{"id":9903,"date":"2018-05-07T15:42:46","date_gmt":"2018-05-07T22:42:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/classicalguitarmagazine.com\/?p=9903"},"modified":"2021-02-04T13:39:41","modified_gmt":"2021-02-04T21:39:41","slug":"music-to-play-kevin-lutkes-two-part-etudes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/classicalguitarmagazine.com\/music-to-play-kevin-lutkes-two-part-etudes\/","title":{"rendered":"Music to Play: Kevin Lutke’s \u2018Two-Part Etudes\u2018"},"content":{"rendered":"
FROM THE SUMMER 2018 ISSUE OF CLASSICAL GUITAR<\/em><\/a><\/h6>\n

New Jersey\u2013based guitarist Kevin Lutke tells us a little about himself and this issue\u2019s piece:<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

I come from a musical family and started playing guitar at age 12. However, I didn\u2019t get serious about it until I was introduced to jazz guitar in my late teens. I went to William Paterson University in New Jersey and earned a bachelor\u2019s degree in Jazz Guitar, and that\u2019s also where I was first exposed to classical music. Later, after a period of playing, teaching, and recording (electric guitar), I went back to school to get my master\u2019s in composition from NYU.<\/p>\n

At that point, my love for 20th century classical music (especially French composers such as Ravel, Debussy, Satie, and Milhaud) became an important influence on my composition style\u2014I tried to incorporate 20th century techniques into my jazz writing. I\u2019d always had a fondness for the music of Bach, too, mostly from sight-reading material in school. Finally, I started listening to some classical-guitar music, and to my surprise also started composing for solo guitar. I had always loved Ralph Towner\u2019s music and sound, so that\u2019s probably why I chose the nylon-string rather than steel-string. I have always approached learning a new style of music by trying my hand at composition. So, after grasping the basics of fingerstyle guitar, I got as many books of classical guitar music as I could find. Of course, some Bach was always included, and I was especially drawn to his two-part counterpoint, even though it was difficult to play at first. <\/span><\/p>\n

I recorded my first set of solo classical-guitar works\u2014Seven Pieces in the Ancient Modes<\/i>\u2014on my 2014 CD, Where Are You Now<\/i>. The Two-Part Etudes<\/i> were the next pieces I wrote. I had written a simple melody as reading material for my students, covering all the natural notes in the first position. The main melody is the top part of the \u201cPrelude\u201d and bottom line of the \u201cBourr\u00e9e.\u201d I did a counterpoint to that, and the other pieces are all variations of that melody. Slight octave adjustments have been made. One of the keys to these pieces is to play in a legato style using open strings whenever possible. Tempos can vary according to your level and preference. I performed the pieces for Paul Galbraith last year and he said they were neo-classic in design.<\/span><\/p>\n