playing with -->DYNAMICS<--

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Doitsujin

Posts: 5078
Joined: Apr. 10 2005

playing with -->DYNAMICS<--

Hi,

Im living in a shareapartment with another person. He plays flamenco-guitar too. His room is next to mine and I hear his playing every day. And I want to help him playing better but dont know any exercise for his problem..

He allways plays toque libre. And with these palos, playing with dynamics is the most important. And he has no dynamics. His changes between arpegio and picado is allways very rough and not flewing. Just an example. He plays like a person who uses an axe to cut a big tree. But he should use a warm knife to cut a butter. Well all his playing is like that. Now over a year he didnt became just a little better.

I told him not to play all palos at the same time. He should do some serious exercises and not change every minute the falseta. Well..thats another shoe.

does anybody know some exercises or strategies to train to get better dynamics in flewing playing and loudness?

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date May 12 2007 15:37:01

guitarbuddha

Posts: 2970
Joined: Jan. 4 2007

RE: playing with -->DYNAMICS<-- (in reply to Doitsujin)

Hi there Doit. For dynamics it is simple firstly. Forget about paying with 'correct' flamenco techmique because if you focus on playing a note with the correct technique ( and not on say shaping a line ) then all picado will have the same volume and all arps will too and this means that the melody and harmony simply cannot speak.

This is really common in amatuer and anglo saxon semi professionals.

To solve this take a short fragment of melody and identify exactly where the first and last notes are. Play it one time loud and crescendoing and then stop dead on the last note. Next take some time ( preferably musically coherent time such as a bar or compass or at least a number of actual beat so that you are still feeling time when not playing ) then repeat the phrase quietly and decrescendoing until you hit the last note at a 'stage whisper' (ie quietly but clear and still projecting).

Then you take a gap and repeat from the start.

Once you are placing the dynamics of the first and last notes of each phrase exactly as you want them you can remove the gap and see if you can still place the first and last note really consistantly with the volume that you want.

Do this for an hour or two and then your ear will demand that you keep doing it when you are practicing all of your material.

I hope that helps.

D.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date May 12 2007 16:24:07

Doitsujin

Posts: 5078
Joined: Apr. 10 2005

RE: playing with -->DYNAMICS<-- (in reply to Doitsujin)

Hi Guitarbuddha!

Thank you for your tips! It sounds very usefull.

When I think about his playing and plying in geneal, I think the biggest problem is that many players concentrate more on their technic while playing, than on the sound which they produce. The most important thing is in the end to get good sound with good dynamics I think. Well,.. when I look at my apartmentsharemate during restaurantgigs, he checks 90% of the playig-time the people who are waching him. Maybe he thinks in this moment who is most impressed. I think thats not good for his playing. Well. The second problem are the dynamics. I think if he would have a different viewpoint about his playing and his presentation on stage he could play more than 50% better coz hes really good...