Welcome to PianoTell Recital #2!

Click for an index to all the performances:
  1. iternabe — O mio babbino caro
  2. keff — Over the Rainbow
  3. plop_symphony — The Midnight Ball
  4. Schubertian2 — Ballade 4
  5. WieWaldi — Quick Five Blues
  6. Nightowl — What A Wonderful World
  7. Sophia — A Classy Rag
  8. rogerch — Slow Steps
  9. thepianoplayer416 — When You Wish Upon a Star
  10. Sam — The Never Finished Piece
  11. MarieJ — Waltz in F minor
  12. Player1 — Ashokan Farewell
  13. Rubens — Sonata no.2, Op.36 (1913), 2nd movement
  14. Cratersmash — Sonata No. 3 in A Minor
  15. Gooseberry — Pigalle
  16. Rob — Lost
  17. TC3 — Worried Life Blues
  18. lilypad — God Bless the Child
  19. BicBic — Prelude no.4 in E minor from Op 11
  20. javiercorre — Sonatas K. 208 and K. 380
  21. SalmonJack — Bliss Ten
  22. rsl12 — I am the very model of a modern Major-General
  23. Sgisela — Do Tebe (to you)
  24. ShiroKuro — Reminiscence
  25. Pathbreaker — Larghetto
  26. diretonic — Chega de Saudade (No More Blues)
  27. navindra — The Entertainer
Click for an optional template that you can copy/paste to comment on each performance:
@"iternabe"#p19256 — O mio babbino caro


@"keff"#p19257 — Over the Rainbow


@"plop_symphony"#p19270 — The Midnight Ball


@"Schubertian2"#p19271 — Ballade 4


@"WieWaldi"#p19272 — Quick Five Blues


@"Nightowl"#p19275 — What A Wonderful World


@"Sophia"#p19287 — A Classy Rag


@"rogerch"#p19288 — Slow Steps


@"thepianoplayer416"#p19307 — When You Wish Upon a Star


@"Sam"#p19315 — The Never Finished Piece


@"MarieJ"#p19422 — Waltz in F minor


@"Player1"#p19541 — Ashokan Farewell


@"Rubens"#p19584 — Sonata no.2, Op.36 (1913), 2nd movement


@"Cratersmash"#p19591 — Sonata No. 3 in A Minor


@"Gooseberry"#p19656 — Pigalle


@"Rob"#p19990 — Lost


@"TC3"#p20001 — Worried Life Blues


@"lilypad"#p20006 — God Bless the Child


@"BicBic"#p20021 — Prelude no.4 in E minor from Op 11


@"javiercorre"#p20022 — Sonatas K. 208 and K. 380


@"SalmonJack"#p20032 — Bliss Ten


@"rsl12"#p20040 — I am the very model of a modern Major-General


@"Sgisela"#p20047 — Do Tebe (to you)


@"ShiroKuro"#p20050 — Reminiscence


@"Pathbreaker"#p20064 — Larghetto


@"diretonic"#p20068 — Chega de Saudade (No More Blues)


@"navindra"#p20073 — The Entertainer


 
Enjoy!

Performer: iternabe from North Carolina, USA. I am about 10 months into learning piano.
Piece: O mio babbino caro (aria from Gianni Schicchi by Puccini, arranged by Faber)
Comment Policy: Critical Comments: Anything goes!

Source of music: Faber Piano Adventures Classics Book 1.
Instrument: Roland FP-30X + Pianoteq 8.3 Bösendorfer 280VC
Recording method: Audio: digital out of Pianoteq. Video: OBS Studio + Webcam (Logitech c920/930e)
Additional info: After finishing Faber’s method book 1 for adult, instead of starting the next level, I decided to learn more level 1 pieces. I chose Faber’s companion book for classics and spent about 4 months to learn the 35 short pieces. This is the very last one in that book.

Each piece in the book presents some unique challenges. I enjoyed learning and recording them all. Among them I am a little more drawn to some of the adaptations from operas. I find myself seeking out recordings of singers of those arias, and imagining how I would sing when I play on the piano.

I remember hearing my first recording of this piece and thinking that’s a little too metronomic. I chose to take more liberties in this version for the recital. Not sure if I was making the right choices, though. I am interested to learn if you hear it, whether it resonates with you, or does it sound a little odd to you.

    Performer: keff, an intermediate player from the UK
    Piece: Over the Rainbow, music by Harold Arlen, words by E.Y. Harburg in a mild jazz arrangement by Brent Edstrom.
    Comment Policy: Comments, likes or dislikes are left to listeners' discretion

    Source of music: Sheet music purchased from SheetMusicDirect.com. I found the print size to be a little too small to read comfortably.
    Instrument: Kemble (British made) piano.
    Recording method: Recorded using a mobile phone then transferred to YT.

      Performer: Arnold Lau, Washington DC - just under 2 years
      Piece: The Midnight Ball by Naoko Ikeda
      Comment Policy: Critical Comments

      Source of music: Strange Sounds, anthology published by Willis Music
      Instrument: Yamaha P-71
      Recording method: MIDI via Pianoteq (C. Bechstein DG282)
      Additional info: Happy (belated) Halloween! Not that I really celebrate it, but it's kind of a thing stateside. I tried learning this piece last year for the same occasion, but it was a bit too difficult at the time. Fortunately it came together in less than a week this year. I record all the pieces I learn as a way of marking my progress and post them on my YouTube channel, so check out some of my other performances on there.

        Performer: Schubertian, Dallas Texas, all my life, off and on, I'm 73 - I have had good good good teachers and bad bad bad teachers
        Piece: Ballade 4, Chopin
        Comment Policy: anything goes

        Source of music: Wiener Urtext, National Edition, and also the stichvorlage, and early editions online
        Instrument: Estonia parlour grand
        Recording method: Samson C01U Mic very near the soundboard, GarageBand
        Additional info: I am a dedicated amateur. I have worked on this for 6 months with my teacher Alessandro Mazzamuto in Dallas. Now that I am retired I can dedicate a lot of time to practicing. I really love this piece of music. My 'interpretation' is not based upon anything outside the score itself - no YouTube, no prof performances or recordings, no podcasts, no biographies. I have tried to solve all the riddles logically or practically just like I used to do at work (electrical engineering)

          Performer: WieWaldi, Germany (near Bavaria), 23/4 years of active practicing
          Piece: Quick Five Blues - Christian Fuchs
          Comment Policy: Critical Comments: Anything goes!

          Source of music: Sheet music linked in this YouTube Tutorial
          Instrument: Kawai CN-29 (Upright Piano sample)
          Recording method: Headphone-jack to PC (OBS-Studio)
          Additional info: Lesson six of Easy Blues Piano course is called the Quick Five Blues, it has four choruses, and is printed on three pages. I recorded it for recital two, and it has at least one missed note.

            Performer: Nightowl, UK, began playing last November using Alfred's AIO books. Currently going solo but considering finding a teacher at some point.
            Piece: What A Wonderful World by G D Weiss and B Thiele, Arranged by G P Tingley
            Comment Policy: General Comments only: Polite, supportive, suggestions for improvement.

            Source of music: Alfred's Greatest Hits: Level 1
            Instrument: Donner DP80
            Recording method: Chromebook
            Additional info: This song was a number 1 hit for Louis Armstrong in the UK, in 1968. It is a nice relaxing piece to play (until you press the red button, of course!) and makes a pleasant change from some of the dull pieces in the method books. I had a bit of a brain freeze around the halfway point so there is a pause which seems to go on forever - my brain is so annoying sometimes. 😬 Also, I realised too late that my bench was making creaking noises - I need to tighten up the bolts. 🙃 Recording pieces certainly reveals weaknesses, but it is a good way to mark progress in what can feel like a slow journey. My one year pianoversary is on 20th November and I am currently working through Alfred's AIO Book 2.

            "Don't let's ask for the moon, we have the stars." (Final line from Now,Voyager, 1942)

              Performer: Sophia Burns, started in January 2024
              Piece: A Classy Rag
              Comment Policy: Critical Comments: Anything goes!

              Source of music: Alfred Adult All-in-One Course Level 3
              Instrument: Yamaha Clavinova CLP-811
              Recording method: Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra
              Additional info: I had just started the 3rd Alfred book and found this lesson rather challenging at first, so I spent a little extra time on it. It took me one week to learn, then another week to play it smoothly and yet another week to bring it up to speed. And then suddenly I realized a recital piece was born 🙂

                Performer: rogerch
                Piece: Slow Steps by rogerch
                Comment Policy: General Comments only: Polite, supportive, suggestions for improvement.

                Source of music: improvised
                Instrument: Steinway M
                Recording method: Zoom H1essentials
                Additional info: I recently sight-read a piece that included a minor fourth chord. I liked the sound of it so I improvised with a minor fourth resolving to the tonic and I'm pleased with the result!

                  Performer: thepianoplayer416, Canada, 10 yrs
                  Piece: When You Wish Upon a Star by Ned Washington & Leigh Harline
                  Comment Policy: General Comments only: Polite, supportive, suggestions for improvement.

                  Source of music: online sheet music download
                  Instrument: Steinway grand
                  Recording method: Canon EOS-M200
                  Additional info: It's a piece I worked on 2 years ago at a slower tempo. During the height of the pandemic, the city was in a partial lockdown. The conservatory where my lessons were held was shut for several months before the administration decided to connect the teachers with their students through Zoom. Found pieces outside the assigned repertoire to keep my music going.

                    Performer: Sam from Georgia USA - been playing about 15 years now
                    Piece: "The Never Finished Piece" By Sam
                    Comment Policy: General Comments only: Polite, supportive, suggestions for improvement.

                    Here is the youtube video:

                    Source of music: Original composition
                    Instrument: Yamaha C3
                    Additional info: I have been working on this piece off and on since 2015. Every time I pick it up I change things and add stuff. I will probably never finish it, which is where the title comes from. Harmonically I am stuck in the early 19th century! We had an original themed recital at PW last month, so this was polished up and changed yet again for that - if you have heard it already, sorry!

                      Performer: MarieJ from Brisbane, Australia. I've been flying solo on my piano journey since December 2011.
                      Piece: Waltz in F minor by Tim Neumark
                      Comment Policy: General Comments only: Polite, supportive, suggestions for improvement

                      Source of music: Sheet music from composer’s website
                      Instrument: Kawai ES110 with Pianoteq 8 (Standard)
                      Recording method: WAV file recorded by Pianoteq, converted to MP3 with Audacity
                      Additional info: ‘Waltz in F minor’ introduced me to the wonders of the digital age: In a matter of minutes from first hearing the composer playing it on Whisperings Solo Piano Radio I’d located his web page, purchased the sheet music from him, downloaded the PDF into forScore, and was stumbling through the score at my piano.
                      Still obviously a work-in-progress, this submission draws further on the wonders of the digital age. It comes to you thanks to my DP, Mac and iPad, and four incredible apps: forScore, Pianoteq, Procreate, and iMovie. I’ve had enormous fun, and learned SO much on the way.

                        Performer: Player 1
                        Piece: Ashokan Farewell by Jay Ungar (Theme from the docu-movie Civil War)
                        Comment Policy: Feedback type desired (see below)

                        Source of music: Faber Adult Piano Adventures, Popular Book 2
                        Instrument: My Casio
                        Recording method: Samsung S9 Android
                        Additional info: At one time I tried to play this and thought it was too difficult so I passed on it. Now, needing something quick to learn and record for this recital, I opened the book and decided to give it another try. After a year and a half of learning and practicing, it's not difficult at all now.

                        I didn't polish it much because it's not really worth spending that much time on it at this stage of the game. But it's a decent performance all the same.

                          Performer: Rubens from Canada. I've been playing since 1983
                          Piece: Sonata no.2, Op.36 (1913), 2nd movement, by Sergei Rachmaninoff
                          Comment Policy: Critical Comments: Anything goes!

                          Source of music: Unknown edition that I found online (it's public domain)
                          Instrument: Kawai ES920
                          Recording method: USB recording
                          Additional info: I initially wasn't sure whether to share this recording. But then I heard about a friend who is going through difficult times I changed my mind, because to me this music is about loss, but also hope. It's a piece that has given me comfort through difficult times of my own, so why not share it. There is a special moment near the end of the piece here, at 05:50, a moment of catharsis where the mood shifts from the darkest despair to unexpected hope, magically. From then on it seems the cold and harsh winter night has finally turned into a warm blanket... of snow.

                            Performer: Summer, United States, 9 years experience
                            Piece: Sonata No.3 in A Minor by Sergei Prokofiev
                            Comment Policy: Critical comments: Anything goes!

                            Source of music: imslp.org
                            Instrument: Piano
                            Recording method: IPad lmao
                            Additional info: This piece is really difficult. Really fun sonata to play once you get it down, though!

                              Performer: Gooseberry from Poland. I started learning to play the piano in 2021.
                              Piece: Pigalle by Virginio Aiello
                              Comment Policy: General Comments, polite, supportive, suggestions for improvement

                              Source of music: Sheet music purchased from Sheet Music Plus
                              Instrument: Yamaha CLP 735
                              Recording method: iPhone
                              Additional info: Sorry for the gloves – my hands get easily cold so I often wear gloves even at home. Actually, I didn’t notice I was wearing them until I was halfway through the recording 🧐! But as I had decided that I would have only one take, just as if it were a real live recital, that was it.

                                Performer: Rob
                                Piece: Lost by Rob
                                Comment Policy: Anything goes.

                                Source of music: Own composition
                                Instrument: Kawai ES920
                                Recording method: Cubase + VSTi
                                Additional info: A re-recording of a short piece composed about fifteen years ago.

                                  Performer: TC3
                                  Piece: "Worried Life Blues" by Big Maceo Merriweather
                                  Comment Policy: Constructive criticism welcome -- don't be rude, though 🙂

                                  Source of music: my own arrangement, more or less (see below)
                                  Instrument: Roland GP609
                                  Recording method: Zoom H4n Pro (built-in stereo condenser mics aimed at the soundboard), a Shure PGA52 (underneath the piano to capture more bass), and a Shure SM58 (for the vocals).
                                  Additional info: This is nowhere near ready for prime time, but I did promise I'd submit something ... The tune is by one of the Chicago blues greats, Big Maceo Merriweather. I've cobbled something together by listening, peeking at some transcriptions, changing and simplifying where needed, and semi-improvising (especially the call-and-response piano bits, which are just from a set of stock licks and scales, mixed and matched). I’ve opted to keep it pretty simple (note the quarter-note barrelhouse LH pattern for most of the tune), as I intend to play with this my "garage band" (my wife on drums and a pal on guitar), and I don't want it to end up sounding too busy or dense (Big Maceo himself plays with Tampa Red on guitar). It all needs some polishing, but it's getting there.


                                  Enthusiastic but mediocre amateur.

                                    Performer: lilypad from Vancouver, WA, USA. 8 yrs as a child; then since retiring in 2004
                                    Piece: God Bless the Child by Arthur Herzop and Billie Holiday
                                    Comment Policy: General Comments

                                    Source of music: Sheet music book "The Best Jazz Standards Ever"
                                    Instrument: Yamaha digital CLP-635
                                    Recording method: Digital/USB/Audacity to normalize
                                    Additional info: I first heard this back in the late 1960's when Blood, Sweat & Tears came out with it. After making my first recording, I realized that the rhythm was too steady and not like the version I have in my head. I listened to the Blood, Sweat & Tears recording and tried to incorporate their rhythmic nuances. The results were very tentative sounding compared to my original confident and boring rhythm version. I decided to stick with my first recording.


                                      Performer: BicBic, currently in Utah. Played through school etc, current restart of piano is now ONE whole year!
                                      Piece: Scriabin - Prelude no.4 in E minor from Op 11
                                      Comment Policy: Anything goes

                                      Source of music: IMSLP
                                      Instrument: Digital Yamaha P-140
                                      Recording method: Line out to Audacity, combined with iphone video in Powerdirector
                                      Additional info: I haven't played much Scriabin. I suppose most of his pieces are a bit too tricky for me! Learning the notes of this prelude is the easier part I think, trying to get the musicality is much harder and I don't think I'm quite there. Very enjoyable to play and learn!