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Old 01-02-2019, 12:33 AM
M4DDG04T M4DDG04T is offline
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Default Fernando Sor and fingerings

Does anyone have the left hand fingerings for Fernando Sor Op 24? I've looked everywhere, but I can't seem to find them.

Thanks!
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Old 01-02-2019, 07:39 AM
smwink smwink is offline
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Originally Posted by M4DDG04T View Post
Does anyone have the left hand fingerings for Fernando Sor Op 24? I've looked everywhere, but I can't seem to find them.

Thanks!
The eight little pieces? I believe most of these have the 6th string tuned to F, which is fairly unusual (though Sor did it on occasion), so that may help with fingering. Are you working on all eight, or are there specific ones? I doubt you will find a fully fingered edition of this since it's not commonly heard in the repertoire, probably because of the unusual tuning.
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Old 01-02-2019, 05:28 PM
M4DDG04T M4DDG04T is offline
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The eight little pieces? I believe most of these have the 6th string tuned to F, which is fairly unusual (though Sor did it on occasion), so that may help with fingering. Are you working on all eight, or are there specific ones? I doubt you will find a fully fingered edition of this since it's not commonly heard in the repertoire, probably because of the unusual tuning.
Yes! I'm working my way through them. Is there a fingered version of Minuet No.1 in C minor?
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Old 01-02-2019, 06:06 PM
smwink smwink is offline
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Yes! I'm working my way through them. Is there a fingered version of Minuet No.1 in C minor?
I don't know of one, but in general you should expect a lot of partial barres at the third fret for many of the c minor chord shapes. Some of the stretches are a little tricky as well since Sor was using a shorter scale guitar, and I find myself using some "reverse" fingerings when reading through this one.

For example, in the first measure I'd play the C in the bass with my first finger (maybe as a full barre through the second beat of measure 3 due to the low g) and the upper c/e flat with my third and second fingers respectively . You then need to grab the a flat on the 4th string with your 4th finger. At this point, I'd tend to do a "reverse" fingering and keep everything on the current strings, sliding the 4th finger down to the g on the 4th string. This keeps the first finger anchored at the 3rd fret for the barre in the second measure. Keep holding the barre and play the ornament with 4/2/1/2, then 4 on the high b and 2 on the a. Now in the third measure, I'd again tend for the reverse fingering: hold the 3rd fret barre, use 2 on the high a since you're already there, and use 3 for the b natural on the 3rd string. You finally release the barre on the third beat of measure 3, shifting down to first position. Actually, I'd probably opt for the stretch here and play the b natural bass with 1, open g, and f on the 2nd string 6th fret with 4. This seems to lead more naturally to the c minor shape at the start of measure 4.

See if some of these ideas are useful and lead to solutions for the rest of the piece. Good luck!
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Old 01-03-2019, 01:23 AM
M4DDG04T M4DDG04T is offline
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Originally Posted by smwink View Post
I don't know of one, but in general you should expect a lot of partial barres at the third fret for many of the c minor chord shapes. Some of the stretches are a little tricky as well since Sor was using a shorter scale guitar, and I find myself using some "reverse" fingerings when reading through this one.

For example, in the first measure I'd play the C in the bass with my first finger (maybe as a full barre through the second beat of measure 3 due to the low g) and the upper c/e flat with my third and second fingers respectively . You then need to grab the a flat on the 4th string with your 4th finger. At this point, I'd tend to do a "reverse" fingering and keep everything on the current strings, sliding the 4th finger down to the g on the 4th string. This keeps the first finger anchored at the 3rd fret for the barre in the second measure. Keep holding the barre and play the ornament with 4/2/1/2, then 4 on the high b and 2 on the a. Now in the third measure, I'd again tend for the reverse fingering: hold the 3rd fret barre, use 2 on the high a since you're already there, and use 3 for the b natural on the 3rd string. You finally release the barre on the third beat of measure 3, shifting down to first position. Actually, I'd probably opt for the stretch here and play the b natural bass with 1, open g, and f on the 2nd string 6th fret with 4. This seems to lead more naturally to the c minor shape at the start of measure 4.

See if some of these ideas are useful and lead to solutions for the rest of the piece. Good luck!

They are quite helpful! Thank you!

So Sor was using a smaller guitar when he composed?
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Old 01-03-2019, 06:13 AM
smwink smwink is offline
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They are quite helpful! Thank you!

So Sor was using a smaller guitar when he composed?
19th century guitars were generally smaller than modern-day classical guitars, and there was a lot of variability between builders. Sor is most often associated with Lacote and Panormo guitars, and modern reproductions of those guitars tend to scale lengths around 630mm vs. 650mm. The fingerboard width was also narrower, around 45mm. These are generalizations, and you can find a lot of good info at earlyromanticguitars.com.

Looks like this minuet is included in Zigante's "Best of Fernando Sor" book. It's around $26 and includes a lot of music, so it may be worthwhile if you're really interested in learning more Sor. I don't own it, so I can't comment on the fingerings.

Last edited by smwink; 01-03-2019 at 07:32 AM. Reason: added info
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