Week 4: Expressive Exploration
Get the Scores for the Carcassi Etudes op.60 Challenge
HOW TO BEGIN 
Ready to join the "Carcassi Etudes op.60 Challenge"? Here’s your starting line:
- Pick Your Etude: Dive into the evocative world of Carcassi by selecting an etude from op.60. Whether it's a piece that tests your technical limits or one that you've longed to perfect, the choice is yours.
- Commit to Practice: Embark on a disciplined practice routine, aiming for consistency. Share your journey with at least two video updates each week on our platform. This commitment will not only enhance your skills but also enable us to experience your progress, fostering a supportive atmosphere in our tonebase community.
- Share Your Practice: Submit a recording that you feel best captures your connection with Carcassi's music. This will inspire and contribute to a rich collection of performances for our community to enjoy and learn from.
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I had a go at No.23.
Recording on my iPhone, the dynamics seem to have been flattened out quite a lot. Maybe someone can advise me on how to deal with this.
As with just about anything in A major, I am focusing on keeping the bass strings under control, dampening them with my thumb as required to avoid especially the A and D string overlapping into bars where they are not wanted.
Also focusing on the pull off to open strings which can make a "twangy" sound - this is the ideal etude to practice that technique.
I will try improve on this by the end of the cycle.
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Sam Greenblatt Great work!
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Sam Greenblatt I know that some iOS recording apps have the option to select back or front mics (at least Filmic Legacy) and then you get kind of a cardioid pattern and a better sound IMHO. In Omni moving the iPhone won't hardly change the sound to really make a huge difference but you can test out different rooms you have access to. Your best bet is to get an iOS/USB compatible mic or if you're also using a computer get an audio interface with a good XLR mic. The search fo a good sound and a simple setup is an endless quest!
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hello everyone here is my attempt at the etude no.7, which I played before but trying to refine my style to make it on time and more rubato. I played the two sections twice AABB. Hopefully you will enjoy. thanks Vilio
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Vilio Celli Well played sir. Nice tone and interpretation. I've learned this etude too, and discovered it is a rewarding etude to practice. Thank you for posting.
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Brent Adams
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Vilio Celli very nice, Vilio. Such a beautiful Etude, and it’s really coming along at this tempo. I enjoyed it.
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joosje
thanks Joosje glad you enjoyed it
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Vilio Celli Well done Vilio. This is great to listen your interpretation.
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Vilio Celli Hi there. I am also training this one. It is quite fun to play! I would just add that in the 'legatures' starting in bar 8 of part B all the notes have the same tempo. It looks like you play the first one of the legato a bit shorter. I hope you continue having fun with it!
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Thanks Brent I like your interpretation as well
Vilio -
Here is my second take on the Allegretto in E minor Op. 59.
There is still a lot of work to polish the piece but I am happy so far with the progress. I have to note that all my nails were in very bad shape. Until new ones grow up; I am trying to use Alaska picks. It took a bit of time to get used to them and I still need to trim and shape them but I am surprised by the results. This could eventually be a workable solution when I broke a nail.
martin - Please do not use this recording for the live event. I will post another one during the weekend before the event.
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Andre Bernier Andre, you are making good progress on this piece. Well done.
The Alaska picks look interesting. They kinda look like goalie masks for the fingers! Do you plan to use them all of the time now or just when you have a broken nail? Looking forward to hearing how you make out with them after using them for awhile.
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Andre Bernier Good progress Andre. Interesting solution for this reoccurring guitarist’s issue. You got a good balance with these ‘prostheses’. How does it feel to your fingers? Can you feel the strings’ touch?
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Jim King joosje
Thanks for your comments.
I am not planning to use the Alaska picks on a permanent basis but as a temporary solution when i broke a nail. So far I learned a few things to help get them performing well:
1- The bottom part needs to get under your nail which means you need to have some nails (see picture with finger 1 and 2). I do not have a lot of nail but this is just enough to keep the pick in place.
2- There are 3 sizes of picks. We have to try them and make sure to select a size that is tight enough.
3- Like for natural nails I need to experiment on the sizing, trimming, shaping and polishing to get a proper tone.
The good thing is they are very cheap on Amazon and you don't have to wait weeks to test different shapes.
Only time will tell me if it is a good solution
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Andre Bernier Please keep us informed as to your experience with the Alaska picks. When I break a nail I just play with the fingertip instead. Would be interesting to see if these picks will serve as an alternative.
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Jim King Yes, I will do it in a new post in the general discussion section.
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So, I finally had some time to post videos of the three pieces I am undertaking for this challenge (I know... I am biting more than I can chew...)
Of the three, number 9 is the one needing more polishing than the others.
Otherwise, I tried to add some slurs to n.6 (tell me if you think they will add to the interpretation, or not). I feel like I need more legato on those basses and in some other parts of the piece.
All suggestions are welcome!
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Carlo Martins great update, Carlo. All three pieces are flowing and became even more confident and balanced. It all sounds very nice. No. 7 was really nice and great tempo! Btw I couldn’t hear slurs in no. 6. Which bars do you you mean? Or maybe you meant the glissandos in bars 24-25 and 27-28. They are really nice and they support the ascending melodic tension in a very musical way. You are right, also, in that legato playing is the trick in this piece. It demands a lot of (slow) practice and attention to bring that to perfection. Playing one voice at the time will also help. That said, you are doing really great already.
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Hi joosje ! Yes, I meant glissandos (I wonder what I was thinking when I wrote 'slurs'
). Thank you for the feedback. I am trying to train at a slower tempo, but when I record, always it goes up, maybe it is the adrenaline of the recording...
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Hello all here is my final attempt at this Carcassi Challenge playing Etude no 7 with more speed and hopefully legato; thanks for listening.
Vilio
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Vilio Celli Good work Vilio. This is a very difficult piece and you made good progress during the challenge. Bravo
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Thanks Andre yes it’s very hard to switch between tremolo’s and arpeggios.
