My version of Mazeppa

[systen]

Hello everyone.


I'm new to the forum and I hope I can learn something from you guys here. I've been playing for about 10 years now and my goal was to play Mazeppa one day. Now I can play it and that's cool, but I practised so many hours for it that I started to dislike the piece.. Kinda ironic, hehe.

Anyway, I know the recording isn't that good. I played this on a digital piano with a wire into my PC and recorded it (soon I will visit my brother, who has some better recording equipment and then I will record a better recording).

Anyway, here it is:

https://rapidshare.de/files/6676830/Alex_-_Maz.mp3.html


Enjoy.

[donjuan]

The speed sort of feels a little unreal to me at times.  Did you speed it up using the digital or something?  I find your "slow section" just terrible.  Sorry for the lack of sugar coating, but it almost sounds like a brainless MIDI.  In the Liszt sheetmusic, it is so majestic and epic, but here I just dont get anything.  Maybe its the digital and not your playing, I dont know..  It just sounds like an annoying alarm clock to me, devoid of dimensions and dynamics.

I dont really see the changes you made to it, other than how I dont like it.  But anyway, thanks for contributing!  Glad to listen.

[rimv2]

Harsh, but true

[maul]

Nice midi.

[systen]

I know the recording is horrible. I played this on a Yamaha digital piano and I know it sounds like a midi; that's what you get if you record it right into your computer.

I will proof myself with making a video and playing this piece on my Steinway piano, though, it's harder to play this piece on that piano for me. I will dedicate the movie to this site and I will say my nickname or something. About the speed: I like this piece when it's played fast and no, I don't "cheat" on the 2-4.

Thanks for listening though, but I will make sure my next recording is better.

[tompilk]

How did you learn this in a day?!?! You must be a prodigy...

[tompilk]

I'm sorry but I don't believe you could learn and play Mazeppa at this speed in a day...
Am I the only person?!?!

[systen]

I think you don't get me. When I started playing the piano, 10 years ago, my goal was to play Mazeppa, someday. I practised my ass off for this piece and I still make errors sometimes and obviously; it's kinda impossible to learn this piece in one day.


I just called my brother, I told in my first post that my brother has better recording equipments. He is in a band and has his own studio. I will record Mazeppa again, but I won't play on my own piano though. Anyway, I will decrease the speed a bit I think. Not only cause it's harder for me to play it on a real piano, but when I play fast, I make more errors too, wich I don't want.

[systen]

Okay, I made the recording. In the beginning we had some problems with the sound, but it's fine now. I recorded this in my brothers own studio. I didn't play on my own piano though, but that wasn't really a problem. In the beginning I made some errors, when I was playing fast. After that we started over again and I played a bit slower. Well, here it is:

https://rapidshare.de/files/6698991/Alex_-_Mazeppa.mp3.html


I tried to put some more "emotion" to it, instead of being fast. Of course, this recording is way better and played on a real piano, wich obviously sounds nicer than my own recording with the digital piano.

Enjoy.

[thracozaag]

 Bravo.

koji

[liszt1022]

The second recording is much better. I don't like the sound of digital piano recordings, they can't be trusted since they can be speed-edited easily. But the live one is very good.

[Dazzer]

and yet another talent.

kudos.

- sigh -

[rob47]

--CKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK

this is an explosive performance. keep up the good work!

[orlandopiano]

Yep, awesome stuff. Can't wait to hear more   

[stevie]

decent

[orlandopiano]

decent

Didn't you have a dream a while back that you played that well?

[tompilk]

Sorry for musinderstanding!!! Great performance... legendary...

[donjuan]

ahhhh MUCH better!! I guess for once, the workman can blame his tools.

[da jake]

First recording: a complete joke.
Second: VERY impressive.

Funny what a good instrument can do.

Good job!

[perfect_pitch]

Systen - Important question - Do you use the Liszt Intended 24 24 24 fingering for the 3rds??? Just curious as to why he would do that, and what purpose it serves. I'm starting to learn it over my holidays. Just curious...

By the way - Great recording (2nd one). Well done.

[systen]

Thanks for the comments and replies everyone! 



perfect_pitch: yes I do use the 2-4 fingering. For me, it adds something to the piece. My teacher told me from the beginning when I said I wanted to learn Mazeppa: "let the horse ride like a beast"... If you know what I mean. And I think Liszt wanted that too. He wants power in it.

I know the "cheating" way to do the 2-4, like you see a lot of pianist play it, is easier. But if you practise, practise and practise, the hard work will pay off if you do it like Liszt recommended.

[bearzinthehood]

Systen you are Batman!!

This is one of my fav. pieces. 

[perfect_pitch]

 

[cz4p32]

Very nice.  I am working on this piece myself.  Any tips you can give me?  Did you start at the beginning, or learn the hard parts first?

Justin

[systen]

Well, my teacher did a good job. Before I learned the piece, my teacher already learned me to play the 3rds with 2-4 fingering before I even started to learn this piece. I practised that part a lot and I did a lot of octave work too. My teacher did this cause my technique wasn't ready yet to begin learning Mazeppa. And imo he did a good job with that, cause when I started learning Mazeppa it was easier than I expected (but still it's hard).

When I started learning the piece, I started with the intro, and the ending. In the beginning my teacher told me to play the part with the 3rds (let's call it the "main" part of Mazeppa), to play it without the 3rds first, just to get a hang of the timing etc. of the song. After I mastered that I started to add the 2-4 fingering, wich I already practised a lot, so at that time, it wasn't that hard to "combine" the two things, if you know what I mean.

After that I kinda learned the rest of the song. It was a lot of work and some people told me it's a kinda weird way to learn Mazeppa, but my teacher did great teaching me this piece imo.


When I'm at my brother's place again, I will record some more stuff, Feux Follets maybe? 

[cz4p32]

Thanks for the info.  I had worked on this piece for a while, got the first few pages down, then stopped.  I started working again on it yesterday.  funny thing is, the 2-4 fingering I find easer than the "cheating" way.  My troubles come in the last iteration of the theme where especially in the left hand you go 2-4 to 1-3.  don't quite have that technique yet.

[systen]

I think I know wich part you mean and that's kinda tricky in the beginning indeed. And yeah: I think it's easier to use 2-4 fingering too, but if you speed up a lot, the "cheating" method is easier imo.

Good luck with learning the piece and if you master it, record and post it?

[jlh]

Sounds good.  Careful with the wav editors, though, sometimes it's best just the way you played it.   

[bearzinthehood]

Sounds good.  Careful with the wav editors, though, sometimes it's best just the way you played it.   

What do you mean by this?  Do you think he's being deceptive?  I went over this recording again with HD600s and I didn't notice anything.  If you're going to make a veiled comment about authenticity at least be more specific.

[perfect_pitch]

It doesn't look impossible.... I might give it a go - learning it one day during the holidays. I already half the notes just by listening to the MP3 that was posted.     

[ahmedito]

Its great. There are always things that can be better, but you play this very well. Keep up the good work

[rob47]

I remember this performance being INSANELY awesome yet don't have it anymore.

does anyone still have this and want to re-u/l?