Leo Brouwer teaches Estudios Sencillos — Download the FREE Outline!

tonebase
tonebase Guitar
Published in
3 min readDec 1, 2018

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This Sunday, Leo Brouwer’s definitive lesson on his great set of etudes, the Estudios Sencillos, will be live! But today, get an exclusive sneak peak of all the ideas and topics covered by downloading the free lesson outline!

Even in the early stages of tonebase, we knew we had to find a way to film a series of lessons with Leo Brouwer. After many weeks of effort, we’re proud to say — Lessons with Maestro Brouwer are coming THIS Sunday!

In his first tonebase Lesson, Brouwer shares the story behind the Brouwer Etudes, the motivations behind their development, and the deep cultural influences that run through each measure.

The opening lines of Carcassi’s Etude №1, “Allegro” — for beginners?!

“Beginners were fighting with difficulty”

Brouwer’s initial motive for writing the etudes came from his experience teaching the so-called “etudes for beginners” by the great composers including Carcassi, Coste, and Sor.

What does “simple” mean?

Musically, these etudes are actually quite advanced! What the “simplicity” refers to is actually the physical act of playing them. Brouwer wanted these pieces to be playable by complete beginners, even children as young as 5 years old!

Easing into contemporary sonority

Each etude uses what Brouwer calls a “little element” of contemporary music. In this way, he is “very discreetly” introducing players to modern sonorities, those that can be found throughout his more advanced compositions.

“Constructing an interpretation”

Towards the end of the lesson, Brouwer shifts to ideas surrounding his overall musical philosophy. To him, interpreting a piece is much “like building a house” — you have all the materials the composer has given you. From there it’s up to you to do everything else and construct your own interpretation.

An introduction to a diversity of musical influences

In addition to the technical aspects, the etudes introduce players to diverse, new musical elements. One trend throughout is the influence of Afro-Cuban musical elements which became Brouwer’s obsession as a child — one that has continued throughout his life.

Timeless pieces that apply to each and every guitarist

Leo Brouwer’s Estudios Sencillos will undoubtably withstand the test of time. Where they truly shine is in their appeal to students of all levels, from absolute beginners to award-winning artists.

To go even more in depth and get a sneak preview of the immense knowledge in this lesson, download the free lesson outline today! Lesson outlines help break lessons down, piece by piece, even when you’re not at your computer. Normally these are open only to Premium members, but to celebrate the release of Leo Brouwer, we’re giving it away for free. Grab yours today!

tonebase gives you instant access to knowledge from the world’s greatest guitarists, performers and educators: https://tonebase.co

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