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Topic: What to sightread  (Read 1344 times)

Offline wwalrus

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What to sightread
on: January 01, 2015, 06:22:43 PM
Hey,

My teacher asks that I sightread daily and I've been doing so for the past couple months with enormous improvement. I've been working through both WTC books and I'll be done soon, so what should I read afterwards? I was thinking maybe going chronologically and reading the complete Haydn sonatas, then Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert- what would you recommend? I don't think difficulty is too much of an issue, so feel free with suggestions. Thanks!

Offline quantum

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Re: What to sightread
Reply #1 on: January 01, 2015, 09:00:42 PM
What about using sight reading to search potential pieces to add to your repertoire.  That way you get to go through a lot of music your are interested in, and at the same time create a list of pieces you would like to learn.
Made a Liszt. Need new Handel's for Soler panel & Alkan foil. Will Faure Stein on the way to pick up Mendels' sohn. Josquin get Wolfgangs Schu with Clara. Gone Chopin, I'll be Bach

Offline chopinlover01

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Re: What to sightread
Reply #2 on: January 02, 2015, 01:29:03 AM
If you're working through the WTC for sight reading, I'm going to guess you're around grade 7 or 8.
Go through the Chopin nocturnes if you haven't played them before, they're lots of fun and very beautiful, and devilishly hard to remember (good for sight reading).
Actually, here's a list of stuff to go through.. this should keep you busy:
-Chopin mazurkas (there's enough material there for almost two months if you do 1 a day)
-Early Beethoven sonatas (1 movement a day- this applies to all sonatas!)
-Brahms Intermezzi (though they might be a bit on the hard sight)
-Mozart Sonatas
-Hadyn Sonatas
-Bach Two part and Three part inventions (methinks J_menz will be your best friend if you play them well and record them)

And then once you're REALLY comfortable with sight reading anything, try out some Rach preludes, and then various concerti.

Offline j_menz

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Re: What to sightread
Reply #3 on: January 02, 2015, 02:17:31 AM
(methinks J_menz will be your best friend if you play them well and record them)

Inducement or threat?  :-\

@wwalrus: Difficulty will always be an issue, and sometimes surprisingly.

Use the time to both fill out your playing experience (composers you know/have played some of) but also use it to expand your horizons.

One of the advantages of being a good sightreader is that you can have a go at pieces and decide whether or not you like them without any real investment of time, so make the most of it. Your idea is a good one (though Beethoven particularly isn't always readily readable), and so are the other suggestions, but don't limit yourself to the old warhorses (good though many of them are), go exploring their contemporaries (and yours, dare I suggest).

"What the world needs is more geniuses with humility. There are so few of us left" -- Oscar Levant

Offline wwalrus

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Re: What to sightread
Reply #4 on: January 02, 2015, 03:30:49 AM
Thanks for the suggestions-I'll probably take a look at nocturnes once I'm done with the WTC.
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