Nocturne in Db, Chopin

[matterintospirit]

a work in progress---

[nick]

Nice work, clean, technically proficient and musical. The one thing I would watch for is the heavy thumb in left hand. I don't know if it was because of poor sound quality, and I don't have piano in front of me, but as left hand plays low d flat, then comes up I think to an f, the f is too pronounced in my opinion. I kept hearing a louder f I think. But other than that and and maybe a little more rubato here and there, great!

Nick

[matterintospirit]

Thanks Nick. You are right. I find this piece to be extemely challenging in so many ways, from a sheerly musical point of view. One of the many difficulties is the control in the left hand. Requires the most deep sense of relaxation---foreign to my personality! But really. this is one of the problems that I am working on. There are others, such as all those phrases in thirds. They sometimes are not delicate enough and lack shape. I'm not the most "Copinesque" fella around---that's why I'm working at it---I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[lostinidlewonder]

Fantastic beautiful great, I always have a soft spot for Chopin's Nocturnes. The LH thumb isn't distasteful in my opinion and essential, those long bass notes I always feel should be drawn through. Some quick patterns in the RH need to become slightly lighter (although I can hear the RH has had a lot of sensitivity practice). That is the biggest challenge I feel for you here the RH lightness, the LH is fine and dandy. I really like how your melody fits together with your LH its not always together and boring, there is options you are taking which makes the playing sound "nicer" in my opinion. I find people muck around with the LH too much, where it is the LH that should be quite strict and the RH with the rubato.

[matterintospirit]

Fantastic beautiful great, I always have a soft spot for Chopin's Nocturnes. The LH thumb isn't distasteful in my opinion and essential, those long bass notes I always feel should be drawn through. Some quick patterns in the RH need to become slightly lighter (although I can hear the RH has had a lot of sensitivity practice). That is the biggest challenge I feel for you here the RH lightness, the LH is fine and dandy. I really like how your melody fits together with your LH its not always together and boring, there is options you are taking which makes the playing sound "nicer" in my opinion. I find people muck around with the LH too much, where it is the LH that should be quite strict and the RH with the rubato.

Thanks for the feedback Wonder. Upon listening to the recording a second time, that F doesn't bother me either--it's the top of the phrase, it works, and no matter how lightly you play it, it's going to pop because of the extreme contrast in register (the very first phrase in particular.) It's some of the other "landings" in the LH that bug me.  Funny you should mention the thing about the rubato. I've been working on this piece for some time and recorded it for the first time a few days ago. I was actually apalled. I thought ---maybe I should 'sack' this piece--it's really "stinko." There was so much rubato that it sounded like a car that might stall any minute. The RH sounded more like Scriabin (well not quite)--the "whole"was not working. That's one reason I find recording oneself so useful. At least for myself, I can stand back and here the most general (and particular) problems that I can't hear when I'm playing. I went back to the piece with the new information, played the LH more in strict time, lightened the RH, put more concentration on each and every note, and now I feel there's hope! Not sure about the "delicasy" issue yet, but I do think some of the "thirds" phrases need a bit more shape and are sometime a little rushed. Just don't know what to do with some of them Don't know if I want to be more delicate, need to be or can be. Anyways, I'm glad you liked it!