ABC Rising Stars

Sunburst by Andrew York

Una Limosna por el Amor de Dios by Agustin Barrios

Daniel Nistico

Koyunbaba mvt. i & iv by Carlo Domeniconi

Mazurka Appasionata by Agustin Barrios

Are you curious to know how 19th century guitarists played their music? Now that so many method books of the era have been translated, we can find information and apply it to pieces from the era. 

Rather than limiting us, this can actually free us to have more choices and make our interpretation unique. It also makes playing this music more fun in general!

Take the course to learn more: 
http://danielnistico.weebly.com/19th-century-performance-practice.html

Play Like a 19th Century Guitarist Podcast

Play Like a 19th Century Guitarist Podcast: Sor Etude I in C Major

Did you know that 19th century guitarists were striving to imitate orchestral instruments in their playing? They used contrasts of tone color more frequently than you'd imagine - from measure to measure! 

In this podcast I explore the plucking regions and orchestral imitations that 19th century guitarists were using.

Take the course to learn more - 
http://danielnistico.weebly.com/19th-century-performance-practice.html

Play Like a 19th Century Guitarist Podcast: Tone Colour

Play Like a 19th Century Guitarist: Accentuation

Spanish composer and pianist Isaac Albéniz was also a child prodigy making his first public appearance at the age of 5. As well as being a gifted composer and pianist, Albéniz was also a prodigious improviser. Suite Espagnola began its existence in this way, being partly improvised in an 1886 recital. Like many other works of Albéniz, Sevilla and the remaining 6 movements of the Suite are evocative of different regions of Spain. The Sevillana is a vivid and lively folk dance in three that derives from the Seguidilla dance. Sevillana often contain lyrics based on country life, love and pilgrimage. In this particular case, Sevilla contains two main contrasting sections, where one could 
attribute the first rhythmical, lively one as being dance and the second slower, lyrical section as being song. Sevilla and the remaining movements from Suite Espagnola have been transcribed for guitar and are widely played today. Upon hearing Spanish guitarist  Francisco Tárrega play these works on the guitar, Albéniz is reputed to have said that he thought his works suited the guitar more than the piano.

Un VIaje Mistico ... A Mystical Journey

Sevilla (Sevillana) from 'Suite Espagnola' by Isaac Albeniz

Vicente Asencio was born in Valencia and undertook his musical training 
as a young child with his father. Asencio studied with Joaquin Turina and his
early style shows clear influences from Manuel De Falla. Narciso Yepes, one of 
Spain's foremost 20th century guitarists, undertook musical studies with 
Asencio. According to Yepes Asencio “was a pianist who loathed the guitar 
because a guitarist couldn't play scales very fast and very legato, as on a piano or violin.” Through dedicated practice and technical improvement, Yepes managed to match the rapid figures that Asencio demanded.
Collectici íntim was a work dedicated to Yepes and the importance of their relationship is highlighted in the foreword of the work  - “…[Asencio] was no guitarist, but he was a great musician and an exceptional educationalist. I dare say that at the time he had little interest in the guitar. But day-by-day he showed more interest in the beauty and limitations of this instrument, until he decided to dedicate a good deal of his time to my musical formation. Within me grew an unlimited enthusiasm for musical analysis and for 
the application of instrumental technique to the problems that music posed for me…”


Un Viaje Mistico ... A Mystical Journey

Collectici intim: V - La Frisanca (The Haste) by Vicente Asencio

Australian composer Phillip Houghton has written many solo and chamber works for guitar. Houghton was originally trained as an artist; 
a clear influence of his incredible sensitivity to colour and timbre on the guitar. Houghton was self taught as a composer, being influenced by a variety of genres including classical, jazz, rock and world music.
Houghton's scores are notoriously marked with fascinating advice as to the 
types of sounds to be achieved. On the score of Kinkachoo, I Love You, 
Houghton writes  “with a sense of weightlessness; to hover and glow.” 
The score itself, only 2 pages long, is heavily peppered with expressive indications and markings, demonstrating Houghton's musically colourful understanding of the guitar. Houghtons works are often inspired by myths and nature. Underneath the title Houghton writes, “ … the Kinkachoo, a mythical bird, once wounded in the Spirit-Realm, heals and flies into the world.” This almost semi-programmatic dialogue can be interpreted in the musical structure, where the climax towards the end could be interpreted as being the mythical bird flying into the world. 
This kind of programmatic story telling is usually a special feature in Houghton's music, and is often done with very minimal compositional resources, but with maximum effect.


Un Viaje Mistico ... A Mysitcal Journey

Kinkachoo, I Love You by Phillip Houghton

William Lovelady has written works for guitarists Slava Grigoryan, Craig Ogden and Amanda Cook. Cook describes his music as evocative and atmospheric, resulting in a style that responds well to audiences. His use of clever techniques and unusual harmony results in music of great poignancy and nostalgia. The title of this work serves as a tribute to the devastating 1998 car bomb attack that occurred in the town of Omagh, Northern Ireland, killing 29 people and injuring 220. This work is an exemplary example of Lovelady's expressive harmonic language. It opens with an introductory section that displays a very unique writing style for the guitar.
It combines spaciousness with rapid flourishes that I find reminiscent of the 
ornamental figurations of an Irish Bagpipe. This section concludes with a thrice-repeated figure and transitions into a bass line that serves as the main 
motivic material for the rest of the work. Here Lovelady demonstrates a wonderful understanding of the tremolo which, combined with his expressive
harmonic vocabulary, creates a work that is easily appealing but still contains musical, aesthetic and expressive depth.


This Morning in Omagh the Sun Rose Again by William Lovelady

Daniel is a passionate performer, teacher, and pedagogue, and specializes in the performance practice of 18th and 19th century guitar music. His teaching and research aim to revitalize the concept of being a well-rounded musician, with emphasis on musical ideas that can lead to deeper interpretive understanding, and tools for composing and improvising.

Daniel constantly strives to promote guitar music that has not had the fortune of being widely performed, and his debut solo album Un Viaje Mistico... A Mystical Journey contains some hidden gems of the guitar's repertoire. Speaking on the inspiration for the album, Daniel says that “it is a testament to my experience learning under [teachers] Tonié Field and Dr. Donna Coleman at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music.” ​

Daniel has performed around the world, both as a soloist, and with his wife and flute partner as Duo Vela. Daniel's goal through performance is to spread greater awareness of the scope and expressive power that the guitar and its repertoire is capable of.

Daniel Nistico

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