Acoustic Guitar Greatest Hits Vol. 2

Lesson Source: Tony McManus's Celtic Journeyman

Here is a tune from outwith the Scottish and Irish traditions. The Bretons (French Celts) do not tend to give individual names to tunes. They are often named simply by the dance and the town from which they come- so “Rond De Loudiac” is simply a reel from the town of Loudiac.

This is a march from an unknown town but it’s a dance tune. Breton dancing is more about participation than virtuosity.

We are in DADGAD tuning and we are going to be using a lot of the left hand ideas- so make sure you are on top of all those ornaments from section 1 and have fun with this Breton Marche.

Lesson Source: Tony McManus's Celtic Journeyman

There was a short and sweet Breton tune I learned from the fiddler Christian Lemaitre with whom I toured in the US some years ago

Breton tunes tend to be very short and repetitive- they come in bite sized pieces. Like here- the first phrase is repeated almost ad nauseam and that’s the A part of the tune. I’m capoed up 3 frets simply for clarity. I think the tune sits well here.

The phrase is played over a D chord and then lands on the 5 chord which is simply the open fifth, open second and then the melody note which is on the top string fret two.

I start with a pull off where the leading note is shrunk to microscopic length and the same with the mordant and the end of the A. Review those from section 1.

The B part is a little trickier. Let’s tease out the melody. I hear it go to the 4 chord and to fill it in I add an F# in the arpeggio (string 4 fret 4) and then, a tricky thing, the thumb plays an F# fret 4 on the bottom string. You may find a different way of playing that bass note. Then the tune goes to the 6 minor with the bass note on the bottom string....again, tricky! Then the open string allows us to get back to first position to end the part.

So, the B part ends on the 5 chord but the repeat resolves back to the D major. Now, when I play the repeat of the B, instead of the 4 chord I play a 2 minor. It changes the flavour of the tune and as it’s kind of repetitive it’s a useful device to vary the chords.

Lesson Source: Peppino D'Augustino's Acoustic Poetica

A long time ago I was working as a guitarist on the Italian Costa Cruise Lines with a friend of mine who was playing the banjo. Our journey started in Genova, all the way to Buenos Aires, and back. On that trip we were essentially playing Bluegrass music for a South American audience! It was really fun and interesting to experience the Atlantic Ocean for an entire month. One of the many stops was in beautiful Rio de Janeiro and of course me and my friend went to the famous beach Copacabana! We were mesmerized by the people's beauty, the gorgeous scenery and the local kids playing amazing soccer! We really didn't want to go back to the ship (but eventually we did) and it's right there and then that I thought about writing a tune that could encapsulate this memorable moment. As you play this piece imagine yourself in Brazil, on a beautiful, sunny beach, drinking their national cocktail Caipirinha after a long swim in the ocean. Have fun with it!

Lesson Source: Peppino D'Augustino's Acoustic Poetica

I think that one of the interesting aspects of this composition is the shifting to 3 different keys, which will expand your knowledge of chords, modulation and harmonization. In addition you'll be using a lot of bar positions, which will strengthen your left hand. The melody in the first 16 bars is played on the 1st and 2nd strings. On measure 9 the Db position is quite a challenge for the left hand. You really have to take advantage of the last D open string on measure 8 to form the chord "in the air" in order to reach it on time. Always pay close attention to the chord diagrams above the staff and to the left hand fingering suggested. On measure 10, the top Ab note (on the 2nd string-9th fret) is played with the index as you hold the notes of the Db maj7th chord. This is quite difficult at first so you have to practice this passage many times. Unfortunately you don't have any open string that would help the transition into the Gb maj7th on measure 11. Practice slowly at first, paying attention to have a clear and precise sound and then later worry about the speed of this particular passage. On measure 24 pay attention to the l.h. index finger sliding from the D# to the E on the 2nd string as you hold both the A and the C# on the 1st and 3rd string respectively. On measure 27 notice that you don't want to play the F7 by fretting the entire chord immediately but you want to build it up step by step. The chord change between Fmi to Bb7 on measures 33 and 34 requires a lot of l.h. muscle power. Pay attention to the triplet played with the index finger on measures 39 and 40. Measures 41 and 42 are particularly difficult for the left hand because of the fast chromatic descending scale. I suggest you use the fingering recommended on the music staff.

Lesson Source: Peppino D'Augustino's Acoustic Poetica

This segment starts with a big six fret stretch from measure 48 through measure 50, so pay attention to my fingering to make sure that each note rings as long as possible. As you play the very last note A on measure 51 look and prepare yourself to reach the E6 in the next measure. This trick is very helpful if you don't have open strings facilitating left hand transitions. Make sure to use your l.h index finger as a pivot finger in the transition between the C#mi7 on measure 56 to the D6 on measure 57. Using fingers that are in common when you shift from one chord to another is a very useful device for precision and speed. In this particular case the l.h. index finger stays in contact with the 3rd string, first fret (G#) and slide silently to the second fret (A) as the other l.h. fingers follow to build the second chord.

Lesson Source: Peppino D'Augustino's Acoustic Poetica

Make sure that you emphasize the melody when you play measures 66 through 69. As I pointed out to you in the music staff, each top note melody in this 4 bar passage lasts 3 beats, so you want to make sure that the melody is not overpowered by the underlying chords. The very last note on measure 75 (Gb) played by the pinky is very important in order to reach the complicated chord on measure 76. The pinky here is used as a pivot finger to move from Ebmaj7th to Abmaj7th. This is definitely the most difficult chord in the tune probably because there is one fret space in between the l.h.middle and ring fingers. Measure 77 presents some difficulties as well because you have to anchor the l.h. middle and ring as you play the ascending bass line with the l.h. index and pinky. The secret words are: practice, practice!! It would be quite challenging to shift from measure 84 to 85 because of the hammer-on performed on the last beat before reaching the B7(b5).

The slide from the F to F# played with your l.h. ring finger on measures 100 and 101 could present some difficulties considering that you have to keep a bar on the 7th fret throughout this transition. Measure 102 and 103 are also quite difficult because of the descending chromatic line in the mid range. Pay attention to the F#7 chord diagram on measure 104, use the proper fingering and make sure that you play the very last note (A#) by performing a partial bar on the 1st and 2nd string-6th fret.