Hey!

Weaknesses are not necessarily a bad thing. Recognizing them, dealing with them, and developing yourself is what Leon Albert occupies himself (and us) with in his étude routine in this issue. The interview of the week also deals with how to maintain a healthy practice routine despite possible time constraints – when life around you gets louder. We hope you find the answers to our questions as inspiring and helpful as we did. We also have an album of the week that stands out from the crowd and focuses on interpersonal relationships, and in the video of the week, we stumbled upon a truly beautiful gem that enchants us in an unexcited way and swings us light-footedly into the progressing year. And if you're also in the mood for feel-good, check out the feel-good tune of the week. Instrumental playfulness of the finest kind!

Enjoy reading,
Stefan and Willi

YOUTUBE FIND OF THE WEEK
with Ine Clerckx

No detailed context, just a video that immediately put us in the right mood as we were browsing. Roland Dyens' Alba Nera, played by Ine Clerckx, is a great find: unexcited, but with a slight pull that makes it impossible to click away.

Dyens has arranged the piece as a habanera – a swaying pulse that carries you along and rocks you in a wonderful way. And then there's a detail that's worth knowing in advance because it's noticeable when you listen to it: scordatura. The 5th string is tuned up to B. It's such a tiny change, but the effect is not quite as small. The bass lines feel different, the voicings have different patterns, and the whole color shifts a little darker. Fitting, by the way, for the title: “Alba Nera” – meaning “black dawn.”

ALBUM OF THE WEEK
with Thibault Cauvin

Looking for something new? Here you go!

Classical guitar, but not exclusively…

Strong production, but by a producer who doesn't usually work on classical guitar albums…

Powerful story, but ... No buts!

„A true friend is like a second self“ (Cicero)

A close interpersonal relationship with another person often reflects part of one's own personality. In his latest release, Alter Ego, Thibault Cauvin shows us how enriching friendships – or, in a broader sense, encounters that leave a lasting impression – can be.

The 11 tracks on the album are like 11 characters. Like 11 persons Thibault Cauvin met in 11 different countries around the world. The pieces easily conjure up images of where these moments might have taken place.

One encounter of a different kind seems to have been particularly fruitful for the album: the collaboration with producer David Wrench. The production gives us an inspiring insight into how the classical guitar can be placed in new tonal contexts, thereby supporting the message of a piece on precisely this level.

We’re happy to have made all these acquaintances and can only say: give it a try!

MORNING-ROUTINE
A coffee with Leon Albert

Hi Leon, what’s the routine for this week?

Admit your own weaknesses and learn to deal with them.

INTERVIEW

“What matters is finding a structure that keeps you listening”

How to maintain a practicing routine when life gets busy

with Mercè Font
The start of the year is already slightly past, but we’re only minimally late to the party. And that’s kind of the point: routines don’t prove themselves on January 2nd, they prove themselves once real life picks up again and everything seems to happen at once.

Mercè recently posted a disarmingly honest YouTube video reflecting on her last year. Not the polished highlight reel version, more a real one, including the weeks where practice didn’t fit neatly into the day and consistency felt harder than it “should” be. That’s exactly why this is relevant for so many of us. Most guitarists aren’t struggling with motivation in theory, but with how to keep showing up when teaching, rehearsals, deadlines, travel, or simply life takes over.

We wanted to know what helps her keep practicing without turning it into another source of pressure, how she sets goals that actually carry her through a week, what a short but meaningful session can look like, and how to get back on track after you’ve missed a few days. As always, we end with our poster question.

Alongside the video, Mercè has also built a very practical practice tracker to help log routines and stay consistent. We’ll link it right below the interview.

Hi Mercè! When life gets busy, what’s the one thing that helps you keep practicing consistently without turning it into another source of pressure?
There are moments in life when everything becFomes loud. Deadlines, expectations, responsibilities all speak at once, and music can easily become just another demand. I learned that when this happens, practice cannot survive as obligation. It has to remain a personal space. For me, music is not where I prove anything, but where I remember who I am. So when life gets complicated, I do not ask how much I should practice. I ask how to reduce the distance between me and the instrument. That is where joy comes in, not as entertainment, but as curiosity. Sometimes that space is ten minutes, sometimes more. What matters is protecting the connection. If it stays alive, consistency follows naturally.

How do you define a practice goal that actually guides your week?
I don’t really define goals by the week anymore. Life doesn’t unfold in neat segments, so instead of forcing a structure that doesn’t always fit, I define goals per session. Each time I sit down with the guitar, I ask what deserves my attention right now. The answer depends on where I am in the life of a piece. At first, progress is mental: understanding the music, its direction and structure. I continue as long as that clarity grows, even if the fingers are not ready yet. If something is unclear, I stop and stay there. Once the piece is mapped in my mind, the work becomes adaptive, but never random. The goal is not to follow a plan at all costs, but to stay in contact with the music, attentive and intentional.

If you only have a short window (say 15–25 minutes), what should that session include so it still feels meaningful and moves you forward?
There was a time when I believed a meaningful practice session had to include everything: warm-up, technique, studies, repertoire. That structure can be powerful, but when life becomes unpredictable, failing at it too often creates frustration, and frustration breaks continuity. So I stopped asking how to fit everything in and started asking what pulls me toward the instrument. The answer is almost always music. If I have ten or fifteen minutes, I work on one specific issue, like a chord change or a bar. Those minutes accumulate. With half an hour, I take on something more complex, not expecting clarity, but progress. These short sessions keep practice alive.

What are your best strategies to avoid “autopilot practice” and stay motivated over months, especially after you miss a few days and need to get back into the flow?
Autopilot begins when listening stops, which is why music always comes before technique for me. One thing that helps a lot is being away from the instrument. When I walk with my dog, I go mentally through the pieces I am working on. Without the guitar, imagination is freer, and I often find musical ideas I would miss while playing. That is why I sing constantly when I practice and stay connected to sound. I also think in longer arcs and give myself time to bring a piece to life. When practice becomes irregular, a simple practice tracker helps me return without guilt by showing me where I left off. What matters is finding a structure that keeps you listening, not just repeating.

Imagine you could have one sentence printed on a poster to be put up in huge numbers at all the (classical) music festivals in the world. What sentence would that be?
Be patient with time, but demanding with intention.

FEEL-GOOD TUNE OF THE WEEK
with The Fearless Flyers

Whether it’s between rehearsals and lessons, after practicing, before a concert, or whenever you need it: put on your headphones, take a break from the noise, and feel good.

Our feel-good tune of the week!

OUTRO

Thank you for reading! Please send any suggestions or comments directly in response to this newsletter. In the next issue – we can reveal this much – there will be an exciting report on guitar making.

New music discoveries – including from artists we wrote about in today's issue – can be found, as always, in our Spotify playlist for the newsletter, which we've linked below.

Be kind to each other.

Stay tuned!

Stefan & Willi

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New Classical Guitar is a newsletter by Willi Leinen and Stefan Degel from TMBM. You can find our music and more information about our journey at http://t-m-b-m.com/.

On Spotify, we curate a playlist with our favorite pieces. Feel free to follow our New Classical Guitar Playlist at https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZwxJRAsW9Zs2JiS2eLy6a?si=9b2a737f01c043a4 and recommend new additions.