READ and FAQ - The Villa-Lobos-Voyage!
Greetings, esteemed tonebuddies!
Are you ready to embark on a musical journey through the enchanting realm of Villa-Lobos and his South-American roots? We are thrilled to present the "Villa-Lobos-Voyage Challenge," an extraordinary experience that celebrates the works of Villa-Lobos and composers related to his heritage. Over the next four weeks, we invite you to dive into the captivating compositions of Villa-Lobos and other South-American-influenced pieces, exploring the rich tapestry of sounds and rhythms.
WHEN 
- Challenge start: Official Kick-Off on August 4th!
- Challenge days: August 4th - September 1st
- Watch Party of selected submissions: September 15th!
HOW TO BEGIN 
Eager to partake in the "Villa-Lobos-Voyage Challenge"? Here's how:
- Select a mesmerizing piece from Villa-Lobos or a composer connected to his South-American heritage. Whether it's a soulful Villa-Lobos composition, a rhythmic Brazilian-inspired work, or a piece by another artist inspired by the South-American musical tradition, the choice is yours!
- Commit to regular practice and share your progress with the community. Strive to practice daily and upload at least two videos per week to showcase your musical voyage. This not only keeps you motivated but also allows you to share your artistic journey with our tonebase family.
- Share your favorite performance or recording that captures the spirit of the "Villa-Lobos-Voyage Challenge." Your submission will inspire others and create a vibrant collection of potential pieces for fellow members to explore.
The heart of this challenge lies in exploring the rich cultural heritage of Villa-Lobos and his musical influences. So, pick a piece that intrigues you and embrace this journey with enthusiasm and curiosity. Together, let's celebrate the captivating sounds of Villa-Lobos and his Brazilian roots. Get ready to practice, learn, and immerse yourself in the Villa-Lobos-Voyage Challenge! 
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Well, I have played all of of the HVL preludes except one. I always avoided number two, because of the fast scale passages in the A section, but mostly because of the arpeggios in the B section. The right hand has always been my weakness, and so this piece just seems beyond me.
So that said, I’m going to give it a shot. We’ll see how it goes!
My favorite version of it has to be Marcin Dylla’s. It starts at 4:26 in this video.
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Hi, can you recommend me some easy pieces of Villa Lobos, the ones I know are all complicated, to consider that I'm always working to improve Lagrima
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Giuseppe Gasparini I have to say, I cannot think of anything by Villa Lobos that is not fairly advanced. Preludes 1, ,3, and 4, and some movements of the Suite Popular Brasileira are maybe the easiest, but they are not easy.
Martin did say, however, that we could play anything Brazilian, South American, or something inspired by Brazil or South America. That, of course, is pretty wide open, with many pieces to choose from.
One thought I had is a piece by Edson Lopes. He is a great guitarist and composer, with LOTS of YouTube videos and many free scores online (you may have heard of him). Here is a video of his Cancao Triste (Sad Song), and a PDF of the score is attached. I think it's beautiful, and it's not too hard to play. Consider it if you want.
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Giuseppe Gasparini I would say there are no easy pieces by HVL, Giuseppe. But a few are decidedly less difficult than the others. Perhaps Prelude 4 is a good place to start, although the 'B' section is generally played in a highly virtuosic fashion. But it doesn't need to played in that manner, and if taken at a relaxed tempo is not particularly difficult. (The 'A' section is quite easy - if you're comfortable with natural harmonics, which are employed extensively here.) Next on the list is the Mazurka from the 'Suite Populaire Bresilienne': certainly more challenging than 'Lagrima' but perhaps approachable. Finally, I will mention study 8 from "Douze Etudes' - again, not easy, but definitely approachable. I hope this helps!
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Eric Phillips Thank you thank you Eric, yes I like this piece
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David Krupka Thank you
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Eric Phillips Eric's makes an excellent suggestion! Maestro Lopes has a lot of graded material in his accessible score library, and a large number of these are categorized as either 'basic' or 'intermediate'. ("Lagrima' is deemed to be the latter.) If you want to check it out, here's a link:
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David Krupka Thank you, the Mazurka Choro is a beautiful piece, but I was stopped for a year due to a Focal Dystonia in my left hand, my hand was shaking as soon as it approached the strings, now I try to play easy pieces and control my posture, shoulders, pressure on the strings, various tensions
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Giuseppe Gasparini Giuseppe, I suffer from exactly the same phenomenon, although the underlying cause is different in my case. It's amazing how disruptive a failure to stabilize the hand is to proper playing. (Position shifting is made just about impossible!) I've struggled with this for some years now, although the condition has improved to the point that I can at long last manage repertoire that is not too difficult. (Not so long ago, it seemed I would have to abandon the guitar altogether.) Like you, I'll have to look for something 'easy' if I am to participate in this challenge. (Probably not the Mazurka Choro, as much as I like the piece ...)
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David Krupka
Thanks a lot David for the spreadsheet. This is going to be a great source of pieces to work on in the future.
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Giuseppe Gasparini I think you got a few interesting suggestions, I hope to hear a bit of you in this challenge.
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David Krupka I was not aware you have this condition too, or I don't recall if you have talked about it earlier in a previous challenge. I can't imagine how frustrating this should be, and at the same time it takes a lot of patience and resilience to deal with it. I'm happy you found a way to continue playing and share your passion here with us. I hope to hear something of you in this challenge, aside HVL I'm sure you can find some South American music you can play and give us the pleasure of discovering unknown music!
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This sounds great but unfortunately I’m away for 2 weeks without my guitar! I’ve been working on Prelude 5 a lot recently so I will submit a video when I’m back. Looking forward to seeing all the performances.
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Jaime Fernandez that's a beautiful prelude, I hope you'll have time to post something by the end of the challenge.
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