A Tutor For The Renaissance Lute Pdf Free
Diana Poulton's Tutor for the Renaissance Lute is probably the single greatest technical resource for that instrument, and I'd recommend it for everyone from pure beginners with absolutely no musical background to those already possessing a reasonably advanced degree of mastery on the instrument. There is very little rigorous pedagogical material extant for the lute until the Mary Burwell Lute Tutor of the early Baroque period, at which time stringing and tuning was so foreign to that of the renaissance Diana Poulton's Tutor for the Renaissance Lute is probably the single greatest technical resource for that instrument, and I'd recommend it for everyone from pure beginners with absolutely no musical background to those already possessing a reasonably advanced degree of mastery on the instrument. There is very little rigorous pedagogical material extant for the lute until the Mary Burwell Lute Tutor of the early Baroque period, at which time stringing and tuning was so foreign to that of the renaissance that the text is effectively useless in that context. This modern tutor does an admirable job of bridging the information gap. Barring the future discovery of a detailed technical treatise from the late 16th or early 17th century in a private collection (and one may always dream), we will probably never have a more complete and accurate treatment of the technical considerations peculiar to the instrument. Even if such a treatise were discovered, its scope could not compete with that of Poulton's book.
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Even the Mary Burwell Lute Tutor, known for its relative attention to detail, is essentially a chronicle of hyper-localized tastes and trends which rarely makes mention of what was being done by lutenists in other locations.The lessons are clear and well written, with easily obtainable goals. As one might expect of a technical manual, the musical examples are laid out in order of increasing difficulty. I suspect that Poulton took Robert Dowland's A Varietie of Lute Lessons as the model for the layout of her book. All of the major systems of intabulation in use during the renaissance are addressed in turn, including the only explanation of the (nightmarish) german intabulation system that has ever been clear enough that I was able to finally sightread a piece notated in this system.
The musical examples are well chosen, and many are facsimiles. Too often the musical examples given in technical texts are useless for all but technique acquisition, yet every single one of Poulton's selections is worthy of a recital program.It is also the only lute book I have seen that includes full range scales. It is absolutely worth the $35. I 'finished' the book a few days ago, but one doesn't read and shelve a technique manual.
I'll be revisiting this book daily for decades.
It all started when I was working my way through Glen Rose’s excellent Jazzy Ukulele Work Books. For the first time I had some understanding of extended chords and chord substitutions, as used by the beboppers and others. But, when I tried to modify or extend his approach, either the available charts were too elementary, or I had to flick through pages of the very useful Hal Leonard Ukulele Chord Finder (which is restricted to rooted chords). Also, it took time to work out each voicing by hand. I just wanted a few sheets of generic chord shapes that I could glance at and find the most suitable and comfortable fingerings. So, I decided to write my own reference charts, and hence this blog.
◦ Chords of 5 notes and more obviously don't fit on a 4-stringed instrument such as the ukulele, so we have to omit one or more notes. Usually the 5th is the first to go as it provides less information than the 3rd which discriminates between major and minor keys. Following Glen Rose, some voicings are shown without their root notes, which can make them easier to play, especially the 9th and 13th chords which often require an awkward stretch. This means, for example, that a 9th chord without a root is equivalent to a 7th chord of some kind formed on the third above the root: e.g. CM9 (C E G B D) becomes Em7, and C9 (C E G B♭ D) becomes Em7♭5, and Cm9 becomes EbM7. There are plenty more aliases to search out.
Happy hunting. And now to move forward by more than two centuries to the Romantic period.Matteo Carcassi (1792 – 1853) was an acclaimed Florentine guitarist and composer, who lived and performed in France, Germany and England.Matteo CarcassiI adapted this piece this from Alonso Medio's: Spanish Guitar Tutor, p 41 (Pub: Clifford Essex). The tutor describes it as “a fine study for the development of a cantabile legato melody width a subordinated accompaniment”. I haven’t shown the legatos in the score, as they are all the same, being 7 beats long and separated by a 1-beat rest.The Andante is characterised by gradual harmonic movement between chords using suspensions. I have inserted the chord names to illustrate this.The piece was relatively easy to reduce to 4 strings, as that is where most of the original sits. Many of Carcassi's pieces make much use of the bass strings, but I shall browse his oeuvre to see if there are any more suitable for adapting.Available to download in the following formats:. Renaissance guitar player.The renaissance guitar was tuned in the same intervals as the low-G tenor ukulele,but was double strung, apart often from the 1st course.The scale length was 5 – 10 cm longer than on the tenor.Note the thumb-under right-hand technique.As far as I can tell she's fingering the chord of G major (2 4 5 4).Published in a blog by Michael FinkThe wonderful galliards on To plead my faith written by Bacheler himself and by John Dowland which I posted recently and are only loosely loosely based on the melody, and the structures vary.
So, I thought: 'what would they have done if they had ukuleles, and wanted to represent the whole song?' (For 'ukulele' you can read 'Renaissance guitar'.)This simple arrangement for low-G ukulele is an attempt to answer the question. As I wrote it, it became clear that one reason they modified the range of the upper voice is that it goes up to the 10th fret, which on the lute is not feasible for chordal work as the frets are glued to the soundboard and used just for the occasional note on the top few strings.The uke arrangement includes the whole song and preserves the melody as the upper voice. It draws in part from the accompaniment written by Bacheler, but much is original (whilst attempting consistent with the musical practice of the period). It also incorporates some ideas and motifs from Bacheler’s and Dowland’s galliards.The first expositions of the four strains are fairly plain and built on block chords, whilst the repetitions are rather more lively. For a simple playing piece, just repeat the first statements and ignore the divisions (fancy repetitions).
For a strumming piece you could fill in the chords of the chordal treatments, and spank your plank.Anyway, you can download the arrangement files using the links below and see what you think:. My previous posts dealt with two galliards (by Bacheler and Dowland) based on this song, so I thought it might be a good idea to examine the original in more detail.It is in four sections, each consisting of repeated 8-bar strains. Fortunately the lute accompaniment still exists, and is not too challenging, so I have transcribed it for ukulele.Robert Devereux in a portrait by Marcus Gheeraerts the YoungerImage from WikipediaRobert Devereux (1565 – 1601), second Earl of Essex, was a distant relation of Elizabeth I, a brave soldier and a poet. He became a favourite of the queen, but lost his head on a charge of treason.Daniel Bacheler (1572 – 1619) was a lutenist and composer, who at one time worked for Devereux, and later held office in the court of the wife of James I / VI. His style of playing was at the time considered complex and difficult, but this accompaniment isn't too hard.The piece was published in Robert Dowland's A musicall banquet. I can't find a facsimile online, but you can see a transcription.I have provided links to the arrangement below.
There is also a MIDI file of the melody – played on an oboe, which is the least horrible synthesised melody instrument on my computer.Links:. Well, if you thought that Bacheler's original galliard in my was difficult, this one made on it is really testing!Dowland wrote this galliard presumably as a compliment to his younger contemporary. It is described in the MS (British Library Add. 38539) as “A gallyard upon the gallyard before”, which was entitled “A gallyard by Mr Dan: Bacheler” and which, in turn, was based on Bacheler’s own song “To plead my faith”.The subscription (end title) of Bacheler's original galliard.The subscription of Dowland's version.Note the penultimate note, which assumes a fourth diapaison course!Facsimilies of British Library Ms Add.
38539 from Sarge Gerbodes website.I would have found making the arrangement well-nigh impossible if I had not relied completely on the transcription by Poulton & Lam. How any lute player managed to play the piece from the lute tabs, especially in manuscript, beggars belief. I am full of awe.Dowland’s first bar is very similar to Bacheler’s, and then deviates more and more.
As in the original, there are three strains, each with a variation, but Dowland has lengthened the first two from 8 to 9 bars.The whole piece is full of invention, and surprisingly playful. In her biography of Dowland, Diana Poulton writes: “The repeat of the second strain is of exceptional interest” because bars 33 and 34 (the repeat of bars 24 and 25) are “not a division at all, but a free variation, since at this point he completely destroys the original harmonic framework”. These bars in particular have a wonderful galloping feel.If you fancy a challenge, you can download the arrangements in various formats using the links below.
Incidentally, I had given up posting Midi files as I thought it was a bit patronising, but this piece is so challenging in the timekeeping, I thought I'd include one this time. Daniel Bacheler (1572 – 1619) was about 9 years younger than John Dowland, but as regards status more successful, in being appointed to the court of Queen Elizabeth I, and gaining a coat of arms. After the previous short piece by Johnson, here is a longer one, also from the Brogyntyn Lute Book. I considered adapting a transcription by Sarge Gerbode of another version of this piece from the Marsh Lute Book in Dublin, but it is so full of fast divisions I feel it is out of the scope of this amateur blog.The first 3 lines from Johnson's The Old Medley.Facsimile fromIt's a nice clean MS, carefully written, with only one small error that I can detect.On the whole, it's quite an easy piece, with a few tricky bits. The harmonies are mostly quite simple, with some quick chord changes and patches of syncopation to cope with.There are eight themes, each followed by an often minor variation.
These are indicated in Roman numerals by I, I’, II, II’ and so on. The first three themes are set in in common time annd are 8 bars long; the fourth fits most comfortably into 3/4 and is 4 bars long; and the rest are in 6/8 time and 4 bars long. This ukulele version has been set at 4 bars per line, to make the structure clearer.The themes are presumably arrangements of old songs and dances, whose identities remain unknown to me.The abundance of block chords in this 4-string version give a possibly misleading impression that they would have been strummed, but checking the lute originals shows most chords include unplayed internal strings; but, there's no reason that we can't strum them (anachronistically) in the fashion of Gaspar Sanz et al. If we want to.In chords such as E and F which do not have a root note available on a lower string, I have often added B and A respectively on the 4th string, mainly where a fuller chord is indicated in the MS.To help in interpretation, I have tried to identify voices by stem direction, but this was not always possible.Available to download in the following formats:. Now, here's a nice little galliard in three parts, with some slightly unexpected harmonies.
As with all pieces set in D (or Dm), one runs out of root notes in the chords, so I have used 5ths in places.The galliard in the Brogyntyn Lute Book.It's one of a number of pieces by Johnson (c. 1545 – 1594), copied out very neatly in the Brogyntyn Lute Book. You can see facsimilies of the original in the National Library of Wales.John Johnson was a lutenist and composer and was at the court of Queen Elizabeth I. You can read his biographyAvailable for download in the following formats:. The second of two versions of Walsingham in the Mathew Holmes Lute Book Nn.6.36 20v, 21r/1 in the, and the last (for now, at least) of my ukulele arrangements, which were advertised.The first 3 lines of the clear original MS.Note that Holmes, the compiler, had bought a 5-line music manuscript book, and had to rule in an extra line.The preceding version of Walsingham in the book (uke arrangement ) is a bit of a dog’s breakfast, so I was pleasantly surprised by this piece. There is the usual problem with tunes in D or Dm on the ukulele, as you tend to run out of low notes, but I've done what I can.This piece diverges more from the original air than do most arrangements of Walsingham – even at the beginning it has some unexpected harmonies. It is both interesting and not too challenging (if you keep to 60 bpm).It is more tuneful than most, and quite contrapuntal in places.
Where I have heard hints of the campanella effect, I have scored accordingly. Even the, apparently obligatory, variation with semi-quaver divisions has a clear melody and articulation, and is not merely a stream of scale fragments. You will gather that I like it. I hope you do.Available to download in the following formats:. As explained in an, this is one of a series of adaptations for ukulele of late 16th century arrangements of As I went to Walsingham for the lute.I have had the luxury of following Poulton and Lam’s transcription (and reconstruction) of Holmes’ MS Dd.9.33 67v–68r, rather than using the MS, which is is rather confusing.Holmes’ MS Dd.9.33, p.
68r, bottom three lines. (Cambridge University Library.)You can see the state of the MS. All hail to Poulton & Lam for making their transcription.There are seven variations, of 12 bars each.The first two variations keep quite closely to the melody, but later ones include loads of divisions (mostly in the form of scale fragments) which seem very workaday to my ears, with none of the unexpected twists and catchy repeated motifs of Dowland at his best.Variation 5 is weird, with (in the transcription) four bars in 3/4 time with triplets, four bars in 9/8, and the final four in straight 3/4 with a totally different feeling and quite out of place. (I have tweaked bar 51 to tidy things a little, but it’s a bodge of a bodge job.)Poulton, in her biography of Dowland, describes this setting of Walsingham as “far less satisfactory than the one in galliard form (P31)”. You can see a transcription of P31 for ukulele. The MS is the only copy, so she says one can’t ascribe to blame to Dowland performing below par, or to Holmes using a corrupted source. Also, I believe that Holmes was quite old and becoming unwell at the time he wrote the MS.
Poulton also describes extending the song from 8 to 12 bars as destroying the “beautiful balance” of the original.It looks to me like a case of cut-and-paste, with some of the pastings in the wrong order.Even so, it sounds pretty good when Nigel North plays it on the lute.Still curious? You can download the arrangements in the following formats:. Another in the series of transcriptions of lute versions of As I went to Walsingham: see introductory post. Apologies for the strange title: the code refers to the first of two sets of variations in the 4th Matthew Holmes Lute Book (MS Nn.6.36) in Cambridge University Library.Bars 41 – 51 of this Anonymous piece in the 4th Matthew Holmes Lute Book.The full image can be seen atI find this piece difficult to get to terms with. How much is due to the anonymous composer, and how much to copying mistakes by an ageing Mathew Holmes, I am not qualified to judge.
As explained below, I have done some recasting, which may or may not be appropriate.After a fairly orthodox first variation, the work becomes quite jumpy: sequences of 1 to 3 bars concluded by a bar with a single block chord.You will detect my lack of enthusiasm, but I've spent a day on the transcription, so I thought I'd give the piece an airing, albeit as an example of an oddity (or of my ignorance).Notes on transcriptionsSince bar 21 has only 2 beats scored, I have shortened the single chord in bar 20 to one beat, and concatenated the two bars. In bar 20 perhaps Holmes’ time mark ꜏ (note 3 beats long) was a misprint for ꜓(1 beat).
This assumption makes the score look more symmetrical.Similarly, I have joined bars 29 and 30.Bar 48 in the original has 5 beats, so I have split it into 2 bars.It’s all a bit of a mess, and I am not wholly convinced by my tinkerings. Please regard this as a first attempt, which I include in the interests of completeness. I will have to think about it some more.DownloadsAvailable to download in the following formats:.
Facsimile of the piece in one of Matthew Holmes' Lute Books.This is a very clear image, and comparing it with the published transcriptions helped me to understand the calligraphy.There are 3 variations. The first keeps fairly closely to the melody, whilst the second and third deviate considerably. Indeed, since the second ends on the dominant chord (E major), numbers 2 & 3 could be regarded as parts of one variation.Even in strain 1 the melody is sometimes buried in the lower voices. Variation 3 contains a number of descending scale fragments, as was Dowland’s wont.
The “Solus cum sola” motif appears in bar 15.Available for download in the following formats. There are 3 variations, the first keeping closely to the melody. The second and third are tuneful and enjoyable to play. I hope that you agree.The following features seem quite Dowlandian to me: the scales in bars 13 – 14; the motif in bar 17, and its repeat an octave lower in bar 18; and the ascending scale in the upper voice in bars 20 – 23, with its acccompanying motifs in the lower voices. Possibly, though, these are just common features of late 1500s music.Available to download in the following formats.
Francis Cutting (c 1550 – 1595/6) was one of the many excellent lutenists and composers who flourished in the late 1500s. He was not associated with court, and may have had independent means. You can read a brief biography of him. His variations on Greensleves are incorporated in an earlier post.The first three lines of Cutting's Walsingham on a rather dog-eared page from the Matthew Holmes Lute Book. The full MS can be seen.
All respect to the transcribers.The popular air As I went to Walsingham was the subject of many 16th century lute arrangements, as described in an earlier post.There are 7 variations, most of which stick keep closely to the melody. Variation 4 is a set of divisions in traditional format that feel like a sort of exercise in left-hand fingering, the kind of music that if you do make a mistake it may well not be important so long as you are in scale and keep the rhythm going.Bars 33 – 40 (variation 5) are in syncopated triplet format: I have notated them in 9/8 time.I am perplexed by the last note in bar 50. It is shown as an ‘i’ in the lute transcription, and looking at the facsimile of the original there is a squiggle which does seem to mean ‘i’ (= fret 8 = F5 or f’’ on the ukulele).
Dowland did this too, with an unexpected note high in the 1st string in his Farwell (P3), bar 30, last note. Come to think of it, Bix Beiderbecke used to do a similar thing in the 1920s.The phrases in bar 40 are reminiscent of Dowland’s Go from my window (P64), bar 47.You can hear Cutting’s piece, complete with the funny note, very nicely played on lute.Available to download in the following formats. The melody is appended to help in interpretation of the variations. Anthony Holborne ( c 1545 – 1602) was a prolific and respected composer of, according to one of his titles: Pavans, Galliards, Almains, and other short Aeirs both grave, and light, in five parts, for Viols, Violins or other Musicall Winde Instruments. You can read his biography.Facsimile of the original, showing the compressed format used by Holmes in the days when paper was an expensive commodity.
You can see the whole page.A short piece of 12 bars. The original Walsingham air ( for more info) is of 8 bars. The first four bars of Holborne’s version follow the melody quite closely, the second four rather less so, and the final four are a variation on the second four.A number of harmonies are unexpected (to me, at least). Although the piece is set approximately in G minor, the Gm chord occurs only twice, and the piece starts in the relative major (Bb). There is a strange transition (in bars 7 and 11) from Bb via D (possibly, or B) to C.
All in all, an intriguing little piece, which is not that easy to get to grips with. As it wanders so far off-piste so soon, I wonder if it is merely a segment of a longer composition.I know it's anachronistic, but here is an approximate chord sequence:Bb / A Bb C D Eb Bb Am Bb / / F / Dm Gm / / Bb?D C G D G / Eb F / Dm Gm / / Bb?D C G D G / / Available to download as. A facsimile of the first three lines from a Matthew Holmes Lute Book published by the Cambridge University Digital Library here: Johnson (c. 1545 – 1594) was a lutenist and composer in the court of Elizabeth I.
He was the father of Robert (1583 – 1663) who followed the same trade and may have been the author of some lute pieces attributed to John Dowland.This is perhaps the simplest setting of “Walsingham” ( on the song for more info) that I have found so far: good fun to play and a good one to start with. It has six variations of 8 bars, and a seventh and final one of 12 bars. The earlier variations keep quite closely to the melody (appended), and the 5th and 6th are particularly jaunty.I couldn’t find a trancription easily, so I had to try to make one myself from the published facsimile, which you can see above. It is unfortunate that although Matthew Holmes wrote text in a version of the chancery hand, his music setting is in what looks to my inexperienced eye as the secretary hand, and written quickly. Also, mice had eaten some of the first two bars, so I had to rely on my imagination in places. One good thing is that the composer did not make too much use of the lower strings, which we lack on the ukulele. Apologies for any errors or infelicities.I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.You can download a pdf file of the transcription for ukulele.
And the TablEdit file. The melody, in Am.As I went to Walsingham was a simple 8-bar ballad referring to a popular pilgrimage site at Walsingham Abbey.
You can download a pdf of the air in Gm and Am. And the TablEdit file is.Arrangements for luteThe tune was adapted most famously by William Byrd for keyboard, but as stated above a number of other composers made arrangements, for lute, in the late 1500s. They often adhered closely to the melody at the beginning of their pieces, although notes 2 & 3 of the second and similar bars were frequently buried in the harmonies. They did not keep to the strict Aeolian mode of the melody, but sharpened the 7th of the scale in places, and ended on a chord of the tonic major – the tierce de Picardie. They would also modulate, for example into the relative major and into the tonic major too.
They might also increase the length of all variations, or of the the final variation, from 8 to 12 bars.At the end of each 4-bar line they often just wrote a single chord, which can sound a bit abrupt, and particularly on the ukulele which does sustain as long as the lute. Lute players seemed capable of extensive improvisation, and I imagine that they would play fill-ins wherever appropriate - we could try the same.I will post the transcriptions over the coming days, and more if I find them. There are five alone in the Mathew Holmes Lute Book Dd.2.11. You can see high quality facsimilies of the Lute Books at the website of the. I found more information in English Lute Manuscripts and Scribes 1530-1630: book version of a doctoral dissertation by Julia Craig-McFeely, awarded by Oxford in 1993, available online.
As usual, I am grateful to individuals and organisations who make their work so accessible.I think that you will find that the pieces are of varying quality and playability, but I will blog all the transcriptions that I make without fear or favour, but with a degree of ignorance.Click the active links below to go to the appropriate blog page. The codes for the Holmes MSS refer to the shelf numbers at Cambridge, and to the page numbers:r = recto (front),v = verso (back),/number = item no.
On page.We need these to avoid confusion, with so many pieces having similar names (or no name), and with several versions by some composers.Arrangements in Gm on the ukulele:(Matthew Holmes Lute Books Dd.2.11 98r)(Matthew Holmes Lute Books Dd.2.11 96r)Francis Cutting (Matthew Holmes Lute Books Dd.5.78.3 50v, 51r/1) Having just transcribed this piece, without checking first, I find that it is almost identical to the previous version, and there is little point in posting it. Is the Rosa of the title an actual rose, a rose seen as a symbol of romantic interest,or the name of a young lady?On a whim, I thought that I'd have a look at music written earlier in the Renaissance, and the name John Dunstable (or Dunstaple) (c 1390–1453) appeared. He composed mostly liturgical music, not really appropriate for the ukulele, so I chose this song, attributed to him.
However, Wikipedia states:'The popular melody, once thought to be by Dunstaple, is now attributed to John Bedyngham (or Bedingham)'.Bedyngham was an approximate contemporary of Dunstaple, and died c. I can find no images of either composer.O rosa bella is a plaintive lament, appropriately in a minor key, but as was usual ending on the tonic major, the Picardy third. The first 7 bars seem to be an introduction, followed by the song, which starts in common time and ends in 6/4 time. Some of the words are spread over a lot of notes (melismas), but I have made no attempt to indicate them here.This arrangement is made from a transcription for 3 voices by Elaine Fine. In the original – you can find performances in various formats on Youtube – the voices interweave, and the first voice is not always the highest. In the arrangement I have indicated the first voice by upward stems, and the others by downward stems.I have tried to imagine, possibly anachronistically, that the ukulele is a Renaissance (4-string) guitar, and tried to maintain as much of the original as possible in the idiom of the instrument. The music sounds a little strange to my modern ears, but I am not familiar with the music of the period – which, after all, was my reason for making this arrangement.You can find the transcriptions here:.
Renaissance Viol
Here is a nice jaunty little tune, and not too difficult to play if you (temporarily) ignore the ornaments. I chose it because Clive Titmuss in identified it as one of Sanz' better pieces.
The spelling with a 'c' is that on Sanz' original plate, but that with a 'z' seems to be the more modern version.There are seven sections, each divided into two sub-sections of 8 and 10 bars. The piece is mostly in 3/4 time, but each sub-section begins with a bar in 2/4 time, so it is easily spotted.The whole piece approaches the 'lute-style' or, I suppose, 'vihuela-style' of writing. Unlike other Sanz pieces, there are no obviously campanella or strummed passages, and no slurs are specified. Even the abecedario N9 chord (A maj on the uke) in bar 80 is not shown with a strum indicator.After the statement of the melody in §A, §§B, F and G are composed of (almost Renaissance?) divisions ( diferencias) in the form of scale segments.In the transcription I have probably been optimistic in specifying the lengths of some of the fingered notes: I just hold them down for as long as I can ( tenuto). This gives a hint of the campanella sound.The graces have been interpreted following James Tyler's recommendations in A guide to playing the Baroque guitar, summarised.
Lute Chords
Incidentally, the trills are generally played as inverted mordents, but if occurring at the end of a section should be prolonged: I have indicated this by an additional 'tr' after the mordent. Vibratos, indicated by “vib”, were apparently at this time used as an ornament, and not used throughout a piece as we might nowadays.You can find the transcriptions here:. Johannes Vermeer: The guitar player (1672)I couldn't find an image of Colista, or a facsimile of the original,so here's probably the most famous painting of a baroque guitarHere is another foray into the transcriptions, expertise and learning of James Tyler in his A guide to playing the Baroque guitar (see Resources page). The mariona of the title was a sort of raunchy, body-popping dance popular in the Spanish theatre; consequently, we are enjoined to play the piece with panache.The graces, dynamics and accent marks are those recommended by Tyler. In particular, the hemiola rhythms (in effect, altering the beat in short passages from 3/4 to 2/4) are shown partly by accents, and partly by the relative strengths of the down strokes (strong) and the up strokes (weaker). The stokes are usually made with the backs of the finger nails, but a circled T indicates a softer down stroke with the pad of the thumb.There are twenty 4-bar variations based on the harmonic movement I, V, vi, IV, V, I (C, G, Am, F, G, C). At first I thought that this looked like a fairly easy piece, but played at the speed recommended by Tyler I can assure you that some of the variations certainly aren't.I must admit that I do find it difficult to enjoy even the easier parts of this piece, but it does come with the recommendation of Tyler; furthermore the composer, Colista, was highly regarded by Corelli, Sanz and Purcell – so who am I to judge? It seems to me like a series of worked examples of all the things that a Baroque guitar could do: well-spaced notes, rapid short notes, strumming, altered rhythms ( hemiola), syncopation, and campanellas (which I have tried to reproduce as accurately as possible.)My problem may be that the variations are only 4 bars long, and each whizzes past before you can get a mental grip on it.
I find it helps to repeat each variation before moving on to the next. In the print copy I have made the lines 4 bars long, to make the structure more obvious.Anyway, see what you think.You can find the transcriptions here:.