About this work
Carcassi’s Study op. 60 no. 9 in A major carries a line of sixteenth notes above bass notes that often sustain. The opening is marked Allegretto grazioso. Keep the movement light and steady: the fast notes are no reason to rush the four beats of each bar.Holding the bass while the line movesThe bass should remain audible when the melody rises or crosses strings. Practise the long notes alone to find which fingers must stay in place, then add the upper line without cutting off that support. Chords and repeated melody notes also call for preparation of the next position during the available rests.A passage in C major changes the colour before the opening returns in A major. Locate these key-signature changes and returns of the phrase so the tempo stays steady. The closing bars recover the opening’s points of support; let the lower notes conclude without rushing the closing notes.
Score and listeningThe PDF contains the complete piece for solo guitar on 2 pages. The MIDI follows the returning phrases and lets you hear the bass beneath the melody.This engraving by Jeff Covey, distributed by the Mutopia Project, has been placed in the public domain by its author. It was typeset with LilyPond. See the Mutopia entry for credits and find more scores at LesPartitions.info.