I Saw Three Ships (Come Sailing In)(Solo Guitar with TAB) (arr. Antony Cull)

by Traditional English Carol

Guitar Tab - Digital Sheet Music

Product Description

'I Saw Three Ships (Come Sailing In)' arrangement for solo guitar by Antony Cull.

Introduction

This arrangement is aimed at intermediate level guitarists with a good control of natural harmonics and basic fingerstyle. The whole piece has the harmonic structure written in the chords above, which can be strummed by another player to turn the piece into a duet. Alternatively you can use these chords to accompany a singer and add the solo guitar arrangement as a introduction.

Performance Notes

The first section outlines the basic harmony, often omitting notes from the chords above, to outline the melody. To keep each section distinct, keep the pace of this section slow and expressive.

The next section has a celtic inspired feel, with the constant quavers throughout to drive the piece forward. Note the increase in tempo, but adjust to a comfortable speed for your ability as you are mostly aiming to play faster then the introduction. Practice this section slowly at first, taking time to choose the most comfortable finger position. Once you have the fingering locked in, work on making the melody pop out from the over all picking pattern, relax the attack on the thumb to help this.

The third section uses natural harmonics to play the melody. To play a natural harmonic place you fretting finger lightly on the string above the stated fret. As you pick the string, remove your you finger and you should get a bell like tome that sounds a different pitch to the open string. Let each string ring out after each harmonic is played over the subsequent notes until another note is played on that string. In bar 19 and 23 there is a single fretted note so be prepared to switch technique on a dime. This will create a rich harp like feel to the piece that will give a really christmassy feel.

The only big change in the coda is a gentle ritardando and an arppegiated harmonic across three strings. Gently place a finger across the three strings and role them off the as they are picked.  

Final Thoughts

I am a really big fan of tight arrangements and love constructing arrangements for my students. One of my greatest challenges is creating performance pieces for guitarists that don't sing. This is especially ponient during the holidays when everyone wants to hear all the classics. This piece is extremely musical and the harmonics are a real crowd pleaser. 

If you would like to know more about my music and the other arrangements and transcriptions, you can visit my website at www.antonycull.co.uk 

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