READ and FAQ - Carcassi Etudes op.60 Challenge!
Get the Scores for the Carcassi Etudes op.60 Challenge
Greetings, beloved tonebuddies!
Gear up for an enthralling adventure with the "Carcassi Etudes op.60 Challenge!" This event is dedicated to celebrating the technical brilliance and expressive depth of Matteo Carcassi's compositions. Join us this month as we embark on a journey through the challenging yet rewarding landscapes of Carcassi's Etudes op.60, a pillar in the classical guitar repertoire.
WHEN 
- Challenge start: Official Kick-Off on March 6th!
- Challenge duration: From March 6th to April 15th.
- Watch Party of selected submissions: April 15th, 11 am PST!
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.
The "Carcassi Etudes op.60 Challenge" is more than just practice; it's an invitation to delve into the essence of Matteo Carcassi's musical genius. Choose an etude that speaks to you and approach this challenge with enthusiasm and curiosity. Let's pay homage to the elegant structures and lyrical melodies of Carcassi, enhancing our skills and community spirit along the way. Get ready to practice, explore, and immerse yourself in the Carcassi Etudes op.60 Challenge!
Grouped by Difficulty
Easy: 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 13, 16, 19
Medium: 1, 5, 7, 8, 11, 12, 14, 15, 21, 23
Advanced: 17, 18, 20, 22, 24, 25
Grouped by Technique
Scales: 1, 6, 14, 18
Arpeggio: 2, 3, 7, 11, 12, 13, 15, 19, 20 + 22(inkl. Left Hand Slurs)
Slurs: 4, 8, 9, 10, 21, 23, 25 (full fretboard arpeggi)
Other: 5 + 17 (Parallel Motion and Shifts), 16 (Melody and Accompaignement), 24 (Shifts)
Grouped by Length
Short: 3, 4, 10
Medium: 1, 2, 5, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 18, 19, 23
Long: 2, 6, 7, 9, 15, 17, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25
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Nice! Thank you Martin.
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It seems that there are a lot of recent recordings of Carcassi Op 60 etudes being posted to youtube as examples - incuding Badford Werner and Tariq Harb.
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Martin, thanks for the helpful charts for M. Carcassi Op. 60.
I have a few editions in my library. I have found the Carl Fischer edition edited by Vadah Olcott-Bickford (0101) to be an excellent resource. Each study has right and left hand fingering and commentary on purpose of study.The Carcassi method for Guitar Op.59, Carl Fischer, (T.Presser) edited by G.C. Santisteban is an excellent resource for your library.
There is a combined edition with Op.60 and Op.59 with included MP3 download of Op.60.
Carl Fischer publications , edited by P. Bertaud.
I have not evaluated this edition but it seems like a good inclusion?
Perhaps this information will help tb guitarist. -
Good idea to bring back this one, last week I was thinking about working on a few of them, thanks martin !
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Nice chart, Martin!
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Carcassi Op 60 no 1 - do you play mostly tirando, apoyando or hybrid? And the melody notes in the bass strings, do you play with thumb or mostly i,m? Just curious to know your approach to the piece. Thanks!
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Manuel for me I mostly play tirando and for basses a mix of p and other fingers depending on articulation, phrase and sound coherence. Are you working on it?
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Blaise Laflamme Thanks for feedback. I always wanted to work on this one. Maybe now is the time. It may be the first in the series but not the easiest. I would approach it as a study in articulation and tone production and practice it very slowly.
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Manuel Great, I'm also thinking about learning it and I'm looking forward for your upcoming submission, have a good work on it!
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Blaise Laflamme Likewise
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I haven't played any carcassi since I'm still pretty new to classical guitar music. This is a fantastic chance for me to explore his music, so challenge accepted
. The chart provided would be super helpful I'm sure.I'm looking to improve my LH finger independence, relaxation and scales. Any recommendations from fellow members would be great.
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary You might like to look at Pumping Nylon by Scott Tennant. I do something from it most days. Some days, I can spend an entire morning with the book.
And thanks for the comment on my video.
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Neil Macmillan I do practice some of the exercises from Pumping Nylon. Btw, what mic did you do your recording on and do you do post processing after recording?
I never seem to get good quality audio as I'm still recording on my smartphone.
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary On this recording I used the original version of the Snowball USB condenser microphone made by Blue Microphones. The mic is actually visible in the lower left of the video. The red LED light indicates a proper USB connection to my Samsung Galaxy S20 smartphone. No post-processing on audio. I used the iMovie application (on MacBook) to trim the video. The Blue Microphones company also produces a Yeti USB mic which appears to be more popular; but I like the Snowball.
For audio-only recording I use s pair of Se X1A condenser mics (not USB) into GarageBand via a MOTU M2 audio interface. You can hear what that sounds like (and see some photos of Loch Lomond in Scotland) here:
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Neil Macmillan Thanks for such a detailed description of your recording setup. I have an AT2020 condenser myself. But I haven't gotten good at recording yet. Hopefully, I can come up with something not too bad for this challenge.
I'm working on etude no.14 btw. Hoping to improve my scales and shifts through this piece.
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martin Ashley (Ash) Lucero Hi, not related to this topic. I'm facing issues in accessing content on my TB Android app. I can't find any content on my bookmark, or other tabs. I can access them on the browser but strangely as soon as I open the site, I hear multiple voices in the background playing at the same time even if I have not clicked on any video. I even tried reinstalling the app, hasn't worked. Anyone else facing problems?
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Nijwm Bwiswmuthiary Hi Nijwm, I have forwarded that to our development team! Does the issue still persist?
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martin As of now, it's back to normal. I appreciate your prompt reply and follow up action
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martin
This is a great community challenge you worked out for us. Your table to guide us in selecting a piece is also very helpful. However, the Opus 60 is probably way too advanced for a beginner like me. I am actually practicing pieces in TB level 2 and 3 curriculum. The Carcassi op. 60 pieces are showing up starting only in level 4. Furthermore, Bradford Werner has a very good book on this Opus and his own classification is for grades (5 to 9).
As I like to participate in these challenges
, I will be working on the Allegretto in E Minor, Op.59 by Matteo Carcassi. This piece is part of the Bradford Werner repertoire lessons for grade 2. He also has a very good video lesson for this piece including some scale exercises.For those beginners like me who could be interested in participating in the challenge with this piece.
https://www.thisisclassicalguitar.com/classical-guitar-repertoire-lessons-grade-2/
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Andre Bernier Good idea Andre, but if you want to give a try to Op.60 I think #2 is still approchable as it's mainly a fixed pattern for the right hand and mainly chord shapes for the left hand.
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Blaise Laflamme Thanks for the suggestion Blaise. I will keep that in my sleeve for the next Carcassi challenge.
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Hello :).
I also would like to partecipate to this topic. Where can I upload the video of my practicing?
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Matteo Laurenzi Hey Matteo, welcome to the challenge! Just upload your video to your YT channel and ensure it's «unlisted», until you want it worldwide, then add the share code to a post using the embed button. Looking forward to your posts!
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Blaise Laflamme Thank you Blaise!
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(A previous link, now removed, had atrocious audio quality; This one is better)
Practice session on Carcassi Étude in A Minor, Op. 60. No. 2. Looking at part of Section A with a focus on the dynamics. This extract starts on an E Major voicing, not E Minor as stated in the video.
