Group 3
Breaking Your Scale Speed Limits with Eduardo Inestal!
Virtuosity and speed go hand in hand when it comes to freeing your musical expressiveness from technical limitations. One key element in classical guitar performance is the ability to play fast scales with ease. Together, we will explore exercises that will enable you to push your speed limits and improve your scale skills while retaining relaxation in both hands and gaining a richer tool set to express your musical ideas.
- Sign-Up Period: August 11 - 14
- Course Period: August 15 - 26
- Class Size: 4 Groups á 10 Participants
- Optional check-In via Zoom: August 23, 11 am PST
Assignment for the first week:
Play the first exercise (Slow) while paying attention to the following:
- Keep the tempo
- Always alternate i-m
- Be "lazy” (move your fingers, both right and left hand, and yourself as less as possible) to keep the relaxation
Do the same with the 2nd exercise (Faster tempo)
Once you control this exercise, you can gradually choose your tempo, increasing the bpm. Pay attention not to lose your relaxation!
Have fun!
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Exercise No. 3 by Eduardo
Goals:
1) keep the tempo
2) Be as "lazy" as possible (move your fingers (an also your body) as less as possible).
3) increase the tempo gradually.
Start with 50 bmp and speed it up till 100 bpm Submit 2 videos with both tempos (slow and fast)
scales group 3
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Dear friends, here is a recording of yesterday's Zoom class for everybody who couldn't attend!
scales group 3
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Here is Eduardo's final video for his (more than) Two Week Intensive!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8EBsPbGViOM
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For Week 1, please look at this exercise after watching the assignment video!
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Hello everyone.
First video of exercice 1 at slow tempo. I had not a lot of time to work on it. Il feel tense in left hand and I have to be very focus to finish it. Maybe too much tension in the body.
Thank you.
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GALAIS Olivier Hi Oliver, Thank you very much for sending your video. Great job!
I think you played it a bit too fast (did you mention that was the slow tempo video, right?).
Answering your question: If you feel to tense on the LH, what you can do is the following:
1. Practise only RH until you feel confortable with the patron and the movementes of the I-M finger.
2. Practise the shift changes of the LH, without playing it. Only movement. No sound
3. Play the LH both notes at the same time.
4. Once both Hands feel confortable and free, you can start practising very slow, in order to be able to see if you feel relax. Great way of doing it is not only by feeling your body, but also to watch it (Use a Mirrow).
Another small detail: Try to keep your face and your mouth motionless. I can feel a bit of tension in your lips. Than means your body is not relax completely. Try not to "make faces". It is a small detail, but very important one for 2 reasons:
1. Relaxation (we talked already about)
2. If you are playing a concert, it can bother the public if this movements are not a result of your musical interpretation but as result of tension.
Try it and let me know if you feel improvements!
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Don't forget to tune in to today's live stream with Eduardo!
https://guitar-community.tonebase.co/t/g9hnxj1/eduardo-inestal-breaking-your-scales-speed-limit
scales group 3
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Hello Eduardo. Thank you for your great introduction and examples. Here is my first exercise. Looking forward to your advice.
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joosje Hi Joosje, Great job!! I love the way you left Hand moves! Perfect!!
The only thing I could tell you is to pay attention to your Pinky Finger RH. Sometimes it goes up, which means tension (Look the video again, and you will see).
Another thing you can improve is keeping a bit more precise the rhytm. Sometimes, slighly, is not as precise as a metronome.
But in general great!!!! I would suggest to try speeding it up once you feel confortable and I am looking fowart to wacht your new video!
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Eduardo Inestal thank you so much. I am aware of my pinky curling up. I also often feel tension creeping up in my right foot. (You can’t see that on the video
) I must work really slowly and concentrated to be able to control this.I will work with the metronome (I don’t do that enough)
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Hello Eduardo and Group 3, I am practicing the scales and appreciate all of the instruction. I have been slow to record and actively participate. I do respect the efforts being made and will catch up as able.
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Stephen Holland Hi Stephen, looking foward seeing you playing!
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16 August, Exercise 1 at 210
hi Eduardo. Here is my faster version of exercise 1. I tried to work on relaxation of the right side of my right hand. It’s hard, after years of built up habit. I feel I’m not yet there.
I have a question about this: I practice moving fingers m and i ‘in the air’, or on a piece of paper, or above the strings, then my ring- and pinky finger are quietly moving along in perfect relaxation. As soon as I start actually plucking the strings, the right side of the hand tenses up. Might be linked to my hand position? I hold my wrist a bit higher than before, slightly curved from arm to hand, to enable the attack from the base joint with curved fingers. My hand is in line with the arm and the fingers land slightly oblique on the strings, not perpendicular.
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joosje Hi Joosje,
once again great job!!! You dont have to worry about. We are talking about an ideal technik (that pretty much is impossible to achieve). Your Pinky finger is not making any trouble at all. The reason why on the air you can not see tension, is because there is zero resistance (fingers are playing air). Once you play the strings, the fingers have to fight against the string, causing the tension. The solutions is full concentration. Try to play this exercise without LH and you are going to see that you are going to be able to control your finger better.
Also, as you can see, it does not happen always, which means, the tension is not always there, for instance, you can achieve zero tension!!!
But once again, Amazing job!!!
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Here is the next assignment video for all of you!
Goals:
- Keep the tempo
- Be as "lazy" as possible (move your fingers (an also your body) as less as possible).
- Increase the tempo gradually. -Start with 50 bmp and speed it up till 100 bpm
Submit 2 videos with both tempos (slow and fast)
scales group 3
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Hello and thank you very much for your very interesting feedback.
I am putting exercise 2 online at both tempos 50 and 100.
If my current limit is 110 and I want to reach 120, should I still work at 50 or should I aim for 80 and 120 for example?For me, descending scales are always more difficult and I lack coordination there.
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Great job Olivier!!! Very good!
Sometimes is more difficult to keep a slow tempo, right?, you played it, both very good. Your coordination is great. The only thing I see is a bit too much tension in your face. As you see, your lips are very contracted, and that is a sign of stress. Try to focus on it. You are going to feel relief.
One crazy thing you can do it (as an experiment). Put a pencil in your mouth (see picture) and your lips and mouth are going to stop "fighting" and eventually "giving up" so you are going to be at the end relax on this area of your body. (as I said, experiment it for a while)
Your fingers movement are great, so on that part, no worries.
If you want to increase speed, always do it progessivly and be patiens. Speed it a couple of notch up and always seek for relaxation. Dont forget that relaxation is the key!!
You can use the same exercise to work on the coordination for descending scales. It works very good:
4 4 4 4 - 4444 - 3 3 3 3 - 3333 - 2 2 2 2 - 2222 - 1 1 1 1 - 4321
Practise it and let me know how you feel.
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Eduardo Inestal
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scales group 3
Please find login information for Eduardo's Zoom Check-in on August 23, 11 am PST here. Feel free to post questions before the Check-In in the forum so Eduardo can prepare those.
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88539131031
Meeting-ID: 885 3913 1031-
martin looking forward. I might be late, hope you will let me in…
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Hello Eduardo and group 3 friends. I’m back with assignment #2. Because I have to travel this week again, I post this one right away at two speeds. Not really prestissimo yet-I will keep practicing later this week. As I am also still working on the first assignment, next to learning some new repertoire. It’s quite challenging to focus on this specific technical skill, and at the same time working on other pieces, that make me repeat my (maybe not so perfect) habits
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joosje Terrific job Joosje,
Very good coordination, and tempo. Great sound aswell. You did a fine job. There is no much to say, maybe to point out what you already know regarding your pinky, but is not a big deal.
If you want to improve tempo, then work with metronome and try to speed it up step by step without loosing your coolness.
You are ready for the next exercise.
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First recording of ex #3 in slow tempo. I’ll move the metronome up by 5 or 10 and try to keep the control and relaxation.
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joosje Hi Joosje!! Bravo!! There is nothing I can say because it is perfect!!! Now just increase Tempo!!! and keep doing this terrific job!
Cheers!!
P.S.: Looking foward to see your videos at faster speed!
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Eduardo Inestal ¡hola! Muchas gracias por tu atención y apoyo. Here is my faster version of ex#3. I didn’t want to go there too soon, not before gradually working up the tempo. Still, my poor little pinky is curling up more than I want it to. However, I feel more relaxation in my right hand than before, so these exercises are already doing their work, they’re great for me….
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