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I have just bought myself a digital piano. Been wanting to learn for ages and finally thought gently caress it. Would have gotten an upright but for space and volume issues. I forget exactly which one I went for, mid\high end casio, I just liked it better in the store than anything else in my budget, its in one of those nice wooden stands, has all the key features (nicely weighted keys etc) and have the 3 pedal grand piano setup thing. I am very pleased with it. Anyway, I want to learn to play classical music, going to be sorting out lessons, I'll also be pissing about doing the whole pop songs and just jamming with friends but I can figure that stuff out myself, especially once I get some decent technique sorted. However, it's going to be a few weeks till I can get lessons sorted, what can I do in the meantime? I've found a page with proper fingerings for scales so I'll do those with a metronome. Any babies first steps video lessons or websites that are decent out there? Especially for chord fingerings. I have a decent grounding in theory so I can probably work stuff out just don't want to get bad habits if I can help it. [TLDR - Got new piano, want to do things now before I start lessons, what should I be doing?]
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Dec 29, 2011 18:28
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So had my first lesson today, double checked I had the C major scale fingerings correct, went over various ways to play and arpeggios for it. Also went through ode to joy. Good lesson, been practising for an hour when I got home. Can play it through ok at a decent speed, the key change in the bass still gets me now and then. I do have two questions though. 1) Reading the music as I play is remarkably un-phasing, I had a brief familiarity with it before (I could tell you what the things on it mean) but had never read any before. I kind of just follow it, up a note, down a note, up two notes, 5th C chord, ohh this ones got three dots so that's a full c major, three fingers. I mean is this how I'm supposed to do it, it feels so easy (yeah I know its a basic piece) I feel I must be doing it wrong and cheating somehow. 2) My thumb hurts. On the outside, in the same sort of area you would use to barre a chord on the guitar (although obviously on the finger for guitar) like right on the bend. Is this me doing something wrong with my thumb? Or is this tough it out build up callouses?
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Jan 4, 2012 00:14
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TheBeardedCrazy posted:1) When you learn how to read letters, you don't start with big words, you start small and sound out each letter. As you get better, you can read bigger words and do it faster. Right now you're a kindergartener sounding out words in a picture book, eventually you'll be able to read more complicated pieces. 1) Yeah I get that, didn't think Ode to Joy was the musical version of war and peace. Baby steps but is that how people start too look at music or should I be focusing on learning, this dot here is a D, this dot here is an A and so on? Or is it ok to work on the basis of that one was a C, this one is 2 steps up, so I just play there on the piano, don't register its an E. 2) Lower than the knuckle, about half way between the knuckle and the end of the finger, where the top of the nail starts on the outside of the thumb, I think its where the edge of the keys dig into it. Knuckles are not on piano.
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Jan 4, 2012 00:49
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While I am here might as well ask for other begginer song recommendations around the same sort of evel as ode to joy.
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Jan 4, 2012 12:13
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Talk to me about movements. What are they? I'm talking in regard to classical music, ie Mozart's Wicked Bad Concerto 79 in Db Minor 2nd Movement. Who decides where they go? Is it the composer? Splitting up their own work for creative (or practical) reasons or is to done later to make some 50 page monster more manageable? What differentiates it from a part or section or is it just a music word for the same thing? While I'm at it, difference between a concerto and a symphony (and other things of that ilk I seem to have missed).
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Jan 6, 2012 16:28
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Bob Shadycharacter posted:Movements are different sections of a larger work. Usually they could stand alone if you want, sometimes they're more integrated with each other. It's not so much to break things up so they're not too long, more like it provides a contrast and shows range. And yeah, 100% up to the composer. Thanks for explaining. So movements might be described as tracks on a particularly well connected album?
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Jan 6, 2012 18:43
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dogpower posted:I used to play a lot of recitals as a kid..... While I can't offer any technical piano specific advice, having only just begun that road myself, I have played a lot of music in front of various people\crowds, so hopefully I can help on this one. Step 1 is obviously knowing the music. You say you've never known anything better, but do you really know it? Can you hum it all the way through without so much as looking at a piano (ie. you know the actual music not just finger\muscle memory). Can you play starting from anywhere, be that starting from a phrase or even half way through a bar comfortably? Perhaps for Piano specific (if this point is bad advice please correct just theorising) you could try playing it HS but swapping hands every 4 bars or so. 1-4 RH, 5-8 LH, 9-12 RH and so on. Can you do this without struggling? Step 2 is playing in front of other people, I don't know how much you do now but get used to it. Play in front of any friends that will listen, every time you see an instrument you can play (and its appropriate for the situation) play something to people, it doesn't have to be the best thing you can play, just bashing out some pop songs at a party will help no end in getting you used to the sensation of having someone critique your work. I know people at parties or whatever are not actively critiquing what you play, but you try telling that to someone nervous about it. Step 3 sort of correlated to step 2, record yourself, constantly. Literally every practise session I do I record myself. I also try to actively listen to my playing while I play but if its something difficult that I haven't mastered that's hard to do. But recording is easy, set it up, leave it, be aware its there and listen back. Part way through the session, after the session, really listen to your playing and be really critical and then work on what you didn't like, isolate what it was and work on it. Once you know what you sound like it adds confidence. The first few times you do this you'll be amazed how many little things you pick up on that you didn't even know you were getting wrong, small things that make a big difference, slight mistakes in rhythm, a note or two louder than you want so that its jarring, a slightpause in a difficult bit. Step 4 A bit more idiosyncratic but when I know how to play a piece well I stop thinking about how to play it. Especially when I'm under pressure, my mind and body already know exactly what to do having done it so many countless times before. Instead I focus all my mental energy on conveying the feeling or emotion I want to convey in the music, I don't actively ignore my playing and fingers etc but I don't focus on it I more kind of trust in my fingers to go to the right place and put my efforts into how it sounds. It tends to work for me, I'm not worried about playing the right notes, I'm worried about making it sound forlorn, so when I get that blank block thing it just tends to not be as forlorn but still played correctly. I dunno YMMV on that one. Note - I don't know how well that would work with the more complex classical pieces, I'm just used to memorising everything I play in a song so reading the music etc has never been a part of performing. [edit] I notice you said you normally play through mistakes, which is the best way to do things, most of that time your audience wont notice, sometimes maybe even a judge\examiner wont (you never know they are only human). Playing through is an increasable valuable skill to have as the natural urge it to stop, correct it and carry on. If you don't already utilise it and encourage it when you practise, just make a mental note of the part you flubbed on and come back to it, see if you flub again while playing just that part then isolate, fix and try the larger part again. Cast_No_Shadow fucked around with this message at 20:47 on Jan 6, 2012 |
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Jan 6, 2012 20:38
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I have a quick question about the first part of Fur Elise, the left hand arpeggios, they should be played legato right, but should I be holding the individual notes as long as possible or releasing when the next one is played? I'm thinking the former because that's what I think most performances sound like but I'm still a little nervy about committing to anything for certain at the moment. [edit] Just looked at some videos and apparently its released when next note is played, pedal maybe? It sounded better holding on when I tried it, probably just my playing though. Cast_No_Shadow fucked around with this message at 22:47 on Jan 6, 2012 |
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Jan 6, 2012 22:41
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Tgent posted:Can I ask what sort of microphone you use for this? I assume I'd need a half-decent one to properly assess my playing, not just any old cheap one from the computer store. My Piano records me for me  The wonders of modern technology.Alternatively I'd give poo poo advice for a real mic, there are however some good thread in this sub-forum that give good advice, check out home recording and\or the singers thread. That said, in times past or just on my guitar, any old poo poo mic will do. Seriously, this isn't so much about producing something to make you proud, this is listening how is your timing and rhythm really? How does that complicated bit sound. Its just detaching the concentration, moving it from playing to listening as its hard to do both. You must have some lovely mic somewhere, even if you just hook up that bluetooth thing for your phone to windows sound recorder or whatever, give it a go!
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Jan 16, 2012 00:00
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CowOnCrack posted:Thanks for the honesty, it's not easy to give something like piano up. Frustration in some cases is a motivator, but if playing is all frustration and no reward then it becomes harder and harder to continue playing. I have a similar problem. Its so important to find something fun to do with an instrument that can sit along side the development perfectionism element. Be it jamming along to a backing track or other people or just playing fun songs that you don't care are perfect or not. Learning to separate the state of mind you have for Chopin and the one you have for bashing out show tunes or lady gaga or whatever the gently caress you just enjoy doing. I don't know if you play any other instruments but since I'm not really at the stage where I have a wide repertoire I find it good to swap when I start to get too frustrated with piano. As for just piano and learning something properly I tend to find it helps to take pride in what you can do. Recording helps for this, record yourself a lot and listen to it, learn to enjoy your progress it really helps to make the pain worthwhile. You're right about playing something within your range as well. It takes a certain person to sit and painstakingly go through something beyond them day after day after day after day making tiny progress every day. If you're not that person then don't do it, it saps the fun out of it. Breaking down the music you are working on helps as well. Really small chunks that you can play the poo poo out of over and over and over, seriously a 5 second loop you can play 20 time a minute or 1200 times an hour. Obviously most small sections wont need an hours intensive work. But by working on a small section over and over and over you really do get to know that small section incredibly well no matter how much of a perfectionist you are.
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Feb 8, 2012 11:58
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Nice I enjoyed the listen. I look forward to hearing it after two more months.
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Feb 23, 2012 16:58
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When you're learning something quite long, or varied how do you do it? Assume its actually a challenging piece for you not something you can just sight read your way through and bash out pretty well first time. Do you go through it all, learning it to a sort of, I play the right keys at the right time in the right order then go through phrase by phrase and work on making it musical rather than just technical (if you get what I mean)? Or do you sectionalise it first, perfect (again you know what I mean) each section then move onto the next? Or something entirely different!
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Mar 2, 2012 19:15
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By perfect I should probably have used a better word. Acceptable standard for whatever context you're in would probably have been better.
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Mar 3, 2012 01:20
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stanislaus posted:Completely new piano player here, have a couple questions about getting into it: From someone in the same boat a couple of months ago. 1) Getting a new teacher is a bit trial and error if you don't have any recommendations. Ask about, I was surprised at the amount of people I knew who played piano and could help. Alternatively, get in touch with any you can find on the internet etc. and ask them a couple of questions about their style and what they think is important, see how well it matches with what you want to learn and perceived wisdom of places like this thread. Getting a good teacher is soooo important especially if you want to eventually play difficult classical pieces. If you just want to bang along to pop songs however, anyone with a decent knowledge of the instrument will probably do (here are the keys you press, it makes X chord, make sure you do\don't do this so you don't get carpal tunnel). 2) Can't really recommend specific models as my knowledge isn't wide enough. If you want to go down the classical route, or in any way take things seriously or may do in future I do know you need a couple of things. Weighted Keys Touch sensitive keys Weighted better simulates a real piano, gets your fingers used to the right sorts of pressure you need to use to make certain sounds and stops you getting horrible hand injuries. Touch sensitive means when you play a note hard the keyboard responds with a loud note, when you play softly it plays a soft note. These are very important things. I'd also suggest 88 keys, but this I guess depends on if you need all those octaves or not. classical\experimental stuff yeah you probably will. Dance music? Don't worry about it. Saying that. I have a really nice keyboard, its lovely, each individual note sounds pretty much spot on and far more pianoy than any piano I've played. But holy gently caress do I wish I had a piano, even a crappy old poo poo box. There is such a difference in being able to really feel the music in your fingers, its so much more alive. 
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Mar 29, 2012 09:32
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This thread will not go a month without posts! So to ask a question, when I'm attempting to cover songs that are basically guitar songs I can never get it to sound anything near right. I mean I can bang on chords and octaves to match what the rhythm guitar plays, but it sounds so empty. How do you go about transposing something to piano
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Apr 20, 2012 00:25
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guppy posted:I don't know that model but I have the Privia PX-310 (also a Casio, in the same line, obviously) and I love it. I paid about $400 for it used, but it did not include a bench or a stand, which I had to buy separately. You can get away with a cheap keyboard for a little while but if you can afford it I'd suggest going straight to a model that will actually feel like a piano because you'll want to eventually. Also its a bit late in the day, and you probably have made your purchase now, but I also have a Privia, 7XX something, its a very nice digital piano and I have no complaints but every time I sit at a real piano I yearn for one. The difference is palpable.
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Apr 20, 2012 00:26
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Moszkowski is really underrated. I'd hardly heard of him until a little while ago, just started learning Study in G minor, (op 91, no 10 iirc) and its beautiful. Can anyone recommend similar pieces?
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May 3, 2012 13:43
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CowOnCrack posted:I'm not sure what your level is, but a lot of his Etudes from Op. 72 are very pretty. This over-achieving YouTube link has all of them conveniently listed - take your pick: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvuWKrWBIwQ I have no idea either, I've not been playing long (just shy of 5 months maybe) but come from a heavy musical background. I know the one I'm playing is classed as UK grade 6 (I think there is a differnce UK\USA? Uk goes to grade 8 if that helps :S), since I'm playing it from the exam book, it's also the level my piano teacher thinks I should enter the exam structure at. That said, I know I'm missing quite a few skills you'd expect someone at that level to have, and a certain amount of dexterity as well. Still thanks for that link I'll have to have a listen through them.
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May 22, 2012 18:13
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ejstheman posted:What do you want to do with the keyboard? If you just want to run a piano-sounding synthesizer program on your computer so that you can practice with your new keyboard, it's way more than you need. It's designed for producing tracks and playing shows and so on. I have a fair few friends that are using keyboards as midi controllers to just produce tracks. You can literally get by with well one finger hunt and peck. Yes I know someone that does that. But assuming you know nothing, the ones that do a little bit of scale work (mainly for technical skills on the keyboard) and who start working on the theory side of things appear to have a much easier (and quicker) time of it. If you're thinking more as actually playing bits of music and using the computer to record them. Follow the same advice for anyone who wants to actually play that music on a real piano as you'd be doing the same thing.
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Jul 20, 2012 12:07
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Elephunk posted:
From a very, very quick search looks like its classed as somewhere around grade 3/4 similar difficulty pieces you could throw his way in the classical range include. Grade 3 (Early Classical) -Bach; Prelude in C (BWV 939) -Kzeluch; Air cosaque (Late Classical\Romantic) -Schumann; Wilder Reiter (No 8 Op 68) Grade 4 (Early) -Bach Jr.; Scherzo (from Musikalische Nebenstuden) -Beethoven; Minuet in G Grade 4 (Late) -Maikapar; Chez le forgeron (no 5 op 8) If they are too easy, in Grade 5 we have (early) Bach - Air BWV 830 Haydn - Menuet and Trio (3rd mvt. Sonata in B flat) (late) Zilinskis - Elegy (In Autumn) Liszt - Andantino And if hes really flying Grade 6 has one of my favourite pieces. Moszkowski - Study in G Minor (No 10. Op 91) It also contains Bach - Sinfonia No. 13 in A minor (BWV 799) Mozart - Allegro (K. 282) Their current listings are avaliable on the internet as well, I just picked out ones that either I like or fit in with the rest. Also this is ABRSM the UK version of grades which I think only go to 8, iirc USA goes to 10? I don't know if this means things get harder earlier or 9 & 10 USA is the same as ABRSM diplomas etc.
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Sep 7, 2012 12:52
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I seem to be having a problem with my fairly new Casio Privia PX 730, its about 10 months old. The E above middle C seems a touch more "clicky" than the rest of the keys, which isn't a real problem but what is, is during playing, when I play the key, no matter what action I use it occasionally sounds like I've hit it as hard as I can, with a hammer and several extra G's of force. It seriously explodes. But its intermittent, and seemingly random. Does anyone have any idea what's causing this?
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Oct 8, 2012 18:48
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I'm no expert but for fingerings, I tend to find looking at a bar or phrase as a whole helps, find the highest note on each hand (assuming no crossing over) and that's obviously going to be your thumb/pinky, the lowest your pinky/thumb (left/right). When I need to move my hand, I'll think about either a sort of crab like pincer (put thumb and ring together, move thumb out, ring in, thumb out) or crossing at the same point as scales, around the 3rd finger. Generally just try it and see what your hand does, less movement and easier is usually better. That last couple of bars, right hand can easily just be 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 4, (1,2,5 x2) Cast_No_Shadow fucked around with this message at 14:57 on Oct 24, 2012 |
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Oct 16, 2012 18:05
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So I need a theory book or two. But all I can find are either, "My first theory book" or "Minute observations in one tiny microcosm of composition" where is the middle ground. The vast, vast majority of theory books I can find are basically "This is how you read sheet music, these are chords\scales and how you make them" that sort of stuff. I know all that. The other ones I can find assume you know all the above, and then this whole other curriculum of regarding harmony, cadences and so on. I am I just retarded that I cannot find this...anywhere?
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Nov 21, 2012 16:05
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I'm in a sort of similar position to CowOnCrack. Similar time playing, similar difficulty in pieces (judged by a quick listen). I too find learning two pieces that are very different in style helpful, switching helps prevent the tedium of repetition and I find intensive practice of one thing, followed by a break while I practice something else, and the returning gives far, far better results than straight practice of a single thing would. If that makes sense. Almost as if it needs time for my brain to figure it out and store it. Getting a good teacher is vital, not one of my friends will ever criticise my piano playing no matter what I say. In some cases its a lack of knowledge, it sounds nice but they don't know enough to pick up on the fact I missed a note or over played some poco rit etc. Even in those that do have that knowledge, its still a bit hard to actively pick apart the work of a friend. A good teacher though, will know their stuff and actively make sure you are aware of parts that can be improved. As for speed, I assume you use a metronome? Use it more. Play a phrase, or section, or page or whatever you are comfortable with at a speed you can play it with a metronome, play it correctly at that speed 2-4 times depending on confidence with it. Up metronome 1-5 bpm. Repeat until at performance bpm + 10-30%. In very few songs, especially at this sort of level, is speed the problem. More likely its incorrect technique or just plain not knowing the piece well enough.
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Nov 21, 2012 16:16
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WASDF posted:Could anyone help me out with my first MIDI controller? I have an Oxygen 25 and I'm trying to get it to work through Pro Tools 10 but I can't figure it out. While I'm sure you'll eventually get an answer in here, I think you'd be better off asking in one of the music production threads. This thread is, at least at the moment, populated by people who play piano rather than use it as a midi controller. CowOnCrack - I'm sans PM's but also UK based, dunno what that does to shipping of textbooks, especially ones I assume will be pretty heavy. Cast_No_Shadow fucked around with this message at 13:32 on Nov 22, 2012 |
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Nov 22, 2012 13:29
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Hold for 2 beats. Its in 4/4 so each bar is 1,2,3,4. So you hold those notes for two beats while playing the next three notes. So Hold F while playing D, A, D then release F and hold G while playing D, B, D. The lines going both way show two voices in unison on the same clef. Basically assuming the piece is a piano piece written for piano it would suggest there are two distinct voices in the bass clef and they cross\join\both hit the same note at that point. If it were orchestral or with multiple instruments and you have two on the same staff, say soprano and alto, soprano would have all the staffs pointing up, alto down, and that note would show they are both to play\sing it. You can see it in that piece. You have two voices in your baseline. One goes code:code:
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Dec 8, 2012 10:46
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DukAmok posted:Hey piano dudes, released a new piano album, let me know what you think. Most of the popular classical pieces are popular because they were easy enough for your average joe to be able to play them in their front room (as well as being good). Beethoven's Fur Elise & Moonlight Sonata Mvt 1 Motzart's Rondo Alla Turca Haydn's La Roxolane Chopin's Raindrop etc. Probably all in the Grade 3-5 range. Bach also has somewhere around 8 billion pieces ranging from easy to bloody hard if you want something more baroque. [Edit] Actually if you're looking to "grow" and you have released a Piano album I'm guessing its less about technique and more about musicality? Maybe look into some Chopin stuff, Preldues in E Minor and A Major are both easy to press all the right notes but hard to make sound just right but Chopin is popular enough for you to have hundreds of version to listen to, from the amateur to the professional to get different ideas? Cast_No_Shadow fucked around with this message at 17:19 on Dec 24, 2012 |
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Dec 24, 2012 17:15
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Generally all his preludes are pretty nice, he wrote that set of them in every key so pick and choose or move onto his Nocturnes? E flat is the one you and everyone else knows. I like the F Minor and E minor as well. Waltz wise, E Flat again (I like that key can you tell?) and D flat are not miles away difficulty wise from the other stuff. Then again, I've never really used the traditional method of difficulty classification. A piece is either easy, a challenge or way beyond me and the best way to find out is to spend a couple of hours finding out. You'll be (or at least I am) constantly surprised at what you can actually do, and again at what you find hair pullingly difficult.
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Dec 27, 2012 11:41
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Annies Boobs posted:Well I don't know how novice you're talking about here but his easiest that I enjoy. I'm going to take a guess you're not using the British ABRSM grading system here, guessing American? Can someone give a quick run down of how their grading system breaks down? A google search reveals little.
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Dec 29, 2012 11:54
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CharlesDexterWard: (As an aside, I read that tale only a couple of days ago) My practise regime is something like. 15 mins-20 mins run around the scales, 4 octaves up and down, then mess about for a while, up, contrary out, up, down, contrary in, contrary out, down etc. For each scale, throw in some a 6th or 3rd apart. 15 minutes or so working on some technical skill, for your need for example I'd pick a chord start at the lowest end of the keyboard and play all its inversions working up the keyboard varying it with rhythm, legato, staccato, various volumes and pedalling. Sight read some things plucked at random from a huge stack of sheet music I've printed off for this purpose. Work on pieces for an hour or so. Run through another technical skill and go round some scales messing with rhythms and such. Takes somewhere around 2 hours as that fits with my life and chunks of time I happen to have free. You could easily adapt this to your own needs, I found having a structure like this means I don't skip out on boring things in favour of fun things. The first 30 mins could be exactly the same as mine. Instead of sight reading maybe play through various jazz standards? For Work on pieces sub in whatever the main thing you do is, improv etc Then finish up with some more technical work. It's pretty simple and should see you a long way.
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Jan 11, 2013 18:21
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CharlesDexterWard posted:I play 7th chords a lot in my left hand and the way I finger that is 5-4-2-1 as I saw it in a YouTube video and it seems comfortable to me. I also play my regular triads with a 5-4-2 fingering, but I haven't read anyone recommend that fingering for the triads, but I find the one I read most often (5-3-1) to be somewhat uncomfortable. Should I stick with what I have or should I try and get used to the 5-3-1? The 5-3-1 is most common because it fits most hands most easily and is really easy to know you're in the right shape. Personally I see no reason why you couldn't use any fingering that works as long as you don't gimp yourself for the next chord\notes. Consistency (and not giving yourself carpal tunnel) is more important for something like that than 'you have to use fingers X-y-z'. Pick one, stick to it with exceptions when the piece demands it.
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Jan 12, 2013 18:33
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Xabi posted:Not really sure if this is the right thread, but I couldn't find a better one. Not an area of expertise for my self but the extend of my knowledge is basically, if you are playing to yourself\in your bed room etc just buy any half decent monitors and be happy.
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Jan 14, 2013 19:07
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If you're gunna cheap out on anything, cheap out on the monitors. Mainly because $80 is nothing in the scheme of things for this instrument, its an expensive beast at times. And when you do want to upgrade, its the smallest sunk cost (and heck, monitors are always useful) and its by far the easiest to bit to upgrade (except maybe the stool).
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Jan 16, 2013 20:13
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surrender posted:I picked up a 25 key monophonic synthesizer (Minibrute I'm sure someone will come up with a better answer but... The actual guitar bass thread has this http://www.studybass.com/ beauty nestled near the arse of the its op. Its a really good introduction to music theory, at least the basics of and is bass focused too, even if its on bass guitar, you should be able to translate it to Piano real easy. As for technical exercises, they generally work to build up playing ability, constructing parts is more in the land of theory. But assuming you want that kind of thing as well, of which knowledge of scales, broken chords etc is a big early part, head over to ABRSM's website, pull up their piano syllabus and start at the technical requirements for grade one. There are a bajillion videos on youtube for these things as well to help. Bashing around with scales and chords will work, but if you really want to get into crafting music rather than tinkering with things till it sounds right, pursing theory will help a lot, just be aware 90% of anything about theory on the internet will actually be "how to read music", which is kinda theory 101, the other 10% is some PHD thesis on creation of tension, the middle bit is apparently only found in real books.
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Jan 17, 2013 18:30
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) a month ago, and while I'm having a ton of fun with designing patches, I'd also like to learn more about developing proper keyboard technique/theory so I can actually play something musical instead of plonking on random keys. Can you guys suggest a website with good exercises? I'm not really interested in learning to play songs, but instead playing scales and such so I can come up with good basslines and lead progressions.
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Stryguy posted:Can anyone recommend a good music/piano theory book? I am currently starting on Faber lesson 3A and have been taking lessons for a year now with no prior music training. I would like something beginner to intermediate. I always find this a tough question. I'm not familiar with the Faber books beyond a quick Amazon scan. Those Piano adventure ones right? By that I'm assuming you mean the basics of theory, how to read music, understand scales, chords and similar and fit it all together sort of thing? I think its a pretty personal thing for the starting blocks of musical theory, I do hear good things about the Faber books, even if they are ostensibly aimed at a much younger audience the knowledge contained in them should be all good. Also I think its heavily dependant on the goal you have in mind. I personally cannot stand books aimed at children that explain everything 30 different ways to make sure the point is hammered home (although do I appreciate their use). As you're getting instruction something I found helpful at your sort of point was getting a dryer more text\reference type book and scouring the internet for as many pieces of music I could find for free between Grade 1 and whatever I could play at the time. Literally hundreds of pieces (abusing work's printer) then I'd sit them in a stack, randomly pick one out, attempt to sight read it and look up anything I didn't know. Combined with regular instruction, ensuring I didn't accidentally miss anything out, I found it really helpful. It also exposes you to a hell of a lot of music and styles, and you'd be surprised just how much is on you tube in some format to compare how you ended up playing it with.
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Jan 18, 2013 13:06
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Stryguy posted:Words. I can't help with either of those books, or even a recommendation. What I can do is help narrow your search, at a quick glance I think the harmony book is probably best saved for later. I think its pretty safe to assume if you don't have the basics down that will just confuse the poo poo out of you. http://www.amazon.com/First-Steps-Music-Theory-Taylor/dp/1860960901/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1358878926&sr=8-5&keywords=music+theory+grade+5 I used this, and its very very dry closer to reference than anything else. Something along these might be handy http://www.amazon.com/Music-Helplin...+theory+grade+5 http://www.amazon.com/Track-Beginne...+theory+grade+5 http://www.amazon.com/Music-Theory-...+theory+grade+5 http://www.amazon.com/Pass-Grade-Th...+theory+grade+5 As you might notice the key words in there are 'theory' and 'grade 5' that, is generally the whole (in most grades, though I speak about AB specifically), this is how to read and interpret music, these are chords and how they are constructed, these are your scales. After that you start launching into more complicated concepts. To be honest the actual facts and knowledge will be pretty much the same in any book covering that topic, so its kinda down to a purely stylistic choice.
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Jan 22, 2013 19:26
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For shorter pieces (good for testing out composers etc) grab the syllabus lists https://www.google.co.uk/#hl=en&saf...iw=1444&bih=917 might be a good start. You certainly want the middle section (B), start at grade 4 or 5 and run through to 8 most can then be found online as they are not covered under copywrite anymore. It's a great way to check out composers you might not have heard of with generally smallish pieces to start with. You can also just use your own favoured exam board of choice. As for your "big name" composers, most will have had little book\pamphlet type things produced that group their work up. They come with snazzy 1930's style cover sheets as well which I personally love. But you could check out the rest of Chopin's preludes, I know there is one for Rachmaninoff's preludes as well. Not far away with some google fu.
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Feb 1, 2013 08:33
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CowOnCrack posted:My first performance of a Mozart piece in class (Viennese Sonatina No. 1 in C, 1st Mvt): I liked it. Maybe a touch fast tempo wise, but then again your performing to an audience and I think everyone tends to speed up a bit in that situation. You controlled the piano well, About 3/4 of the way through I though you let the notes bleed together a bit too much but to be honest I'd be pleased with that performance.
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Feb 22, 2013 11:05
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If a piece has a strong\good\best bit\most fun bit at the start or middle, learn it backwards. That is, a bar or a phrase at a time starting at the end. If its one that builds up to a cool ending, learn it forwards. Something my piano teacher has made me do, I see the logic, the cool or fun bit you'll learn that well just because you like it and like playing it. The start you'll learn because its the start of the piece and it really shows if that's off.
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Feb 22, 2013 18:40
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The earlier you are in your piano playing journey, no matter the style or genre, the more important it is to have lessons. Seriously. Self learning first and lessons later is like Joe Officeworker deciding he'll build the foundations and brickwork, do the plumbing and electricity for his new house himself but hire a professional to do the loft (attic) conversion. A bit of a stretched analogy but the point is, he's going to have to undo half of what he has done and spend twice as long doing it again but doing it right. If you have designs on ever doing anything more than banging out some chords for show tunes\playing the start of Fur Elise to impress your mom you really want to get early lessons. Its just easier that way.
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Feb 25, 2013 18:37
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