Day 3.

60/100

The pizzicato variation that comes after this one gave me a lot of trouble today. Gotta fix that.

I worked on this Llobet variation a lot with the metronome today. I have an issue with clicking on this variation. Playing with p and i rapidly and consecutively on the 2nd string seems to bring about clicking. I have noticed that if I play with a lighter feel on the trebles this problem is lessened.

The boxes and plastic in the background are there because my home is still being repaired after it was damaged by Hurricane Michael, nearly a year ago on October 10. Despite living in a torn up world, I still have to practice, and I believe the challenge of making a video most days of the week will help me keep to focus on my practice.

This dead skin was catching on my slurs when I was playing today. I need to watch out so I can notice this kind of problem earlier and do something about it. Never really had it catch like that before.

59

Today’s uploading is of two recordings I made of the second variation from Carnaval. I noticed my slurs could have more of a triplet feel, so I tried to add that to my performance. I need to clean the ending up.

20

Running through a couple of Nin-Culmell’s variations on a theme by Milan before I play in repertoire class.

40

Another way of playing this variation with mainly slurs. Less right hand involvement. It makes the variation a lot more slurry, but it is smoother than some other solutions I’ve tried. Still needs much improvement, but it’s getting better at least.

Day 6

My schedule has been busy and I’m not able to post as often as I did when I once had more time (before I had to move out of my house due to damages caused by Hurricane Michael). I am still amazed that I’m already at day 6 of what is my goal (100). I hope to keep a moment of posting a video at least four to six days a week. If I can do seven, even better!

Tremolo angle.

Recently at school, I had a discussion about the effect of playing straight on the strings vs playing with a more angled attack. In the first demonstration I am playing with a straight attack. This tends to bring a brighter sound. In the second example I am demonstrating a more angled attack. This sound tends to be a bit less metallic and is preferred for the right hand in general (not just tremolo). As discussed in a previous video, I believe my right hand could be less harsh and quieter in general.

Thumb and tremolo.

At the end of the video I only pluck with the thumb. This is something that will help shape the tremolo. I keep the left hand the same, but only sound the notes given to the thumb.

46

Recording two variations today. It is challenging enough to make a recording of one variation that qualifies as blog-worthy. Even then, you take what you can get sometimes when you’re blogging about everyday practice, on a daily basis.

It is more intimidating to record anything than it is to just play it by yourself. I’m just practicing going from one variation to the next here, with the added stressor of having the camera rolling. I can tell the nerves are there, but the transition wasn’t a as bad as it could be.

Just wanted to document the cracks in these nails. I just put them on yesterday, and they’re already cracking. They will eventually cause a bad tone.

There are many factors that could cause the cracking. I do a lot of work with my hands even when not playing the guitar. I also probably wash them too much. However, I still believe these nails crack really really fast.

55/100

Trying to get this movement up to speed.