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No chance with an upright at the moment, but I can compromise and assume I'm on the right track with the yamaha clavinova and the casio privia.
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Oct 4, 2008 22:34
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Bloke posted:No chance with an upright at the moment, but I can compromise and assume I'm on the right track with the yamaha clavinova and the casio privia. Well yeah, right track... but they wont be a massive improvement at that level. The most Piano like digital pianos are probably the upper end Rolands (RD series i.e. RD-700, very expensive), Kawais (MP series I prefer i.e. MP8II, although some of their digital home pianos are pretty nice too, just bigger) and then probably the Yamahas... P85s are great for the price but there's not much to them. I got a Kawai MP5 and it feels, plays and sounds better than most Pianos I've played under about $6000AUD, certainly a million times better than for anything I've played that costs an equivalent amount. The MP8 feels even better, but weighs and costs more of course. An important thing here is getting a good amplifier, the speakers that come with most digital pianos are terrible which is part of the reason I preferred to get a stage piano (no speakers) and just buy a decent keyboard amp. People generally recommend the Roland KC series for keyboard amps, such as the KC-350. What you're looking for in a digital piano is a fully weighted keys, and proper graded hammer action. If the keys just strike a switch then it's probably a lot cheaper, but won't feel quite right. If they have a hammer that swings and THEN strikes a switch they'll feel much more authentic. I don't know what prices are like over in EU, my MP5 was $2000AUD, in the US they're about $1200USD. I then paid another $500AUD for my amp, bringing it up to $2500AUD for a playable package. A good amp in USD is about $350, taking it up to ~$1550USD. All of them will handle MIDI ok, but if you spend a little more on a stage piano you'll generally get better MIDI support, including sliders/knobs and multiple channels. I use my MP5 as a Piano, B3 style organ and Rhodes style electric piano... and as a MIDI controller for all sorts of things. It's great, can switch it from internal to MIDI and various combinations thereof (with different zones as well) at the touch of a button.
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Oct 5, 2008 03:27
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Thanks. Just watched the kawai mp5/mp8 demo on youtube, looks like great piece of kit. I can't get one for under £900 here in the UK - even shipping from the US with import duty and delivery would would be around £850. The yamaha p85 is £450 (without stand/pedals), is it worth spending an extra £400/$700 on the kawai?
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Oct 5, 2008 11:38
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I would imagine so. P85 is a great, cheap entry level practice piano for kids that're learning but it's got no growth potential. It's also about as lame as a MIDI controller can get. It doesn't even have a mod wheel or pitch bend, let alone any knobs/sliders or assignable zones. With musical instruments, if you take it at all seriously, it's very often worth saving extra to get the better item because it will last you longer. Also, very importantly it will have a hugely better re-sale value. In 5 years time I would guess MP5s would still get a good price, whereas the P85 will be worth very little. Don't forget the extra keyboard amp expense though... although if you have a decent home sound system/computer sound system you can plug into that in the interim. It'll sound fine, just not as good as it should, and will not be able to get near as loud of course. Also, if you have a local Kawai dealer go and talk to them and ask them what kind of price they can manage for you. With expensive items like this there's often a bit of leeway in the actual price. I got mine cheaper locally than I could find them anywhere online, and I searched for a couple of weeks... and they've got a 5 year warranty so if you need to use that it's much easier to take it into the shop and let THEM deal with the shipping etc. than trying to pack and send it yourself. Japan's in a bit of a recession at the moment, so they may be inspired to reduce their export prices anyway.
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Oct 6, 2008 00:31
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In an attempt to provoke some discussion in this thread... What songs do ya'll pull out of the bag when you're hanging out with friends around a piano and someone eventually says "Play something!"? Being relatively new to the piano, I don't exactly have a large bag of crowd favorites so I generally just fall back on John Lennon's "Imagine". I am in the process of trying to learn some "November Rain" though, gotta raise my street cred. 
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Oct 12, 2008 06:17
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Hughmoris posted:In an attempt to provoke some discussion in this thread... One really simple but beautiful song I always suggest for people to learn is the Feather Theme from Forrest Gump. It's minimalistic at first, and then fleshes out to a nice, soothing song (melts the ladies every time, by the way). I'm sure you could find a decent piano-only version with a bit of searching. It's roughly the first two minutes of The Forrest Gump Suite.
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Oct 12, 2008 09:54
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Hughmoris posted:In an attempt to provoke some discussion in this thread... I play I Got Rhythm, Autumn Leaves, How High the Moon? and You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To. Then just embellish on them and play them in different keys.
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Oct 12, 2008 21:34
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I'm looking for a DP to practice on when guests are over. We have a very nice concert grand, so I guess I want one with a heavier touch. From what I've read, the Yamaha's are heavier so I'm leaning towards the P-140 right now. 1. Is 64 polyphony enough? I'll be playing classical music most of the time. 2. Since I don't need any extra voices or the ability to record, etc, should I go for a cheaper DP like the Yamaha YPG-635? 3. Are there any other DP's that I should look at? Also, I'm planning on learning Mozart's Sonata in D major for Two Pianos with my brother. The DP is going to sound terrible next to the grand isn't it. Will that difference in sound quality ruin the piece? 
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Oct 25, 2008 10:04
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Souffle posted:Will that difference in sound quality ruin the piece? Yes. A DP, in my opinion, can't compare to even a low-end upright. As good as it sounds in headphones, next to the real thing, it'll drive you mad.
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Oct 25, 2008 10:07
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heh, in my contrary opinion a good digital piano with a good keyboard amp can sound great... far far far far better than a cheap old upright. You just have to spend $1400USD or more on the piano and >$300 USD on the amp (Roland KC-350 will do you). I think you'll find the Kawai's and the Roland TD series are heavier, but the cheap Yamahas are heavier (and probably better) than equivalent cheap ones. As with all things, you spend the money you get the quality. I've played a few uprights in the past year since I've had my Kawai MP5 and I would safely say that my MP5 is much nicer to play and has a far superior sound quality... and it never goes out of tune. One thing to keep in mind is those digital pianos with built in speakers are almost guaranteed to have lovely speakers that just aren't up to the task of reproducing such a full and versatile sound as a piano can make. For this reason I prefer a digital stage piano and a good quality keyboard amp any day.
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Oct 26, 2008 07:14
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Vanmani posted:heh, in my contrary opinion a good digital piano with a good keyboard amp can sound great... far far far far better than a cheap old upright. You just have to spend $1400USD or more on the piano and >$300 USD on the amp (Roland KC-350 will do you). I think you'll find the Kawai's and the Roland TD series are heavier, but the cheap Yamahas are heavier (and probably better) than equivalent cheap ones. As with all things, you spend the money you get the quality. I've played a few uprights in the past year since I've had my Kawai MP5 and I would safely say that my MP5 is much nicer to play and has a far superior sound quality... and it never goes out of tune. For a lot of purposes, I agree. But he's trying to do a Mozart sonata on the DP. Classical music + digital piano... never has the same effect.
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Oct 26, 2008 07:30
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For me I find the visceral feel of playing a real piano far more engaging. The increased depth of touch and dynamics helps, but largely it's the way the whole thing resonates with you. One day when I'm wealthy and have a big house instead of a small apartment I'll get a proper grand, maybe. You're right of course, they'll notice some contrast between the digital and the acoustic when playing side by side, but if they spend the money they'll get by. A bit impractical and expensive to have two large pianos in the same room. I tend to think some people get bad opinions of DPs because the market is saturated with cheapies with low quality samples and even lower quality speakers/amplifiers is all 
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Oct 26, 2008 08:36
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Hughmoris posted:In an attempt to provoke some discussion in this thread... For the past 9 years unless the month is April - July, it's just been whatever I've been learning at the current time. How that I'm done with Royal Conservatory and value having a repetoire if a friend today would ask me to play for them I'd probably play. Chopin's Nocturne in C # - post op. Chopin's Nocturne in Bb + Op.9 Bach's Prelude and Fugue in C minor Book 1 Debussy's Girl with the Flaxen Hair Mozart's Fantasie in d minor If they're not digging that Coldplay Ben Folds Radiohead If they are lame Moonlight Sonata first movement Fur Elise If they want me to "play the hardest thing I know" Liszt's Liebestraum (in progress). Normally though, as most classical pianists are, I shy away from showing off as I constantly hold myself to a standard (in my head) of concert performance. So if I'm playing for a friend, wrong dynamics, touch or notes make me worry if they think I'm terrible when really, unless I'm playing for other Music Majors at UNI they'll probably think I'm amazing. :p
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Oct 27, 2008 04:16
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Okay here's a question to you guys. I have to pick two more pieces to study for April for university where I have to play in front of a panel of professors who evaluate my studies for the next year for my performance credit. Right now I have Liszt's Liebestraum. I AM a romantic music pianist, if I had it my way, I'd study every Chopin nocturne and ballade there is before touching other music. However, due to RCM and now these panels, I cannot do that I need to pick contrasting pieces. The pieces must be of RCM Grade 10 or ARCT. For you non canadian and british folks, that is roughly eqivilent to whatever the top grade is for your system. Any suggestions for pieces? I would love to do Clair de lune but it really isn't all that contrasting and I don't want to turn my panel into "greatest hits for the piano". So yeah, guys any suggestions? I'm a big fan of really really really sexy key changes, minor keys, lyrical melodies, and dramatic music. So lay it on me.
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Oct 27, 2008 04:24
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Vanmani posted:You're right of course, they'll notice some contrast between the digital and the acoustic when playing side by side, but if they spend the money they'll get by. A bit impractical and expensive to have two large pianos in the same room. Yeah, as much as I'd love to have 2 pianos (esp. 2 grands) sitting side by side, it's not really an option, especially since I'm only playing for fun. I guess I'll try to find some time this week to go test out some Kawai and Roland DPs. Thanks for the help guys.
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Oct 27, 2008 05:33
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Alizee posted:Okay here's a question to you guys. Wait, do they all have to be from the Romantic period, or can they be from others? If they have to be Romantic, I'd highly recommend Rigoletto... it's pretty virtuosic, dramatic, and I've had way too much fun playing it over the past few months.
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Oct 27, 2008 05:52
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Alizee posted:Pieces I hesitate to suggest them, having not played them myself and being unsure of their actual complexity, but some of Rachmaninoff's preludes would probably fit your bill.
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Oct 27, 2008 06:20
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Vanmani posted:I hesitate to suggest them, having not played them myself and being unsure of their actual complexity, but some of Rachmaninoff's preludes would probably fit your bill. I would play a rachmaninoff prelude but the only ones I really enjoy are the really famous ones and I'm trying to stay away from "greatest hits for piano" lol. To the poster above, I am looking for composers and pieces outside of the romantic period. Impressionistic, 20th century, baroque, classical. I'm game, as long as it's awesome. 
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Oct 28, 2008 13:57
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Alizee posted:I would play a rachmaninoff prelude but the only ones I really enjoy are the really famous ones and I'm trying to stay away from "greatest hits for piano" lol. Ever played the following?: Shostakovich Op. 87 Fugue no. 4 in E minor? Berg Piano Sonata Op. 1
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Oct 28, 2008 15:06
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How about a Lizt Hungarian Rhapsody? I learned one a few years ago and it was loads of fun. Had a recording of it too, but I lost it when my last coputer died. Edit: for some serious contrast, how about Bach's Italian Concerto?
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Oct 29, 2008 02:09
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Maybe look into one of Bach's P&F with a Beethoven sonata? C minor from WTC1 / Waldstein; (P&F in major key) / Tempest seem like they would go nicely.
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Oct 29, 2008 03:29
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Alizee posted:I would play a rachmaninoff prelude but the only ones I really enjoy are the really famous ones and I'm trying to stay away from "greatest hits for piano" lol. If you're looking for something contrasting but not too out there, maybe leaf through the etudes and preludes by Scriabin and Prokofiev (especially op. 2 no. 1), they certainly aren't romantic but contain a great deal of lyricism which might be to your liking. If you want to get as far away as possible from the "greatest hits for piano", Etudes by Lyapunov are romantic but not exactly mainstream, Etudes by Alkan fit the same bill (dunno if these are within your technique, I sure as hell can't manage them). If ultra-modern interests you at all, check out Sorabji's 100 Transcendental Etudes and his Nocturnes interesting music although not my cup of tea. Edit: Two more i'll tack on that I just remembered, Allegro barbaro by Bela Bartok and Allegro barbaro by Charles Alkan, both very interesting pieces
empty fucked around with this message at 06:34 on Nov 4, 2008 |
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Nov 4, 2008 06:31
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Alizee posted:Moonlight Sonata first movement Can you play the Moonlight Sonata third movement? My enjoyment of classical music extended about as far as O Fortuna until I started playing piano, then I heard the 14th sonata and god...drat with that one gorgeous piece classical music suddenly opened up to me and I made it a veeeery long term goal to learn it and I'm wondering if you need to be Royal Conservatory standard or whatnot. On a related note is there a site or resource to find out what grade specific pieces are? googling "what grade is [x]" is unreliable.
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Nov 6, 2008 02:30
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Slave posted:
http://www.pianoworld.com/Uploads/files/Graded_Pieces_All.pdf From the piano world-forums has a grades on a bunch of pieces. I don't know where the grades actually come from, but they seem reasonably legit.
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Nov 6, 2008 18:09
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Slave posted:Can you play the Moonlight Sonata third movement? My enjoyment of classical music extended about as far as O Fortuna until I started playing piano, then I heard the 14th sonata and god...drat with that one gorgeous piece classical music suddenly opened up to me and I made it a veeeery long term goal to learn it and I'm wondering if you need to be Royal Conservatory standard or whatnot. At this point now, I could play it if I studied it, but I'm too busy just with getting poo poo ready for panel to start new pieces. Really the piece isn't that hard, if you have the finger dexterity for it, you can play it. It's just arpeggios lol, ez mode. The hard part of the song is proper balance and bringing out the proper voices. It's a grade 10 song and you can find out what grade pieces are in the RCM Syllabus it's like 10 bucks at your local music store. And really man, you and everyone else begins with that piece and as they progress it becomes more and more cliche lol. Eventually you don't want to play the piece every pianist in the world has played. :P Yeah the same can be said with Liszt Liebestraum that I'm working on but at least you need to be a pianist or a classics enthusiast to know it. Btw in case anyone is wondering I picked a series of Brahms Walzer's. I especially love #3
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Nov 7, 2008 04:01
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I just managed to pick up a Casio LK-100 yesterday off a friend who needed to offload her stuff before she left town, and as much as it feels like a kid's toy with the light up keys, it's hella fun. I've had very minimal experience, like, playing "Heart and Soul" a couple times as a kid on my older cousin's piano. I've been playing guitar for about 18 months or so, but don't really know much about music theory and figured this would be a great opportunity to pick up some music theory. In the short term I've decided to learn Fur Elise and Cat Steven's "Sitting", they're the only songs I can think of at the moment. Any recommendations for songs that an absolute beginner should be learning? I've seen a few resources online that look OK and had a quick flick through the thread and they all look rather solid, any other recommendations for online free resources/lessons?
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Nov 11, 2008 11:18
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goku i won't do what u tell me
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AntiFistamine posted:Any recommendations for songs that an absolute beginner should be learning? I've seen a few resources online that look OK and had a quick flick through the thread and they all look rather solid, any other recommendations for online free resources/lessons? Ode to Joy. The intro to New Born (Muse). Other than that, just a book of grade 1 prep pieces. The important thing for you right now is to learn how to read music at the basic level. The hardest bit of that is probably just understanding key signatures, so most people get around that problem by just playing songs in C major to start with... I reckon this is an absolute cop out for adults that are coming to music, because adults are capable of understanding more than a 5 year old in the short term. So supplement your learning pieces with reading beginner theory, make sure you understand every piece of information that is on the sheet you are trying to play, or else you'll be playing it wrong.
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Nov 11, 2008 23:22
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I read this thread and decided to give the piano a try seeing as though I prefer it over the guitar. I am coming from an electronic music and sound design background so have no musical education whatsoever aside from knowing EGBDF and FACE as well as knowing what keys are what on a piano.... So far I have practiced the scales from here http://www.audiblefaith.com/artists/rharrell/music/groupI I will be using my home 61 key semi weighted midi controller which is great for midi and will probably suffice for what I want to achieve at least I have some really good and expensive piano plugins! However I am looking to learn to read sheet music. I have a whole heap of fairly basic stuff at my disposal (Coldplay, Billy Joel, Pink Floyd, Elton John etc.) but theres a few things I don't really understand. Such as what is middle C, where my hands should be and how many octaves down is the bass clef, Other than the time signature and stuff what do the flats/sharps signify at the start of music? Probably really basic stuff but I can't find any place online that explains it thoroughly with examples or anything. Is learning to read sheet music a good idea to start or should I just say stuff it and learn by sight from watching video tutorials or something. I don't plan on being anything amazing but being knowledgable of things will probably help in other areas
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Nov 18, 2008 10:15
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Fists Up posted:what is middle C http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_C It'll be a little different since your keyboard only has 61 keys, but it's pretty much the C that's closest to the middle of the keyboard. Fists Up posted:where my hands should be Anywhere, really. It depends on the song, but where your hands are is, obviously, going to be dictated by which notes you're playing. If you're still confused, watch some YouTube videos and just see what they're doing with their hands. Fists Up posted:what do the flats/sharps signify at the start of music? This is called the "key signature." These sharps and flats apply to the entire song, unless otherwise specified. Fists Up posted:Is learning to read sheet music a good idea to start or should I just say stuff it and learn by sight from watching video tutorials or something. It's always a good idea to learn to read. Even if you're not planning on reading very complicated stuff, it will help your musicianship immensely to know a bit about reading music.
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Nov 18, 2008 11:00
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Faux Crow posted:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_C My keyboard is pretty much an 88 keyboard with the lowest and highest octave knocked off (minus 2 keys or whatever) so I understand middle C the centre one but when looking at a piece of sheet music and it asks me to play a C with my right hand and a D with my left hand how do I tell which "C" I should pick? EDIT: I guess this is what I mean and probably answers my question. I was having trouble tell the difference between how far the notes are between clefs... http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/Middle_C_in_four_clefs.svg/512px-Middle_C_in_four_clefs.svg.png Thanks for the help anyway. The key signature thing really helps I didnt realise it applies to the whole song. So i just move any notes on those lines to flat or sharp unless noted?
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Nov 18, 2008 12:18
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Fists Up posted:Thanks for the help anyway. The key signature thing really helps I didnt realise it applies to the whole song. So i just move any notes on those lines to flat or sharp unless noted? That's the gist of it. You said you'd practiced some scales, you ought to find that in the vast majority of cases the key signature will match a known scale, although since you're new to it you probably haven't seen many scales. Basically yes, if the key signature has a sharp in an F line, you should play all Fs as F# (this would be G major) unless they are specifically denoted as being a natural (the sharp sign with the bottom left and top right lines removed). The other thing to remember is when you see a sharp or flat or natural in a bar of music, it is ASSUMED that this particular note will remain sharp/flat/natural/whatever for the remainder of that bar unless otherwise signified... although with some music you find on ye olde interweb this may or may not be the case, but often the kids writing up those sheets won't even put in a key signature when they very obviously should have, so take crappy internet hack sheet with a grain of salt.
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Nov 19, 2008 00:24
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Ahh that makes so much more sense to me now. Thanks....
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Nov 19, 2008 05:49
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Just getting back into piano after a 10 year hiatus. This new fangled internet sure has changed things so... where should I buy sheet music? There are a ton of download sites but I'm not looking at hooking up a monitor around the piano and homemade binding doesn't sound too great. I'd like to get a mix of contemporary (indie), showtunes, and classics but no Garth Brooks-like country stuff. edit: Yamaha CP300 if there are any questions about it (hasn't arrived yet but I got a pretty good deal) Vezbot fucked around with this message at 02:33 on Nov 22, 2008 |
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Nov 22, 2008 02:26
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Vezbot posted:where should I buy sheet music? I use Sheet Music Plus and Hutchins and Rea.
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Nov 22, 2008 09:15
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80k posted:I use Sheet Music Plus and Hutchins and Rea. Excellent, exactly what I was looking for.
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Nov 22, 2008 18:49
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I have a cheap keyboard on the way and I might be ordering a Synthesizer. Can anyone recommend me a book on Music Theory in relation to learning Piano? I'm looking for something for beginners. Being available on Amazon is also a plus.
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Nov 29, 2008 06:13
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I've dabbled in some instruments in the past, namely guitar and violin, but the biggest problem I have with them is that all of my neighbors in my apartment complex can hear me practice and its annoying to them and to me, knowing that its annoying to them. I've always liked the piano but it seemed even more impractical to learn, but for some reason I never thought about the keyboard until now and I'm really excited about it. Unfortunately I'm coming into it from scratch so I'm asking some of the experienced goons out there for help on how to get started. First off, I won't have a keyboard for a month or so, but I'd love to start learning how to read sheet music or play notes. Is there any software out thats free and good for learning how to recognize notes? Second, which keyboard should I consider buying? The requirements I have are it should be able to play hundreds of kinds of sounds, from piano to organ and electronic and all that. I'd like to be able to record some tracks like a drum or bass beat, and then play over that. And finally it should be under $1000, including a stand and some nice headphones. Any advice on either of these things would be greatly appreciated.
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Nov 30, 2008 04:33
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Can anyone tell me what the chords are around 20 seconds into this song? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpcBQNG7GTI&feature=related I'm so bad at picking out chords. Any tips?
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Nov 30, 2008 23:31
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FateFree posted:First off, I won't have a keyboard for a month or so, but I'd love to start learning how to read sheet music or play notes. Is there any software out thats free and good for learning how to recognize notes? Search download.com (with the freeware option on) for piano and it comes up with a few good programs to look at. I like "note attack" for drilling fast note recognition but that requires a keyboard, although there are also programs on there which create virtual keyboards on your screen or tie keyboard notes to your pc keyboard.
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Dec 1, 2008 11:55
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I've just started to play the piano and I'm totally into it. But I've been playing on an M-Audio keyboard that is just about as cheap feeling as possible. I'm going to upgrade to something with a better action. I know there is a lot of upright love in here which unfortunately I can't get into (New York City). I'm considering getting a Rhodes 73 from Ebay or hopefully a store around here. Any thoughts? Any owners out there who have learned to play on a Rhodes vs an acoustic piano or digital piano?
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Dec 1, 2008 18:27
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