Need advice on Villa-Lobos Etude 1
The sixth measure of Etude 1 (David Leisner lesson) starts with an insanely hard stretch - the 3 and 4 fingers are two frets and one string apart - 4 on G# (6th str) and 3 on B (5th str). I'd appreciate any suggestions. My pinky is way shorter than Leisner's as seen in the video.
5 replies
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It's just an E major chord with the 3rd (G#) in the bass. I'd say, don't kill yourself on a left hand stretch to practice a right hand exercise, just play a different voicing. I can play it but I still prefer to play it as a "c-shape" with a bar at IV.
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Dean this!
Rajesh Puranik 100% agree with Dean. Sometimes it's not worth spending hours and hours on a single detail when you could be making other progress in that time. Start by playing it in an easier shape (such as the one Dean describes) then when your technique is developed enough for it to come naturally, adjust it accordingly.
When it comes to this chord specifically, it helps if your left hand reaches the fretboard "from the left", in a more violin-like position. I'm attaching two pictures. The first one is much easier, the second one is very hard. Hope this helps!
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Dean thanks, I managed the chord by switching the 2 and 3 fingers to B and E respectively. Also practicing this voicing on higher positions first
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Mircea that’s really interesting since it seems counterintuitive to me, but I’ll definitely apply your advice. Thank you!
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Rajesh Puranik glad to hear you made it work! And yes, give it a go and see what happens! A lot of stretches can be made a lot (and I mean, a lot) easier by rotating our left hand to the left.
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