Sketches I | simple etudes for classical guitar by Frank A. Wallace

Introduction

Sketches I comprises thirty etudes of easy to moderate difficulty for solo guitar. Most are 1/2 to a full page long and are intended as evocative, colorful additions to a more rigorous collection of progressive exercises, etudes and pieces. They can be part of the pedagogy of very young players or they can be used as creative and stylistic variants for older or more advanced students.

These studies teach fundamentals of technique and beautiful tone. Rest stroke, free stroke, arpeggio and two-part playing are all presented while simultaneously introducing what might normally be considered more advanced concepts: legato shifts, accents, vibrato, rest stroke with thumb, laissez vibrer and sympathetic vibration. Portamento, expressive dynamics and tempo variation can be directly considered when the musical work is satisfying but not technically demanding. It is my intention in these works to catch an inspiration, a breath, a character, to create a beautiful moment for my students and friends to enjoy. What more can we do? Why not teach beautiful creative playing form the beginning.

Please visit my blog to read more details about these concepts. They can bring these simple pieces to life and become part of your musical practice and maturation. Articles accompanied by video demonstrations are at: http://www.frankwallace.com/category/techandtone/.

General directions

The primary goal of this book is to offer very expressive music with simple technical demands. Expressive playing involves special techniques just as the commonly sought goals of speed and accuracy in scales, arpeggios and tremolo. Experiment wildly with tempos, dynamics, colors, vibrato, portamento, etc. The book is organized into six sections, with commentary following on the next three pages:

Singe String Etudes I – lyrical position shifts; melody and accompaniment
Four Thumb Songs – flexibility and fluidity, variety of timbre with thumb
Free Stroke Songs – arpeggio and melodic use of free stroke
Jazz and more – practice in two-part playing
Six Blues – more practice in two parts with accents in different voices
New Suite in D Major – introduction to form: three movements with a variety of textures and moods – precursor to Sketches II which is comprised of five suites and a set of variations