Don't expect much. I got really tired tonight, unexpectedly. We'll try for a good one tomorrow!
Friday, February 16, 2018
Thursday, February 15, 2018
Feb 15 (Var 5)
One of my favorite pieces of all time: the parallel thirds etude. Listen to it. The video I linked to is a good one because it shows her fingers. This etude requires virtuoso technique. I have made 3 true, good-faith efforts to learn it. Each time, I hit a wall and put it away. I like to believe with enough hard work I can play anything, but it's just not true.
But I can play this variation. And I'm looking forward to it.
But I can play this variation. And I'm looking forward to it.
Wednesday, February 14, 2018
Feb 14 (Var 5)
OK, first, listen to this:
Vladimir Feltsman playing this variation
It's beautiful, right? There's the delicate middle line weaving throughout. Occasionally it emphasizes itself to add some counterpoint. Meanwhile the melody is jumping back and forth, a part of but somehow separate from it all.
I love this variation, and there's a very real chance it's where this journey will end.
If you've read about the Goldberg Variations yet, you've no doubt encountered the word virtuoso. Its synonyms include genius and expert. And the Goldbergs are said to require virtuoso technique. I do not have virtuoso technique. I am solidly advanced. I am dogged and I know how to practice. But my fingers are not nimble and my touch is not sprightly. I will do my best. For now, this is my best:
PS: this is only 8 measures. Just as I predicted, we're doing now one-fourth of the piece at a time.
Vladimir Feltsman playing this variation
It's beautiful, right? There's the delicate middle line weaving throughout. Occasionally it emphasizes itself to add some counterpoint. Meanwhile the melody is jumping back and forth, a part of but somehow separate from it all.
I love this variation, and there's a very real chance it's where this journey will end.
If you've read about the Goldberg Variations yet, you've no doubt encountered the word virtuoso. Its synonyms include genius and expert. And the Goldbergs are said to require virtuoso technique. I do not have virtuoso technique. I am solidly advanced. I am dogged and I know how to practice. But my fingers are not nimble and my touch is not sprightly. I will do my best. For now, this is my best:
PS: this is only 8 measures. Just as I predicted, we're doing now one-fourth of the piece at a time.
Tuesday, February 13, 2018
Feb 13 (Var 4 FINAL)
Well, it's not perfect, but what is?
As I was playing, I was thinking about an article I read recently about the great memorization debate. I was looking at the music occasionally, but not really reading it... when you really learn a piece, you get to a place where the music looks *different* somehow. Like, obviously it's the same music, but it's been transmuted. It's not just a bunch of notes, it's a structure. And looking at that structure helps me play it. I guess I'm remembering the piece in 'chunks' rather than notes. This is how I was admonished to practice way back when, too -- learn chunks of the piece, separately, and be able to play them on demand. That's what I rediscovered on the last piece, when I stopped trying to do the whole thing every day and broke it down into halves. On harder variations, I may need to do even less, quarters even.
The above leads to the interesting thought: is there a level of knowing a piece above chunk-wise? Like, the way I see measures and phrases as unitary wholes, are there musicians who see entire pieces (or pages) that way? Anecdotal evidence points to yes: I read recently about musicians in long-running Broadway shows who read novels during their performance. I'm pretty sure I've never been there on any classical piece, but I suspect there are Queen songs that I knew on that level, at least for a while. Performing on stage, I focused a lot on tiny tiny details that had very little, if anything, to do with the notes I was playing. I think that's because I learned those songs mostly as chord progressions; a chunk of chord progressions basically *is* a song. So.
As I was playing, I was thinking about an article I read recently about the great memorization debate. I was looking at the music occasionally, but not really reading it... when you really learn a piece, you get to a place where the music looks *different* somehow. Like, obviously it's the same music, but it's been transmuted. It's not just a bunch of notes, it's a structure. And looking at that structure helps me play it. I guess I'm remembering the piece in 'chunks' rather than notes. This is how I was admonished to practice way back when, too -- learn chunks of the piece, separately, and be able to play them on demand. That's what I rediscovered on the last piece, when I stopped trying to do the whole thing every day and broke it down into halves. On harder variations, I may need to do even less, quarters even.
The above leads to the interesting thought: is there a level of knowing a piece above chunk-wise? Like, the way I see measures and phrases as unitary wholes, are there musicians who see entire pieces (or pages) that way? Anecdotal evidence points to yes: I read recently about musicians in long-running Broadway shows who read novels during their performance. I'm pretty sure I've never been there on any classical piece, but I suspect there are Queen songs that I knew on that level, at least for a while. Performing on stage, I focused a lot on tiny tiny details that had very little, if anything, to do with the notes I was playing. I think that's because I learned those songs mostly as chord progressions; a chunk of chord progressions basically *is* a song. So.
Monday, February 12, 2018
Feb 12 (Var 4)
Time for an experiment! I'm open to feedback: do you prefer video or audio? Do you like this angle?
This is 120 bpm, and includes a dog running through and being as distracting as possible. I'd say we're on track for finishing this variation tomorrow!
This is 120 bpm, and includes a dog running through and being as distracting as possible. I'd say we're on track for finishing this variation tomorrow!
Sunday, February 11, 2018
Feb 11 (Var 4)
The countdown has begun. 100 bpm today (I did it without errors before I hit record). My goal is 132 (a jaunty number). Two days max - it's so early today I expect I'll probably practice again later tonight. For now, I'm off to work!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)