GUITAR PLAYERS'

HANDS

Dedicated with love

Renato B. Bellucci 1923-1998

When I first got involved with the guitar I was only 7 years old. At that time "playing" and the
guitar were very much the same thing.

Though, it was the Sixties, and you just could not escape Segovia's gigantic figure and all
that it stood for in terms of the way you "were supposed" to hold the guitar, the way you "were
supposed" to pluck the strings, the way you "were supposed" to file your nails, the way you
"were supposed" to play a musical phrase... Having been a Segovia student myself, the
whole process of finding my own way in the guitar world was even rendered more difficult.

We all need models when we are giving our first steps in any walk of life. Having a guitar
teacher must be a priority .... having a good guitar teacher must be a top priority.

It has taken me years to realize that the best teachers are those who guide us through our
own natural, personal and unique way of playing.

We must understand that when we try to copy a "guitarist" model, all that we can dream of, is
to be able to play as well or nearly as well as the model. I've never met any guitarist perfect
enough who would say "The guitar must be played the way I play it".

So, why do we keep imitating? The reason, once again, is that we have not had the good
fortune of running across the sought after good teacher.

Look at these 3 right hands, and right-hand positions by 3 uniquely famous guitarists....

A. Segovia C. Parkening F. Tárrega

It doesn't take more than a quick look to see that there is very little in common among them...
still, their playing is simply beautiful. At the same time, we all have our musical taste and
preferences... I may love Segovia's playing but ... yes,... but still I wish he didn't make so
much noise with his left hand....or Parkening's but I wish he ......or you name it.

I often think that the secret to all of these masters's playing is: do not take the guitar so
"seriously"...yet, be a professional in your way of doing it. After all, it is not the Holy Bible
we are dealing with. These masters' voice is not the voice of God but their own. This is the
greatest teaching: To find our own voice with the help of a teacher.

I lived for over 2 decades in a country -Paraguay- where 90 per cent of the guitar players
are self thought folk players. I am constantly amazed at seeing how these players find their
way around the most bizarre musical phrases. I sometimes think that they represent -without
wanting to- a part of ourselves that has been partially lost or neglected.

1
This is a web site for all you guitar players and guitar lovers. I will keep the pages updated
and always under construction.

Real Audio is the streaming audio plug-in I've implemented since it has become so powerful
and reliable.

I kindly ask you to please leave your impressions in the form of e-mails or by signing the
guest book. It is the best way to leave a trace of your kind visit to these pages and it sure
makes me very happy

GUITAR TECHNIQUE
Renato Bellucci

When I think of guitar technique, I think not only of the mechanical way to achieve a given
result but to a much broader concept. Remember that our technique is constantly changing
or, to use a more modern word, upgrading. If we look at the traditional guitar methods, we will
see how each one of them approaches technique in a static, distant, non-musical, self
standing way. What is worse is that we do not even know what pieces from the guitar
repertoire these exercises apply to.

As a matter of fact, most of these guitar methods usually have a series of incredibly boring
exercises attached to them as if the only way to acquire the given skill were to "swallow" the
bitter pill. The times are constantly changing and for a modern guitarist to keep up to date with
his every day life -which will most surely be shared by a "regular" job- it would be ridiculous to
expect that the few hours we can dedicate to playing were dedicated to these ugly-sounding-
anti-musical exercises.

If we think of music, or the piece we'd love to play, then we are thinking more like the nineties.
Since there is no method in the world which will cover all the possible technical difficulties,
--let alone that we do not want to cover all the technical difficulties but the ones directly
involved with the piece we are learning-- let us focus on the sought after goal: The one piece
we'd love to play... NOW- and as we are working on the piece, we'll be building our own
musicianship and technique. Abel Carlevaro's "Guitar Master class" editions, are based on
this concept. As you find a technical challenge in a piece you want to learn, create your own
exercise to overcome it. The following video shows this concept based on a technical difficulty
in Mangore's La Catedral.

Remember that there is no such thing as a beginner, advanced or intermediate repertoire but
only a "I like it...I don't like it repertoire. TRUTH

I will use Real Audio to show you what I mean. And I will show you how by learning a piece
online and showing you the process.(The Masterclass section of mangore takes you through
the learning process)

This Video is available in the members area only

click on the following icon to download to hard drive 1.7MB

2
I am preparing for a guitar competition in Spain --Spring 1997--, and I've just received the
music. What I'll do is go through the learning process with you. The obligatory piece for the
first round is Joaquin Turina's "Homenaje a Tarrega" -Homage to Tarrega- (Typical !!,
Competitions are "never played pieces" territory)

I turn the cover and I see the first of two pieces: Garrotin, Allegretto. Hum..., Let's see if I have
the piece recorded....I do ! I have it recorded by Julian Bream and John Williams (I have
recorded it recently you can hear it by clicking HERE). I find it very helpful to hear a piece
before I learn it, especially if I never heard it before. Then I listen to it with the music in front
of me to see how much the performer has "interpreted" the piece.

I definitely like Breams' version more. It is lively and he does a great job. Quite a challenge....
I am lucky this time because competition music is often, not to say always, ugly. These
particular obligatory pieces are at least decent...

The most important thing for a musician must be the quality of his sound. In developing our
technique we must never lose sight of this foremost element of performance. I can affirm that
if we concentrate on sound, we will develop a technique which will be in accordance with this
key element. Keep in mind that the classical guitar uniqueness lays in the fact that sound
quality and production is physically related to our fingers and fingernails. We deal with no
keys, bows or mechanisms but with our very own body for the creation of our sound.
Marvelous !

This also means that our technique will naturally be re-created with every new piece we learn.
There is no such thing as The Segovia Technique, The Carlevaro Technique , Tarrega or
Llobet Technique which will be good enough for us. (Follow this link to learn about technical
"secrets") We must come to say that we use "our technique". It is always wise to see what the
great maestros have to say about any particular aspect of sound production, though, we must
have the personality and patience to be able to read between the lines and re-examine each
one of these aspects to see which one and how they best apply to us. At the same time
believe that you might create something new altogether.

I remember a master class with Elliot Fisk where he "proudly" showed his left-hand little
finger... it is as long as his "a" (ring) finger!!! It doesn't take a genius to realize that certain
musical passages which are naturally fingered by Fisk to work with his hands, simply will not
work for us. Take my word for it. We will have to think musically and ask ourselves - What do I
have to do with my hands to achieve this particular result ?-

3
 Feel the string
to download video click here

I assume that by now we all have that dreamed piece in front of us in the form of a music
sheet. It can be the "Homage to Tarrega" or any piece for that matter... The next thing we
must have next to us is a pencil and an eraser because these will prove to be our best
weapons. Let us take a look at the first, or last or any bar of the piece...- I sometimes start
with the one bar or bars of the piece that I like the most -. At this stage of the learning
process it is still secondary to play the piece in an orderly manner.
Look at the first notes or group of notes in the first bar. Take into consideration the right and
left hand fingerings but do not assume for an instance that that will necessarily be your
fingering.

The first notes in Turina's Homage, is an A chord to be strummed followed by 6 sixteenth

notes which lead to the A chord beginning the second bar. Looking at this particular part of the
piece we will have to decide the following:

1-The best left hand fingering for us:

the possibilities that immediately come to my mind are :

Out of these four options, pick the one that suites you better. Which one will it be? You are the
only one who can answer this question. See it this way, it is always best to have more than

4
one fingering possibility. This peculiar flexibility puts our instrument in a category of its own.
Mastering this peculiar characteristic will mark the difference between the good and mediocre
player. Then again, you might want to consider this fingering choice which would make the
playing smoother without affecting the musical idea .... --This is the option I used in my recent
recording, hear it clicking HERE--

The right hand will have to focus on the sound quality. Any combination of right hand fingers
can be applied here (i.e. p m i m i p p) as long as the sound is beautiful and as long as we are
consistent. One key hint is to practice both hands movements slowly and watching the left
hand while moving it in slow motion. Always play at a speed where mistakes are impossible
and increase gradually. Remember that if you practice with mistakes you will end up playing
"perfect mistakes" (A. Carlevaro).

When working on a new piece, I have to keep in mind what my final goal is: To play the piece
as perfectly as I can. If my studying and practicing are not perfect, there is no way that the
final result will be perfect. In the studying process I must not allow for any mistake to happen.
Mistakes are usually the result of one or more of the following:

-Letting our hands go faster than we can handle.

-Being tired.
-Being distracted.
-Applying too much pressure on the left hand thumb
-Using a less than perfect fingering.
-Not breathing properly
-Not having analyzed the music thoroughly before trying to play it.
-Practicing with mistakes.

I said earlier that a pencil and an eraser will be our great allies. We must take the time to write
down every single clue which might help us play better such as, "breath here ", "stretch ",
"Move the arm ", "relax ", "plant finger " , and any other playing mark that will help us to put
order to our thoughts. As we are practicing, our brain will be recording all of these playing
marks along with the notes and we will feel as though our playing is a secure and solid one.

A metronome and a tape recorder are also great practice friends. Especially the metronome
since it will be marking the tempo while we are practicing and our brain works more efficiently
in the presence of a marked rhythm.

No matter what your playing level is, these concepts must always be present in your
practicing. Remember this: If you admire someone else's playing, you are admiring his
practicing. This is the key, the secret. It is not a matter of sitting down with the guitar for hours
and hours fooling ourselves. Study by bits if that is all the time you can concentrate for. Then
get up, do something else. Do not expect to be able to stay concentrated and in control for a
long time on your first study session. The important thing here is that your time with the guitar
deserves the best of you even if only for a few minutes a day and by bits. Write down your
thoughts and ideas as they come to your mind and read them before getting down to play
again.

5
Know your playing !! Center your playing around your strong points and avoid at all costs your
weak points especially during concerts. i.e. If you are not Speedy Gonzalez --yet--, avoid
playing pieces with incredibly fast scales until they stop seeming incredibly fast. What somer
players make us think is fast is simply less slow to them.

One last thing...if you realize that a piece you are playing needs to be restudied and some
drastic changes have to be made to any aspect of your technique, go ahead and do it.
Believe me, it will only be a matter of days before you can play better than ever. You will be
making your artistry every time you face a new musical bar... this is the time to be brave and
objective.

I recommend you see John Williams' video "The Seville Concert"... in a part of the
documentary you see the maestro re-studying a part of one of the pieces he had recorded
many times in the past...he was not happy with the previous results and started all over again.
It sure was an inspiration to me but definitely proves one key issue... we must be willing to
start over and over every time we embrace our guitar.

FINGERNAILS
Fingernails have been and will always be a major concern for every serious guitar
player. There are those who prefer the no-nails approach to guitar playing, still, they will find
interesting material to read further down.
The often misused term nail approach generally refers to a right hand finger stroke that is
actually a mixture of fingertip and fingernail. Using only nails tends to produce a thin, plastic
sound, using only flesh produces an opaque sound, one that lacks in brilliance. The thickness
of every individual's nails as well as the width and curvature of nails are all factors that have a
direct influence on the sound quality produced by the guitarist. It takes a few years to become
experts with one's own nails. The guitarist must eventually master his nail care or he will
simply never be a master. This does not mean that one has to walk around polishing his nails
(this is a typical guitar competition stupid attitude). What this means is that the guitarist must
develop a conscience where he is very aware of how closely related nails and sound are.
Nails are to the guitarist what vocal chords are to the singer. That is how important they are.

Just as it is true that some people are blessed with perfect fingers, hands, inner ear, etc., it is
also true that some people are blessed with perfect nails. It is not easy to describe the perfect
nail because the way to see them is that they are more or less perfect according to the
playing position that we use. We'd be more or less lunatics if we tried to play at a
perpendicular angle with the strings if our nails are too thin or hooked downwards (Williams,
Parkening approach). Usually, playing with the right hand fingers perpendicular to the strings,
means that we are twisting the right hand wrist beyond health line

Imagine you are a nervous signal traveling from the base of the brain to the tip of your finger.
Don't you think that there are quite a few major curves to deal with in the above position?
Nevertheless, if you decide that this is the way you want to play you better make sure that
your nails are as straight as rulers.

These are the nails I recommend. Rounded or sliced to an angle with the shorter part towards
the heart. The second one is the most professional way to go about the nails. This filing
allows for great contact with the flesh prior to the nail attack plus, it is almost impossible to get
hooked with the strings and the fingers will be helped in the stroke starting from the main
knuckle of the hand.

6
 This is a close-up picture of typical right hand nails.
Players often use different shapes according to their
level of playing or the repertoire they are playing. The
way I use my nails is: very well polished -if you
practice more than 3 hours a day (you better not
practice more than that or the next web pages you
will be visiting are a shrink's pages), you should
polish them again, using an ultra fine nail polisher
picture below (a piece of cardboard can do the job)--,
longer-to-shorter (a, m, i) and slightly shorter on the
playing side and, possibly, clean. One week before
concerts I file my nails a little shorter than usual and
let them grow keeping them polished all the way
through the concert. Some pieces may require the
use of the right hand little finger as well as the use of
the left hand thumb (Do not worry, you will know
when to use the left hand thumb to stop notes) so
these nails and fingers should be cared and trained
also. (Rasgueados may require the use of ch -little
finger- although I use this fingernail mostly to keep a
consistent look on my right hand...it is already difficult
to explain long nails on a guy, let alone 4 fingernails
and not all 5 of them ...).
With regard to the thumb-nail, keep it fairly long and
somewhat square towards the edges. It is the nail that
gets most wearing during playing due to the roughness
of the bass strings. The thumb works in the opposite
direction than the other fingers. Some guitarists do not
use a thumb- nail and others, like me, use it changing
the nail's plucking angle to achieve a more round
(bassy) sound or a thinner bass sound. Other times the
flesh only is used to achieve a soft-round bass sound.
Abel Carlevaro and many of his students have also
developed a "fourth-bass-sound" achieved by slicing
through the bass-strings. It is a matter of good taste to
chose the right plucking mechanism at the right time.

Every guitarist favorite nail file

7
 This side literally polishes the nail until it shines.

renato@mangore.com

The THING you see down here, is neither a joke nor trademark. I clarify this because some
visitors have asked me if I "was joking", and I asked back , "you mean about the thing or the
trademark?"....

Sitting: Electric & Acoustic Guitar

The casual position for practicing electric. Yes, The classical position for electric. Try it, you
elevate your right foot a bit with a footstool, or might like it!
some books.

8
 The classical position is more solid. I prefer it for
The casual position for acoustic. My right hand is any serious playing.
positioned for pick playing, so my wrist and
forearm are flat to the face of the guitar.

The steel string acoustic, classical position with

the right hand in position for fingerstyle. The The classical guitar in the classical position (what

9
wrist is now elevated about an inch and a half off else!).
the face of the guitar.

Your Questions Answered! Your Questions Answered!

"Left Hand Form & Development "Practice Theory & Method"

more info... more info...

list of questions answered! list of questions answered!
how to get it!
Get It Now!

10