In The Bleak Midwinter - fingerpicking solo arrangement
It's Christmas Special time, and this year I've gone for a pretty fingerstyle rendition of a festive classic. Hope some of you will enjoy getting this one together. Tab can be found below.
Since questions for my prospective Q&A session were pretty thin on the ground, I think I'm going to leave that now until the New Year. Which means this will be the final video of 2025. Thanks so much to everyone on here for the fantastic support. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, see you in 2026.
-Adrian
In The Bleak Midwinter - Christmas Special - Beautiful fingerpicking arrangement (YouTube)
Comments (39)
Very effective lesson for those of us who spend most of our playing time on electric guitar. It almost seems like two different instruments :-) Challenging, but once I picked up the timing it got easier. Then of course you change it up the second time around. All of it very useful, thanks for that excellent lesson. Nice triads too.
Thank you for all you do, Merry Christmas to you and yours!
Hi Adrian many thanks for the good stuff you have put out this . Wishing you all the best for Christmas & New Year. Looking forward to learning more in 2026.
Merry Christmas and thanks for another inspiring year. Here’s to 2026
Just lovely Adrian - thanks so much
I always look forward to your Christmas tune. Thank you and Merry Christmas!
Lovely tune. It always amuses me that half the planet doesn't realise the other half is experiencing summer at Christmas and celebrating the holiday season with warm weather at the beach! Merry Christmas to you all!
Nice video Adrian. Bit tricky for me but I'll keep plugging away. By the way, on a pedantic note, surely it's Christmas 2025 not 2026? Anyway, whatever the year, have a good one.
Thanks Anthony. Oops, yes I've fixed that now - I've been planning New Year videos this week so my head was already in 2026!
Nice choice Adrian. This has been a favourite since I first heard Bert Jansch’s version.
Thanks, yes the Bert version is one of my favourites too!
My favourite carol. 😃 Thanks for this Adrian. Merry Christmas!
Cheers Steve, Merry Christmas!
Beautiful tune and playing. Thank you, Adrian. Merry Christmas and a Happy 2026 to you and yours!
Thanks Anthony, Merry Christmas to you too!
Thank you, Adrian. I'm a recent addition to your online family. Wishing you and yours a blessed and peaceful Christmas.
Thanks Jeff Jeff, Merry Christmas!
Happy Peaceful Holidays
Thanks Jim, Merry Christmas!
I m sorry to ask you this but could you ever do a lesson that throws more light on chords to use to support a melody for example the melody here over the f chord is 2326 and so I would have guessed dm and that’s exactly why I can’t ever do anything! So can you suggest a course for me?
Yes, this is a huge subject so I could easily devote a video or an entire course to it! I've touched on it in my videos but not really addressed in anywhere in a lot of detail. One thing to bear in mind is that the notes can be seen in relation to the key and also in relation to the harmony at any given moment. So the melody is indeed 2326 in terms of the C major scale. But those notes are 6763 in relation to the F root. And there are multiple way to harmonise a melody. Dm would actually work just as well as F, and the chords are actually very similar. I'll try and discuss this in a bit more detail in a future video.
Merry Christmas Adrian! Thank you so much. You are the best. Wishing you and yours the best.
Merry Christmas Anthony!
Thanks Adrian.Have a good Christmas.I still regard your lessons as the best by some distance.Top man.
Cheers Steve! You have a great Christmas too.
I recently purchased Bert Transcribed - The Bert Jansch Songbook, just to learn his version of in the bleak midwinter. I will definitely learn this one too, nice one! Merry Christmas
The Bert Transcribed book is incredible! Done with such love and attention to detail, I often get my copy out and play through a song or two. Merry Christmas to you!
I enjoy the Bert Jansch vocal rendition of this one. I suspect you do as well!
Yes indeed, one of my all time favourites!
Excellent choice! I've been looking at the Laura Snowden arrangement this week, but wanted to add some more variations so this is a great help. Merry Christmas!
Thanks Bryan! I've not heard the Laura Snowden version, I must take a listen.
Please don't say the words michael and buble in your videos again, Adrian. Thanks and have a wonderful Xmas
Haha doesn't everyone like a bit of Bublé at Christmas time? Merry Christmas Jas!
What a lovely gentle present thank you Adrian and merry Christmas to you
Thanks Michael and Merry Christmas to you!
Hi Adrian, thanks for this and all of your wonderful lessons/videos this year. I guess I'll be buying an acoustic guitar in the new year sales! Wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas and Happy new year.
Thanks Ian, Merry Christmas to you! Yes get an acoustic, you won't regret it!
Hi Adrian, thanks for all the work you put into the videos and pdfs and choosing such a variety of projects. I’m always lagging behind and mostly pick the ones I think I might be able to manage. But hopefully I will eventually get to some of the harder ones 😁 Have a great Christmas and see you in the New Year 🎄
Thanks Georgina! Merry Christmas to you.