Las Primeras Lecciones de Guitarra (Sagreras): Lesson 61

Julio Salvador Sagreras (1879-1942), the composer of Leccion 61, was an Argentine guitarist and composer. Both his parents were guitarists and taught him from a very early age. He performed extensively during his lifetime. Sagreras participated in concerts at the age of 6. At age 12, he began his studies in piano and composition. Eventually, he became a professor of guitar at Académia de Bellas Artes. While living in Buenos Aires, he made many acquaintances, including the editor Francisco Nuñez. Nuñez became the primary publisher of his many compositions.

In 1905 he opened his school, Academia de Guitarra. Sagreras is known for his methodical and well-annotated guitar instruction series. It consists of seven books that take the student from the beginner to the advanced stage. The series is so well thought out and incrementally progressive that it has often been said that the student can teach himself. This lesson comes from the first book in this series.

Reference Video of Leccion 61

About Lesson 61

Lesson 61 from Las Primeras Lecciones de Guitarra is in the key of C major. In the original publication, Segreras instructs the player to use rest strokes on all the bass notes. I have chosen to omit this technique. Through playing thousands of pieces this skill is infrequently used in the way Sagreras uses it here. However, the bass should be emphasized due to it containing the melody.

If you missed some of our reference videos, you can find them here.

Also, check out our other useful articles:

• Iberian Dance arranged by Michael Connor
• Moorish Dance by Aaron Shearer
• Dreams by Richard Summers
• Siciliano By Matteo Carcassi
• Étude No. 1 By Leo Brouwer

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Chadwick Becks

I have two degrees in guitar performance and was privileged to study under Aaron Shearer, Tom Kikta, David Skantar, Ken Karsh, Tim Bedner, and currently Christopher Berg. Outside my editorial work on this blog, I teach full-time across many genres including classical, jazz, blues, rock, funk, and metal.