This is the flagship book in Mel Bay's new "Achieving Guitar Artistry" series. Herein you will find an extensive collection of linear pieces with interesting melodic content. Frequent performance of these etudes will not only enhance technique, but offer the guitarist a wonderful opportunity to improve tone, touch and lyrical phrasing. We suggest playing each etude at a slow tempo at first, the goal being to achieve a clear and beautiful tone on every note. The next objective is to develop a sense of lyrical completeness to each musical phrase. Make the phrases sing! Once you have achieved the desired quality of tone and expression, increase the tempo to work on the technique. Mel Bay's Guitar Journals - Mastering the Fingerboard: The Reading Book (ISBN 9780786613687) would make an ideal supplement to Linear Guitar Etudes as it presents etudes in all keys and positions. The pieces in Linear Guitar Etudes are multi-positional. That is, the player will be required to move from position to position on the fingerboard. The music is presented in standard notation only, with left-hand fingering included on the more complex passages, and circled numbers to indicate the strings where certain notes and passages are to be played. These etudes sound good on both nylon and steel-string guitars, and will be a valuable addition to the music library of any guitarist, enhancing their abilities regardless of the style of music played.