Songs · Guitar · Beginner
Prelude in C
Matteo Carcassi (1792–1853) · Méthode complète pour guitare, Op. 59 (1836): Preludes in Progressive Keys, No. 1 in C major
Guitar · classicalfingerpickingC major4/4 time8 barsstandard tuning
Arranged: Teddy Rook Book: Carcassi’s notes as written; the bass is shown as a held half note under the arpeggio, as in the edition. Fingerings and dynamics left out.
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About this piece
Eight bars of broken chords from Carcassi’s guitar method, the kind of short prelude players used to warm up in a new key. Each half bar is one chord: the thumb (p) plays the bass note on the 4th, 5th or 6th string and lets it ring, then the index, middle and ring fingers (i, m, a) play the 3rd, 2nd and 1st strings. Hold the whole chord shape down for the half bar, so every note rings into the next.
What it practices
- p i m a arpeggios
- holding a chord while picking
- first position
- C, Am, Dm and G7 shapes
Chords in this song
C · C/E · Am · Am/C · Dm · Dm/F · G7 · G7/B · A7 · C/G
Each link opens the chord finder with more ways to play that chord.
Where the notes come from
Mutopia Project edition of Carcassi’s Preludes in Progressive Keys, Op. 59 (entered by Jeffrey Olson from the 1906 Oliver Ditson edition by G. C. Santisteban; public domain). Upper and lower voices read twice and compared with this file note by note.
How to practice with it
- Listen first. Press Play and follow along. The note being played lights up in the tab, in the notation and on the fretboard, and the chord being played lights up in the row of chord diagrams.
- Learn the chords. Press each diagram to hear it, then practice changing between them slowly.
- Slow it down. Use − and + to set the tempo. 60% is a good place to start; the notes keep their pitch.
- Loop the hard part. Under More…, turn on Loop, pick the bars, and play them a few times in a row. Count-in gives you a bar of clicks before it starts.
Click a bar in the music to start from there. Space plays and pauses. Left-handed? Turn on the left-handed view: the chord diagrams and the fretboard are mirrored to match your instrument. Tab reads the same either way: the top line is always the first (highest) string.