Elementary Studies

It's funny how a title can colour one's view of a book, because the inside of this is much more exciting than the title suggests. Here are eighteen little trios, ranging from tunes with a handful of notes, suiting a beginner with just a few weeks of experience, through to pieces that might need Grade Three players. There are no parts, but that's not a problem and besides, beginners may like to see the full score to help them count their rests and keep in step. Full score means that one or two pieces have page turns, but these have been typeset at convenient pauses in the music. With the limited skills that beginners have, it's pleasing to see such a variety of styles in the book and there are just enough performance indications on the page to arouse a sense of curiosity about 'what's next' in the book. From largo to allegro and from 4/4 to 6/8 there is a rich and varied selection here. There is just an occasional left-hand or right-hand fingering, and this makes the book very attractive to a teacher who can introduce position work without any pre-fingered notes distracting the pupil.
Issues such as open strings in the third position (causing scale runs to dart back and forth across the strings) and constantly changing time signatures are some of the topics covered as the book progresses. By and large each piece tackles one or two technical areas, so that there's a real sense of purpose in the book.
(.) the presentation is clear and the book opens flat. The range of technical progress from the first to last piece is such that the book probably couldn't be used continuously from start to finish, as a tutor book would be. On the other hand, there are some pieces, such as Passage, which are for mixed ability, so the book may well find itself being dipped into at odd times, and that's no bad thing. And if you want to know what Sky Rats sound like, you'll just have to buy the book...
(Derek Hasted, Classical Guitar Magazine)