Solo Guitar Playing Book 1
Revised and Updated
Fourth Edition
The fourth edition of Solo Guitar Playing Book 1 is now available. This latest edition is the same as the third edition up to page 238
There have been some additions to the end of the book (Page 239 through page 254)
Below is a list of these additions.
1. Page 239 - Wilson's Wilde by Anonymous (Guitar Solo). This piece is from the Dowland Lute book. Although easy to play, it is a very effective composition because of the amount of variety in a simple framework.
2. Page 240 - Lesson for Two Lutes by Anonymous (Two Lutes or Guitars). Taken from the same manuscript as the piece on page 239, this delightful but simple duet should present no technical difficulties if the fingering is strictly followed.
3. Page 241 - Alman by Robert Johnson (Guitar Solo). The manuscripts contain much solo music of both Robert Johnson (who also wrote many songs) and of his father, John. Robert's music is characteristically simpler and more melodic than the sophisticated compositions of his father. The word Alman is the same as Allemande, or "German" (dance).
4. Pages 242 & 243 - Bourrée by J.S. Bach (Guitar Solo). This Bourrée, a most popular piece for guitarists, is from the Suite in E minor (BWV 996). It occurs in a collection made by Bach's pupil Johann Ludwig Krebs.
5. Pages 244, 245 & 246 - Canarios by Gaspar Sanz (Guitar Solo). One of the interesting treatises on the guitar of the seventeenth century is that of Gaspar Sanz, who describes himself as from the province of Aragon and a bachelor of theology of the University of Salamanca. The book was published in 1674 in Zaragoza with the title Instrucción de Musica Sobre la Guitarra Española, and contains detailed instructions in technique as well as many musical examples of the dance forms popular in Spain such as Folios, Españoletas, Rujeros and the Canarios transcribed here. As with most music written for the baroque guitar it is impossible to re-create the original in a transcription, but the particularly Spanish charm of the dance comes through nevertheless.
6. Page 247 - Theme from Op. 102 by Mauro Giuliani (Guitar Solo). Guitar arrangements of operatic solos were extremely popular in the early nineteenth century. This example is from the opera Baccanali di Roma by Generali, and is an arrangement of a Cavatina. It was first published by Diabelli.
7. Pages 248 & 249 - Caprice Op. 20, No. 2 by Luigi Legnanai (1790-1877) (Guitar Solo). Legnanai is perhaps best know as a close friend and associate of Paganini, with whom he gave a number of concerts. He was a prolific composer, with published works exceeding two hundred and fifty for solo guitar and small instrumental combinations, and he enjoyed a wide reputation as a virtuoso performer. The Caprice is chosen from a series in all keys designed for technique development.
8. Pages 250 & 251 - Nocturne Op. 4, No. 2 by Johann Kaspar Mertz (1806-1856) (Guitar Solo). George Krick's collection contains a large resource of Mertz's publications including this simple Nocturne from one of his early works.
9. Pages 252, 253 & 254 - Two Pieces from Récréation Du Guitariste, Op. 51 (Guitar Solo). The Opus 51 collection was know as the Récréation du Guitariste. The Rondeau and Barcarolle are included here. A Barcarolle imitates the song of a Venetian gondolier.
There are 3 CD's that go with Solo Guitar Playing Book 1 (Third & Fourth edition)
FN45: This CD covers all of the exercises and
performance pieces for Lessons 1 - 15 Pages 17 - 108
FN46: This CD covers all of the exercises and performance pieces for Lessons 16
- 26 Pages 109 - 200
FN52: This CD is a collection of selected performance pieces from the book.