Canon in D (eye opener)

[TBman]

Two weeks into practicing this one, my first "real" classical piece "learned" on my Cordoba C5. I say "real" because years ago I learned part of the Etude in EM, but this one is complete. I put "learned" in quotes also because this is far from finished. The only thing I really learned is to play it without any tempo killing mistakes. I'll probably be recording this quite a few times and comparing for progress. I'm also going to try my best to memorize it.

I managed to play with my miniature nails for a lot of the notes, big improvement. I used a non-skid cloth under the guitar on my left leg and this has made playing much, much easier. It's tough to play when the guitar is moving around on you.

I've learned a few things from this recording.

1. I make too much extraneous noise.
2. I make too much string noise from moving from one note to the next
3. My volume/attack is uneven.


And that's just what I hear, classical players probably hear a lot more that is wrong, but I'll start on my list first,

Canon in D:



I will now be adding Ave Maria to my practice routine and be working on both. My goal this coming year is to play these two from memory and do a much better job than what I posted.

So now I will go back to Canon in D and play it slowly with the goal of making less noise than a mouse on a stack of pillows eating whip cream,

[islandguitar]

Nice start to your classical journey, Barry!!

[rémy64]

Good job Barry, maybe a bad placement of the microphone no?

[zeeway]

Really enjoyed that, Barry. One of my favorites. Yes, some string noise...maybe coated strings would eliminate that? Even so, very good.

[TBman]

Originally Posted by islandguitar

Nice start to your classical journey, Barry!!

Thanks Fred. It's going to be a long trip,

Originally Posted by rémy64

Good job Barry, maybe a bad placement of the microphone no?

Thanks Remy, but no, I just stink... I may try moving back the Zoom H5 and play a bit louder which might hide some of the noise, but I'd rather learn to get rid of the noise through technique as much as I can first.

Originally Posted by zeeway

Really enjoyed that, Barry. One of my favorites. Yes, some string noise...maybe coated strings would eliminate that? Even so, very good.

Thanks Zeeway! Do they have coated classical bass strings? Hmmm. I never thought about that.

[Organic Sounds Select Guitars]

Barry, you’re ready to start taking wedding gigs with this one! It takes a lot of discipline to learn these types of pieces. Nice job here, you sound really good.

[TBman]

Originally Posted by LWSog

Barry, you’re ready to start taking wedding gigs with this one! It takes a lot of discipline to learn these types of pieces. Nice job here, you sound really good.

Thanks Larry!

Great stuff Barry!

[mr. beaumont]

Sounding good!

I am NO classical player, but the year I took of classical lessons back in high school left tremendous impressions on me, particularly in the concepts of producing a good tone by how I FRET the note, and how to cleanly move around the neck with all that scratchy slidey sounding stuff.

Although, for recording, never underestimate the old "candle trick."

[Glennwillow]

Very nice Barry!

Good for you for going after a real classical piece. I, too, have experienced all that extraneous noise that a classical guitar makes. I never resolved it. I don't think I have picked up my classical since. I'm sure it takes a lot of work to learn how to do this kind of piece quietly. Good luck with this Barry! Maybe you will inspire me!

- Glenn

[TBman]

Originally Posted by J-Doug

Great stuff Barry!

Thanks Doug!

[jsanfilippo5]

sOunds good!

[TBman]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Sounding good!

I am NO classical player, but the year I took of classical lessons back in high school left tremendous impressions on me, particularly in the concepts of producing a good tone by how I FRET the note, and how to cleanly move around the neck with all that scratchy slidey sounding stuff.

Although, for recording, never underestimate the old "candle trick."

Thanks Mr. B!

There's so much more to think about.; posture, fretting thumb position, fretting hand knuckle alignment with strings, position of right hand, nail or no nails..... and fighting to acquire that nice thick tone....

I'm going to try though.

What's "the candle trick?"

[BallisticSquid]

This sounds really nice, great job!!

I wonder if the extraneous noise comes from the proximity of the microphone to the guitar. I didn't find any of the noise bothersome while I was listening. It was an enjoyable listen . Thanks for sharing.

[sevargnhoj]

Very nice! Maybe, if I start working on this now I'll be able to play it at my daughter's wedding (fortunately, she has no prospects in sight currently ).