Michael Partington Masterclass

The long awaited "JCGS Concert Series" began with a concert by British classical guitarist, Michael Partington. Mr. Partington performed for us on Friday, October 29th, at 8:00 pm. The concert took place at the First Methodist Church, 165 N. Main Street, in Ashland. The Southern Oregon University music department hosted a master class with Mr. Partington the next day, Saturday, October 30 from 10:00am-noon in the choir room (room 220 upstairs) of the music building. These are the notes from that class.

First Performer: Matt Gwinup
Music: Prelude No. 4 by Heitor Villa Lobos

Michael noted that strings buzzing against the frets was a problem for Matt because the action (distance between strings and frets) is too low. Michael said that a set up such as this was close to how a flamenco guitarist likes it but for a classical guitarist it limits the volume that the player is able to acheive. He said the action on Matt's guitar was extremely low and discussed how a player can raise the action by inserting a thin strip of a business card into the slot in the bridge which holds the saddle. He also stressed the importance of paying attention to where along the string the player plucks. A forceful stroke over the sound hole displaces the string to a greater degree (causing buzzes) than the same stroke closer to the bridge. He also said that the player should play more directly across the string.

Michael recommended that Matt place a dot on the neck of the guitar to help orient himself. He said there are just too many opportunities to miss notes in the upper positions. He said that he puts a dot at the 7th and 19th frets with a spot of whiteout. He also carries white out with him incase the old spot gets inadvertently wiped off.

Michael said that vibrato brings "presence and life" to a note. He talked about the importance of the speed of the vibrato and how it should reflect the beat and character of the piece you are playing. He also said that a too fast vibrato can lend a nervous quality to a piece. He emphasized the importance of practicing vibrato with a slow metronome, subdividing with quarters, eights, triplets and sixteenths. He noted that the vibrato is easier when the thumb is lifted off of the back of the neck and that the 2 and 3 fingers are better suited to vibrato because the balance is better.

Michael pointed out the composer's indication of "cantando" at the beginning of the music. He asked Matt "What does that mean?" Matt said, "I don't know." To which Michael responded, "Uh oh, busted." The point of course is that any performing musician should own a music dictionary and should use it. He said, "cantando" means "singing and connected". He pointed out that Villa Lobos played the cello and that the opening melody is very reminiscent of the cello. He suggested that Matt over exaggerate the dotted notes and avoid sliding on wound strings. If you have to slide on a wound string, try using the pad of the finger rather than the tip. The softer pad is much less noisy than the calloused tip. He suggested the chords in the opening section should be softer than the melody.

Michael noted that Matt played with no nails and asked why. Matt said that he doesn't like the sound of nails on the guitar and prefers the no nail sound. Michael argued a few points in favor of playing with nails, saying that he found greater tonal variety and volume was possible with nails. He also felt that the harmonics in the Villa Lobos Prelude were clearer with nails. He also asked Matt about his practice of resting his little finger on the top of the guitar saying that it changed the angle of attack in the fingers. Matt said that it was a bad habit and he was trying to break it.

Michael talked a bit about planting for arpeggios recommending that players practice planting all fingers for ascending arpeggios and planting one finger at a time for descending arpeggios.

Michael closed the session by saying that we should always ask ourselves, "Is this what I intend?"

Second Performer: Jaxon Williams
Music: Leyenda by Isaac Albeniz

Michael asked, "How fast should it go?" He felt Jaxon was playing it a bit on the slow side. He also suggested that it should be played as if it were in three. He noted that the melody was in the bass and that the repeating open b string should be softer, more in the background.

Michael worked with Jaxon to get a "thicker and richer" tone with his thumb. He asked Jaxon to play more down into the string and not so much outward. He encouraged Jaxon to have a broader sense of phrasing. He noted that Jaxon's arpeggios were a bit uneven especially where there is a string between the i and m fingers. He recommended going to the i and a fingers instead when there is this separation because it will be more even. He also recommended practicing Aguado and Guilliani arpeggio studies to even out his arpeggios. Additionally, he said to practice the pattern backwards to get them more even.

Michael felt that Jaxon's approach to interpretation was too monochromatic and that he needed to introduce more tone and character into the piece. He noted that Jaxon was splitting all of the octaves in the middle section and it would be better not to do that. He suggested that when phrases repeat, the repeat should have more tonal contrast. He pointed out that a bright tone used in a low volume context offers great clarity.

Third Performer: Maurya Murphey
Music: Guardame las Vacas by

While Maurya was getting set, Michael took the time to discuss right hand position. He noted that he uses a higher than normal wrist position and recommends to his students that they use a flat or very slightly arched wrist. His wrist position stems from when he was a young student in England and reflects how he was taught. Tension versus no tension is as important as flat versus bent. The cause of most physical problems such as carpal tunnel syndrome is holding tension while moving the fingers. Part of a good hand position is keeping the hand knuckles over the fingertips so that the stroke is at the apex when it hits the string. This helps promote a strong downward free stroke that comfortably clears the adjacent string.

Michael talked to Maurya about the importance of a consistent tempo. He noted that the long notes at the ends of phrases gives a sense of space with out the need to slow down. He said to avoid retards at the ends of phrases. He recommended Maurya use more open strings and go for a lighter brighter sound like a vihuela. He asked, "Is it 3/2 or 6/4". He felt a 6/4 feel would be more dance like while a 3/2 time would tend to emphasize the lyrical qualities. He felt the piece needed to be more dance like in character. He recommended she work for more differentiation between voices. Hs suggested more use of stacatto to extablish a dialog between the voices.

"To slur or not to slur." Michael said,, "If you are going to use slurs, be consistent." If you slur one, then slur them all. Michael said his preference is to use less slurs.

When you have bad fingering, use whiteout to cover it up. Put in the correct fingerings and practice them 100 times to establish the new fingering.

Fourth Performer: Jeff Rinkoff
Music: Alfonsina y el Mar by Ariel Ramirez

Jeff had a problem with a certain passage that his fingers kept stumbling over each time he went back to play it again. Michael asked, "Why is it a problem?" He said just figure it out. Find the logic of the fingering and repeat it until you get it into your fingers.

He said Jeff should be more aware of the rhythm. He said it needs a strong sense of rhythm. He said meet the beat with the note. Jeff said that he was trying to find his own interpretation but that he really loved how David Russell plays this piece. Michael told him that when you hear someone play something and it sounds right, you should try to understand it and then make it your own. He said there is a difference between emulation and copying. He said it is better to emulate. He paraphrased Oscar Ghilia saying, "If you hear something that is beautiful, then it is already in you. It is like money in the bank to spend as you please."

Michael said there are two kinds of music: 1.) song, which puts an emphasis on melody and 2.) dance, which emphasizes rhythm. This piece is song. It has a pulse but the melody is primary. It is important to understand the rhythm, to intellectualize it, but then you have to just feel it. He said to feel the long beat, all you have is the downbeat.

Michael talked about rubato suggesting that Segovia did things with rubato, which are no longer appropriate. He also said that to play no rubato in Bach is wrong. "Less rubato in Bach and more rubato in Albeniz is probably right."

Fifth Performer: Roma Sprung
Music: Confuseta from Elegia por la Muerte de un Tanguero by Maximo Diego Pujol

Compilers Note: I have very few notes on Roma's session with Michael. Curiously, this was true with her session with Brad Richter as well. My best guess is that because Roma's selections are more modern as opposed to the more traditional repertoire, both Brad and Michael tended to talk less broadly and generally (and less quotably) in their work with Roma and focused more on specific elements within the score. There was no discussion around Roma's technique. Specifically, they worked with bringing out the dynamics more effectively and balancing the various voices within the piece. They also spent time working on the 3+3+2 rhythms in the piece.

Sixth Performer: Eddie Condon
Music: Prelude from Prelude, Fugue and Allegro by J. S. Bach

"When is this piece moving and when is it not?" When the emphasis is on the harmony, then it is static. When the emphasis is on the melody, then it is more dynamic. In the opening phrase, think of it as one gesture from the d down to the b.

He suggested that Eddie think about the slurs. Michael felt that there were too many slurs and that it was better to articulate each note. He clarified that this was a matter of preference.

He also suggested that Eddie think about fingerings. He recommended changing to fingerings that would let notes ring. Michael worked with a few fingerings to demonstrate some of the options.

He noted that even though there is a single voice in the upper part, it could be treated as if there are more. By going after the feel of multiple voices, the player can create a dialog within the single voice.

He pointed out that Guitar Player magazine did an interview with David Russell. The article includes Russell's transcription of the Prelude complete with his fingerings. He said that it was worthwhile studying these fingerings. He also noted that Russell plays the piece with a capo on the first fret so that it sounds in the original key of e flat.

Seventh Performer: Pat Mayfield
Music: Prelude No. 1 by Heitor Villa Lobos

Michael said that the action on Pat's guitar was too low and needed to be raised. He said that Pat had a good sense of what was going on. Pat no longer had the sheet music for the piece and Michael suggested he find a copy and go back over the score. He said there were a few details that needed fixing. He said that Pat's rubato felt a little extreme and that he needed more of a crescendo into the high notes.

His final point of the class was, "When you have a long note, do something with it." Suggesting that a vibrato helped to keep things interesting.

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