PianoTell Recital #1 Is Now Live!

navindra · 2024-08-15T13:55:00+00:00

Welcome to PianoTell's 1st ever recital! Click for an index to all the performances: Player1 — Energico rogerch — Improvisation 6 keff — A Nightingale Sang...

Sam

Late to the party! The PW ABF Quarterly recital #75 had to come first. Now let me see if I can navigate this new platform and make some comments!

1. Player1 — Energico - you asked for feedback - you are just not very even or steady. Try this: listen to your video while looking at the score and clapping a steady beat. Can't do it, right? Because you are not steady. Here is where working with a metronome will help. But you will have to do it in very small sections, not for the whole piece. If you fall behind the metronome, stop and assess why. Stop the metronome and fix the problem before you try again. The other obvious problem is that the triplets (I think they are triplets - the groups of 3 notes) are uneven. They should be perfectly even and equal in length. Your first task is to play back your video and see if you can hear that they are uneven. Surely the Faber website has a video of this piece - go listen to that and compare your triplets and their triplets. You have to hear that it needs fixing before you can fix it. Once again the metronome is your friend. Slow way down and use one click per note and stay with the clicks. I know this is boring and time consuming, but it will pay off over time.

2. rogerch — Improvisation 6 - commented at PW.

3. keff — A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square - very moody and mellow - loved it!

4. Sophia — Fascination - That was great! Very even and lively.

5. Sgisela — Joropo - commented at PW

6. pseudonym58 — Images (5) for orchestra - Wow, what a labor of love! What is that - 40 minutes of music? Frankly, more than i have time to listen to, but I sampled them here and there. Arranging, typesetting, and then learning it and performing it. My hats off to you!

8. hebele — Downtown Abbey theme - commented at PW

9. MarieJ — Week #7 - commented at PW

10. plop_symphony — A Lincoln Tribute - Sounded very similar to Copland. Well played, and I think that tempo was great!

11. thepianoplayer416 — Air in D minor - commented at PW

12. BicBic — Prelude in B flat minor - No.16 from Op.34 - Short lively, energetic - and well played! Loved it!

More to come!

Sam

pseudonym58

Sam Thanks for your comments. Yes, it's about 38-40 minutes total, depending on tempo. Absolutely a labor of love. I had always liked those pieces and had played them in orchestra as well. After looking over the full score, I determined that they would be amenable to arrangement for solo piano. Of course, I had to decide what was not essential and could be left out. There are always some compromises, but my goal was to keep them playable in performance, without requiring virtuosic skill. Took me a couple of years of on/off work (in my spare time), to finish the project.

Sgisela

rsl12 I somehow missed this comment, and I’m glad you enjoyed the video! This was a piece that I chose because I had heard recordings of it and it really spoke to me. I had listened to the piece many times before starting to work on it, and maybe because of this, I felt that the rhythm was fairly intuitive. There were some real choices to make, though. The big one was how to deal with the Left Hand pattern, which is not quite an Alberti bass, but close. There are a few possibilities of what to emphasize. It’s not marked in the score, and in different recordings, I heard performers make different choices. To be very honest, I didn’t think about this when I started working on the piece. The huge hurdle with the LH is that the piece is fast! And the LH never stops moving, and in a pretty repetitive way. So managing it without getting fatigued was the real focal point of my early efforts. I had just started with my current teacher, who’s a Taubman person. It took some time to work out how to play the LH in a way that it felt like I could go on and on forever and at speed, but once I did, I also realized that I had a lot more freedom to make choices about what I wanted to emphasize (as opposed to just managing to play it). I experimented with different options. I liked the 3rd/1st beat accents — this seemed to add to the driving/propulsive feel of the piece, so it’s what I settled on.

The coordinated/syncopated leaps in the middle of the piece were another big challenge, but this was just a few measures, so in some ways a more limited problem.

Sam

More comments:

13. Nightowl — Plaisir D'Amour - that was really very good. Steady beat, everything crystal clear and well played. You are doing great for less than a year!

14. bSharp — High Heels - commented at PW

15. WieWaldi — Rainbow Connection - commented at PW

16. SalmonJack — Alia - commented at PW

17. Calavera — Chrono Cross - Scars of Time - commented at PW

18. rsl12 — Always Chew Your Food - Inspiring!

19. TC3 — St. James Infirmary - Very cool! Loved it!

20. iternabe — The Trout - One of my favorite Schubert melodies! Well played - I love the split screen video!

21. ShiroKuro — Nuvole Bianche - Well done! I can tel when someone plays music they really love!

22. lilypad — Manhattan 1928 - I try to restrict myself to three recording attempts. If it doesn't happen in 3 tries, then today is not the day! This sounds great though, and since it was your 2nd take, you have proved my theory!

23. TheBoringPianist — Prélude, Fugue et Variation, Op. 18 - you are braver than I am to compete! I went through 4 years to get an undergraduate piano performance degree (when I was 62). I came to hate that feeling of being judged and graded every time i sat down to play - so no contests for me! But I do enjoy (or at least put myself through) piano camps, masterclass, and recitals. Loved your range of dynamics in this. I have a friend who sometimes plays this, but only the prelude, so I have never heard her play it all. So it was a treat to hear the whole thing - the fugue and variations definitely sound challenging. Well done!

24. Rob — Sunday Morning - That was actually well done, and carefully thought out. Sounds professional!

25. diretonic — Borrowed Blues - Play it man!

26. Rubens @Josephine — Waltz Op.70 no.2 - That's an inspiring story! Good for the two of you! I thought it was pretty seamless. And I thought maybe that was an illustration of Chopin's heart!

27. Serge88 — Misty - commented on PW

28. twocats — Rustle of Spring - Wonderful! The melody was so clear, and the rustle of the leaves was just the right level in the background. The dramatic middle section as just the right level, and i loved it when the rustle of the leaves returned. Everything was great except for the blurring of your face - I assume you had a good reason!

29. navindra — Bluebird - very cool experience! But that piano seriously needs some cleaning! You played great even with all the distractions!

That's all - a great first recital!

Sam

twocats

Sam Rustle of Spring - Wonderful! The melody was so clear, and the rustle of the leaves was just the right level in the background. The dramatic middle section as just the right level, and i loved it when the rustle of the leaves returned. Everything was great except for the blurring of your face - I assume you had a good reason!

Sam, thank you for the lovely and descriptive feedback-- it's so nice to hear that you could hear the rustling of the leaves!

Regarding the face blurring:

I have Internet privacy concerns, especially with facial recognition software so widely available now, so I try to make sure that at least front-facing images of my face are blurred or hidden. I don't know what's possible but it would sure spook me if someone was able to figure out my name and address from a photo!

lilypad

Sam 22. lilypad — Manhattan 1928 - I try to restrict myself to three recording attempts. If it doesn't happen in 3 tries, then today is not the day! This sounds great though, and since it was your 2nd take, you have proved my theory!

Your theory is right! I'm normally guided by your 3 try strategy but by 13th I was desperate. Luckily I kept all my earlier recordings. Thank you for listening and the supportive comments.

ShiroKuro

Sam 21. ShiroKuro — Nuvole Bianche - Well done! I can tel when someone plays music they really love!

Thank you @Sam that is the best compliment!! 😊

WieWaldi

Thank you for the very kind words to Nightowl Sophia rogerch TC3 ShiroKuro Sam BicBic rsl12 lilypad and everyone else who listened.

rsl12 For a beginner piece, it's pretty long,

Honestly, this piece isn't that long. It just repeats :|| haha

lilypad I lived in a remote area with no TV reception when the show aired. From the little bits of the show that I've seen, I'd have to be the Cookie Monster.

I remember the Muppet Show when I was a very little child. Was always afraid of the big monster puppets. I loved the cookie monster, too - he was just chasing cookies in a very childish way. My favorites were Beaker and Miss Piggy.

TC3 ...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!”

Unfortuntely, I can't. This one I played by read-playing only. The muscle memory might be there, but I don't remember the first note to start with. For playing something out of nothing, I have Linus&Lucy 🙂

Sam

twocats I was hoping you were a famous concert pianist, slumming in the recitals, and you wanted to keep your identity a secret!

Sam

twocats

Sam hah, I like this theory! Although no one would actually pay to hear me unless it was a benefit for charity 😂 My violinist friend and I put on a concert for our friends and family and we rented out a church with a decent piano, and I was joking that we were paying for them to come hear us play!

rsl12

26. Rubens @Josephine — Waltz Op.70 no.2
We are living in the future! Josephine, great touch--very warm and confident. I love the way that the two parts almost sound like two different instruments because your approaches and touches are so different. But that transition is very smooth--Rubens did a good job matching dynamics right at the beginning (unless that was edited to be smoother?). I hope you do another duet some time. I really enjoyed it.

28. twocats — Rustle of Spring
For just a few hours of preparation this is pretty good! The A section flows very nicely. I'm glad you decided to participate, and I hope it's not the last time.

BicBic

I completely missed there was a template, which I am now using - thank you navindra!

14. bSharp — High Heels I’ve never played any Einaudi but i can see the attraction! I imagine all the syncopation in the RH is pretty tricky! Your playing sounds very calming and meditative, I enjoyed it - thank you!

15. WieWaldi — Rainbow Connection I know the frog but not the song! Looks like fun to play, and you played it very nicely!

16. SalmonJack — Alia Great composition, and love that it is linked to a character you are developing - very creative! Did you create the video as well, i’m guessing? It sounded sort of wistful - is the music intended to capture all of her journey or just the start escaping her present?

17. Calavera — Chrono Cross - Scars of Time I’ve heard of this game but never seen/played anything of it. The music reminded me of final fantasy music, particularly the quieter sections. I felt you did capture the vibrancy, but yes i guess it is different orchestrated. I did listen to the orchestra version and it was very jolly!

18. rsl12 — Always Chew Your Food Very cool! I don’t think I’ve heard you sing since the last PW recital, and I think I hear how you have improved - I think you sound great! Love the contribution of others to your lyrics, haha. Love the idea of a family recital too!

19. TC3 — St. James Infirmary Very nice! I thought the tempo was great too, didn’t seem too fast so I like your decision there.

20. iternabe — The Trout I think you really captured the feel of this. It sounds like fun to play! The video was cool with the two different views.

21. ShiroKuro — Nuvole Bianche Thank you for sharing even though it was ‘just’ a practice recording - still sounded great to me!

22. lilypad — Manhattan 1928 Yes I have definitely have that thing where the recordings get progressively worse! I always give up way before 6 haha. However - I thought this sounded great! It seems like you really got the feel of that style of music!

23. TheBoringPianist — Prélude, Fugue et Variation, Op. 18 How amazing to play in a competition and reach the finals - what an achievement! Sounded incredible, and what a fantastic piece too.

24. Rob — Sunday Morning A very nice composition, thank you! I really enjoyed it.

25. diretonic — Borrowed Blues Very cool, and interesting you picked it out from snippets through a chat on YT!

26. Rubens @Josephine — Waltz Op.70 no.2 What a lovely thing to do between student and teacher! Sounds pretty seamless, I’m sure I wouldn’t have noticed the transition back and forth if I wasn’t looking for it! And I thought you both sounded lovely!

27. Serge88 — Misty Played with lots of lovely dynamics and feeling! Very nice!

28. twocats — Rustle of Spring Incredible playing! I don’t know the music but it does sound very spring-like! I agree it’s lovely.

29. navindra — Bluebird Ah the impromptu public performance, I love it! It sounds like you got a great reception too! Your playing sounded lovely, great job with so much going on around you too.

navindra

Sam Thank you Sam! I'm very curious about who maintains that piano but it definitely gets played.

BicBic Thank you! 🙂

MarieJ Thanks so much, Marie!

keff Looking forward to it! 🙂

lilypad Thank you so much for that! During normal live recitals I have a ton of trouble not falling apart. I need to find a way to get over that.

WieWaldi Thank you! And I feel like I have a lot of the same experiences as you. I spend a lot of time learning a piece and then forget it. However after almost 5 years with a teacher, I feel like I'm on the right track now. My learning is still self-directed in various ways and I branch off into different things on my own... but it feels right now.

diretonic Thank you! Yes, I do manage to stumble over the thirds... it's the hardest part of the entire piece and needs the most practice. KevinM had warned me about this some time back. 😃

BicBic

Thanks to everyone who listened and commented on my Shostakovich piece i appreciate you all. and i really enjoyed participating and listening to everyone!

diretonic i couldn't play fast octaves before starting the piece - but i practiced and got better!

lilypad

Nightowl - Plaisir D'Amour. It's exciting to see an adult starting out on the labor of love that is piano playing. You've chosen a charming piece and play it well.

bSharp - High Heels. It's always nice to have a piece you can revisit like an old friend. Classic, flowing Einaudi. Definitely not me in high heels. Gave mine up a few years ago. Getting too rickety in my 70's.

WieWaldi - Rainbow Connection. This is one of my all time favorites and I was excited when I saw you'd submitted this piece. Even an easy arrangement gives me goose bumps when I listen to it. I lived in a remote area with no TV reception when the show aired. From the little bits of the show that I've seen, I'd have to be the Cookie Monster.

SalmonJack - Alia. I liked your peaceful composition. That's an interesting comment regarding the melodic minor. I've never composed anything beyond a few bars for music theory assignments and never thought about it making music sound right. I just know it's a challenge learning melodic minor scales and training my fingers to do one thing going up and another thing going down.

Nightowl

Player1 The keyboard is at table height. I know it looks awkward but it's my legs that are oversized. I don't want to raise the height because then I won't be able to play a standard acoustic piano.

I saw TC3's comment and felt the same way when watching your recital - you look very cramped and speaking as a tall person who has lower back issues I am concerned that your playing position is not doing you any favours. If you are set on getting an acoustic one day that is your choice, but as you have said before they tend to all be a standard table top height, so this issue may not be resolved if you go that route and cannot accommodate your long legs in a comfortable position.
Digital pianos are much lighter and even if yours is within its own case it would be possible to make it higher.

Also, are you sat on a decent piano bench or are you perched on the edge of the bed? I was struggling a bit previously, as I did not have the right height chair to play comfortably, but since I bought myself a sturdy piano bench and set it on the highest setting to accommodate my long legs I am now much more comfortable when playing piano. Apologies if this comes across as nagging you a bit, but I would hate you to exacerbate any back issues you may already have (as so many of us tall folk do).

@ShiroKuro @MarieJ @Sam @lilypad - Thanks for all your kind comments, I appreciate them very much.

iternabe

Player1 The keyboard is at table height. I know it looks awkward but it's my legs that are oversized. I don't want to raise the height because then I won't be able to play a standard acoustic piano.

There are times when I feel like Schroeder and his toy piano.

There should be some room for adjustment that's worth exploring to achieve maximum comfort. And I think comfort is quite important in the long run.

Acoustic piano's standard keyboard height is 29.5 inches from floor, but it can vary between 27.5 to 30 inches. I've seen them put on casters which would raise them another inch or so. There is a limit for raising the piano though because you don't want the pedal to become too high from the floor.

You can also try lower the bench, and sit farther away from the keyboard. This should help as long as your arm is not too short.

Player1

iternabe

It really comes down to 2 things; comfort and utility.

The world is at 30" - 36" from the floor. Even common things like chairs aren't built for people my height because most chair seats are 16" - 18" from the floor and I'm more comfortable at 18" - 20".

Changing my little corner of paradise to be something different from the uniform world standard only means that when I go forth to do battle (aka; go to work) I have to adapt to a different universe than what I'm used to. It can be done, but why put yourself through that if you don't have to? Especially since the constant change could cause physical stress which could lead to injury.

I'm comfortable and not causing myself any injury. That it looks awkward isn't a reason to change anything.

MarieJ

TC3 — St. James Infirmary
I really liked that arrangement, your chosen tempo, and your performance, too. Was there any reason you recorded this with the Zoom rather than the Roland’s recorder?

iternabe — The Trout
That was so well done! I’m really impressed that you’ve reached this standard after only 7 months. The Faber books seem to have some really interesting arrangements.

ShiroKuro — Nuvole Bianche
One of my ‘favouritest’ of Einaudi’s compositions! Thanks for bringing us this one, ShiroKuro; I’m so I’m glad you didn’t miss this Recital. If only MY practice recordings sounded as good … 😞

lilypad — Manhattan 1928
I definitely have had the same thing happen - the harder I try for a ‘perfect’ recording, the less likely I am to nail one. More pleasant music from Faber - that was most enjoyable.

TheBoringPianist — Prélude, Fugue et Variation, Op. 18
Wow - wonderful! Congratulations on making it to the finals. (How can anyone learn so much, and play so beautifully, in 6-7 weeks?!)

TC3

MarieJ St. James Infirmary
I really liked that arrangement, your chosen tempo, and your performance, too. Was there any reason you recorded this with the Zoom rather than the Roland’s recorder?

Thanks! Yes, my cellphone 's mic isn't very good but I can plug the zoom into it and get some good quality audio that sounds like you're more or less standing in the room, and then I don't have to mess with splicing in the audio later Also, the quality of the Roland's sound comes from the seven speaker system and the sounds board and chamber, which resonate acoustically, rather than the direct sound on its own. Thanks for asking!

MarieJ

Rob — Sunday Morning
What a sweet composition. The AI image fitted it perfectly, too. A standing ovation!

diretonic — Borrowed Blues
It may have been only ‘a last minute morsel’ - but what a delicious one! Terrific!

Rubens @Josephine — Waltz Op.70 no.2
A refreshing collaboration with a highly successful outcome - a fun project. Encore!

twocats — Rustle of Spring
A lovely piece indeed, with a magnificent piano to showcase it. I’d say you managed a more than adequate preparation in the limited time you had at your disposal.

navindra — Bluebird
Ahhh - Alexis Ffrench! 🥰 And the video! Loved the setting, loved the performance, loved the camera angles. A polished finale to an outstanding first Recital - magnifique!

TC3

WieWaldi Unfortuntely, I can't. This one I played by read-playing only. The muscle memory might be there, but I don't remember the first note to start with. For playing something out of nothing, I have Linus&Lucy

That's good too!

ShiroKuro

TC3 my cellphone 's mic isn't very good but I can plug the zoom into it

Wait, do you mean, plug your Zoom recorder into the cellphone?? I have a Zoom (Handy H4 whatever it's called) and an iPhone, can I do that??? What do you use to plug the Zoom into the phone? That would be awesome!

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