Original Transcription System for Classical Guitar of Works Composed for the English Guitar (Guittar)
Original Transcription System for Classical Guitar of Works Composed for the English Guitar (Guittar)

Summary/Abstract: This article aims to present an original system of transcription for classical guitar of works orig-inally composed for English guitar (guittar). This instrument, now forgotten, was popular in Europeand the British colonies mainly in the second half of the 18th century. A substantial corpus ofmusical literature, distinguished by its considerable artistic and educational value, has been com-posed for it, yet this body of work remains largely unexplored. It is also missing from concert andeducational programs. Reaching for it will provide insight into the instrument, vital in its time, andfill a gap in the guitar repertoire, providing historical continuity from the Renaissance to the present.The differences in design and tuning between the historical and modern instruments give rise tospecific performance challenges. They concern, for example, the reproduction of fingering or thepreservation of texture, which raises the need for a transcription intended specifically for the classi-cal guitar. The transcription system developed by the author of this article is based on the use of thecapabilities of today’s guitar, but taking into account the common features of both instruments, theguittar idiom, the aesthetic principles of the era, the best possible tone or comfort of performance.

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