Fernando Sor Op9 Intro
 Hello there. Today I bring you this masterpiece of Fernando Sor, it's the intro from his Op9. Variations over a theme from The Magic Flute by Mozart.
There are a lot of recordings and editions that doesnīt play this introduction but I thinks it is also part of the piece and I find it beautiful.
Hope you like it!
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Here I like to think that the big chords (those of 6 or 5 strings) are the whole orchestra playing, and there is a softer answer with the top mellody done by te woods.
For playing the 6 strings with my thumb I use a fixation. A fixation is a mechanism that alows me to use stonger and bigger muscles that are far away from the guitar by keeping quiet and steady the smaller muscles that are near the guitar, in this case I leave steady my thumb. It must be a relaxed motion so I use the word steady and not the word stiff.
When I'm arriving with my thumb to the first string I make a little twist with my wrist so the resulting angle makes the first string to sing good.
The way you play the first string with your thumb must sound the same way it sounds your middle finger, so first you must work with achieving a similiar sound from middle and thumb, usually you'll find that your thumb must have an unusual angle to play that string, so memorize this angle. Now your wrist should allow you to go smoothly from your thumb fixated position to this new angled possition.
One more thing about middle and thumb action here, the rythm is kinda fast so you must take advantage of the middle motion to get ready your thumb to play from 6th string downwards.
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I place the whole hand on IV position even Iīm using only my 3rd and 4th finger, this gives me more strnght and stabillity.
Be sure to play the grace notes before the beat.
I use 1st and 2nd fingers extension to play G and B on III position, this way I avoid to jump with may left hand and achieve a very legato articulation from B to G on the first string.
Aparently Fernando Sor and a lot of his contemporaries liked a lot haw brillant their guitar sounded on the first string so you will see a lot of first and second string fingerings for melodies, also keep in mind that they used diferent and smaller guitar than those that are used today.
At the end use the 3rd or 4th finger to mute the strings, G and E makes rings the open strings, that is nice to this phrase but we need silence to switch to the next phrase.
Take advantage of this silence to prepare the left hand position for the next phrase. |
There is a a extension in your right hand to play mellody and comping on 1rst 2nd and 4th strings, watch out for hurting your self.
Be sure to not repead right hand fingers on the fast rush on the first string, I use m,a as indicated on the tab below. (look for fingerings at the standard notation stave.)
The dinamics here are tricky we have three planes, 1)melody on first sring the loudest, 2)bass on 6th and 5ft string a little softer, a full body sound here is needed, be sure to use some fleshy part of your thumb here. 3)the middle strings in between. This are the softer one, specially becouse they are played mor often, but they hold the key to dinamics and beat speed.
The phrase starts on Em (I) and finish on Am (IV) the continous rythm of the comping and the gracious rythm of the melody needs to catch attention of the listener, donīt let the expectation go down until that Am, so we start very slow and soft, like coming fron the silence from the end of the 2nd phrase, and start growing little faster and louder until the Am. |
We came from that Am that was a peak tension in this piece, now we must go from Am (IV) to B (V).
Itīs very important to get the high line on 1st tring as legatto as posible. This line is: C, B, A, G, againg G, F, F, E, D# on second.
But I found more important to keep a legatto motion on the middle cromatic line, so to achieve a legatto sound I by steal very little from the other two lines: check out the standart notation to see indicatations of where and how we switch to one position to the other.
Thereīs this new swicht I discovered, I didnīt played in thus video and it's about how we make it to the Em on measure 14, I use a regular and obvious fingering: 1, 2 on second and then 2 on first and 4th on second, the standart notation version indicates 1 (must use a little barre) and contraction with 4 instead of 1, 2 on second from the video, so we have the second finger free to go to first string and the 4 on D# then extends to E. I donīt know which one is better so I recorded this regular version.
On right hand I tried to don't repeat fingers on the cromatic line but I didnīt make any special indication on the standart notation. The only tricky part is a glissando with your middle finger from the G (is indicated with a "m" over the G) at the en of measure 14 to the C in second string on measure 15, the same fingering aplies to those fast F# in the middle of measure 15.
Dinamics: I let the cromatic line guide me in agogia and volume, the long line tends to extinguish kinda quickly and also we are stealing some time from this line to make a smoother middle line anyway... Some people like to make a downwards dinamics when they found a scale going down like the line on first string but is not a rule or something. Also due the nature of plucked instruments this double dinamic aproach is kinda difficult and currently and regreatable impossible for my current technical habilities, but masters of polyphonic music makes that and lot of more!!! |
Video chunks 5 and 6 are part of one musical phrase, but I break it for teaching purposes.
Again we have two planes, 1) those open strings and natural harmonics , play them very lighly couse those proyect a lot, instead try to put more intensity on the melody (plane 2) that also makes the harmonic changes, there is like a pedal on B on the whole phrase so you sholdn't emphasize those B because they are all over all the time.
Watch out the rythm of the thirds especially the way you play the 16hs rythms, the rythm must have as much grace (or "swing") as possible.
No tricks for none hand here sorry... |
I played the cromatic melody with rest stroke on 3rd and 5ft string.
To achieve the cromatic glissando ascending slur with the same finger: (A# to B) with 1st finger alone on 5th string , I slide it them making preasure against the neck and using as pointest angle as possible.
To play the Em B thing on 2nd 3rd and 4th strings:.... I don't use my thumb, look for right hand fingerings at the standart notation stave, specialy for the combination m, a to play the 16s!!! During this fragment you must keep the bass (B) ringing so I used an extension with 1 and 2 to play B on 5th and 3rd string. Remember the B pedal like going....
For the last B chords, I use my free left hand 4th finger to mute the strings.
Hope you liked it, see you!! |
Lesson Questions, Feedback & Comments |
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Kristofer Dahl |
22nd April 2008 |
GMC Founder & Rocker
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This is a beautiful piece Gera - thanks!  |
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Nick Kellie |
22nd April 2008 |
Instructor
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fantastic!
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Hisham Al-Sanea |
22nd April 2008 |
Instructor
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nice piece Gerardo .great lesson
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Marcus Lavendell |
22nd April 2008 |
Instructor
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Beautiful!
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Joe Kataldo |
22nd April 2008 |
Instructor
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Excellent Playing |
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Siggum |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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Great playing Gerardo, but i can only hear audio in my left ear?
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Mike Ridenour |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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In 19th century classical guitar, especially around the time of Sor and Giuliani, many players inserted introductions before the "real" piece actually began. The majority of the time, these introductions had nothing to do musically with the main piece of music. Many players were playing in parlors at the time and the introduction was a sign for the audience to get settled before the "real" piece of music began.
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Mike Ridenour |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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Oh, one other thing about this introduction... Notice the Beethoven 5th beginning. Sor wrote this around 1827 and so people would have known this theme and would have taken notice. That's what these introductions were used for, get people's attention. It has nothing to do with the themes from the Magic Flute.
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Mike Ridenour |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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Disregard the last post. I was thinking of Chopin not Beethoven. His Funeral March was not even written until 1837-1839. Sorry.
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Bogdan Radovic |
22nd April 2008 |
Bass Instructor
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Beautiful piece and a great lesson Gerardo!  |
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kyldeee |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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Beautiful, thanks |
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kaznie_NL |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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Beatiful piece of music Gerardo, nice lesson!! |
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Sergio Dorado |
22nd April 2008 |
Flamenco Instructor
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Very expressive playing!Beautiful
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botoxfox |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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I can't hear a thing...  |
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Danilo Capezzuto |
22nd April 2008 |
Instructor
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Nice lesson Gerardo!
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Alex87 |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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Very beautiful Gerardo ! |
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Ivan Milenkovic |
22nd April 2008 |
Instructor
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Beautiful tune man!  PS You have sound only on left channel |
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zoom |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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I like! Heaps of feeling. Good job!
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Dejan Farkas |
22nd April 2008 |
Instructor
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Beautiful piece and fine performance |
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Gerardo Siere |
22nd April 2008 |
Instructor
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Thanks everyone, I forgot to get the main vidio to mono, Iīll talk to Kris if I can fix it, sorry for the trouble.
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at lights end |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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beautiful piece.
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Unleash-The-Shred |
22nd April 2008 |
Member
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Great lesson.
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Gabriel Leopardi |
22nd April 2008 |
GMC Coordinator & Instructor
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Very nice piece Gerardo!!
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Pablo Vazquez |
22nd April 2008 |
Instructor
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Beautifull!!!
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Carlos Carrillo |
23rd April 2008 |
Instructor
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beautiful piece. is very sweet!! thanks!!!  |
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Nemanja Filipovic |
23rd April 2008 |
Singing Instructor
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beautiful lesson....your guitar sounds great...
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Juan M. Valero |
23rd April 2008 |
Instructor
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great masterpiece !!! love it |
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Alejandro Piņero |
23rd April 2008 |
Instructor
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Nice Piece and good lesson
Tancks Gerardo!
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Trond Vold |
23rd April 2008 |
Instructor
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Beautiful and well played |
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Vinod Saranga |
24th April 2008 |
Acoustic Instructor
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Welldone Gera.Nicely played.
I am looking forward next variations of the theme |
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Jerry Arcidiacono |
24th April 2008 |
Instructor
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Beautiful piece Gerardo!
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Marcus Siepen |
25th April 2008 |
Instructor (Blind Guardian)
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Beautiful, awesome lesson
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