What I learned during practice today :

[ranniks]

Here is something I think I'm realizing today:

A Force without discipline, focus, direction, purpose, is not Power and has no fundamental nor lasting strength.  In fact, without organization, it is a weakness.

Sounds like a lot from the books 'Think and Grow Rich' and '7 Habbits of Highly Effective People'.

Good text in any case!

[ranniks]

Had a fantastic lesson today! So remember when I told you guys my teacher said the minuet was above my level at this point? Well, we're working on the Minuet now! He taught me the tedious left hand movements today, and WOW, that is advanced in my eyes, lol.

He also played a sheet I brought him, he got it perfectly on his second try 0.o. I was astonished.

The hand movement exercises have been growing too, he taught me how to do the long-short-long-short style, something about Mozart? Not sure. It's just a handmovement that repeats itself:

CEAGFEFGA and then put the thumb on the D and the and skip a note with the next finger and repeat the process.

We also went through some other pieces. There is this particular piece: Little Romance by Heinrich Wohlfahrt. It is truly amazing, I got the notes down well, but I need to figure out the legato parts out.

Needless to say, I'm very excited and very happy. I never thought I would be able to play a bach piece so early on.

[outin]

Had a fantastic lesson today! So remember when I told you guys my teacher said the minuet was above my level at this point? Well, we're working on the Minuet now! He taught me the tedious left hand movements today, and WOW, that is advanced in my eyes, lol.

Sounds great
You'll learn it in no time now....

He also played a sheet I brought him, he got it perfectly on his second try 0.o. I was astonished.

It is very reassuring when your teacher seems to be capable of anything... Mine seems to sight read any piece I take to the lesson without any effort 
Also any advice I get seems to miraculously solve my problems if I just take the time to apply it properly, even if I am often sceptic at first.
It seems you also work very well with your teacher, I'm glad for you, sometimes the first one isn't the right one...

[ranniks]

Sounds great
You'll learn it in no time now....

It is very reassuring when your teacher seems to be capable of anything... Mine seems to sight read any piece I take to the lesson without any effort 
Also any advice I get seems to miraculously solve my problems if I just take the time to apply it properly, even if I am often sceptic at first.
It seems you also work very well with your teacher, I'm glad for you, sometimes the first one isn't the right one...

Well Outin, I had my doubts at first. Because I wanted to learn classical, but apparently he can do that beautifully as well. It would be lovely if I could learn 70% classical, 20% jazz and 10% pop.

[outin]

I have no idea about my teacher's skills or credentials outside classical but I assume she must have studied that too since she has a pedagogy degree. After my experience with my first teacher I made it very clear to her that I am only interested in learning classical piano and a proper technique in that. I just can't make myself care for anything else, since the amount of classical piano repertoire I want to learn is so much it will take me a couple of lifetimes and I don't seem to be able to get tired of classical piano music...

I do like other music genres of course, but I cannot connect those with my piano experience which seems to be all consuming at the moment 

[ranniks]

I have no idea about my teacher's skills or credentials outside classical but I assume she must have studied that too since she has a pedagogy degree. After my experience with my first teacher I made it very clear to her that I am only interested in learning classical piano and a proper technique in that. I just can't make myself care for anything else, since the amount of classical piano repertoire I want to learn is so much it will take me a couple of lifetimes and I don't seem to be able to get tired of classical piano music...

I do like other music genres of course, but I cannot connect those with my piano experience which seems to be all consuming at the moment 

Well, if playing 'skinny love' and the titanic theme song fall under 'pop' I would be more than willing to learn them.

You can learn as much as you want though; when opportunity meets preperation, success is inevitable.

[hfmadopter]

Well Outin, I had my doubts at first. Because I wanted to learn classical, but apparently he can do that beautifully as well. It would be lovely if I could learn 70% classical, 20% jazz and 10% pop.

If you learn and play seven classical, two jazz and one pop piece you have met your goal ! All you have to do is continue the pattern to build a repertoire.

Right now I'm working on an arrangement of It Is well With My Soul and if you put in all the indicated expression plus some feeling of your own it's quite a lovely piece of music. Considered a hymm, the main melody is simple. It was created in the 1800s, this is an arrangement for piano solo written by David Nevue. The original written by a Lawyer who lost his daughters in a ship wreck on a trip to Europe. Supposedly he wrote it as he passed over the area on his own trip to Europe to meet his wife who survived the ship wreck, was rescued and brought to, I believe England. Knowing the story helps with expression big time. You envision sailing ships in the dark sea and a man in distress over the loss of his children, sailing on a calm sea.

I'm working on a Franz Shubert esque arrangement of Oh Holy Night for my Christmas Eve performance in my house, to which I've added slight further embelishment. I'm doing this along with several other pieces. I'm organizing my pieces now, getting them in the rough sort to speak.

So while not strictly classical in the true sense of the term, it feels like I'm working on classical pieces with a modern spin or vice versa..

[outin]

You can learn as much as you want though; when opportunity meets preperation, success is inevitable.

I think I have to be a bit more realitic than that

I have now maybe 30 % of the sheet music I want to learn to play eventually, and I already have about 40 books full of great pieces. The 70% is still on my wish list. In addition to that there must be at least similar amount of music that I haven't heard yet that I would love to play (I am still pretty ignorant of the 21st century piano repertoire). And I am also a pretty slow learner when it comes to new pieces...

[unholeee]

that i should highlight the clefs so i dont learn an entire page thinking the bottom one is always bass. argh.

[outin]

that i should highlight the clefs so i dont learn an entire page thinking the bottom one is always bass. argh.

That happens to you too? It happens to me all the time when I try to sight read. Before noticing I often keep going for a while thinking the composer went completely mad since there's definitely something wrong with the music

[unholeee]

That happens to you too? It happens to me all the time when I try to sight read. Before noticing I often keep going for a while thinking the composer went completely mad since there's definitely something wrong with the music

haha yes - often left scratching my head, it just sounds so wrong yet still takes me a while to figure out what ive done.

[nyiregyhazi]

Here is something I think I'm realizing today:

A Force without discipline, focus, direction, purpose, is not Power and has no fundamental nor lasting strength.  In fact, without organization, it is a weakness.

That sounds all very nice as an esoteric aphorism, but you didn't define any of your terms. While this presumably means something to you, unless you are going to be more specific there's virtually no chance that it could mean the same thing to anybody else who might be reading. If the intent is to be generically poetic (in a way that has no particular application to pianistic or musical issues) then fine, but if it was supposed to convey anything about the topic to anybody other than yourself, could you be more specific please?

[m1469]

That sounds all very nice as an esoteric aphorism, but you didn't define any of your terms. While this presumably means something to you, unless you are going to be more specific there's virtually no chance that it could mean the same thing to anybody else who might be reading. If the intent is to be generically poetic (in a way that has no particular application to pianistic or musical issues) then fine, but if it was supposed to convey anything about the topic to anybody other than yourself, could you be more specific please?

Well, to say I can't fly a kite without a string means something similar, do I really need to detail how it all works, whether I'm going tie the string to something or just hold it, whether it has more than one string and is a stunt kite or not, whether it has a picture of yoda or a unicorn on it, whether I'm going to send toilet paper on paper clips up the string?  hmm?  

But anyhoo, to be more specific, it means I need to work and concentrate really hard in my practicing, have very specific tasks, very specific goals, be vigilant about accomplishing those and recognizing when they're accomplished, have lessons and aim at performances.  Helpful?  Yes, I need to better define it even to myself.  

Something I'm realizing in the last 24 hours:  Working on "easier" pieces doesn't exactly mean the work itself is going to be easier, it just means the work might yield greater or faster results compared to the level of patience the person putting in the work has  .  I guess I'm *really* STILL working on patience.  meh.  

[scottaleger]

Nice Thread .............

Thanks to all .

[ranniks]

What a wonderfull practise today.

My left hand seems to have improved tremendously. And I'm feeling the big hop of advancement from yesterday and today. It seemed my left hand evolved during my sleep tonight.

I can play more freely with it and chords seem to be coming along as well.

The bach minuet is less impossible to me now. It's just the octave switching (higher D and lower D etc) that's sort of tricky now. And the sheet wants me to play staccatto with my left hand and legato with me right >..<. I do understand why my teacher said it was above my level at the moment 0.o.

And it seems my version of the minuet is different from most on youtube. How many versions of the minuet are there?

Anyone ever heard of Heinrich Wohlfahrt? Well, I'm doing one of his pieces at the moment which I've mentioned. My teacher has been pointing out my flaws with handmovements and I've learned a lot. After a legato bow I need to get my hands away from the keys for a second before contineuing another legato bow.

I think if I can get the minuet going I could do some other classical pieces as well since the minuet revolves around hand switching between positions.

I still can't do the long-short-long-short exercise, but I'll ask my teacher next week. It's really too bad because I can do the other exercises pretty well.

[keyboarding770]

I think that is an excellent idea of sharing what each one learned from practice.

Please allow me to introduce myself. I have been engaging in self study of music for over a year.

I started take piano lesson  July 2012. I found a very patient and supportive piano teacher that is very positive, commends me for the things you do well. The lessons are once a week for a half hour.

Her observation is she feels I sight read better than most students whom never had any lessons. My weak point in my opinion, timing,  I play to fast, I find it difficult counting out loud and keeping timing.

I practice at home on keyboard and play my lesson on a piano.

Besides the lessons, I absorbed myself in self study still.

I  am in awe of the  musical skills such as Joe Sample, Billy Joel, Ray Charles.

This week I am learning the "Eighth Notes". I am going to struggle to learn to play "Hello" by Lionel Richie on my own this weekend. It has three familiar chords on the first page on the sheet music  which are  Am, G, F and am familiar with  the basic notes.

Thanks for listening and any support, observation, lending of once experience will be certainly welcomed.

[outin]

 And the sheet wants me to play staccatto with my left hand and legato with me right
 

That is hard, it takes time and some practice to develope that kind of hand independence.

And it seems my version of the minuet is different from most on youtube. How many versions of the minuet are there?

As many as there are players
There are slightly easier versions from the original in the method books, I remember one from my childhood.

I still can't do the long-short-long-short exercise, but I'll ask my teacher next week. It's really too bad because I can do the other exercises pretty well.

This is completely normal, when there are so many things to absorb on the lesson, sometimes you need to get back to them many many times before they are completely understood. And then it takes even more time to make the movements you second nature.

[ranniks]

I think that is an excellent idea of sharing what each one learned from practice.

Please allow me to introduce myself. I have been engaging in self study of music for over a year.

I started take piano lesson  July 2012. I found a very patient and supportive piano teacher that is very positive, commends me for the things you do well. The lessons are once a week for a half hour.

Her observation is she feels I sight read better than most students whom never had any lessons. My weak point in my opinion, timing,  I play to fast, I find it difficult counting out loud and keeping timing.

I practice at home on keyboard and play my lesson on a piano.

Besides the lessons, I absorbed myself in self study still.

I  am in awe of the  musical skills such as Joe Sample, Billy Joel, Ray Charles.

This week I am learning the "Eighth Notes". I am going to struggle to learn to play "Hello" by Lionel Richie on my own this weekend. It has three familiar chords on the first page on the sheet music  which are  Am, G, F and am familiar with  the basic notes.

Thanks for listening and any support, observation, lending of once experience will be certainly welcomed.

Hi! It's very cool to see someone so dedicated!  And it's reall neat that you can already do so many things. I'm a novice and life long learner of the piano and its mysteries.

That is hard, it takes time and some practice to develope that kind of hand independence.

Yeah! It's like drawing a circle with one hand while drawing a square at the same time with the other hand.

As many as there are players
There are slightly easier versions from the original in the method books, I remember one from my childhood.

Hehehe. So this means the minuet in g major is a piece of cake for you at the moment?

This is completely normal, when there are so many things to absorb on the lesson, sometimes you need to get back to them many many times before they are completely understood. And then it takes even more time to make the movements you second nature.

Yeah that's true. Sometimes it's frustrating though. I mean, sheet music of movie themes and such are probably easy for you more advanced people to play sighreading and the second or fifth time you've probably mastered it. I'm struggling with the minuet. But I think that's perfectly normal.

Hard work will bring me far.

I don't have any 'specific' talents, but what I do have is a talent in hard work. If that's not going to get me far, nothing is and will.

[outin]

Yeah! It's like drawing a circle with one hand while drawing a square at the same time with the other hand.Hehehe. So this means the minuet in g major is a piece of cake for you at the moment?

No...I cannot memorize Bach at all and since my sight reading sucks, I can only play it slow... I'd say in a few of weeks you play it better than I could...That's the good thing about this: Whatever level you are, you can still play a piece well and enjoy it, you don't have to play Chopin etudes to make nice music

In general I find many easy pieces hard, maybe because I kind of skipped the 1-4 levels this time around... Don't recommend it, has been quite a struggle. And from a conversation we had last time I think there migth have been a bit of a misunderstanding with my teacher about how long I had actually played before I started lessons with her

Yeah that's true. Sometimes it's frustrating though. I mean, sheet music of movie themes and such are probably easy for you more advanced people to play sighreading and the second or fifth time you've probably mastered it. I'm struggling with the minuet. But I think that's perfectly normal.

See above

[outin]

Yesterday I learned two more scales! 
It's a bit weird...I have struggled with scale fingerings for a year now and only ever managed to learn C and B hands together. Now in the last 2 weeks or so I have learned 6 more scales...It's like something finally clicked in my head. It really only takes 5 min. or so to learn a new one.

I also have the first page of the waltz pretty well in my hands now. I was 100% sure 2 weeks ago that I could never do the left hand jumps and the right hand figurations without looking at both hands (which obviously won't do). And now I can 

I feel like somehow in the past month I have jumped to a new level in learning. Sure, I still can't sight read and I still cannot remember some simple things, but things that seemed impossible before seem within reach now...better knock on wood....

[ranniks]

This is the verion of the Minuet I'm learning:

Good job with the Scales Outin!

[outin]

This is the verion of the Minuet I'm learning:

Now that must be really difficult 

Sorry, was that supposed to be a link?

[ranniks]

Fixed, lol.

Btw, I've developed a taste for middle eastern piano. Not sure if it has something to do with the fact that I was born in Afghanistan or the fact that I just really like it, lol.

[outin]

Well, that was much better than I could do with that minuet
The easier version in my method book (grade 2) just has the first part, omitting the ornament in measure 8 and simplifying the left hand.
In the latter part there are couple of measures with 2 voices, I guess they thought that would be too difficult as a concept.

I am very unfamiliar with middle eastern music 

[ranniks]

I'm not even sure if I should ever go for the grade stuff. I just want to enjoy it. Sure it's nice to have a paper saying I'm this good, but not for a while. Maybe if I'm ever as good and want to teach.

That's sort of what I mean. The arabic version is especially nice.

Anyways. I've had a great 90 minute practise today. The minuet is coming along as well, but the stacatto left handed and right hand legato is just impossible for me at this stage. Need to practise more, hehe!

[outin]

I'm not even sure if I should ever go for the grade stuff. I just want to enjoy it. Sure it's nice to have a paper saying I'm this good, but not for a while. Maybe if I'm ever as good and want to teach.

I do not refer to exams when I talk about grades, it's just way to estimate if it's reasonable to start learning a piece or not. Something that is grade 7-8 is just too much. I don't mind learning a grade 1 piece if I like it. I did a few during the summer, like a cute waltz by Shostakovich and a prelude by Purcell:

Maybe not the best videos, but what I could find now in Youtube...

That's sort of what I mean. The arabic version is especially nice.

Oh, Beethoven goes east

Anyways. I've had a great 90 minute practise today. The minuet is coming along as well, but the stacatto left handed and right hand legato is just impossible for me at this stage. Need to practise more, hehe!

Take just one measure to practice. BTW. The staccato in Baroque does not have to be that "sharp", more like just a bit quicker release from the key than what you play with other notes.

[ranniks]

I see. The thing is, how am I supposed to play something legato with one hand while the other jumps in the staccato fashion? My other hand needs to be totally independant then.

On another note, does anyone know what grades these are? We don't have grades here in Holland, but we have something called EPTA: European piano teachers association. They give examens in A1, A2, B, C, D and E I think. Is there a comparison table?

[outin]

I see. The thing is, how am I supposed to play something legato with one hand while the other jumps in the staccato fashion? My other hand needs to be totally independant then.

You just do
It takes time to learn, don't get discouraged, after all you just started! Your teacher will help you.

Also the Baroque legato is not as in romatic era for example. You can play more detached here. I would start by first learning to play the hands separate in correct touch, then put the hands together without trying to do the staccato/legato thing perfectly until your fingers know what to play hands together and can play in sync. After you can, you can concentrate on differentiating the touch on each hand perfectly. This approach usually works for me.

And, once again, GO SLOW 

On another note, does anyone know what grades these are? We don't have grades here in Holland, but we have something called EPTA: European piano teachers association. They give examens in A1, A2, B, C, D and E I think. Is there a comparison table?

I'm afraid not. The system here is also different to the ABRSM or other grading systems, since it is tied to the music schooling system. We have basic exams in three levels, then exams at the "musical school" level and then the vocational music school levels which I believe are also degrees.

[ranniks]

Outin, I just went in for another session of playing, 60 minutes. My dad told me he didn't mind so I played for an hour. I took your advice and playes some pieces slow and I could play them marvelously later when I played a bit faster.

The minuet is coming along fantastic! I'm beginning to feel finger independance in that piece. My left hand is finally working on my right hand's tempo sort of.

There's just this weird part of the minuet where I hit a d with my pinky and the lower d with my thumb and then 3 other notes going down. But the weird part is that the 3 other notes are on the side of my pinky d and the part where the thumb d is attached to the other 3 notes (confused yet?:p). Will ask my teacher.

I'm just bummed out about the light mozart exercise, I really wanted to play it.....

Oh, my teacher also gave me kumba yah my lord a few weeks ago. I tried playing it then, and it did not sound so good (A LOT OF 2 FINGERED CHORDS), but I pulled it out today and I could play it to near perfectness 0.o. Love the song btw.

Outin, have you ever heard of Oscar Peterson? A brilliant, brilliant pianist may his soul rest in piece. I'm going to ask my teacher about him (since he is a jazz pianist himself).

[outin]

There's just this weird part of the minuet where I hit a d with my pinky and the lower d with my thumb and then 3 other notes going down. But the weird part is that the 3 other notes are on the side of my pinky d and the part where the thumb d is attached to the other 3 notes (confused yet?:p).

I'm afraid I am. Could you please tell me which measure that is? I have the score in front of me but I don't seem to get what part you are referring to...

Outin, have you ever heard of Oscar Peterson? A brilliant, brilliant pianist may his soul rest in piece. I'm going to ask my teacher about him (since he is a jazz pianist himself).

Of course I have heard (of) him. I am old, remember? 

[ranniks]

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-XD42vZ0T8Gw/UGdYecE4u3I/AAAAAAAAANA/hmOBmeILYWM/s1036/bach.jpg

There, I've marked what part I meant. My sheet is different, but it's the same part.

[outin]

So it's measure 8. Usually this measure has the ornament on the right hand, but I guess you are talking about the left hand? What is it that is confusing you?
How could you hit the first d with your pinky? You play that with your thumb and the second one with your 5th.

[ranniks]

So it's measure 8. Usually this measure has the ornament on the right hand, but I guess you are talking about the left hand? What is it that is confusing you?
How could you hit the first d with your pinky? You play that with your thumb and the second one with your 5th.

I meant it the other way around, I'm sorry. It's not confusing, it's just tedious because the second d is part of a beamed note so it means I have to be able to play it fast after each other, they are 1/8s, right?

Edit:

That picture is different from mine, in mine the next 4 notes after the first d are all apart of one beam.

[outin]

I meant it the other way around, I'm sorry. It's not confusing, it's just tedious because the second d is part of a beamed note so it means I have to be able to play it fast after each other, they are 1/8s, right?

Edit:

That picture is different from mine, in mine the next 4 notes after the first d are all apart of one beam.

That is how it should be. Just practice like this:
Count 1-2 on the first quater note, then 3-1-2-3 on the 6th notes that are beamed. You need to learn to count to 3, since this piece is 3/4.

And again, count s-l-o-w-l-y 

[outin]

Well, attached is something I've learned this weekend...unfortunately whenever I try to record something I stiffen up and my playing loses all musicality...also I would really want to go a bit faster, this tempo doesn't get the music going in my head, but I have to slow the whole thing down to be able to handle the last part...

But for me it is still quite an achievement to be able to play this thing through without completely messing up. I am REALLY bad at this jumping and chords thing

And, no it's not rubato, just me every now and then forgetting what comes next

[ranniks]

That sounded good Outin!

[outin]

That sounded good Outin!

Thanks!

How does the minuet feel now?

[ranniks]

Thanks!

How does the minuet feel now?

I'll tell you later today or tomorrow^^.

I get what you mean with handmovement, but the part that's slightly difficult is when you hit the d with 1 and the lower d with 5. Then you're supposed to hit cba left from the first d. I could go 1(d)5(lower d)123(cba). The thing is, my pinky wouldn't be on the G where it is supposed to be anymore.

But the minuet has improved tremendously! Definitely. I can feel Bach in my hands (0.o).

Also, a stranger has given me a digital gift: 2gb worth of classical music sheets from bach to mozart to vivaldi to rachmaninov to scarlatti to whoever lived back then. Also a stranger has bestowed upon me 350mb ish worth of pop sheet music. I thank this stranger for 'buying' them for me 0.o.

Has this pirate said too much?

[outin]

I get what you mean with handmovement, but the part that's slightly difficult is when you hit the d with 1 and the lower d with 5. Then you're supposed to hit cba left from the first d. I could go 1(d)5(lower d)123(cba). The thing is, my pinky wouldn't be on the G where it is supposed to be anymore.

Trying to confuse me again? There's no G here?  

Do not try to hold the lower D, just let it go and play the rest. Remember, this is baroque, it can/should be detached. Better jump than stretch!

EDIT:
Since you seem to be working quite seriously with this already, did you teacher talk to you about accents? In this piece it is very important to play the first note in every measure more pronounced, otherwise it just does not sound right.

[ranniks]

Trying to confuse me again? There's no G here?  

Do not try to hold the lower D, just let it go and play the rest. Remember, this is baroque, it can/should be detached. Better jump than stretch!

EDIT:
Since you seem to be working quite seriously with this already, did you teacher talk to you about accents? In this piece it is very important to play the first note in every measure more pronounced, otherwise it just does not sound right.

My teacher said this piece was above my level when he gave it to me. We've only looked at it once and only worked on the left hand movements then, he scraped of the lower d for simplicity's sake, but I'm a stubborn guy:p.

No, I'm not trying to confuse you, but on my sheet I have to have my left hand in the D position (thumb on the D), therefore my pinky will be on the G

1=D
2=C
3=B
4=A
5=G = Pinky

Now, I hit the D, so number 1, then I would want to hit the lower D (as shown on the sheet). That D is part of a beam though, a beam where the second, third and fourth note of the beam is CBA but not the CBA left from the lower D, but from the upper D.

So when I hit the lower D with my pinky I could go 2 ways:

Hit the C with my 1, B with my 2 and A with my 3. But according to the sheet I would need to hit the B again and be in the D position again. So that way would not work.

The other way is simply hitting the C with my 2 and move from there. See where the problem arises? I switch pinky lower d and hit the upper C with my 2 to get back in the D position. That's difficult for me now.

Edit:

Maybe I should just go with the first way and get back in the D position when I need to hit the D agian.

[unholeee]

yes the first way, and you can play b with 3 then and a with 4.

[ranniks]

Ahh I see. Hmmm, that could work indeed! Then the only difficult part of the first page is the staccato with the right hand with the beam on my left.

Or I should first try to play staccato on hand and legato the other simultaneously.

[outin]

OK, I get the problem now. You are thinking on positions, I just can't think like that anymore, I have no idea what position I am at when I play

But maybe you should stop thinking of the 8th notes as beams
You would play them exactly the same whether they are beamed or just separate 8th notes. The beam just makes them a bit easier to read.

You kind of confused me again...I thought we already went through the staccato legato thing?

But no problem, you have gone far with this already, your teacher might be surprised. Why don't we leave him something to earn his money with? 

[ranniks]

OK, I get the problem now. You are thinking on positions, I just can't think like that anymore, I have no idea what position I am at when I play

But maybe you should stop thinking of the 8th notes as beams
You would play them exactly the same whether they are beamed or just separate 8th notes. The beam just makes them a bit easier to read.

You kind of confused me again...I thought we already went through the staccato legato thing?

But no problem, you have gone far with this already, your teacher might be surprised. Why don't we leave him something to earn his money with? 

Definitely! Outin, you should know by now what kind of a person I am so sorry if I have troubled you.

[outin]

Definitely! Outin, you should know by now what kind of a person I am so sorry if I have troubled you.

Oh, it's no trouble....I'm just not so good at teaching/explaining things 

[outin]

2 more scales HT this morning...It's a bit weird really how easy it seems now to handle both hands after struggling with it for so long. My brain must have modified itself 

It's easier for me to play the scales rather fast than play them slow. So I need more slow practice. Which is difficult because my hands are somewhat hyperactive, they tend to do things on their own before I have time to stop them 

[hfmadopter]

2 more scales HT this morning...It's a bit weird really how easy it seems now to handle both hands after struggling with it for so long. My brain must have modified itself 

It's easier for me to play the scales rather fast than play them slow. So I need more slow practice. Which is difficult because my hands are somewhat hyperactive, they tend to do things on their own before I have time to stop them 

All the more reason to do that slow practice, so you know that you are in control of your hands and they are not in control of themselves. It's always a good study when you get a piece up to speed, to then slow it down and see who is in charge of the piece after a week or so, LOL !!

I just slowed my latest piece down to gain control of expression now. I'm at that stage, where I have memorized the rough passages, have the whole thing playing with moderate expression basically by score indication. Now it's time to go to work on it so I can claim the expression as mine.

[ranniks]

The minuet is coming along just fine! I got the first sheet down and even the staccato and legato parts seem to be working with me instead of against me. Tomorrow I'll try to decode the handmovements of the second part and then my teacher can help me with it on wensday.

And I'm singing to the Kumba yah song; love it. In my next video you'll all be definitely proud of me!

Outin, you'll definitely get there, just follow the advice you gave me (see you ain't bad in explaining things).

[outin]

My teacher seemed pleased with my progress today, played 8 different scales, the first page of the waltz and some other things I didn't know last week. But I still didn't get a sticker...the girl before me always get stickers! I'm a loser 

[ranniks]

My teacher seemed pleased with my progress today, played 8 different scales, the first page of the waltz and some other things I didn't know last week. But I still didn't get a sticker...the girl before me always get stickers! I'm a loser 

Can I give you a sticker for being a patient person at least?