Mauro Giuliani Etude 5 op.48 played by Aaron Cardenas
Intro
Mauro Giuliani was a leading guitar virtuoso in the 19th century. With a sizable contribution to the classical guitar literature, guitarists at every level can partake in the great depth of knowledge that he has left behind in his works. His “120 Right hand Studies” has made it’s way into the guitar culture as a “must-do” piece of literature that many will attest to be some of the most, if not the most, important compilation of right hand studies for the classical guitar. Aside from this flagship of a contribution to the guitar technique mythos, he has also written many studies and etudes that are geared toward solving and exploiting different technical problems and idioms that guitarists will come across at some point.
These etudes are especially effective if one is considering the performance of any of his larger form works, as well has any of the pieces written by his contemporaries. Etude no.5 op.48 is a compact piece of music that offers students numerous benefits in both the left and right hand. As you go through this piece of music you’ll find that one must overcome problems by looking inward at ones own technical strengths and weaknesses, as well as find solutions with the end goal of crafting a performance worthy interpretation that will leave audiences satisfied.
Arpeggios and the Right Hand
Etude no.5 op.48 features a repeated figure that consists of all of the right hand fingers (expect pinky). This “P,I,M,AM,I” pattern though repetitive, one must pay special attention to the treatment of the right hand to execute a consistent, articulate, and clear sounding arpeggio. Please consider the following to achieve a fluid and effortless right hand:
1) Simultaneous planting vs no planting
2) Balance, sound production and voice leading
3) Relaxation and slow practice: mindfulness of the body
Simultaneous planting vs no planting
The “P,I,M,AM,I” right hand pattern can be approached in many ways depending on the problem that we are trying to overcome. When trying to gain accuracy and control over this pattern, I suggest that one implement simultaneous planting. Simultaneous planting is the act of playing a finger within a specific arpeggio pattern, whilst simultaneously touching down or “planting” the next finger onto its assigned string in quick succession. The speed at which you plant the next finger is the key to gaining more reflexive control over the arpeggio pattern in question. When doing this sort of practice, one must think of the required choreography that must take place in order to make the planting of the next finger truly simultaneous with the preceding finger. If you’re not used to simultaneous planting of the fingers you can increase focus and mental acuity by isolating the right hand. Once you gain a certain amount of control from practicing in this fashion, you can then try it without planting in order to gain the required velocity and speed the piece may ask for.
Balance, sound production and voice leading
Etude no.5 op.48 is constructed and composed in such a way that requires the player to exhibit control over the sound and balance within the right hand arpeggio pattern. In the first half of the piece, the right hand is tasked with arpeggiating chords that plane up the neck. These chords are mainly located on the inner strings (4th, 3rd, and 2nd) whilst leaving the open E (1st) left to ring. This can be problematic and must be taken into consideration because open strings, when left uncared for, can result in an imbalanced arpeggio. Specifically, in this etude the open E string can be louder than the rest of the arpeggio if left unattended. So it’s best to use your ear to try and make a physical adjustment in order to balance the voicing of each chord. This is especially the case for measures 3-10.
Voice leading is a compositional device in which musical lines move and resolve, resulting in a shape that either moves up or down. In the case of this study, it is important to locate each of these moving lines in order to provide the listener with a focal point. From there we can make musical decisions as to how we will treat the movement of these lines by shaping each line with dynamics. In measures 11-16 the melodic movement and focal point of the piece is now located on the 1st string, which is assigned to the “a” finger in this particular arpeggio.
With the “a” finger being of the most importance now, we must practice in such a way that allows for more emphasis on the first string. This is particularly difficult if we try to play the arpeggio too fast and too soon. So it’s best to practice slow and use your ear in order to listen to the melodic movement of the first string in order to provide the listener with musical clarity. From measure 17 to the end, Giuliani now shifts the melodic movement into the thumb. The same applies to this selection of music and we must now practice shifting our right hand weight to the thumb in order to bring out this line.
Relaxation and slow practice: mindfulness of the body
When attempting to play this arpeggio pattern, it is easy to apply more and more tension overtime because of its repetitive nature. And if we try to play too fast too soon, we will eventually have some unwanted and unneeded tension that is not necessary to play fast. It’s important to not only play slow, but take into account and be mindful of the physical mechanisms at play. The hand is connected to a kinetic chain that goes up the wrist, to the forearm, to the upper arm, to the shoulder, all the way up to the neck. It’s important that we are aware of any tension that may be located at any point within this chain. Speed is a result of relaxation and our ability to regularly recreate this feeling of relaxation. So before we try anything at speed, I encourage any player to first analyze the mechanisms at play, find the root of any tension, and work on disengagement and control over that part of the kinetic chain. In order to do so we must play slow and tap into a highly analytical and sensitive state of mind. From there we can achieve what Marco Tamayo describes as “ relaxation and regularity”. How relaxed can we be, and how regularly can we tap onto that relaxation?
We must also practice slow to analyze hand positioning to accommodate varying string heights. As we traverse through this piece, and this is especially the case in mm 7-10, the string height can feel jarring and uneven compared to the open chords at the beginning of the piece. We must take into careful consideration a hand position for that can accommodate for this varying of string heights that will allow us to have a consistent contact point for each finger.
Left Hand
Though this piece has a dominant right hand pattern, the left hand also has many problems to consider. When shifting from one position to another, we must avoid the accenting of the note directly before or after the shift. This is a tendency and habit that many players must be aware of in order to create smoother sounding transitions. Also, the left hand can transition each finger as needed, instead of shifting each shape as a whole. The principles of relaxation also applies to the left hand and we must take into account the mechanisms needed to shift and hold each specific chord.
The piece also requires the player to use a hand position that will allow string clearance for the open strings whilst holding each chord. To do so one must adapt a hand and wrist position that allows us to play on our fingertips whilst limiting wrist protrusion. Wrist protrusion can cause excess tension and must be avoided to achieve complete relaxation and control.
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