Books for learning medieval/classic guitar technics??

[TinwhistleJulian]

Hey Evryone !

I'm writing on an Instrumental Album that contains some Celtic and Medieval inspired Instrumental pieces and I would like to learn guitar technics for playing along with the guitar in a fitting way .

I'm used to play chords strummed while performing songs and abit of improvisation but this part of guitar playing is new to me,does anybody got a tip where I could find books for learning it?

Regards and thanks,Julian

[s1m0n]

The medieval guitar scene wasn't very big and all the amps sucked. Guitars got way cooler in the renaissance.

[fearfaoin]

I'm writing on an Instrumental Album that contains some Celtic and Medieval inspired Instrumental pieces and I would like to learn guitar technics for playing along with the guitar in a fitting way.

The guitar wasn't really around (in the form we know of it now) until the
Baroque and Classical periods (late 16th century on). You could probably get
away with using a finger picking style to sound like a lute. You should
probably listen to some John Dowland Lute music to get the idea.

Here's a Dowland lute tune played on Classical guitar:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8IZGdI4aEo

Actually, searching for "Medieval guitar" in youtube might provide some
inspiration...

[s1m0n]

I see former 60s neo-medieval guitar god John Renbourn has some tabs in .pdf format on his site, but I dunno if any of it is his early music influenced playing.

John Renbourn studied classical guitar at school and it was during this period that he was introduced to Early Music.

...

Possibly the best known London venue for contemporary folk music in the early 1960s was "Les Cousins" in Greek Street, Soho, which became the main meeting place for guitar players and contemporary singer-songwriters from Britain and America. Around 1963, Renbourn teamed up with guitarist Bert Jansch who was visiting London from Edinburgh and together they developed an intricate duet style that became known as "folk baroque". Their album "Bert and John" is a fine example of their playing.

Renbourn released several albums on the Transatlantic label during the 1960s. Two of them, "Sir John Alot" and "Lady And The Unicorn" sum up Renbourn's playing style and material from this period. "Sir John Alot" has a mixture of jazz/blues/folk playing alongside a more classical/early music style. "Lady And The Unicorn" is heavily influenced by Renbourn's interest in early music.

At around this time, Renbourn also started playing with Jacqui McShee who sang traditional English folk songs. Together with Bert Jansch, bassist Danny Thompson and drummer Terry Cox, they went on to form Pentangle. The group became very successful, touring America in 1968, playing at the Carnegie Hall and at the Newport Folk Festival.

[Souradaos]

There is not reallly medieval music for guitar or the lute.
It was (mostly) monophinic singing/whistling of melodies with a drone.
The Guitar, i thinks, sounds 100 times better "poliphonic" with bass lines, chords and so on.
Something in this direction could be the Neoceltic stuff, Pagan-Folk of Folk.
Try Blackmores Night (Ritche Blackmores New Stuff)
I would especially advice you to play renaissance and baroque stuff.
Some hints on that;
Search for the Italian Renaissance; its more kind of "flowing", sounds very good with capo on the 2nd or 3rd fret.
Try Giovanni Geronimo Kapsberger

For the Baroque music I can give you more hints;

The German Baroqe should be played low. Its (mostly) melancholic and dramatic.
Try Silvius Leopold Weiss

Spanish Barouqe could be played with capo or without, it should sound solemnly. Its got a legacy of complex Arabic rhythms,
Try Domenico Scarlatti

The English Baroque (and also Renaissance Music) sonds better when its played bright and clear, with few trills.
Try Dowland or the lute stuff of William Lawes

Phraseing for Dances (Menuetts, Sarabandes); each 2 measures are one unit. Start loud and pipe down, ornamet only the ends of the 2. mensure


If youve got a question just ask
Have fun

[didymus]

Allan Alexander has a book/cd combo on medieval music for the guitar for $17.95 plus shipping. Here is a link to the site. I believe sample sound files are available.


http://home.earthlink.net/~guitarandlut ... uitar.html

[unregulated]

hi Julian
A good place to start to inform your self would be here
as it combines “celtic” with lute music played on guitar, much of this music was in fact very old Scots harp music and thankfully notated by lutiers for the Scots courts before it vanished forever from memory.
scroll down to hear MP3’s played on modern steel strung guitar. I think you will find that it’s more “the way you play it” rather than on what instrument that evokes the feel of the period.
http://www.rmguitar.info/ScottishGuitar.htm
http://www.rmguitar.info/
have a good root aboot Rob’s sight.
Also try over here
http://www.celticguitartalk.com/
registering is the same as here - painless
yours
Un.