The Two little studies were written on 7th April 1975 when I was living in south Wiltshire, a few miles from that great and wonderful man, the late and much-lamented guitarist Julian Bream (1933-2020). We soon got to know each other as neighbours, and over the years became good friends. He was always very generous with technical advice on writing for the guitar, and edited two of my guitar pieces: Suite (written in 1976), and Solo, which he commissioned in 1985.

The Two little studies were a practice run for the Suite (which in some respects they resemble); and after writing them I completely forgot about them. They turned up in a trunk in 2009, and seem to me worth offering to the world, despite their miniature scale. Size, they say, is not everything. The first, Energy, is quick and bouncy, with a little repeated-note refrain; the second, Repose, is slower, and consists of a single legato line underpinned by bass-notes on the two lowest open strings.

Giles Swayne
2025