A Concise History of the Classic Guitar
A Concise History of the Classic Guitar

Author: Graham Wade

Publisher: Mel Bay Publications

Published: 2010-10-07

Total Pages: 225

ISBN-13: 160974280X

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A Concise History of the Classic Guitar by Graham Wade, one of the foremost international writers on the guitar, explores the history of the instrument from the 16th century to the present day. This compact assessment of five centuries of fretted instruments cover the vihuela in Spain, the history of four-course and five-course guitars, the evolution of tablature, and developments in the six-string guitar in the 19th century. the work also charts the contribution of leading composers, performers and luthiers of the 20th century, and evaluates the influence of Segovia, Llobet, Pujol, Presti, Bream, Williams, etc., among the world's famous guitarists. This book, intended for the general public and guitar students of all ages, is the first interpretative history of the classic guitar to be published in the 21st century, and will be eagerly welcomed by all lovers of the instrument.

Sylvius Leopold Weiss - Three Late Sonatas for Classical Guitar
Sylvius Leopold Weiss - Three Late Sonatas for Classical Guitar

Author: Allen Krantz

Publisher: Mel Bay Publications

Published: 2021-04-23

Total Pages: 80

ISBN-13: 1513459694

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Silvius Leopold Weiss (1687 – 1750) is known to guitarists as the greatest baroque composer for the lute, yet most are only familiar with the earlier portion of Weiss’s prolific output found in the British Library in London. Inspired by a forty-year friendship with the late Douglas Alton Smith - a major figure in the scholarly study of the history of the lute - guitarist, composer, and head of the guitar program at Temple University in Philadelphia, Allen Krantz explored the Weiss manuscripts found in other European cities, particularly the Dresden editions which contain the fifteen sonatas that Weiss produced from the late 1730s to the end of his life. Transcriptions of three of those fifteen late sonatas are featured in this book in modern standard notation along with the original lute tablature as found in the Sächsische Landesbibliothek - Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek, Dresden. While the baroque lute’s tuning makes some works awkward or impossible on the guitar, the three works presented here—Sonatas No. 35 in D minor, No. 42 in A minor and No. 45 in A Major— are in their original keys which happen to be guitar-friendly. The author’s generous and scholarly “Preface” provides thorough historical and performance notes for the music in this volume. While just three of Weiss’s 109 multi-movement lute sonatas are represented here, the importance of this publication cannot be overstated. It contains some of the greatest music of a masterful lutenist— Weiss once faced-off with J. S. Bach on keyboards in a counterpoint improvisation contest—now made accessible to the modern classical guitarist.

The Guitar and Its Music
The Guitar and Its Music

Author: James Tyler

Publisher:

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 349

ISBN-13: 019816713X

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More than twenty years ago James Tyler wrote a modest introduction to the history, repertory, and playing techniques of the four- and five-course guitar. Entitled The Early Guitar: A History and Handbook (OUP 1980), this work proved valuable and enlightening not only to performers and scholarsof Renaissance and Baroque guitar and lute music but also to classical guitarists. This new book, written in collaboration with Paul Sparks (their previous book for OUP, The Early Mandolin, appeared in 1989), presents new ideas and research on the history and development of the guitar and its musicfrom the Renaissance to the dawn of the Classical era.Tyler's systematic study of the two main guitar types found between about 1550 and 1750 focuses principally on what the sources of the music (published and manuscript) and the writings of contemporary theorists reveal about the nature of the instruments and their roles in the music making of theperiod. The annotated lists of primary sources, previously published in The Early Guitar but now revised and expanded, constitute the most comprehensive bibliography of Baroque guitar music to date. His appendices of performance practice information should also prove indispensable to performers andscholars alike.Paul Sparks also breaks new ground, offering an extensive study of a period in the guitar's history--notably c.1759-c.1800--which the standard histories usually dismiss in a few short paragraphs. Far from being a dormant instrument at this time, the guitar is shown to have been central tomusic-making in France, Italy, the Iberian Peninsula, and South America. Sparks provides a wealth of information about players, composers, instruments, and surviving compositions from this neglected but important period, and he examines how the five-course guitar gradually gave way to the six-stringinstrument, a process that occurred in very different ways (and at different times) in France, Italy, Spain, Germany, and Britain.

Easy classical guitar recital
Easy classical guitar recital

Author: Benjamin Verdery

Publisher: Alfred Music Publishing

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 68

ISBN-13: 9780739000762

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World famous guitarist and educator Benjamin Verdery has compiled standard repertoire pieces as well as new pieces for classical guitar. Performance tips are clearly presented for the beginning player. Information is included on how to prepare and present a recital and tips are provided on technique, interpretation, practicing and dealing with performance anxiety. Features new pieces by Benjamin Verdery, Anthony Newman, Frederic Hand and others as well as important music from the standard repertoire. The CD includes performances of each piece in the book.