Photo by Jessica Backhaus©

For the February issue of Guitar Sessions, I've chosen to present one of my own etudes. I´ve composed a whole bunch of etudes, each of which is focused on a specific technical or musical aspect. Through my own practicing and teaching experiences, I realised that playing etudes or practicing certain technical aspects is much more palatable if done in a musical context. That's why I composed my etudes as pieces which aren't supposed to sound like etudes. Instead, "Etude No. 5" is meant as an exercise for creative sound and timbre exploration.

"The guitar is a little orchestra - seen through the end of a telescope". Thus the famous guitarist Andrés Segovia once described our instrument. I hoped my my etude would stimulate ideas that would explore the sonic possibilities of this little orchestra.

The guitar sounds different when plucked at various positions along the strings. If plucked near the bridge, the guitar sounds dry or nasal, like metal. The sound quality achieved in this fashion is called metallico (abbreviated met.). Another term for this technic would be sul ponticello (s.p.) which means "near the bridge". By contrast, you can acheive a very warm and smooth tone if you play over or near the fretboard; this technique is called sul tasto or sulla tasteria (s.t.). Then too, naturale (nat.) or ordinario describes the sound achieved with the normal hand position over the soundhole.

These terms offer suggestions and ideas about timbre creation that could be applied in interpreting "Etude No. 5". Of course, it is possible and most welcome that the player also explores his or her own ideas about interpretation. Very often, the melodic or harmonic context, or the musical construction of a piece provide inspiration on how to best interpret the individual sections of a piece.

One possibility, for example, would be to create contrast between repetitions by altering the dynamics and timbre of a given passage. A composer who works on a piece for hours and days has a reason for repeating a certain passage or part of a piece, and what he wants to underscore or say with a given idea. Therefore, the interpreter might well respond by changing dynamics or timbre. In my "Etude No. 5", I also change the inflection of the timbre on the repeat.

I hope you enjoy my piece and that you'll be creative in exploring the sound and timbre possibilities of our "little orchestra"! If you are interested in my other etudes, please write to me at info@johannestoniokreusch.com or visit www.johannestoniokreusch.com.

About Johannes Tonio Kreusch

Praised by The New York Times as "the revelation of the evening", and by The Philadelphia Inquirer as "the highlight of the week" and by The Boston Globe as "a hard act to follow", Johannes Tonio Kreusch belongs to the new generation of concert guitarists. He first studied Philosophy at the University of Munich and later graduated from the Salzburg Mozarteum and from New York's Juilliard School of Music. Since his début at New York's Carnegie Hall in 1996, his tours both as a soloist and as a chamber musician have taken him to many countries in Europe and Latin America as well as to the USA, the Middle East and Asia. In addition to the classical guitar repertoire, his interests include improvised and avant-garde music which are well reflected in his own compositions. His extensive collaboration with contemporary composers have resulted in many new compositions for the guitar.

As a chamber musician he frequently works with well-known artists like the Metropolitan Opera tenor Anthony Dean Griffey or the trumpet player Markus Stockhausen. In addition to his work as a performer, Johannes Tonio Kreusch teaches at the University of Munich, holds seminars and master classes and writes for international music magazines.

To learn more about Johannes Tonio Kreusch and his music please visit www.johannestoniokreusch.com.