Information needed to function within a jazz band. It is important to understand that while jazz is played on the same instruments as other types of music, it has its own language. This book deals with specific jazz idioms: swing, shuffle, bebop and Latin. A basic working knowledge of the guitar through rock, blues, or folk music, (including barre chords), will produce gratifying results. Knowledge of the note locations on all strings, (especially the E and A strings) and a working understanding of the relationship of all the notes on the various strings will make the information in this book immediately accessible. The book also provides information on how to interpret a jazz chart. The clarity and insight of this method, makes it a must have for any big band performer.

ISBN 9781609740382. This book consists of music written for the guitar. When modern guitarists play music from the Renaissance, they usually play transcriptions from the vihuela or lute repertoire. As a consequence, many guitarists are unaware of the early music written for the guitar. "Guitar Music of the 16th Century" presents an amazing collection of 133 solos actually scored for early guitar by Alonso Mudarra, Miguel De Fuenllana, Adrian Le Roy, Gregoire Brayssing, Guillaume Morlaye and Simon Gorlier. This book comes with access to an online audio recording and is a valuable addition to any guitarist's library!

ISBN 9781609740443. This collection of classic guitar studies is intended for the intermediate guitarist. As a whole, these etudes emulate the content of Carcassi's famed 25 Etudes, yet in a more contemporary harmonic and rhythmic idiom. These pieces are also distinguished in that they are not only valuable as left and right-hand technical exercises- but also as valid, pleasurable concert repertoire. The first ten etudes 11-20 focus on the use of the a finger in combination with i and m. Etudes 4,7,11,13,15, and 17 also concentrate on left-hand slurs. The final five etudes were composed as - and intended to be performed- as a set with each piece dedicated to a particular Latin American composer.

ISBN 9781609741419. The product of decades of scholarly investigation, Volume 1 contains 67 musical works by the virtuoso Paraguayan guitarist Agustin Barrios Mangore (1885-1944). This is the first edition of Barrios music based on all available sources: manuscripts, phonograph recordings and published editions (pre-1970s). Written in standard notation only, the two volumes of this definitive collection are illustrated with period photographs, concert programs and Barrios own drawings. The legacy of Barrios is one of the most important and outstanding contributions ever made to the classic guitar, and it is with great pride that Mel Bay Publications offers here for the first time in one edition the collected works of Agustin Barrios Mangore.

ISBN 9781619114036. The Romance Anonimo ("Anonymous Romance") is one of the most popular pieces in the classical guitar repertoire. Also known as Spanish Romance, Romance de Amor, Jeux interdits and Estudio de Rubira, this 19th century work has continually delighted lovers of the instrument around the world and has become a standard part of guitar pedagogy.In this Mel Bay publication guitarist/composer Rico Stover offers his original composition Romance Variations in a 25 page score of the work with accompanying audio. Different "flavors" of guitar styles are heard in these variations which are inspired by guitarists/composers whom Rico admires: Mateo Carcassi, Joe Pass, Heitor Villalobos, Luiz Bonfa, Chet Atkins and Atahualpa Yupanqui.After a short introduction, the Romance theme is heard, after which the variations commence. Each variation follows the minor/major pattern:Variation 1: Arpegiado - classical arpeggiosVariation 2: Bordoneo - bass line texturesVariation 3: Villalobosiana - in the style of the masterVariation 4: Bossanova - Brazilian syncopationsVariation 5: Chet's Pick - country style fingerpickingVariation 6: Aire de Danza - Latin American dance rhythmsThe essay "Romance Anonimo: Who Composed It?" explores the different theories regarding the question of authorship, including an analysis of seven different editions of the Romance that date from 1900 to 1958.

ISBN 9781610652278. Volume 2 of this landmark publication includes 65 original compositions in standard notation plus unique audio online featuring Barrios himself playing 21original works including: Danza Paraguaya, La Catedral, Un Sueo en la Floresta, Maxixe, Tarantella, Aire Popular Paraguayo and many more! In addition to the music, 82 pages of exhaustive Critical Notes shed light on the Barrios catalog making this the definitive anthology of his work. More reliable, comprehensive and articulate than any previously published edition, this new Mel Bay Publications compilation (524 pages in all) will make the entire world of Barrios more accessible. Audio available for download online.

ISBN 9781609740993. Transcriptions from Neshamah, Tim Sparks's ground-breaking recording for Tzadik Records of traditional Jewish melodies arranged for solo guitar. Neshamah is a Hebrew word meaning "soul," and in these soulful pieces, Sparks explores the music of the Jewish Diaspora, from the Caucasus to the Carpathians, from the Black Sea to Bosnia, from Jerusalem, Istanbul, Sarajevo, to New York's Lower East Side. Using a unique blend of bluesy string bends, jazz harmony and middle-eastern scales, he sheds new light on these tunes through the prism of fingerstyle guitar. Neshamah received wide critical acclaim in many publications around the world, including Fingerstyle Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Guitar Player, Akustik Gitarre, Acoustic Guitar Japan, Dirty Linen, The Wall Street Journal, CDNOW, All Music Guide and the Amazon.com Editor's Top 100 CDs of 1999. The entire recording has been transcribed here, including an appendix with the complete solos. Several of the arrangements are accessible to intermediate level players while some are better suited to the advanced player. Some of these transcriptions are slightly different than the CD recorded versions and reflect how the composition is currently played by Tim and are notated as such in the Performance Notes.

ISBN 9781610659413. This in-depth scale and arpeggio text is core curriculum at the University of Southern California's Studio Guitar Department, which is part of the prestigious Flora L. Thornton School of Music, located in Los Angeles, California. Using a comprehensive approach that includes three different organizational systems, it covers the technical foundation that is necessary for playing any style of music. The CAGED system (five positions), the Finger Stretch system (all twelve keys in one position) and the Three-Note Per String system (seven patterns) are examined. Although each of these three systems is examined, the CAGED system serves as the basis for much of the material covered in this book.Instead of traditional musical notation, the book uses fingerboard diagrams to focus on the visual aspect of the patterns. The goal is to present an approach to understanding and mastering the fingerboard by outlining the best and most practical elements of these different systems. Book One presents patterns for the major scale and its relative modes, the major pentatonic scale, the minor pentatonic scale, and the blues scale. Along with these scale forms, patterns for arpeggios that are for the most part diatonic to (in the key of) the major scale are presented. These include major, minor, diminished and augmented triads, and also major 7, dominant 7, minor 7 , and diminished 7 chords.