The big thing this week was my first time playing piano four hands. It's a fairly challenging, or at least rhythmically complex piece, and playing alongside someone was a bit of a debacle, where I instantly realized it wasn't sufficient that I just have to know what I'm doing, but I also have to be attuned to what else is going on, which adds a layer of mental processing that is new to me and will take getting used to, like starting a passage offbeat where I need to know exactly what the other person is playing. It's an advanced piece, so there's a bit of a feeling of being thrown to the wolves, not starting my four-hands journey with nice foursquare music with a simple melody and easy rhythms. On the bright side I could comfortably perform the more technical aspects of it, including a rapid two octave scale in 32nds, and some fast figurations similar to some Czerny I'd worked on last month. The other challenge is that I'm just a delicate player, so I've got to play louder to not get drowned out with another player playing.
My solo piece is coming along. I've found solutions of many of the parts I've needed to iron out, and for the easier parts I can now focus on shaping and dynamics. For the hard middle section, the opening is becoming fluid, but the middle of the middle section remains tough. I'm starting to get the hang of it, but it's definitely something that is very much in progress. I think I'm in a good place with the harder stuff, where I'm working on flow, and I can test out increased speed with what's secure under my fingers. There's still a bit of work to be done, but that's to be expected with a piece that is a definite step up from things I'm accustomed to working on.
