What a great recital! Here are a few reactions and comments from me, prior to reading anyone else’s responses (so as to avoid bias). Just some brief responses to begin with but happy to follow up anyone cares to discuss more.
@Player1: Good job, well played. I like the duet. I wonder if your piano couldn’t be a bit higher. It’s hard to see relative to the rest of your body but it looks rather low. As a result, your knees look a bit cramped and I think your forearms are angled down sharply, causing you to bend your wrists up to compensate. Anyway, it might be worth experimenting with.
@rogerch : Lovely! I always enjoy your improvisations and great envy your ability. Sometime you’ll have to talk more about how you learned to do that. I’m curious where you set up your Zoom. Is it under the piano?
@keff : That sounded pretty good to me for a work in progress. I get the recording nervousness, it never fails to make me uptight once I hit that record button. I’m just trying to do it more often and get used to it, sort of like exposure therapy / desensitization.
@Sophia : Nice job! It sounds like you’re working your way through Alfred quite nicely. I used that method until about halfway through that book 2 then changed gears. I remember a lot of the “oom-BOM-BOM left hand parts! 😃
@Sgisela : Wow, that’s some advanced classical playing right there! I don’t see myself getting to that level in my lifetime. I enjoyed the artwork as well.
@pseudonym58 : I’ve only listened to the first movement so far, but it’s very beautiful. Thank you for sharing your arrangement as well!
@hebele : Good job, that’s amazing playing for five months of self-learning. It sounds to me like you basically have it down, I have no doubt the tempo and dynamics will come along to your satisfaction soon.
@MarieJ : Gorgeous piece and playing! I wasn’t familiar with the composer so thanks for the introduction. The silks are beautiful too!
@plop_symphony : Fantastic! I have no constructive criticisms. I love the idea of this tribute suite, I will have to listen to the one from my home states over the years. Thanks!
@thepianoplayer416 : Short and sweet! I dig Purcell, great choice. Very nice Yamaha too!
@BicBic : Nice job, sounds like you’ve managed to get well back into shape after only ten months. That’s a fun piece, and you played it very confidently and musically.
@Nightowl : Well done, very impressive after less than a year. You played the piece smoothly and musically, and if you’re interested in increasing the tempo that’ll just be a matter of time (ha).
@bSharp : That’s a gorgeous piece and you played it really well, your own critique notwithstanding. I looked up the composer and it sounds like he writes the sort of contemporary piano music that I’d like to hear a lot more of. I suspect Akira Yamaoka was influenced by him, I hear some influences on the Silent Hill 2 soundtrack. It’s neat how you were able to dust that off again so quickly, that’s something I hope to be able to do as I get better and have more repertoire bouncing around in my brain.
@WieWaldi : Good job! I like that arrangement, it’s on of those “easy” arrangements that still captures the spirit of the piece quite well. That’s a good tune to pull out if people put you on the spot and say “Oh, you play piano? Play something for me!” I think you’re probably ahead of most people after just a couple of years on piano, a testament to regular practicing. Keep it up!
@SalmonJack : That’s an impressive original composition, thanks for sharing it. It must add a whole other dimension to playing a piece when you wrote it and you have your own vision in mind. Very well done, I’m quite impressed.
@Calavera : Bravo! That’s some pro-level playing of a challenging piece. I love all the different moods created through a mere three minutes. As an on-and-off gamer, I’m often impressed with the quality of the soundtracks (I mentioned Silent Hill 2 above). A good game really draws me into its world, and the music is a big part of that.
@rsl12 : Wow, more impressive improvisation, and now with singing! I definitely aspire to this sort of thing. You’re on track to be my new piano hero …. 😃
TC3: Whoops, that’s me …
@iternabe : Well done, you nailed it. The more I hear from the Faber books the more I think I should have started with them. Keep up the great progress!
@ShiroKuro : Another Einaudi! I need to listen to more of this guy. I used my headphones and the recording wasn’t half bad, just a bit dark. That sounded pretty good to me for a “practice” recording!
@lilypad : Nice playing, very expressive, and the Yamaha sounds great. The same thing happens to me, my best take is usually my first or the second one after a false start the first time. After that, I might as well leave the piano for a while and come back later.
@TheBoringPianist : That’s very impressive! I heard a few tiny inaccuracies early on and then it really started to sing. Making it to the finals was clearly well-deserved! Plus you got to play a Steinway D (insert envious face here). I imagine that was pretty nerve-wracking, I definitely don’t have it in me to play in such situations. Again, very impressed, thanks for sharing that.
@Rob : A beautiful composition, beautifully played. Thanks for sharing!
Diretonic: Wow. Seriously, that’s the kind of playing that I aspire to. Seriously you’ll have to describe your piano journey to me sometime, and tips for I can get to where I am to where you are would be greatly appreciated.
@Josephine & @Rubens : What a lovely collaboration and a heartwarming story to go with it. I’d love to hear more of this sort of thing, from any and every aspiring duet on PianoTell!
@Serge88 : Great performance of a classic. I enjoyed your audience at the end of the piano too!
@twocats : Extremely impressive playing, you’re obviously a very serious pianist. Your Bösendorfer looks and sounds beautiful too.
@navindra : Another Einaudi, clearly a composer I should be listen to more of! I love that you took advantage of your access to the Yamaha, and your video turned out very well, kudos on MacGyvering!
Whew, nice job everyone! Now I’ll go back and read comments, and hopefully respond to a few.