What to Learn next......

dan_d

Hey people.

Quick question. I'm unemployed a short while, and am a complete fidget. I don't go in for sitting in front of the TV all day, and I'm trying to fill up the hours as best I can. I play the piano and the violin. Now the violin, I'm still learning, so that's fine. I passed the ALCM on the piano in '08 however, and haven't looked at it much since then. I'm vaguely considering teaching lessons (based in north county dublin) but I'm not sure yet.

In the meantime, I'm looking for suggestions for a few pieces to learn while I'm not doing anything else. Preferably something a bit of a challenge - maybe 2 or 3 contrasting pieces. I find it kind of hard to pitch the level of a piece; as in, my sight reading is quite good, I can play most pieces, but I don't know any particularly nice ones that might be a challenge. There's quite a number I've already done as extra pieces during my exams - the Moonlight Sonata, the Pathétique - the "usual" ones, I suppose you could say.

So has anyone any suggestions? I'm a lover of Mozart and Chopin. For practice sake, something by Bach would probably be good, and I enjoy Beethoven, because it's a challenge. But anything outside those would be welcome too!!

funky penguin

Doshea will be able to tell you best how to progress, but I'll throw my own 2c in.

I always find that the difficulty of a piece is almost all in your head. Alright, there obvious exceptions, such as Rach's 3rd Concerto or something......but don't let the difficulty of a piece throw you too much. Solid practice with good technique will gt you through most pieces.

If you love Mozart and Chopin......I'd recommend some of the latter's Nocturnes. Have a listen to them and judge for yourself which you like. I think that far more important than the relative simplicity/difficulty of it.

In Mozart.....well I've never really played Mozart except his sonata in F K332 (or 322.....can't remember). Its really really cool, all the movements are brilliant and I'd thoroughly recommend it. Some challenging moments!

I've only ever really looked into and played later stuff, like Debussy and Rachmaninoff. With Debussy, I'd recommend one of his preludes, perhaps The Girls with the Flaxen Hair or Dancers of Delphi.

Rachmaninoff.....again look at his preludes. Old reliable, his C sharp minor one is a tour de force, a great show piece and no where near as difficult as it sounds. People love it. Including me! His G sharp minor is challenging, but not overly so. Also, perhaps look at his moment musicaux.

Good luck!

dan_d

Excellent, thanks guys.

I've actually done Debussy - the girl with the flaxen hair - for the senior cert years ago and I loved it .Might dig it out again actually.

I've got a book of Chopin's nocturnes, and have chosen one that I like, but it's a bit simple, so I'm going to do another one too (can't remember names!)

Rachmaninov is a good suggestion, thanks. I haven't played much of his stuff.

I'm not overly concerned about the difficulty, (not to blow my own trumpet too much!!!), I can pretty much play anything at this point. It's just to get something nice that I can work on and bring to a good performance standard. Any suggestions are welcome!

funky penguin

Well in that case, I strongly recommend the Rachmaninoff preludes. Some of my personal favourites are.....

B Minor, G Minor, C minor, E Major, D Major, G sharp minor, F sharp minor, C sharp minor, C major.

Em, actually I'll stop cos I'll just end up posting all 24. :P

Norrdeth

Hey if you're into learning any Irish classical music, pop into the CMC library in Dublin if you have the time and check out a few scores, they have a pretty big collection! Plus they're always looking for people to play Irish works.

Link - http://cmc.ie/library/index.cfm

Ben.

dan_d

Thanks everyone.

I've ventured into Rachmaninov's prelude in D Major. It's a bit more effort than I've been used to lately!!Need a couple of pointers, if anyone cares to share...

There's a lot of changing between the treble and bass in the the left hand - it can be done, but it looks messy when I'm playing!! Any ideas how to work it so it's a bit easier, or do you just play what works for you?

I'm liking the sound of it so far anyway...!

funky penguin

Yeah there's alot of that characteristic flowing left hand that Rach was famous for. Unfortunately for the majority of us, his hands were HUGE, so we need to tweek the fingering to a less tendinitis inducing pattern!

Unfortunately, I've found that this can lead to awkward patterns with some of Rach's stuff (notably his Etude in D Minor Op. 39).

However! This doesn't mean they're impossible, just a little more challenging. You might find yourself leaping alot in the left, like the opening bars in the D Major prelude. Here, I would advise keeping to what feels natural, but remembering to use all your fingers.

Eg, the first leap from the low D to the A a compound 5th above it, I would personally use my 5th finger for both of these notes. This emphasizes the pedal note of the D, and allows space with the rest of your fingers to continue the pattern.....which is still awkward enough :P

Good luck with this piece, its one of the deceptively hard rachmaninoff pieces, but absolutely gorgeous. My favourite performance of it was Boris Beresovsky when I saw him play the concert hall last year, he played it as an encore. Mesmerizing. Other good recordings are Richter and Ashkenazy.

Seriously again, best of luck, once you have this down, it will be a brilliant addition to your repertoire, and one many people enjoy listening to.*

























*Especially chicks. :pac:

dan_d

Yeah that explains a lot, there's a certain chord that I practically pull ligaments to reach all the notes in!! The initial bars aren't actually that bad, they flow fine after a couple of runs through them, though I don't think I necessarily agree with using the 5th finger as you describe - but each to their own.

(Btw funky penguin, I appreciate your tips on getting girls....but I am one, and in a very happy relationship with my boyfriend!!I'll bear it in mind should I decide to go for a change in lifestyle any time soon though!!!)

funky penguin

/slaps face

Woops!! apologies!!

No worries, whatever fingering works for you, keep at it.

What bar is the chord in? Generally with Rach, I try to either hit two notes with one finger (if possible), or do the dreaded spread!

dan_d

Well, it's in bar 16 (I'm using Schirmer's Library book of preludes). It's (working up from the lowest note) C#,D, A, C#. I would use my thumb to hit the 2 lowest notes, but obviously, since they are only a semitone apart and a black and a white, that's a bit tricky. Also the left hand is waaaaaaaaaay down the piano,so the LH can't take it either.

I think it'll just have to be stretched somehow. And I won't take offense at your previous mistake, it's an easy one to make given the username!:P

funky penguin

Its tricky enough to get them with the thumb, but if you play it at the end of the C Sharp, you can kind of get the D as well. If its too awkward, don't try it, just spread, but its a trick my teacher showed me when we were talking about the beginning of Rach's 2nd Piano Concerto, which has famously huge chords, which I thought had to be spread by most. But he basically said if you can play them in a way that stikes both keys at once and doesn't hurt you, then go for it. He has relatively small hands, but with strategic use of his thumb he was getting two notes at once a semi-tone apart with ease!

I cannot stress enough though: If it feels awkward or sore, just spread the chord. No point in getting a strain over one chord!