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Preparing a piece of music begins with falling in love with it! We must also try many different interpretations of the piece, practicing it roughly 500 times at a slow tempo and about 50 times at tempo. Every one of these times should be as beautiful as possible!

Slow practice never means detached or uninvolved – our body will learn these bad habits if we’re not careful. Always play the music with love, even if you’re repeating the same passage hundreds of times.

Here, we will explore classical guitar performance tips offered by tonebase artist and acclaimed classical guitarist Pepe Romero.

Click here to watch the tonebase lesson on this topic for FREE!

Mental preparation

Our brains often create negative voices that try to break us down before we can enter the “musical temple” of peace, beauty, and love (the state we must be in to make music). 

When you go to bed the night before a concert, trust the work you’ve done. Whatever happens is now out of your control. Remember that it is the journey, not the result, that counts the most!

On the day of the concert, keep in mind that you are on this journey of music-making together with your guitar. 

You aren’t alone! 

We often want a guarantee that we won’t make a mistake, but this is simply our egos talking. Don’t take out the guitar from its case until mentally affirming to yourself that you and the guitar are partners on this journey. This helps you remove the ego from your feelings about the performance. 

{{trip-wire}}

Warming up

As you warm up your fingers, envision that the guitar is also warming up her voice. 

Run some scales and arpeggios, and then run your program one more time. Play it slowly but beautifully. 

If you make a mistake, don’t freak out! Be grateful that it happened to you during the warmup where you still have a chance to correct it. 

Repeat that spot a few times and clarify it mentally. Finish playing the piece and put the guitar away.

Romero prefers to nap before a performance. If you can’t do this, at least have a few minutes where you can close your eyes and relax your mind. Do something that takes your mind off the music you’re about to play.

Romero also enjoys having coffee before a performance since he finds that it enhances his memory. It also reinforces a feeling of relaxation for him. He plays a few passages just after awakening from his nap and then again once he arrives at the venue; typically he plays some arpeggios or flamenco techniques to relax the hands.

A few minutes before you go out onstage, dedicate your performance. Think about the people that you love unconditionally. Music comes from this place in our hearts – it’s an expression of love. Fear can only be conquered by the presence of love. 

Romero’s last thoughts before playing are: “I dedicate this experience to your pleasure and to glorify God (any God, of any religion, even that of non-believers).” It’s not about raising the status of the performer, or the quality of your upcoming performance. It’s about coming together to enjoy an experience. A great concert is where mysterious things take place.

Conclusion

Romero’s last thoughts before playing are: “I dedicate this experience to your pleasure and to glorify God (any God, of any religion, even that of non-believers).” 

It’s not about raising the status of the performer, or the quality of your upcoming performance. 

It’s about coming together to enjoy an experience. A great concert is where mysterious things take place.

If you’d like to watch the lesson on this topic with Pepe Romero for free, just click here.

Ready to learn more about practice and performance tips and make real progress in your classical guitar studies?

Click below to start your tonebase membership with a 14-day free trial. By doing so, you’ll unlock complete access to 100s of premium classical guitar lessons and structured courses, along with:

  • LIVE workshops with top artists and pedagogues every week 
  • The active tonebase Community where you can give and get feedback, and participate in skill-building Challenges and Two-Week Intensives
  • Hundreds of enriched workbooks, annotated scores and other digital resources to aid you in your learning

To unlock access to it all, and open up a new door to mastery and confidence on the guitar, become a tonebase member today.

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Dave McLellan

Concert & Chamber Guitarist

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