Advice on what to play

[london_street]

Hi,

before I turned 36 I had never played an instrument in my life but had often fantasised about playing the piano and since business was good I decided to  splash out on a Yamaha P-80 electronic piano and some piano lessons. I stuck at it for over a year and finally, as work again took over my life, it seemed that was about it for my musical life.

After a year and a half of piano lessons my technique was apparently ok, I could play a number of scales and sight read up to about level 5. But my repertoire consisted of silly tunes and exercises which just irritated me.

Over the years I would keep up with my exercises and scales without ever being able to play anything particular.

Recently I again was fantasising about playing and decided that since I could read Satie's Trois Gynopedies I might at least have a go at fingering them. To begin with they seemed impossible just because the left hand is required to move so far so quickly for every beat of the rhythm and nothing had prepared me for that. But just by sheer repetition and breaking it all down note by note I am now able to play my way through all three fo the compositions in time. Admittedly, my fingering is occasinally shakey and pressure not always consistent but I do think that if I broaden my repertoir and regularly come back to this it will improve.

So what have I learned from this? It's important to like what you are playing, or trying to play. All those little ditties and Bach pieces just bored me and I gained little to no enjoyment from playing them.

So, my question here is: What else might I find to teach myself after these Satie compositions? I love this music, it is sensual to play and I just love the sound of his chords and note order. Does anyone know of anything similar in kind and at this sort of level? I would love to be able to play some Chopin but that looks rather above my level right now - but if there is anythng else like Satie out there I would love to know of it.

Thanks for reading.

[shoshin]

All those little ditties and Bach pieces just bored me and I gained little to no enjoyment from playing them.

I was going to recommend a Bach piece, but I guess Bach isn't good enough for you.

[london_street]

I was going to recommend a Bach piece, but I guess Bach isn't good enough for you.

That's a pretty crass thing to write.

My point was that in learning to play I have found it important (for me, personally) to enjoy the sound of what I am playing in a particular way. I like Bach, Bach is a master, Bach was better than us all; but I have yet to enjoy playing the Bach pieces that are close to my level. It is a taste thing. From my experience of learning, overall, I have concluded that I make advances when I experience a particular type of enjoyment and it is that which I aim at. Technical exercises do not draw me to the piano or entice me away from the miriad of other things I should be doing.

I do not necessarily expect this is everyone's experience or point of view but it is mine and it has worked for me thus far and so I wish to continue for now.

Any constructive comments gladly received.

[berrt]

I would love to be able to play some Chopin but that looks rather above my level right now - but if there is anythng else like Satie out there I would love to know of it.

im in a roughly comparable situation - i think, you could play some chopin eg. prelude no15 "raindrops" or waltz op 69/2. Perhaps you should buy the book "chopin, a graded practical guide" by eleanor baily.

B.

[persona]

Why don't you try Burgmuller Op. 100? They are exercises as well, but many of them are very beautyful

[gilad]

there is a book by Denes Agay, very old, called Classics to Moderns. i have book 3 which contains gymnopedie no.1
i'd imagine that the other pieces would be on your level.
some might be what you call "little ditties" and i somewhat know how you feel.
but other pieces in it are pretty nice. even if simple.
they wouldnt hurt your technique if they are to simple, only improve it .
you can google the name of the book and see if the contents are to your liking.

[sarahlein]

There's plenty of repertoire out there but it requires some "digging" on your part.

Perhaps you might like to start with this:

https://www.pianostreet.com/smf/index.php/topic,9951.msg101246/topicseen.html#msg101246

[haflinger99]

Maybye you could have a look at these pieces:
Mozart: Wiener Sonatinen,
            Sonata facile ( zB 2. satz )
Beethoven: Sonatina in G,
                   Sonatina in F
Chopin: waltzer in a-moll (posthum)
Schumann : Album für die Jugend
                 Kinderszenen (zB Nr 1)
Good luck!

[gyzzzmo]

look for chopin preludes. There are a couple of easy and wonderful pieces between them.

[hwhat06]

hi im pretty much in the same situation    but i've found some things that i enjoy playing:

Malaguena by Ernesto Lecuona

Lecuona's entire Andalucia Suite

Libestraume No 3 by Lizst

Pavane For A Dead Princess (Dont know the french translation) by Ravel

Piano Sonata No. 11 in A major ("Alla Turca") K. 331 by Mozart

Kinderszenen No. 7 ("Träumerei"), for piano, Op. 15/7 by Schumann

Rhapsody for piano in G minor, Op. 79/2  by Brahms

Prelude for piano No.1 in C sharp minor ("The Bells of Moscow"), Op. 3/2 by Rachmaninoff

Clair de lune, for piano (Suite Bergamasque No. 3), L. 75/3 by Debussy

La fille aux cheveux de lin, prelude for piano, L. 117/8 by Debussy


those pieces are a bit difficult but very stisfying when you complete them...a good place for free sheet music is https://www.free-scores.com/free-sheet-music.php and www.sheetmusicarchive.net good luck

[princessdecadence]

Pavane For A Dead Princess (Dont know the french translation) by Ravel

Kinderszenen No. 7 ("Träumerei"), for piano, Op. 15/7 by Schumann

Clair de lune, for piano (Suite Bergamasque No. 3), L. 75/3 by Debussy

Those 3 I would recommend as well.

The Ravel is "Pavane pour une infante defunte" -it's actually Pavane for a Dead Child but Princess is it's typical translation.  I know now the story behind the piece but princess makes the title sound more mysterious.

The Träumerei is actually hard to play as someone famous once said

Good Luck!

[hwhat06]

The Träumerei is actually hard to play as someone famous once said

i dont know why but that piece is so difficult for me...i play things MUCH harder than that...but for some reason that one is...ugghh

[princessdecadence]

Hehehe yeah.  Pressing them notes are easy but playing it beautifully and embracing the whole song is the tricky part, I inhale deeply...and can only do that when I hear a good playing of it.  Ah try closing your eyes as well. 

[gymnopedist]

The Ravel is "Pavane pour une infante defunte" -it's actually Pavane for a Dead Child but Princess is it's typical translation.  I know now the story behind the piece but princess makes the title sound more mysterious.

"Infante" is the french word for "Infanta", which was the title given to the daughters of the spanish king, so princess is entirely correct.  Enfant is the french word for child.

Some other pieces by Ravel you might like:
Prelude (similar difficulty to the gymnopedies i suppose)
the two à la maniere de...

Also, if you like Saties gymnopedies, why not try his gnossiennes as well? they're a bit more mysterious, and a little harder, but not too difficult.

[gymnopedist]

Woops.

[princessdecadence]

"Infante" is the french word for "Infanta", which was the title given to the daughters of the spanish king, so princess is entirely correct.  Enfant is the french word for child.

Some other pieces you might like:
Prelude (similar difficulty to the gymnopedies i suppose)
the two à la maniere de...

Also, if you like the gymnopedies, why not try the gnossiennes as well? they're a bit more mysterious, and a little harder, but not too difficult.

Ah I see!... Thanks for that Gymnopedist

There I go thinking I know my french & history *wink*

[buebo]

i dont know why but that piece is so difficult for me...i play things MUCH harder than that...but for some reason that one is...ugghh

Amen! I'm quite a beginner so I'm not really suprised I have difficulty playing that. But I also play prelude no. 15 (raindrop) by Chopin and learning waltz in c# minor (op. 64 no. 2) at the same time, but the waltz (which sounds sooo much more difficult) is a lot easier for me to pick up than the schumann piece! Perhaps it is because the lefthand parts of the chopin's is more predictable technically speaking. Odd!