40(ish) Pieces in 2025

Kaydia I'm naturally shy so it's hard to put myself out there

I think that's how most of us started out, Kaydia. And let's face it, you don't need excuses reasons anyway. If you want to share a video/audio, we're ready to cheer you on. You might even get a few tips of things you might not have been aware of. I remember that sometimes there have been tips about sitting too close to the keys (very easy to do especially since we're all sitting right above our computer keyboard). Or sitting too low, etc. If that's what you want

But if you don't want to share videos and just want to chat, that's totally fine too

Thanks, Sophia. I would love some cheering on and I'm sure I could use some friendly tips or advice. I'm still exploring other recording options. So hopefully will be able to get something recording sooner than later.

Gooseberry
Nice! Those two are always fun to play.

BartK Thanks! It took some hard work for me to get them even to that imperfect shape , but yes, quite a bit of fun too.

Very nice Gooseberry! I too learned the Musette piece a while ago because I love it so much! And yes, it has many big jumps... plus some tricky passages. Now I want to dust it off and play learn it again, thanks for the reminder.

And the Wild Horseman is a very nice, I liked it very much. Very happy and bouncy. I also sense a theme developing... Wild Horses, Wild Horseman, so what's next... Wildfire? Goodbye Horses? One Trick Pony?

Sophia Goodbye Horses, rather, I've had enough of galloping for now and look forward to learning something of a nice walking tempo.

This latest 40(ish) piece is played entirely on the black keys. It was fun to play, with a lot of 8va repeated sections. Getting the groups of 2+3 black keys to sound as one was the most challenging part for me, especially the further away they were in the 8va sections.

1. A Canyon Deep by Edna Mae Burnam (From Pieces to Play with Step by Step Book Two)
2. Stained Glass Window In A Church by Edna Mae Burnam (From Pieces to Play with Step by Step Book Two)
3. The Shoemaker by Edna Mae Burnam (From Pieces to Play with Step by Step Book Two)
4. Love Me Tender by Elvis Presley & Vera Matson, Arr by Christine H. Barden (From Alfred's Basic Adult Piano Course Greatest Hits Level 1)
5. Ming Ling by Mary Elizabeth Clark (From Favorite Piano Solos Blue Ribbon Encyclopedia Level One)

It is all going very well with my 40(ish) pieces. So very nice to work with something else during my evening session!

1. J.S. Bach - Arioso from cantata 156 (lesson piece)
2. John Thompson - Hide and seek (quick study)
3. Erik Satie - Petite prélude à la journée (quick study)
4. J.C. Bach - Prelude in A minor (quick study)
5. Andrew Lloyd Webber - Memory, from Cats (quick study)
6. Sarah Konecsni - Bells in the mist (quick study)
7. To be revealed in the next recital (lesson piece)

Animisha Very well played. It started very easy on one hand and got more are more advanced. Didn't expect this one to be a 40-ish piece study. If you keep goin like this, you will end up with 84 pieces by the end of the year. Be careful Animisha, you are risking a speeding ticket

WieWaldi Didn't expect this one to be a 40-ish piece study.

WieWaldi, you are correct! The thing is, I found the easier first page when I still was a beginner, and I liked it very much, but I could never play it well enough. Now with the short studies idea, I resurrected that piece, and found that there were two more pages. Of course, I could not just play the first page... So it was a bit too much for a short study, but still, very enjoyable to learn.

pianoloverus If you have a teacher I think they are doing an excellent job

Thank you so much Pianoloverus. For years I have been a student at Piano Career Academy and the two teachers there have taught me all I know about how to play the piano.

twocats Thank you for clarifying that. I think sometimes I have been hitting the reply that's in the dark blue box to the right of a post. Am I correct in assuming that will not tag the person I am replying to?

pianoloverus Correct If you click that button on the right, it's a generic reply:

But if you want to reply specifically to a person (like I did above), you can click the reply underneath their post:

pianoloverus I think sometimes I have been hitting the reply that's in the dark blue box to the right of a post. Am I correct in assuming that will not tag the person I am replying to?

Yes, that's correct! When the person is tagged, the reply will have their name @name at the beginning of your reply. And if you want to quote, just highlight the text and a "quote" button will pop up. On mobile you can highlight by holding your finger for a couple of seconds over the text.

You might have been wondering where I have been since I haven't posted a new piece for 2 weeks. Well, I bit off more than I can chew.

So, my next piece is the Schubert-Liszt Ständchen. Yes, the famous one but not exactly the one that concert pianists play. Liszt actually wrote an alternative "Ossia più facile" which simplifies some of the accompaniment and ends before all the immitative counterpoint and all the decorative cadenzas start. It's a pretty cut down version and it looked fairly easy on paper, or so I thought. Well, now I know that when Liszt writes "più facile" he is trolling you and you shouldn't believe him.

It's not yet as good as I would like it and I still have some hesitations but I decided that quick studies should not take more than two weeks so it is what it is. I may come back and actually learn the full version properly one day.

Quick Study List for 2025

1. George Frideric Handel, Passacaille (variations 1-8).
2. Enrique Granados, Danzas Españolas, no. 2 Oriental
3. Scott Joplin, Maple Leaf Rag (without trio)
4. Schubert-Liszt, Ständchen (ossia più facile)