How Am I doing?

[katiel]

Hi, I am in 8th grade and from the US Southwest area, and I just started piano in September.  I had a strong musical experience before piano by playing many other instruments.  Basically from september to february I have been working on my technique, lesser known music, movie music, a little chopin ect...

But in march I started to get into more advanced peices like Debussy's first Arabesque and Copin Valse Em, and now I am just finishing them up.

I have progressing very quickly.  I have just started Rachmaninov's G prelude and Mozart 310.

I was wondering am I doing good for my age?

Any other suggestions for peices?

Thanks, KatieL

[henrah]

Your doing great as far as I can see from what you are playing! But I can only judge for sure by listening to you. You might be able to play these pieces, but we don't know how well.
Henrah

[katiel]

My instructer says I play great and he can be very harsh, but in a good way.  He always gives me advice on how to do different things.

But he says I play my peices beautifully.

[henrah]

Wonderful! Would you post any of them here? Would be great to here them
Henrah


|w|^_^|w| *rockin*

[katiel]

I would love too, but  I have no recording supplies.  I'm really sorry, I really am.  And if I ever get them i'll be clueless (technology and girls don't mix well (at least for me)). 

But I do loving playing.

I'm so sorry 

[henrah]

Oh shame...

[prometheus]

The only fair answer one can give is that we have, and cannot have, any idea.

I have no idea how old one would be if one is in grade eight in the US. But the whole point you are making about age is nonsensical. You have only been playing for about half a year. This means you have 20 years in front of you to 'master the piano' and still be middle aged. The main point being, what is half a year on all those years you still have? Even if you feel you have to compete on basis of age, which is silly unless you want to be a professional pianist.

You are making great progression, so you claim. The priority is to continue this for as long as possible, at least from the point of view of the piano, which can be a very narrow one. You are asking us if you should speed up, right? Even if the anwer would be 'yes', the main priority still is to keep up the great progression you are already making for as many years as possible.

And more on ages. Many young children play piano because their parents have decided for them. A lot of them quit piano when they reach puberty. Some of them return to piano at the end of their puberty. Those people that decide for themselves to play piano often also do this at a later age then those children that play because their parents dictate them to do so.

[katiel]

No I am not asking if I should speed up, but what are the average peices for a 14 year old?

[prometheus]

That question does make no sense at all.

[katiel]

I don't see how it does not make sense?

I'll be more clear-

What are the average peices for the average 14 year old piano player?

[prometheus]

I have no idea. Ask your teacher. Or ask teachers here what pieces they recommend to their students.

But the answer to the question is meaningless. The piano doesn't know how old you are. There is no corralation between skill and age. You don't become a better pianist by just sitting there and waiting for time to pass, getting older.

[bertrand]

The only fair answer one can give is that we have, and cannot have, any idea.

An interesting phenomenon to have an idea that you cannot have ... How could this happen?  I have, and cannot have, a clue

[prometheus]

I forgot to add a 'don't'.

[steve jones]

The pieces your mentioned in your initial post are all around Gr8 ABRSM. The board reckon that it should take around 8 years to reach this level. If you have done this in 6 months, then the word 'prodigy' springs to mind. You should and your instructor should be planning which conservatoires to audition!

Good luck, and be sure to post some rec's when you can. Id love to hear you in action 

SJ

[thalbergmad]

If you can do that after 6 months, I would get yourself an agent not a conservatoire.

[steve jones]

Haha, yeah. You should probably be teaching at there rather than studying!

SJ

[gyzzzmo]

Nobody can place a decent reply unless you put a recording of yourself on the board.
Gyzzzmo

[arensky]

What are the average peices for the average 14 year old piano player?

Depends on how you define "average" . Evgeny Kissin was playing the Chopin e minor Concerto at age 11, better than most people ever will at any age.

Your repertoire is very good for your age, indicating a pre-professional ability, as others have noted. What concerns me is the amount of time you've acheived this in, you've grown very quickly, so to speak. Too much too soon? No way to know with hearing/seeing you play these pieces. Also, is your teacher pushing you? Was piano your idea, or someone elses?Ask yourself the following questions...

1. AM I PLAYING THESE PIECES ACCURATELY?
Record yourself, then listen to some recordings by professional pianists, and compare. Be honest with yourself .

2. ARE THESE PIECES TOO HARD FOR ME? AM I COMFORTABLE PLAYING THEM?
 If you're comfortable, great! If not, drop down a level; you don't want to program bad habits into your technique, which can happen if you are struggling or "trying" to do something, instead of just doing it.

3. AM I AS GOOD AS MY PEERS?
Remember, be honest with yourself.  You know...
If you are isolated or the best young pianist where you are, you might consider going to a summer piano program or camp, to see and hear how other kids are doing. You're in the Southwest, there's Idlewild (sp?) in Southern California, and Northern Arizona University Summer Music Camp in Flagstaff. But apply now, these places have deadlines.

Hope this helps...

[da jake]

Why such hostility, Prometheus?

[prometheus]

Am I hostile?

If one wants to ask a silly question one should do so. This way the asker can understand why a question is silly, or maybe rather why people think this is the case.

I suspect a fundamentally flawed concept being the basis for these questions.

I mean, the average 14 year old has never touched a piano.

If one is better than their peers; totally unrelevant. First off, leaning music is not a competition. Plus to win it you just have to keep at it throughout your life and you will beat most people. The differences at the age of 14 do not matter that much considering most people will either slack or quit.

As for the "Help me feel better than my peers.", this is quite normal for a 14 year old to ask. But abandoning this is also part of becomming a more mature musician. Something for which a 14 year old will have all the time.

[steve jones]

Indeed. Maybe the question wasnt worded in the most appropriate manner. But I think the jist is:

"How do I compare to other pianists of my age and / or with similar experience?"

If that is the question (and providing you can answer positively to Arensky's questions) then the answer is phenomenally well. Kissin may have been playing virtuoso pieces at 14, but I bet he wasnt as good as this girl after just 6 months.

Personally, Im 24 and have been playing for 18 months. Im currently battling with Chopin Op69 and Mozart OpK570 (Mvt 3). These pieces are very challenging for me, yet they are within my reach. Hard work will deliver results Im positive.

I am very happy the progress Iv made, indeed! Yet you are playing pieces harder than mine in a third of the time. So that is amazing!

SJ

[arensky]

Am I hostile?

If one wants to ask a silly question one should do so. This way the asker can understand why a question is silly, or maybe rather why people think this is the case.

I suspect a fundamentally flawed concept being the basis for these questions.

I mean, the average 14 year old has never touched a piano.

If one is better than their peers; totally unrelevant. First off, leaning music is not a competition. Plus to win it you just have to keep at it throughout your life and you will beat most people. The differences at the age of 14 do not matter that much considering most people will either slack or quit.

As for the "Help me feel better than my peers.", this is quite normal for a 14 year old to ask. But abandoning this is also part of becomming a more mature musician. Something for which a 14 year old will have all the time.

You don't seem to understand that people who play music, as opposed to merely theorizing and talking about it, are measured against one another in terms of their physical skill and technical ability. An instrumentalist's repertoire is indicative of their abilities. This person is asking how appropriate her repertoire level is vis a vis her age. To want to do well at something which is competitive (it is, for better or worse) is normal. You obviously do not compete, or do anything physically concrete for which there are objective standards and skill levels, such as sports or playing a musical instrument. If you did, you wouldn't have gone off on an esoteric tangent to answer a fairly simple question.