Level Up
A seasoned classical guitarist once told me that at a certain point in my guitar self-studies, I should stop referring to myself as a "classical guitar player" and start letting people know that I'm a "classical guitarist". It took me a while to comprehend it because the play on wordings are subtle and yet the implications are potentially huge. It's the difference between a DIY dad who can (read: barely knows how to) use power tools to fix a fence and a licensed contractor who can construct a house with the same power tools because he knows how it's done.
In very simple terms, a classical guitar player is someone who plays music on a classical guitar. That music can be a mix of classical music or other types of genre (jazz, alternative, rock,etc.). On the other hand, a classical guitarist specializes in the classics and uses the classical guitar as a medium for expressing the music. Still don't get it or don't agree? You're not alone.
While I don't fully subscribe to this idea, I believe that as a musician we should always strive to take our skills and music to the next level. Getting stuck playing Lagrima and Romance d'Amour for 10 years is certainly not a good sign of growth. Likewise, focusing too much on technique at the expense of exploring the vast guitar music repertoire limits ones' ability to grow as a musician.
I do not have the facility to execute complex guitar techniques and fast scales as many thousands of guitarists can (just watch those 8 year olds on YouTube), but I can focus my energies on what I believe can satisfy my passion for music. There's so much music out there to study and perform, well within the limits of my playing abilities. If I can't dig deep, I might as well dig wide. It will hold the same amount of water anyway. I may sometimes play pop music on the classical guitar, but I still call classical music my home.
What am I? A classical guitarist.
In very simple terms, a classical guitar player is someone who plays music on a classical guitar. That music can be a mix of classical music or other types of genre (jazz, alternative, rock,etc.). On the other hand, a classical guitarist specializes in the classics and uses the classical guitar as a medium for expressing the music. Still don't get it or don't agree? You're not alone.
While I don't fully subscribe to this idea, I believe that as a musician we should always strive to take our skills and music to the next level. Getting stuck playing Lagrima and Romance d'Amour for 10 years is certainly not a good sign of growth. Likewise, focusing too much on technique at the expense of exploring the vast guitar music repertoire limits ones' ability to grow as a musician.
I do not have the facility to execute complex guitar techniques and fast scales as many thousands of guitarists can (just watch those 8 year olds on YouTube), but I can focus my energies on what I believe can satisfy my passion for music. There's so much music out there to study and perform, well within the limits of my playing abilities. If I can't dig deep, I might as well dig wide. It will hold the same amount of water anyway. I may sometimes play pop music on the classical guitar, but I still call classical music my home.
What am I? A classical guitarist.
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