBC, once connected you should see it under Garage Band and then record your audio directly to it like with your iMac. If you have FilmicPro you can select the interface for the audio source while recording with the iPad camera, that could simplify your setup.
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Blaise Laflamme unbelievable
.... May you please send me a link about the hardware ?! ( [email protected] )
Using 4k Video on iPad Pro together with Focusrite Saffire USB and active Ribbon-Microphones may be the next step in evolution ?
Thank you so much
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Olli will do!
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Olli beautiful! Well played Ollie
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Olli lovely your Fantasias!
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Another Calatayud piece - Lamento Gitano.
I will try another composer!
Recorded direct from the pickup again but this time a little eq and reverb added within Da Vinci
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Derek nice piece. I remember playing this in my younger days and dreaming of becoming a flamenco guitarist…. Your sound is very clear and strong. (Only the chords at the beginning are maybe a bit too much)
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Derek That was great, Derek! I’ve known the other pieces you’ve played by Calatayud, but not this one. Very Spanish, and very well played.
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Derek hello Derek, you have chosen a nice piece - I have never noticed before... Life is too short to practice all pieces that are composed
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Derek I've never heard this piece before, Derek, but you just got me interested in it! Well done!
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Derek thanks for sharing Derek! that's indeed well known Spanish chord progression!
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Here is the next installment, Theme and Variations 1-6 from Ponce's last work, Variations on a Theme of Cabezón. All photos were taken in Burgos, the birthplace of Cabezón. Next week, I will work on the final movement, the Fughetta.
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Dale Needles nice work Dale! Makes me feel like I'm there - back in the day!
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Dale Needles wow -you did an amazing job ! As so often, I've never heard that piece before. At the beginning it reminds me somehow on Greensleeves ...
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Dale Needles Coming along really well. Dale! Is the Fughetta difficult? (My guess is yes.)
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Dale Needles bravo Dale, very well played! Can't wait to hear the Fughetta, Ponce is so great at polyphony!
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End of the Year Challenge: Finish Strong!
