The Power of Expectations
Guitar Performance Tips
Today I had a bad performance experience. Every week at APSU we hold a guitar performance class — each guitar student plays for the others. I went in not knowing what I was going to play and not knowing how it would go. After a fairly mediocre performance, I left frustrated: my nervousness and lack […]
Read MoreImprove Your Crescendos
Musical Interpretation and Musicianship
Supposedly the guitar is a quiet instrument — we don’t have the dynamic range of a piano or a wind instrument. So I guess that means our Crescendos and Diminuendos are destined to be small and undramatic, right? Wrong. Want a dramatic, powerful crescendo? Cheat. Start quiet. Even in the dynamic level proceeding the crescendo […]
Read MoreMonday Motivation: Practicing Edition
Monday Motivation
“Practice isn’t the thing you do once you’re good. It’s the thing you do that makes you good.” -Malcolm Gladwell in Outliers, p. 42 In a little departure from our usual Monday Motivation fare, we feature Michael Fogler giving a lecture at the CCM Guitar Workshop. The primary focus of the lecture is practicing, and […]
Read MoreJames Piorkowski Interview
Interviews with Classical Guitarists
James Piorkowski is a performer and composer based in New York. He has toured internationally as a soloist and chamber musician, and has recorded several albums. In addition to his performance activities, James is an active teacher and runs the SUNY Fredonia guitar program. Connect with James on Youtube. Classical Guitar Blog: When did you […]
Read MoreMonday Motivation: Kearney Edition
Monday Motivation
“Don’t wait for things to happen — begin creating.” -John Kehoe in Mind Power, p. 38 Guitarist Patrick Kearney seems to know how to play super virtuosic pieces. In fact, he recorded an entire CD titled Diabolico. Here’s Kearney playing Caprice d’après Paganini by Atanas Ourkouzounov. It’s interesting, virtuosic, and a little bit flash and […]
Read MoreLinkage: 8/22/09
Guitar Related Links
This week, I published a some more notes on books I’ve read. The Art of Learning by Josh Waitzkin and Mind Power by John Kehoe have a lot of material which can easily be applied to learning guitar (or any instrument). The Art of Learning would apply to practice and performance, while techniques outlined in […]
Read MoreMartha Masters Interview
Interviews with Classical Guitarists
Martha Masters is an internationally renown performer, who has received critical acclaim as both a soloist and a chamber musician with Duo Erato. In 2000, Dr. Masters won the Guitar Foundation of American (GFA) international competition. She is currently on the faculty of Loyola Marymount University, and maintains an active performance schedule. Dr. Masters was […]
Read MoreEvents: Deconstructing a Mistake
Classical Guitar Practice Tips
We make mistakes. Hopefully they occur in practice, not in performance. For most people that means repeating a given passage until we get it right. There’s not much thought, just repetition. We get it wrong a few times, then slow down, get it wrong a few more times, then finally get it right. Then we’re […]
Read MoreMonday Motivation: Riley Edition
Monday Motivation
“The aim is to minimize repetition as much as possible by having an eye for consisten psychological and technical errors.” -Josh Waitzkin, in The Art of Learning, p. 108 Today we feature guitarist and composer Gyan Riley performing his own composition, Food for the Bearded. If you like what you hear, check out his listen […]
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