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I just picked up a Yamaha YPG-625 yesterday and it feels pretty nice. I want to make sure if this is a wise purchase, though. It seems to be a real good keyboard (the lowest A kinda buzzes the speakers when it's at max volume, though). I'm also taking a class at my local college but we only meet up once every week at Saturdays. Being that the pace is changed dramatically from the usual three or two days a week, should I try to advance a little on my own? edit: I saw a 8,000 dollar keyboard at the same store and that made me all  does have like ten computers in it or something?
ShinAli fucked around with this message at 20:03 on Sep 9, 2007 |
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Sep 9, 2007 19:59
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I've taken a classical guitar course at my community college once. It wasn't really bad, per se, it just took a little longer. Classes usually go as one whole lecture/lesson for everyone, then everyone else practices as the instructor goes around from student to student to provide individual instruction. Oh, and if you know how to read sheet music, you'll be bored out of your mind for the first few classes. After you have taken care of the class(es) for the specific instrument, my college offers one on one classes for those that have finished the classes OR already know what the class would teach them.
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Sep 10, 2007 04:18
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Kind of a personal update. So far my piano teacher says I'm pretty much way on top in class so she gave me two higher level pieces to play for my final. I got them both down in a week and now I'm bored of playing the same things over and over again, especially since the final is in a month. She gave me a couple more to practice with so it's cool. I'm gonna sign up for one-on-one classes with her next semester, she's cool. I've got a problem, though. I don't want my YGP-625 anymore After I've spent more and more time on the upright in class, I felt the sound and key action allowed me to play much better than on my YGP. It kinda pisses me off because I bought it out of ignorance. I guess the salesman got the better of me than I thought I got out of him. Right now I'm thinking about picking up an upright, but I can't really find any of the fabled around-a-1000-bucks pianos. Cheapest I found so far is 2,200 dollars. Honestly, with or without financing, it really isn't that big of a deal for me. The one I'm looking at is a Pearl River; are those any good?
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Nov 20, 2007 00:25
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I just finished my recital and going on one-on-one lessons next semester. Meanwhile, I'm going to check out http://www.pianofundamentals.com/ . People said pretty good things about it, and I like it's purpose as a textbook that teaches you how to practice instead of how to play on the piano. It's free, too. Right now I think I'm doing pretty decent, and wonder if I should've start playing at a younger age in retrospect. I've learnt a lot in the past three months, and according to my teacher, progressed a lot further than most would in her classes. I'm hoping the Piano Fundamentals site works and hopefully develop even further than I've done so far. If there was one thing I should've done, is to mess around with real pianos before diving in. I could've avoided spending almost 800 dollars in a digital piano set up where the hammer action feels completely different from an actual piano. I should've looked to the Clavinovas with the GH3 tech yamaha uses. A GH3 Clavinova with a Yamaha upright would've been a perfect combination 
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Dec 6, 2007 20:55
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Fat Turkey posted:Until then I wanted more info on how often people practice and what do they practice. I imagine people do it every day, but for how long? And how much do you concentrate on which issues? Basically, what is a typical practice routine? I go on about an hour or so. The only exercise I bother with is harmonic scales with just fingers 1, 2 and 3. Other than that I just play a song or two I already know, then try to learn a new song. I play it with hands separately first, switching off whenever the hand I'm practicing with is feeling tired or my other hand is cooling down. When I'm learning a new piece, I usually try to learn all measures once as an exploratory thing, then practice the hardest measures. Once I got a measure down, I go on to the easier measures until there isn't any left. After I got all measures down with hand separate practice, I try to go through the entire piece with hands together, noting any mistakes. For the measures I made a mistake in, I play them again at the same pace to see if I can replicate it, then evaluate. I practice all the necessary measures I need practice until I can go slightly faster than the intended tempo. Once I got that down, I play the piece at a slower tempo that I know I would make almost no mistakes in, then play it up until I can get it down at the slightly faster than intended tempo. I finish it off by playing the entire piece again at the same slow tempo I've been doing before. I do this because I'm sure I would make very little mistakes in that tempo, and I want to get myself used to that when I play it next time at regular tempo. I don't really bother with exercises since I feel like they're just wasting my time. I guess it's because they're just not music to me. Only times I use exercises is when there is a technique I haven't got down. I've been using a practice routine that was similar to this before I've been reading http://www.pianofundamentals.com/ . After I read some things, I've modified it a little and felt it has been working better for me. It's a real good book, I believe. It's even amazing since it's free.
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Dec 14, 2007 20:12
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Quick status update. I picked up a 10 year old Yamaha U3, and it sounds wonderful. I feel pretty bad practicing on it, though, as people often watch TV in a room next to it. Still, I love it. I got it for 4k. Also, my teacher wants me to take this certification test thing that will label me as an intermediary pianist. The pieces I'm working on right now is Chopin's Op. 28 no 15 ("Raindrop" I think is called), Clementi's Op. 36 Sonatina 1 (I THINK it's one), and two others that I forgot the name of. One of them is by Bach. I'll put up the names later. I'll be playing at least all four of them at the coming recital at the end of this semester's lessons. The first two are last ones being played because they are so difficult for me right now  While I'm trucking along at playing pieces fairly well, I want to improve my sight reading. I still need to think for a little while before I know what the note is, especially if it's above or below the staff. Obviously, I still can't read notes and play them right off the bat, unless they're really simple. I would also like to learn more about theory and improvisation. Since I'm not a music major, though, I cannot attend the relevant classes
ShinAli fucked around with this message at 20:24 on Feb 6, 2008 |
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Feb 6, 2008 20:07
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Another day, another semester. In my last semester, I've started taking private piano lessons under my school's tuition for the first time. It ended about a month ago, and I've played Sonatina no.1 by Clementi, all three movements, for my recital. I still have little bits of mistakes over the piece, but I play it pretty well. I've just started on my summer private piano class, and I got moved on to early intermediate level (it's been around seven months since I've touched the piano for the first time). My teacher decided I should work on the Hanon exercises, as well as learning the scale of each piece before I play them. I got assigned Musette in D Major (it says "Composer Unknown", probably Bach?), Clementi Sonatina no.2 first movement, and Schubert Waltz in B Minor. One of each era. The first Hanon exercise is making me realize how much I hate my ring fingers. My teacher has some sort of loving spider fingers and can raise it an inch above the keys. I can barely even do a centimeter, and it's very difficult trying to keep all my other fingers on the keys. Is there anything I could do with my ring fingers during the times I'm away from the piano? Also, any suggestions for music books on 20/21st century pieces? I want to play something a little new for once.
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Jun 11, 2008 05:01
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Sam Ash has a pretty great digital piano selection. Other than that, though, I'd go to regular ol' piano dealers. Chances are if they deal in new pianos, they probably deal in digital ones also.
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Jun 17, 2008 06:20
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Anybody got suggestions for songs that got that funky rock sound going on? Kinda similar to these guys' improv? It reminds me of the Cowboy Bebop theme and has always been the kind of sound I wanna try and play.
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Jun 22, 2008 04:31
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This isn't really an ideal thread to ask, since most of us are piano players that always have 88 keys at our command. I do know a little bit about production, though. It really wouldn't matter how many keys you get if you're just producing. I've known several teachers that could pull off great beats with just a single octave keyboard. 61 keys is more than enough, and gets better with the amount of controls you get with the Axiom. It wouldn't be enough for me, but that's because I like to perform music, not just produce. That's all you have to think about. ShinAli fucked around with this message at 20:07 on Jun 23, 2008 |
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Jun 23, 2008 20:04
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ShinAli posted:Anybody got suggestions for songs that got that funky rock sound going on? Kinda similar to these guys' improv? It reminds me of the Cowboy Bebop theme and has always been the kind of sound I wanna try and play. Gonna ask again since I still can't find anything funky. I'm far off from doing any improv and I wanna try some really fun songs.
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Jun 27, 2008 15:37
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