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Posts: 503
Joined: Jun. 14 2014
From: Encinitas, CA USA
RE: Scale Length and small hands (in reply to RobJe)
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ORIGINAL: RobJe
quote:
are you serious that your teacher wants you to play the piece without mistakes and not stopping before moving on to a new piece?
Yes, I wondered about this.
My teacher (many years ago) was more concerned with another issue – compass. His view was that since I hadn’t grown up in a flamenco culture, I had the severe disadvantage of not having this built into to my being. So the notes were subservient to the compass – the sin was not playing wrong notes but going out of compass. Sometimes in my lesson I just had to play por Solea for 15 minutes.
Rob
I had a lesson yesterday. My teacher told me I wasn't playing the Farruca close enough to the metronome not to mention a lot of mistakes, of course he is right. He wants me to keep playing it as a daily exercise and that it is the only way I am going to improve. I have confidence in him and believe it is the right thing to do. I think in another month I should be a able to play it close to perfect at a blistering 85 bpm, then I can work on the speed. I really have only been using the metronome and recording myself seriously for the last month and its really helping. He did give me a new piece to work, a Garrotin which is simplified version of Sabicas. It wouldn't have been my choice, but he is the teacher and i need to do what he says. He also gives me a lot of exercises from pumping nylon, and I subscribed to the Javier Conde online course and he is working with me on that too so lots to do.
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Ah well, there was a fantastic passion there, in my case anyway. I discovered flamenco very early on. It grips you in a way that you can't get away - Paco Pena
RE: Scale Length and small hands (in reply to payaso)
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How would it be if you only let in people who had made an appointment or had been introduced by a sponsor? I’ve seen that work well in the violin world.
uhhuhh. I live in Spain.. Best solution is not to let them in. They never buy anything anyways. Actually, some years ago, a man in the 60th showed up. Expensive Mercedes 4 wheel drive. Expensive clothes and lots of mens perfume. He saw my workshop and praised my work with flowers in his mouth. He said he would like me to build him a guitar with the most exquisite woods etc but the price would have to be 1500,-€ (half price) I said it was interesting and told him I would like to show him something outside, so we went out and when outside, I asked him if he had forgotten something which he hadn´t, so I went in and locked the door.
RE: Scale Length and small hands (in reply to Anders Eliasson)
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I said it was interesting and told him I would like to show him something outside, so we went out and when outside, I asked him if he had forgotten something which he hadn´t, so I went in and locked the door.
RE: Scale Length and small hands (in reply to Cervantes)
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I said it was interesting and told him I would like to show him something outside, so we went out and when outside, I asked him if he had forgotten something which he hadn´t, so I went in and locked the door.
Gangster Anders! lololol You likely wouldn't have even gotten the $1,500. Professional hustlers don't look like your average street thug.
Posts: 3470
Joined: Jul. 12 2009
From: Washington, DC
RE: Scale Length and small hands (in reply to Leñador)
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Gangster Anders! lololol You likely wouldn't have even gotten the $1,500. Professional hustlers don't look like your average street thug.
Most of them look like Las Vegas lounge lizards, and they use heavy men's cologne.
Bill
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And the end of the fight is a tombstone white, With the name of the late deceased, And the epitaph drear, "A fool lies here, Who tried to hustle the East."
RE: Scale Length and small hands (in reply to Cervantes)
He was not a pro hustler. The only difference from the other locals was that he had a lot money and he offered me a little bit more than the others do. I just got tired of the show. It may all sound far out to some of you guys, and I agree, it is far out, but it is a very good real life picture of Andalucia.
RE: Scale Length and small hands (in reply to Anders Eliasson)
Given what people are prepared to spend on cars, holidays, etc, and the amount of skill and time that goes into their construction I think really fine guitars are (mostly) absurdly cheap
RE: Scale Length and small hands (in reply to gerundino63)
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Next time. Anders, sell them the parts and tell them they can assembly it themselves. (I bet some will even consider it.... )
Nooooo Peter. Then they will be standing outside my door all the time asking how to do this and that. (thats actually experience)
The best, as usual is to learn from the locals. In this case Spanish guitarmakers. And that means being absent or if you are there and open the door, be grumpy and not really listening. If the visitors insist, have a factory guitar with your own label in it and let them play that for a while. Maybe they´ll buy it.... And if not and they are still insisting.... Maybe give them one of the better guitars to try, but only shortly and with you standing very close controlling things.
Now, that last part was exagerating, but only partly. Just as in Monty Python.. Where is the limit between imagination and realism and imagine John Cleese as the above guitarmaker.
RE: Scale Length and small hands (in reply to Anders Eliasson)
Anders,
I know I'm late to the table here; but that made me laugh out loud!
quote:
I said it was interesting and told him I would like to show him something outside, so we went out and when outside, I asked him if he had forgotten something which he hadn´t, so I went in and locked the door.
Printable Version
Just as in Monty Python.. Where is the limit between imagination and realism and imagine John Cleese as the above guitarmaker. 
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