Romantic Period Guitar Lesson

Chapter 1: (09:42) The Romantic Period and "The Romance" Lesson Objectives

-Learn about the key stylistic elements of the Romantic Period.
-Learn how to play "Romance."
-Use this piece as an etude for practicing rubato, vibrato, and rest strokes.

Romantic Period

A full historical article about the Romantic period is coming soon to the "Articles" section of the website. This site feature can be accessed through the "Articles" button on the left hand side of the home page.

"The Romance"

The composer and official title of this piece are unknown. Yet, this piece remains to be a standard in the classical guitar repertory. "Spanish Ballad," "Spanish Romance" both refer to the same anonymous piece.

Note: Danny teaches an excerpt from "Romance" in this lesson. The complete score of the piece is provided under the "Supplemental Content" tab if you are interested in learning it in its entirety.

Performance Example - 03:30

Watch and listen several times as Danny performs this excerpt. Pay careful attention to how he performs a vibrato with the left hand. Also, notice how this piece is played with a "rubato" rhythmic feel.

Vibrato

Vibrato is a technique unique to string instruments that adds extra life and sustain to a note. This technique is performed differently on a classical guitar from a guitar that is strung with steel or phosphor bronze strings. On a classical guitar, vibrato is achieved by wiggling the desired finger in a horizontal motion rather than a vertical motion. The elbow joint, wrist, and vibrato finger must all work together as one cohesive system. The elbow propels the forearm from side to side while the wrist and vibrato finger maintain control. Watch Danny closely in the lesson video for a demonstration of this important technique.

Note: Visit David MacKenzie's 22nd Phase 1 lesson for an explanation of how to perform vibrato on a guitar equipped with steel or phosphor bronze strings.

Rubato

The literal translation of the Italian word "rubato" is "robbed time." In essence, when this technique is applied, time is taken away from one section and added to another. In other words, if a small segment is sped up, then another section should be slowed down. This results in a pushing and pulling of the tempo throughout a piece. Keep in mind that rubato is not the same as "free time!"

Balance

As you listen to Danny's performance of the piece, pay attention to the balance between the melody line and the accompaniment. The melody line is played on the first string. Since it is the most important component of the piece, it is played louder than the accompaniment. Plucking the melody notes with rest strokes instead of free strokes will bring them out above the accompaniment. Adding vibrato to melody notes will also help accomplish this goal. You may find it helpful to think of the balance between the accompaniment and melody as the foreground and background of a painting. The accompaniment can be compared to the background, where as the melody is the foreground.

Right Hand Pattern

Remember that the most efficient way to learn a piece is to break it down into its individual components. At first, isolate the right hand and focus on the arpeggio pattern that is played throughout the piece. Perform the arpeggio pattern with open strings. Once you have mastered the right hand, add in the left hand component. Chapter 2: (06:14) Section 2 of "The Romance" Right Hand Pattern Contd.

The arpeggio pattern is played in a steady triplet rhythm. A bass note is plucked by the thumb at the beginning of each measure in 3/4 time. Use a, m, i for each triplet figure. Practice the pattern slowly in time with a metronome. Gradually increase the tempo as it becomes more comfortable.

Left Hand Pattern

Play the melody line by itself to isolate the left hand component. Make sure that all of the melody notes are connected with a smooth, legato sound. Remember to add vibrato to each melody note.

Pay careful attention to the fingerings that Danny uses for the melody. These fingerings will help your hands remain as relaxed as possible.

Combing Hands

Once you have mastered the right and left hand components separately, practice the piece as written. Remember to focus on a few measures (1 phrase) at a time. Play each phrase very slowly by itself. Then, gradually begin to string each of the phrases together. Chapter 3: (05:15) Final Section of "The Romance" Danny teaches measures 11-16 in this scene. Practice these measures in the same way that you were instructed to practice the previous measures. Isolate each hand. Then, combine them together. Play very slowly in time with a metronome and gradually increase the tempo.

The Rest of the Piece

The next section of the piece modulates to the parallel major key. Learn this section on your known by reading from the score provided in the "Supplemental Content" section.

Parallel Keys

Parallel keys are major and minor keys that share the same letter name but have different key signatures. For example, E minor and E major are parallel keys. The tonal center of both keys is the note E. However, their key signatures are different by three accidentals. The key of E major has four sharps in the key signature. On the other hand, the key of E minor has only one sharp in the key signature. Modulations from a major key to its parallel minor key an vice versa are extremely common in almost all styles of music.

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