Classical Guitar 101

The course begins by providing an important perspective on the history of classical guitar, including its artists and the regions in which the music developed. You will also learn about and gain an appreciation of the role that classical guitar plays in the development of rock, folk, acoustic, and Latin American musical styles.

You'll move on to develop a foundation for the techniques of executing arpeggios and scales for the picking hand, and applying these techniques to music from the past four centuries. Once these skills are developed, the course introduces more advanced techniques, including harmonics, tremolo, and rasgueado, using an ever-expanding repertoire.

The course will explore Brazilian rhythm guitar styles, flamenco, tango, and songs from folk, classic, and contemporary rock styles. Each week's assignment will include a solo performance piece and a duet to be performed to a pre-recorded backing track. Students can work at a pace that is challenging but not overwhelming, allowing for more advanced players to perform more challenging versions of the weekly assignments for extra credit.

The course material will be presented with extensive tab/notation, audio, and video, with music broken down into simple concepts that allow you to more easily master them. By the end of the course, you will have a foundational, working repertoire for the classical guitar that includes etudes, methods, and solo works from composers Mauro Giuliani, Matteo Carcassi, Fernando Sor, Francisco Tarrega, Leo Brouwer, and many more.

By the end of the course, you will be able to:

• Fingerpick complex arpeggio patterns for the right-hand
• Play exercises, scales, and melodies using multiple right-hand finger combinations
• Perform a variety of solo works from the classical repertoire
• Develop an extensive repertoire of techniques, including tremolo, rasguedo, harmonics, slurs, and percussion effects