For some time now, I have been contemplating the purchase of a new guitar. It wasn’t out of dire necessity, but the desire for a new instrument was certainly there. However, this wasn’t just a craving for a new toy; there were practical reasons behind it. I play fingerstyle and with a thumb-pick in roughly equal measure. When playing fingerstyle, the strain on my fingernails is significant, and in recent years, I’ve noticed they break more easily than they used to. I wanted also the ability to amplify the guitar while maintaining the warm, characteristic tone of nylon strings. Additionally, as the years add up, a certain stiffness follows, making a slimmer guitar neck an undeniable advantage.

While searching for a suitable instrument, I came across the Yamaha NTX guitars and was quite impressed. I would likely have purchased one if they manufactured left-handed models. Unfortunately they don´t, the selection of left-handed guitars is notoriously slim. The NTX 900 and 1200 guitars are so-called “crossover” or hybrid guitars. After exploring the available options for a lefty, the choice stood between the Cordoba Fusion 5 and the Taylor 214ce-N. Taylor eventually was the one I chose.

My new guitar is strung with nylon, and the nut width is 48 mm—placing it right between the width of a traditional classical guitar (52 mm) and a steel-string guitar (43–45 mm). It features 14 frets to the body. The fretboard radius is slightly curved, much like a steel-string, rather than flat like a traditional classical guitar. It also features an integrated pickup system.

Guitar-like instruments have a history spanning millennia, but the story of the instrument as we know it today is somewhat shorter. Antonio de Torres, from Almería, Spain, is generally regarded as the father of the classical guitar. He made several key changes to the design and perfected his model between 1850 and 1860. Torres’ design allowed the guitar to become a fully-fledged concert instrument. Later, Francisco Tárrega refined the playing technique, and Andrés Segovia laid the foundation for establishing the classical guitar as a respected concert instrument.

However, despite Torres making the guitar more resonant, the classical guitar’s inherent challenge is its low volume compared to other instruments. Consequently, it is better suited as a solo instrument in smaller halls rather than in ensembles or large venues. Furthermore, it is relatively difficult to play and amplifying it without distorting the natural sound is a complex task.

Luthiers have long attempted to bridge the gap between different guitar types to combine their best features. Around 1960, Spanish luthiers experimented with bridging the gap between the classical guitar and the flamenco guitar. Both styles have desirable traits but also their limitations. The classical guitar is prized for its deep, singing tone and long sustain. The flamenco guitar lacks this, as its tone is sharp and percussive with short sustain. However, the flamenco guitar is easier to play because the action (string height) is much lower, allowing for faster playing—though this increases the risk of fret buzz. These experiments were driven by flamenco players who wanted more sustain without losing the playability of their instruments, a movement encouraged by the legendary Paco de Lucía.

At the same time, Bossa Nova—a low-key music style played in small Brazilian venues—was gaining popularity, and nylon-string guitars were central to that sound. As the genre grew, it moved into larger halls. Jazz guitarists, who previously favored steel strings, also began showing more interest in nylon strings. The problem remained: in larger venues, amplification was necessary, and doing it well was difficult. Initially, the only way was to place a microphone in front of the guitar. While this yields the most natural sound, it is often impossible in a live setting due to feedback.

Companies like Ovation and Takamine were pioneers in developing amplifiable hybrid guitars. This development was fueled by jazz, pop, and country musicians who wanted that nylon sound on large stages. Ovation’s first hybrid hit the market in 1971, followed by Takamine in 1979. While the Takamine wasn’t a “crossover” in the modern sense (it was essentially a classical guitar that could be plugged in), it was a milestone in pickup technology, allowing nylon strings to be amplified more effectively than ever before.

The next major turning point was the collaboration between Gibson and Chet Atkins. In 1981, this resulted in a nylon-string guitar with a pickup that produced zero feedback because it had no hollow acoustic chamber. The Godin Multiac guitars, appearing in 1991, were built on this same concept.

My Taylor guitar represents the next step in the evolution of hollow-body hybrid guitars that began with Ovation and Takamine. Taylor launched their NS (Nylon Series) in 2001. Around 2012, Taylor stopped defining hybrids as a separate line and began producing their Grand Concert and Grand Auditorium shapes in both steel-string and nylon versions. For example, you can get a Taylor 214ce steel-string, and its nylon counterpart is the 214ce-N—my new guitar.

Key innovations in the Taylor hybrids include a bolt-on neck, which makes neck resets and repairs much easier. ES-N electronics are also a departure from previous systems, capturing a very natural acoustic tone. Well, that’s what they say but I have not checked that out yet. While Taylor may not have invented the radiused (curved) fingerboard for nylon guitars, they likely deserve credit for making it a standard feature on hybrids.

As I write this, I have played the guitar quite a bit and feel the purchase was well worth it. The nylon strings are much gentler on my nails, and the playability is excellent; the neck isn’t as wide as a classical guitar but slightly wider than the steel-string I’ve played most in recent years (a Martin GPCPA4). I can feel the difference, but I actually find the slight extra width to be a positive thing. The tone is mellow, as one expects from a nylon string, but not too dark. This is thanks to the spruce top, which provides a brighter tone than a cedar top would. I am very satisfied with the Taylor’s unplugged sound. My next article will likely focus on how it sounds through my Fishman Loudbox Mini—the only acoustic amplifier I currently have access to.

All too often, I’ve chickened out of attending concerts I truly wanted to see and hear. I know my inherent stinginess is to blame. Which concert do I regret missing the most due to this personality flaw? That would be James Taylor’s performance at Harpa on May 18, 2012. There is something about Taylor’s music that draws me in. Perhaps it’s the combination of his silky-smooth baritone voice, his approach to the guitar, and lyrics that you just somehow relate to.

Textinn

By all accounts, the concert I mentioned earlier was a great success. Taylor played hit after hit, and he has certainly had many over his long career. One of the songs he performed was the one he owes everything to, Fire and Rain. Taylor wrote the song in 1968 for his second solo album, Sweet Baby James.

The lyrics consist of three verses, each reflecting Taylor’s thoughts from three different occasions. What the verses have in common is that they are deeply personal and describe a heavy state of mind. In an interview, Taylor once remarked that he probably wouldn’t write such personal lyrics today, knowing that millions would read and interpret them.

The inspiration for the first verse was the news of the suicide of his childhood friend, Suzanne Schnerr, months after it happened. At the time, he was working on his first album, and his family and friends withheld the tragic news so he could finish the record. Taylor wrote the second verse while undergoing treatment for depression and drug addiction. Finally, the third and last verse seems to deal with the tension between regret and the expectations of the fame and fortune that appeared to be just around the corner.

Lagið

The song, Fire and Rain, is very characteristic of Taylor’s music and his unique style. He plucks the guitar strings in a way that makes the accompaniment sound as if a pianist were at work. His thumb takes on the role of the pianist’s left hand, while his index, middle, and ring fingers act as the right hand. It is possible that his cello studies also influenced his style, as he learned to play the cello before picking up the guitar.

The chord progressions in the song are based on A major fingerings, but the song sounds in C major because Taylor plays with a capo on the third fret. Taylor often chooses to use these chord shapes and a capo so that the key suits his voice. Another reason might be how he wants to utilize the bass lines, or perhaps because the A major shapes make it easier for him to embellish the notes exactly the way he desires.

Fire and Rain’ is not a complex song on the surface. At first glance, one might assume it’s an ideal piece for beginning guitarists, but that’s not entirely the case. The chord progression in the verses is A, Em, D, A, Asus2, E, and G, while the chorus follows D, Bm, A, Asus2, D, and Bm in each line, except for the final line which ends on E and G. This sounds simple enough, but it isn’t if you want to sound like Taylor. To do that, you have to master the intro, which is so characteristic of the song, and use his specific fingerpicking style. The intro is likely the most complicated part of the song, but with patience, it can be mastered.

The arrangement I’m playing below is one I got from Six String Fingerpicking. It’s a guitar tuition website for those who want to play full fingerstyle arrangements of songs, featuring the bass, the inner voices, and the melody. Chris Murrin arranges all the songs, teaches how to play them, and sells the sheet music. I highly recommend this site. Of course, I cannot publish the sheet music itself as I don’t own the rights, but I can share the chord version, which you can find here.

Since I’ve started recommending guitar tuition sites, I must also mention two others that I use frequently: JustinGuitar and GuitarZero2Hero. Both of these sites offer great lessons for this song in simpler versions. On GuitarZero2Hero, the song is actually taught at three different difficulty levels.

Bing Crosby recorded the song „I’ll Be Home for Christmas“ in October 1943, along with the John Scott Trotter Orchestra. In 1943, the Second World War was in full swing, and a great number of American boys were far from their homes over Christmas. Homesickness must undoubtedly have plagued many a soldier, and that is what the lyrics are about. The song is a Christmas classic today, and the versions have become very numerous. On Spotify, the song is in fourteenth place for the number of versions of a Christmas song, and the versions on the streaming service have reached 9,318.

Kent and Gannon deserve credit for the music and lyrics, but Ram is always named as a co-author even though he has no part in it, neither in the music nor the lyrics. The reason is a lawsuit by his publishing company against Gannon and Kent. The lawsuit apparently came about because Ram had composed a song and lyrics for his mother with the same theme the year before and let his colleagues, Gannon and Kent, hear it. The law is a strange creature, because Ram’s music and lyrics are not at all similar to Gannon and Kent’s song. It can, however, be argued that Gannon and Kent stole the idea.

I decided to try my hand at the song to expand my chord collection. Furthermore, I have a obsession with wanting to have Icelandic lyrics, so I composed lyrics to the song. If you want to try it out, there is a chord and lyric sheet below the video.

I´ll Be Home For Christmas 2

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I have become completely convinced that playing scales is healthy and good, so now it is time to choose the first scale. Now the matter becomes difficult because scales await me, it seems, in endless rows. On which one would it be sensible to start? The omniscient World Wide Web gave me the answer.

Of course, I will start by learning the pentatonic scale because it is the oldest of them all. Probably over forty thousand years old. As evidence of this, there are old flutes made of vulture bones found in Germany. They were set up according to pentatonic scales. This scale is utilized in most types of music and is found in music from all corners of the world. It is the one that is used the most and, consequently, a very suitable scale to start with.

A traditional scale has seven notes, but the pentatonic has five. Intervals two and six in a traditional scale are omitted. For some reason, pentatonic scales work wonderfully when improvising over music, and most blues and rock guitar players rely heavily on this scale. Very many never take their scale exercises further, and that is just fine, but if the mind is set on jazz guitar or classical, then one must immerse oneself in traditional scales as well. Pentatonic scales, however, are very useful in blues guitar playing because one only needs to add an occasional “blue” note that gives the blues feeling. Most people start with the A minor pentatonic scale, so I will start my scale journey there.

The A minor pentatonic scale can be played in five positions on the guitar neck. Each position has its own pattern. Then you have to learn all the other scales in both major and minor. Certainly, this sounds overwhelming, but it is actually good news. When you have learned all five patterns and positions of the scale on the guitar neck, you actually know all the other minor scales because the patterns just move up and down the neck. Not only that. You also know the pentatonic major scales because their patterns are the same as in the A minor pentatonic scale, and the notes are the same. Except that the root is different. For example, the A minor scale and the C major scale are connected. If you intend to play a pentatonic C major scale, you just start on the C note. More on that later.

Pattern 1: A Minor Pentatonic Scale

The notes in the A minor pentatonic scale are A, which is the root, C, D, E, G. On the picture of the guitar neck, you see pattern 1 of the scale. Pattern 1 is played from the fifth fret.

The intervals in the A minor pentatonic scale are 3 – 2 – 2 – 3 – 2. If the intervals are thought of from the root, they are A – C = minor third, A – D = perfect fourth, A – E = perfect fifth, A – G = minor seventh.

When do you use the pentatonic scale?

If you are playing a song in the key of A minor and intend to decorate it with a riff or improvisation, it sounds good to use the A minor pentatonic scale. The chords in the A minor key are: A minor B dim C major D minor E minor F major G major

Practicing the scale

The first rule is, of course, to practice the scale slowly and not increase the speed until you have managed to play it flawlessly ten times. Memorize the pattern. At the very least, learn where the note is that is the root of the scale. Start and end on the lowest root note. Practice the scale with the fingering as it is written above. Practice the scale also by using the third finger instead of the fourth on the thinnest two strings. This is to be prepared to bend the notes. Use a metronome. Here are detailed explanations on Justinguitar regarding the pentatonic scale. Here form 1 is taught on Justinguitar. He is actually teaching a solo over blues. Then you use exactly this scale but just add the blue note.

Now it’s just a matter of starting to practice.

Just like so many, if not all, who are struggling to learn guitar, I have asked myself: Do I have to spend time playing scales? The answer to the question is no, if the goal is only to play accompaniment to singing using basic “cowboy chords.” If the goal is loftier, then the answer is a resounding yes. If you intend to become a nimble guitar player, scales are not something you skip practicing. The goal of practicing scales is not to be able to play them for others. Indeed, not a single person enjoys listening to you play scales. But wait! If no one enjoys listening to scales, what is the benefit? It is multifaceted. If we categorize it into three parts, there is benefit for understanding, benefit for memory, and benefit for technical proficiency.

Understanding

A scale is nothing more than a collection of notes arranged at specific intervals so that when the notes are played one after another, they sound good. Gradually, the ear learns to recognize the intervals, making it easier to figure out the key of a musical piece being played. Just as the alphabet is the basic unit for reading, scales are the basic unit in all music theory. Chords are built based on scales, so if you emphasize playing and understanding scales, you lay the foundation for understanding chord theory and music theory in general. Because of the connection between chords and scales, understanding scales is very helpful for composition and enables you to play improvisations over a chord progression.

Memory

Memory is patchy and can become a hindrance when playing songs and arrangements. This is especially true when playing under pressure. Songs and musical pieces are composed based on scales, so a good knowledge of them helps the memory. If the scales are practiced and fixed in memory, their patterns on the guitar neck are learned. Little by little, they become ingrained, and muscle memory strengthens. While you cannot rely entirely on muscle memory, it can be of great help.

Many a guitar player has played for years without knowing where all the notes are on the guitar neck. If you are diligent about practicing scales, you learn where the root notes are, and from them, the fretboard of the guitar is mapped out in your mind.

Technical Proficiency

Practicing scales is a good way to practice technical proficiency on the guitar. The coordination of both hands strengthens, and the flow between notes becomes more secure and even. The alternation between the fingers of the plucking hand becomes more secure and accurate, and if plucking with a guitar pick, the movement between strings and the correct use of the pick is trained. Practicing scales is a good way to practice playing fast but with precision at the same time. Proficiency in playing scales enables you to decorate the music you are practicing with riffs and solos, which can be quite fun. Furthermore, scales provide a clear vision and a sense of achievement, which becomes motivation to continue.

Now, I have been dabbling in guitar playing for quite a few years, and I wish I could say I have done everything prescribed here, but no. I have not done well at all. Now that is going to change. Scales will be played systematically from now on. This article was intended to answer the question: Why should I practice scales? And the answer is simply: Because it is good for you. The next question is: “How to practice scales?” That question will perhaps be answered in future articles when I tell of how I am doing with my scale exercises.

The hymn “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” was composed in 1739 by one of the founders of the Methodist Church, George Wesley. The hymn was intended as a Christmas carol and was meant to be performed to a slow, solemn tune that Wesley had commissioned. The lyrics most commonly performed today have undergone several changes from the text Wesley originally wrote. The first changes were made by Wesley’s colleague in the Methodist Church, George Whitefield, in 1753, but several additional changes have been made since then.

The tune originally intended for the lyrics is long forgotten and buried, and in its place is performed the second movement of the cantata Festgesang, which Felix Mendelssohn composed in 1840. In 1855, William H. Cummings adapted Mendelssohn’s tune to the lyrics, and that is the version we know with the lyrics today.

The lyrics are based on the Gospel of Luke, chapter 2, which tells of the arrival of the Savior. The lyrics begin with the word “Hark,” which at that time was a kind of opening word to catch the attention of those listening. The opening sentence of the English lyrics would therefore translate to: “Listen to the song of the angels.” When I was writing down and learning to play the version that accompanies this article, I went looking for Icelandic lyrics to replace the English ones. I found none, so I ask the music teacher in the staff room at Breiðagerðisskóli if he knows the lyrics to “Hark! The Herald...” and he answers: “Yes, ‘Hark up, Haraldur’” [a pun on the word Hark/Harkaðu]. I add a line: “here a pandemic will rage.” At the end of the workday, I receive an email from the music teacher, who had composed a continuation that is all about the trouble that the coronavirus is causing these years. I take the liberty of publishing that text here as well. Actually, the music teacher remembered an excellent Icelandic text by Ingólfur Jónsson from Prestbakki, “Friður, friður frelsarans” [Peace, peace of the Savior].

Hark The Heral Angels Sing1

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The song “Hallelujah” is Leonard Cohen’s best-known song. It was first released in 1984 on Cohen’s album, Various Positions. The song garnered little attention, and in fact, the record company that released Cohen’s work thought so little of it that they did not want to release it. The song made it onto the album anyway, but garnered little attention. A few people did notice it, however, and among them was Bob Dylan. He performed the song occasionally at his concerts, for the first time in 1988. John Cale of the Velvet Underground made the first cover of the song in 1991 after hearing the song at a Cohen concert. That cover garnered somewhat more attention than Cohen’s version. Jeff Buckley then heard Cale’s cover and made his own. That cover went on his album, Grace, which was unfortunately his first and last. This version was set to take the song to new heights. That did not happen immediately, however. It was not until after 2001, after it was used in the animated film Shrek, that the song truly took wing. Since then, an incredible number of artists have covered the song. Over 300 covers of the song are known, and numerous well-known artists have tried their hand at it. Buckley’s version is the one that is best known.

Leonard Cohen was fundamentally a trained literary scholar, poet, and writer. He went into music to make ends meet. No one can make a living being just a poet. It is therefore no surprise that he took his time with songwriting. He, of course, wanted his lyrics to have some depth and meaning. The story goes that in a conversation with Bob Dylan at a coffee house in Paris, he lied, saying it took him two years to compose “Hallelujah.” He probably felt it was a bit much to admit the truth, which was five years. Dylan, on the other hand, boasted that it took him fifteen minutes to write the song “I and I.” Another story says that Cohen sat in a hotel room at the Royalton Hotel in New York, banging his head on the floor in despair while writing the lyrics. He apparently wrote drafts of some eighty verses before a final result was achieved. In fact, there was no final result because he did not always use the same verses when he performed the song in concert.

In many of Cohen’s lyrics, there are references to the Bible, and in “Hallelujah,” there are several. However, the lyrics should not be understood as a religious text, because that is not at all the purpose of the references. The song’s lyrics, according to my understanding, revolve primarily around love, loss, and how love can change and fade over time. The religious references are a brilliant way to shed light on the complex and often difficult human emotions that arise when love is involved. The Hebrew word “hallelujah” is originally a religious word meaning “praise the Lord,” but in the song’s lyrics, that is not necessarily the meaning. Cohen himself said in an interview that various other meanings could be attributed to the word.

I became acquainted with Cohen’s work many years ago when I was struggling to learn a fingerpicked accompaniment to the song “Suzanne,” which is another song that many artists have performed. First Judy Collins, but then Cohen put the song on his own album, Songs of Leonard Cohen, in 1967. Other songs I knew by Cohen were “Dance to the End of Love” and “First We Take Manhattan.” The song “Hallelujah” did not catch my particular attention until a few colleagues at Selásskóli in Reykjavík decided to form a band to play friendship songs to accompany the students’ singing on friendship days at the school. It just so happens that there are lyrics for the song “Hallelujah” written by Unnur Halldórsdóttir that are about friendship. That, along with several other friendship songs, we then played to accompany the school’s students singing for many years. Amusingly enough, I found a recording of this playing.

The song “Hallelujah” begins after 4:44 minutes.

I have always wanted to gain proficiency in arranging songs for fingerstyle guitar. To gain that proficiency, one must, apparently, practice the sport. That is why I went to work and intended to find a song to arrange. I had decided to put together an arrangement of the song “Fire and Rain” by James Taylor, but for some reason, I had completely unexpectedly started arranging “Hallelujah.” The arrangement is, of course, very simple, as I can’t handle anything else. Usually, I play the song in G major, as I can manage to hum along then. Here you can find my attempt to play my own arrangement. I have always wanted to gain proficiency in arranging songs for fingerstyle guitar.

Every man, woman, and child in Iceland knows the lyrics about the nine Christmas lads and the tune it is sung to at Christmas parties every year. What the lyrics are about has always been a mystery, but now that puzzle is solved. Where, then, does the tune come from? Here, these questions are answered.

I don't remember exactly when I learned the lyrics to the folk song about the one and eight Christmas lads, but I was not old when it happened. Countless Christmas parties with the accompanying ring dance around the Christmas tree firmly planted the lyrics in my memory. To learn it, I drew pictures of its content in my mind. Soon, however, I began to question these lyrics. I thought they were, as indeed most people who read them do, somewhat strange.

The first image that came to my mind was of nine white-bearded men with red pointed caps walking through the snow down steep mountain slopes on their way to inhabited areas. It surprised me that the Christmas lads were said to be only nine. I thought I knew for sure that there were thirteen. When Jón Arason collected stories from Icelandic folklore in the mid-nineteenth century, he found records of three groups of Christmas lads. One group had nine men, another thirteen, and the third eighteen. In fact, in records regarding Christmas lads in Icelandic folklore, one can find over eighty names of Christmas lads and also some names of “Christmas maidens.” It is probably best to agree on the thirteen Christmas lads that first appear in records around the middle of the eighteenth century. Furthermore, it is nice to have consistency between the number of Christmas lads and the days of Christmas.

Let us now return to the folk song. Its lyrics have always been a mystery, but now it is possible that historian Lára Magnúsdóttir has solved it. She found the solution in the Saga of Bishop Árni, which was written in the fourteenth century and tells of events that took place in the latter part of the thirteenth century. At that time, there were fierce conflicts between royal power and church power in many places in Europe. The King of Norway had recently gained power in Iceland. His emissary, Loðinn leppur, submitted a new law book in the name of the king for approval at the Althing. Nine chieftains were not pleased with this law book, and they sent one of their group to Norway to plead their case and deliver a letter to the king with their arguments. The man who went to meet the king was named Loftur. He had some difficulty getting an audience with Eirik Magnússon, the “priest-hater,” who was then King of Norway. The case of the nine men from Iceland was likely considered trivial because much was going on in Norway at the time due to disputes between the king and the church. “The nine Christmas lads” is probably a reference to these nine Icelandic chieftains.

The second image the child drew in their mind was of Jón the farmer at Völlur following closely behind the nine men. I actually always sang the lyrics wrong, because in my version, the Christmas lads were always ahead of Jón from Völlur. I also envisioned the Christmas lads making camp somewhere in the mountains the night before they came down to inhabited areas. In all likelihood, the lyrics of the folk song are referring to the fact that Loftur finally delivered the letter of the nine men at Jónsvellir in Norway, and that they went to bed refers to Loftur waiting to get an audience. These Jónsvellir are an area of land that was owned by the monastery in Bergen, Norway.

Who is this Andrés? The child, of course, pictured Donald Duck, as he was the main literary hero of my childhood. I always pictured him standing aside, watching the Christmas lads go by. The lyrics of the folk song do not, of course, refer to Donald Duck, but to Andrés Pálsson. This Andrés was one of the chieftains in Norway who fought against the increased power of the church. The Archbishop in Norway excommunicated Andrés. Andrés then died excommunicated in 1282 or 1283. The fact that he died excommunicated meant that his body could not enter a church, and he could not be buried in a churchyard. The child, of course, saw genuine Icelandic trolls come down the mountain slopes and snatch Donald Duck away as he stood watching the Christmas lads. His fate was, in other words, to be eaten by trolls. However, the trolls in the song do not refer to the monstrous beings that Icelandic trolls are, but rather to outlaws, and the chieftain was supposed to rest among them according to the church’s judgment.

The child’s last image was of a beautiful country church. The sound of the church bells echoed through the mountains when the Christmas lads came to inhabited areas, and the bells rang in Christmas. Reality was not quite so beautiful. People were not pleased that the fate of Andrés Pálsson was to be buried among outlaws, so they forced the body into the church. In that scuffle, it is said that one church pillar broke, but the intended goal was achieved. Andrés received a church burial, and the church bells were rung.

The English lyrics

The American lyrics of the song begin as a high-flown elegy. Clementine's lover seems to be mourning her death deeply. Soon, however, the lyrics sour, and humor becomes dominant. As early as the second verse, the focus shifts to the unfortunate girl's feet. Oversized feet, shoes made of boxes, and a splinter in her toe cause her to plunge into the river. The lover stands on the bank and refrains completely from trying to save her. Either the love did not run deep, or courage was lacking. Clementine drowns and is laid to rest in a graveyard where she fulfills her final role on this earth: to be fertilizer for the earth's vegetation. The miner, the girl's father, also dies and rests beside his daughter. At first, memories of the lover's caresses haunt him, but since she has become a decomposed corpse, he no longer deems it appropriate. He therefore begins courting his deceased lover's sister, and then Clementine is quickly forgotten.

The lyrics are extremely bleak, and many things in them are on the verge of moral decency. For that reason, it is now hardly considered a suitable nursery rhyme. It is rather amusing that this song and lyrics have often been used in exactly that way. Many an American grew up with their parents singing these lyrics to them. I must say, the Icelandic lyrics are better. Although they were considered incomprehensible, they do not raise many moral questions like the American ones do. At least the images I drew in my mind as a child when I learned the Icelandic lyrics were very innocent. What images, I wonder, are drawn in the mind of an American child?

Be that as it may, it is believed that the lyrics, and indeed the tune as well, were composed by Percy Montrose in 1884. Whether he is the original author is not clear, because sometimes Barker Bradford, who published a similar tune and lyrics in 1885, is credited with the honor. Furthermore, the lyrics to the song “Down by the River Liv´d a Maiden” from 1863 by Henry S. Thomson are often pointed out as a possible influence. It is also possible that the lyrics were composed under the influence of a song that was extremely popular among Spanish miners at this time. That was the song “Romance del Conde Olinos o Niño,” which was a tragic love song. Those lyrics were composed by Gerald Brenan, a British writer who lived most of his life in Spain.

The Song

The song is an extremely simple composition. It is played in three-four time, and each verse is eight bars long. It is most often played in F major, but of course, the key does not matter because a key is just a key. Nothing is right or wrong in that regard. If the song is played in F major, it is sufficient to use three chords: F, C7, and Bb—the I, V, and IV chords of the circle of fifths.

If you want to play the song using C major chord shapes while still in the key of F major, you place a capo on the fifth fret. The chords would then be C, G7, and F. Then, of course, the song can be played in various other ways. For example, by spicing up the chord progression and adding ii and vi chords in bars five, six, and seven, and playing the V chord as a major chord rather than a dominant seventh chord. This is how it would sound. The simple version first.

Sound samples

This song has traveled far and wide and been used on various occasions. For example, as a New Year's song for Jews and Chinese, as a military march for Germans, as a fight song for sports clubs and political forces, and last but not least, as a Christmas tree song at Icelandic Christmas parties. The song has often been heard in films and television shows, and numerous artists have made it their own. The first known recording is from 1942, performed by Bing Crosby.

The song “Dust in the Wind” was written in 1977 by Kerry Livgren for Kansas’ album Point of Know Return. Actually, it wasn’t quite the case that he wrote the song specifically for the album; his wife heard him playing a guitar exercise and nudged him to write lyrics for it and show it to his bandmates. He was reluctant because he felt the song didn’t fit with what the band was doing at all.

As the band was about to finish recording the album, the producer felt something was missing and asked the band members if they had any more songs tucked away. Livgren played “Dust in the Wind,” albeit hesitantly. To his surprise, the other band members were thrilled, and the song made it onto the album. It is true that the song is not at all typical for the band Kansas. It is therefore somewhat embarrassing that this is the song people remember when the band is mentioned.

The song’s philosophical lyrics deal with human existence and the fact that all our life struggles are quite insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Worldly wealth changes nothing because it all goes the same way. Every person who lives will eventually die, and what they leave behind becomes nothing. Just like dust blowing away in the wind.

The song is simple but mesmerizing. Kansas performed the song with two guitars, a violin, and a viola. The arrangement played here is a fingerstyle arrangement for one guitar, created by Sungha Jung. The chords are simple, and I picked them up quickly, but it took longer to get the speed up in the plucking hand. Actually, I haven’t mastered the song properly yet. The barre chord in the solo section keeps tripping me up.

Dust In The Wind

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When I first started learning to play the guitar, I bought the instructional book The Complete Guitar Player, Book 4. According to the book, I was supposed to be a fairly accomplished player after working my way through it. Well, I can’t say the book lived up to that promise; I was still a very stiff and clumsy player, even after laboring through all the songs in it. One of those songs was “Streets of London” by Ralph McTell. Many years later, when some colleagues and I were asked to prepare a performance for the staff Christmas party, I remembered this excellent song. It fit the poem Tindátarnir (”The Tin Soldiers”) by Steinn Steinarr perfectly. We decided to perform the poem accompanied by the music of the song. I wrote a simple arrangement, and you are welcome to download it if you would like to play it.

McTell wrote the song in 1967 and intended to include it on his first album, Eight Frames a Second, but decided against it because of the song’s depressing lyrics. The first recording dates back to 1969, when McTell recorded it for his second album, Spiral Staircase. In 1970, the song was released as a single and became immensely popular. For a period, it was selling over 90,000 copies a day. Over 200 artists have covered the song, including artists such as Bert Jansch, Sinéad O’Connor, Cliff Richard, and Roger Whittaker. Fifty years after he wrote the song, McTell recorded it again with Annie Lennox and the Crisis Choir. You can listen to that version here.

In the lyrics, McTell paints pictures of the lives of the homeless on the streets of London. These images were likely formed in his mind while he was busking across Europe. Interestingly, the lyrics were originally meant to be about the street people of Paris, as McTell had spent a lot of time playing there. When he discovered that a song called “The Poor People of Paris” already existed, he adapted the lyrics to London. Of course, the lyrics apply just as well to life on the streets of that city.

Streets Of London

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After the rainy year of 2018, I am suffering from a serious case of the “rainy day blues.” This should come as no surprise, as it rained for over 260 days in the southwest corner of the country last year. To top it off, our basement flooded late in the year, causing significant damage. Today is the First Day of Summer, and the weather is beautiful, but the spring has been wet. It is therefore quite fitting that the first song I learned to play on the guitar in the new year is a “rainy day blues.”

The lyrics to the song Deep River Blues tell of a man’s despair due to a nearby river flooding after a period of heavy rain and the troubles caused by the rising waters. I was curious to know when the song was written and what inspired it. I can’t say I found entirely conclusive information. At first, I read that the spark was the catastrophic flooding of the Mississippi River in 1927. During those floods, levees broke and the river overflowed across 60,000 square kilometers. Hundreds of thousands of people lost their homes, and over 250 people perished. The Delmore Brothers recorded the song in 1933 under the title “Big River Blues.” They claimed to have written it, though there is some debate as to whether that is true. It is quite possible the song was influenced by the Mississippi flood disaster. However, the lyrics reference the town of Muscle Shoals, which sits on the Tennessee River. Therefore, I find it more likely that the Tennessee River was the original inspiration.

I stumbled upon the song in the December 2011 issue of Acoustic Guitar magazine. It featured an arrangement by Doc Watson, which he released in 1964. In an interview, Watson said he first heard the song performed by the Delmore Brothers and loved it. However, he couldn’t get the song to sound right on a single guitar—not until he discovered “Travis picking” by hearing Merle play, where the thumb constantly hops between bass notes. Watson claimed he practiced this for ten years before adding the melody. He is undoubtedly exaggerating there. Watson plays the song using his thumb and one finger, though he points out that it is more sensible to use all the fingers. He also recommends muting the bass strings. I don’t do that, as I would have to practice for ten years just to make it sound halfway decent.

You can find plenty of videos online of various guitarists tackling the song, as it is immensely fun to play. One of them is the Australian guitar virtuoso Tommy Emmanuel. His version is featured below the video of me playing the Doc Watson arrangement.

Deep River Blues

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Deep River Blues Hljomar

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Mazurka in g minor is one of Frederic Chopin’s last works. Probably composed in the winter of 1848 or spring of 1849 shortly after his last Paris concerto and tour to England and Scotland. Chopin’s mind was rather heavy at the time, like a sentence in a letter he sent to Wojciech Gzymala during the tour witnesses. It’s like the world has somehow passed me by. What happened to my art during the meantime, and what did I squander my heart into?”

This composition by Chopin is simple and not at all complicated to play. The song starts with a clean, clear melody which is rather cheerful. Then a slightly more raw section with a less decisive melody takes place. That section is accompanied by an incredibly sweet low-pitched melody that then leads to the same melody the song started on. Although the song sounds rather cheerful, somehow it feels like its undertone is rather sad. Perhaps it’s just because you know what Chopin’s state of mind was at that time.

Mazurka’s simplicity in g minor is typical of Chopin’s last compositions, but by the end simplicity dominated his composition. This song is the last song my daughter played under the guidance of Anna Málfríður, piano teacher at Sigursveinn Music School in Reykjavik. Anna Málfríður has been teaching her for the past eight years and proved to be an excellent teacher, always encouraging and patient.

Below, Lilja plays Mazurka in g minor by Chopin at the spring concert of the Sigursveinn Music School in Fella- og Hólakirkja.

One Saturday night a few years ago, my wife and I were sitting in front of the screen watching the 2007 movie August Rush. In the film, a little musical prodigy plays the song “Moondance” by Van Morrison. “Exactly right,” I thought, “this is a great song.” I went online and found an arrangement for guitar. I learned part of it but never properly finished it.

The other day, I found this arrangement again and decided it was time to finish the job. I looked up more arrangements and combined two of them into the one I aim to learn. If I finally manage to play the song decently, I will add a video recording of the performance to this article.

The song “Moondance” by Northern Irish musician Van Morrison was released in 1970 on the album of the same name. The album is considered exceptionally good and reached 65th place on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 best albums of all time. The song itself reached 224th place for the best songs of all time. Morrison has not made it a habit to boast about his work. Regarding the song “Moondance,” he has said nothing more than that it was composed on the saxophone.

Moondance Plokkud Utgafa

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Moondance Hljomar

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“Shape of My Heart” is the tenth track on Sting’s fourth solo album, Ten Summoner’s Tales. Sting co-wrote the song with Dominic Miller, who has played over a thousand concerts with Sting since 1990. Sting wrote the lyrics himself.

The profound lyrics deal with the consequences of hiding one’s persona and emotions behind a mask that is never removed. In the world of a poker player, such a tactic yields results, but in human relationships, people find themselves in trouble if they behave this way. Sting uses perfect contrasts to demonstrate this: the faceless poker player versus the lover. In my opinion, it is a brilliant text.

I play the song by fingerpicking the accompaniment during the verses but strumming the chords during the chorus (”I know that the spades...”). As an intro, I fingerpick the verse accompaniment once before I begin singing. In the video below, Miller plays the melody on the B string, though he sometimes plays it on the G string, as in the original recording. It could also be played on the high E string, which would naturally be the simplest way. If you click the image to the side, a PDF should open with the chords and notation where the melody is played on the B string.

Unless you are particularly nimble-fingered, it can take some time to master the stretch in the fretting hand. Measures one, nine, and eleven require an overstretch, but with patience as your weapon, it can be done. Measure eleven is the most difficult; there, the middle finger must hammer the B note on the fourth fret of the third string while the index finger holds the A note on the second string. It can take time to get the B to ring out properly. It is important to let the last note in each measure ring long enough, so care should be taken not to rush the chord changes. We want a good flow in the music, not a staccato feel to the performance.

Shape Of My Heart

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In 1997, at the age of 56, Bob Dylan released the album Time Out of Mind. The album is considered exceptionally successful; it won three Grammy Awards and effectively put Dylan back on the map. Critics found few flaws on the record, with the notable exception of track number nine—a low-key, simple, old-fashioned love song titled “Make You Feel My Love.”

The analyses of critics can hardly be considered the sacred truth. Their profound speculations are not necessarily in sync with what the average music lover is thinking. The listener listens to music to be moved. This certainly applies to track nine on this stellar album. No other song on the record has taken flight quite like “Make You Feel My Love.” Numerous musicians saw something in the song that the critics missed and created their own versions. Among them are performers no less distinguished than Billy Joel, Adele, Garth Brooks, Bryan Ferry, and Kelly Clarkson.

The list of those who have tackled this song is endless. However, it didn’t reach my ears until Sara Pétursdóttir performed it brilliantly in the National Singing Competition for Secondary Schools (Söngkeppni framhaldsskólanna) in 2014. Shortly thereafter, my daughter played a piano version of the song at her music school. That’s when it occurred to me to check if there were any fingerstyle guitar arrangements available. There proved to be no shortage of such arrangements. A vast multitude of people have tried their hand at playing it and posted it online. I chose an arrangement by Ulli Boegerhausen, transcribed it, and learned to play it, as can be heard in the video below. Strictly speaking, I probably shouldn’t include the arrangement with this article, but I’ll take the liberty since it is easily accessible in many places on the web. My notation is likely somewhat different from the original, as I didn’t use Boegerhausen’s sheet music when I wrote it down and probably changed a thing or two here and there.

When discussing a song by Dylan, one cannot avoid reflecting a little on the lyrics. The lyrics to “Make You Feel My Love” are not complex. They deal with love, the sacrifices the narrator is willing to make for it, and the longing for that love to be reciprocated. As with most of Dylan’s lyrics, one can find references suggesting it is more multifaceted than it first appears. Some have pointed out strong Biblical references, suggesting the narrator is Jesus Christ. Others have noted that the lyrics revolve around the narrator’s wretched state of mind and may even be rooted in Dylan’s divorce from his wife a few years earlier. Whatever meaning one derives from the text, it’s worth keeping in mind what Dylan himself said: “The meaning of the lyrics changes as time passes. People can find different meanings in them depending on their circumstances at any given time. They are multilayered.”

Make You Feel My Love

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Make You Feel My Love1

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I would be slow to admit that the fine duo Wham! was ever a particular favorite of mine. However, I must concede that the song “Last Christmas” has been an inseparable part of the run-up to Christmas since my wife and I started our household. It was released in 1984. Still, it’s arguably incorrect to classify it as a Christmas song, as the lyrics have very little to do with Christmas itself. “Last Christmas” became immensely popular but notably failed to reach number one on the charts; the song “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” prevented that. Such is its popularity, however, that no other song that failed to reach number one has sold better.

Our daughter started playing the song on the piano before Christmas 2015, so I thought it ideal to find a simple arrangement and try to play along with her. I found one in C major on goliathguitartutorials.com, and to play along with the piano, I raised the key to D major by placing a capo on the second fret. Here you can hear us attempting to play the song together.

Below, I play the arrangement as an accompaniment to a video intended to be an overview of what the family has been up to during the year 2017. I play the song with a capo on the second fret, putting it in the same key as the original version. The performance is far from flawless. I didn’t quite manage to practice the song to perfection but really wanted to get it onto the web before the year was out. The audio recording matches the playing—not quite good enough, as the bass is a bit too aggressive. Again, I ask for forgiveness and refer to it as a learning process.

I then noticed that at the end of the video, I spelled the Icelandic word svona (”so/like this”) with two ‘v’s. I dare not ask for forgiveness for that, because such an error is unforgivable. The fact that it remains uncorrected is down to sheer laziness; I simply can’t be bothered to fix it.

I have sometimes wondered if arranging songs for fingerstyle guitar is difficult. For a long time, I intended to see if I had what it takes. However, I never got around to it until this December, when I sat down and arranged “Last Christmas.” I actually had a portion of the song arranged from when my daughter and I played it together in 2015. I decided then to sit down and arrange the rest. Armed with stubbornness, I managed to complete the arrangement you can hear here. Since this is the first and only song I have ever arranged, it’s to be expected that some errors have crept in. That must be forgiven, as errors are an important part of the learning process. If anyone would like to make use of this arrangement, they are more than welcome to do so.

Last Christmas Gitarutgafa

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Last Christmas

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The lyrics to the song “Here Comes the Sun” are uplifting and inspire hope for better times. While the melody is simple and catchy, the rhythm is quite unique. The verses and chorus are in 4/4 time, but during the bridge, the meter jumps to 2/4, then 3/8, 5/8, and finally back to 4/4. It feels rather complex. The chords are in the key of D major, but Harrison played them with a capo on the 7th fret, making the song sound in A major.

Positivity and optimism characterize this composition by Harrison, though that was hardly the atmosphere within the band at the time it was written. Following the death of Brian Epstein, the members had to handle the business side of things themselves, which likely didn’t suit them well. George, in any case, was bored to death by these business meetings. The atmosphere wasn’t helped by the fact that John and Paul were constantly bickering over whom to hire to sort out their finances.

George himself recounted that he once skipped one of these tedious meetings. Instead, he visited his friend Eric Clapton, who lived in Surrey, England, at the time. In Clapton’s backyard, he composed the song on one of Eric’s guitars. He said the spark for the song was the relief of being out there in the sun rather than at the meeting. Personally, I find it more likely that the sun itself was the catalyst; we all know how one’s spirit lifts just by seeing the spring sun break through after a long and dark winter.

At the height of Beatlemania between 1961 and 1967, the collaboration between the four was renowned. One would bring a song idea, and the others would improve upon it with their criticism, comments, and suggestions. After 1967, this began to change. “Here Comes the Sun” was recorded for the Abbey Road album at Abbey Road Studios in July and August of 1969. John was nowhere near the recordings, as he was either recovering from a car accident or simply being stubborn, as he was not very willing to play on George’s songs at that time. Paul and Ringo, along with George, recorded the bass, drums, and rhythm guitar on July 7th, and on the 8th, Paul helped with the vocals. George then handled the rest.

I learned to play “Here Comes the Sun” many years ago and, for some reason, I never get tired of it. I play the song in a fingerpicked arrangement, whereas George played it with a guitar pick. In both cases, the melody is played throughout. I had never considered playing the song with a pick before. It occurred to me that it might be a good exercise to try and master it that way as well, so now I am practicing playing the song with a pick.

Below is a recording of me playing “Here Comes the Sun.” Here, I am using a capo on the 7th fret, though sometimes I just play it in D major.

Here Comes The Sun

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The students at Laugalækjarskóli must complete one major final project before graduating from the tenth grade. Our daughter and her friend decided to write their project on musical genres, which I thought was an excellent choice as both are studying piano. In addition to writing about different musical styles, they decided to compose one individual song each and one together, which they then performed as a piano duet.

I found this very ambitious of them; not only did they have to compose the pieces and practice performing them, but they also had to learn how to transcribe the music using notation software and build a website to submit their work. For those who are curious, you can view their website here. At the bottom of the page, there is a link to their sheet music and recordings.

While working on the project, they were also studying for various exams. My daughter composed her piece at the same time she was studying for a math exam, which is why the song is titled Mathematics in Major and Minor.

Below, our daughter performs “Mathematics in Major and Minor” on the grand piano in the assembly hall at Breiðagerðisskóla. Her friend watches with “great interest”.

Bob Dylan wrote the song “Mr. Tambourine Man” in the early part of 1964. He recorded it the following year for the album Bringing It All Back Home. That same year, The Byrds recorded their own version of the song. Their version hit the top of the Billboard charts and remains the only Dylan song to ever reach number one.

The version included with this short article is based on Dylan’s rendition. However, I have included the notes for the interlude between the chorus and the verses from The Byrds’ version, should anyone want to play around with that. In the original version, Dylan played the song with a capo on the third fret. This makes it sound a minor third higher than the chords suggest, but of course, one should choose the pitch that suits the singer’s range. Personally, I find it difficult to sing the song in F, so I lower it slightly and place the capo on the second fret. Dylan tuned his low E-string down a whole step to D. I imagine the purpose was to increase the possibilities for interesting bass lines in the accompaniment. In any case, it works well to utilize the low E-string (tuned to D) when playing both the D and A chords, and to occasionally strike a Dsus2 or Dsus4 to embellish the D chord.

Many have speculated that the song’s lyrics are about drugs, but Dylan has corrected that himself. Seeing Bruce Langhorne arrive at the recording studio with a large Turkish drum adorned with bells sparked certain impressions in Dylan and became the inspiration for the lyrics. The lyrics are pure genius, like most of Dylan’s writing, and I believe they have much more depth than if they were simply about an acid trip. This same Bruce played the counter-melody heard in Dylan’s 1965 recording.

One can, of course, ponder endlessly what Dylan meant, and there is no guarantee that such speculation hits upon what he was thinking when he wrote it. The lyrics were written following the Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans. The song begins with the chorus, where the narrator speaks to the man with the tambourine, asking him to sing so the narrator can be carried away. Right from the chorus, one gets the feeling that the song is about loneliness.

The first verse continues to deal with loneliness, and one senses emptiness and weariness. It’s easy to imagine the narrator being tired in soul and body after the previous day’s festivities, with these feelings emerging as the calm set in. It was the second verse that sparked ideas about the song being about drugs, but I believe the lyrics simply refer to a desire to escape from everything—a longing many feels when under great pressure and wanting to find relief. In those moments, it’s good to have someone you can trust completely and follow blindly to a better place. The “Tambourine Man” is a reference to such a person. One could also imagine the tambourine man as a personification of music in general, acting as the remedy for worry and exhaustion.

Tambourine Man

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