Fanø/Black Sea Dress: Learn to Play this Pair of Miniatures from Charlie Rauh
While hybrid picking lends a certain definition and crispness, especially on the bass notes, straight fingerpicking will work equally well on the two pieces.
World Premiere: Robbie Basho’s “Great Depression Blues”
This song is a showcase for Basho’s considerable fingerpicking technique
ADVERTISEMENT
World Premiere: “$20 Bill (for George Floyd)”
Shortly after the May 2020 killing of George Floyd, Tom Prasada-Rao, a singer-songwriter based in Silver Spring, Maryland, was watching CNN footage of protests when in a fit of inspiration he penned a new song. In its aching and deeply felt contemplation, “$20 Bill (for George Floyd)” brilliantly captures the grief and rage coursing through the veins of so many in the wake of Floyd’s senseless murder, over cigarettes said to have been purchased with counterfeit currency.
Learn the Guitar Composition ‘Chapdelaine’ by Dennis Hayes
Michael Chapdelaine told his life story to San Francisco composer and guitarist Dennis Hayes, who then felt moved to compose a piece
World Premiere: Learn to Play a New Waltz by Eric Skye
Like millions of Americans, Eric Skye, the virtuoso jazz and roots guitarist, is currently under a shelter-in-place order—and making the best of it. He’s been hunkered down at his home, in Portland, Oregon, cooking and playing guitar with his wife and children, and contemplating on what is happening in the…
ADVERTISEMENT
How to Play Billy Strings’ “Guitar Peace”
To really play “Guitar Peace” authentically, you’ll want to improvise on Strings’ riffs.
‘Super Moon’: Learn a Barn-Burner From Molly Tuttle
Among the many cool moments of Molly Tuttle’s variations are the jazz-informed block chords that suddenly appear in bars 61–65.
World Premiere: Learn to Play Kinloch Nelson’s ‘Solitudes’
You won’t be able to play this piece effectively unless you approach it with a meditative spirit and, most important, a delicate touch.
ADVERTISEMENT
‘New Beginnings’: A Contemplative Study by Yasmin Williams
Tuning her guitar to open D, and placing a capo at the fourth fret, she sat down, started playing, and immediately happened upon the main theme.
World Premiere: Learn to Play Buck Curran’s ‘Song for Liam’
To transfer “Song for Liam” from his mind to the guitar—namely, a Yamaha F310, a modest instrument whose heavy overtone content appeals to him—Curran chose DADGAD tuning, with a capo at the third fret, exploiting the open strings for both melodic and textural effect.