3 hands required???

[David_Coleman]

 :-/

Hi,
I was attempting to play 'The Scientist' by Coldplay last night and required 2 hands to play the background chord but then I had no hand free to play the melody.  In the sheet music it shows 3 clefs - the backdround chords on the bass and treble and the melody on another treble clef.

I know this seems like a stupid question but how do I get about this.  Do I need to record the backing chords and then play the melody later alonmg with it.

I am playing piano for 2 months only.

Thanks,   Dave

[vioguitpia]

Hi there,

There is a technique in piano playing whereby the right hand plays both chord and melody and that is perhaps the most beautiful part of piano playing. However, unless you have attained a certain level of competency in playing the piano, you might find that it will take some time to figure out how to 'marry the melody to the chords'.

Maybe you might want to sight-sing the melody.....


Correct me if I am wrong about anything.

[faulty_damper]

Cold train?  Is that a rock band?

Anyway, it's quite common for sheet music for contemporary scores to include a Fake staff.  That is the melody and all you have to do is match the left hand chord to the melody.

Does the highest staff have letters such as C7, B, A, etc?  If it does, then ignore that staff.  That's for jazz "fake" notation where you read the melody and play the chords - much easier than reading both clefs.

[allchopin]

Well since it's Coldplay, the third clef is most likely the part to be sung.  Therefore, you are not required to play that- you need someone else (or yourself) to sing along.  Are there lyrics on the page?

[bernhard]

I don’t know this piece. But here is my guess.

This is a song.

There are three staves, two for the piano accompaniment, and one for the voice.

If this is the case, a general principle with songs is that the piano does not play the melody – this is the responsibility of the singer.

You have two options.

1.      Play the piano part as written and sing the melody. (That is sing the song and accompany yourself at the piano).

2.      Rewrite the piece as a piano solo piece, so that the piano does everything and there is no singing. This is easier than it looks. Here is how you go about it:  Copy the melody written the top staff on the treble staff. This means that you will have two “voices” (or parts) in a single staff. Use the 4th and 5th finger of the RH to play these melodic notes you just added to the treble staff. If this proves to be impossible, play some of the chords of the RH in the LH. If the notes are all over the piano, bring them closer by playing the melodic notes one octave lower. In short, distribute the notes between the hands as necessary. You may also simplify some of the chords by leaving notes out.

I hope this helps.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[allchopin]

Here's an even better suggestion- avoid Coldplay altogether for Chopin.

[bernhard]

Here's an even better suggestion- avoid Coldplay altogether for Chopin.

Even not knowing Coldplay, I will second that.

[chopiabin]

Even though I do not listen to them, they are actually pretty good for a pop band.

[chopiabin]

Actually, now that I think about it, I have a question about this as well. Ok, I am not planning to learn this piece, but I ahve always wondered, what is the deal with the three staffs in Rach's prelude in C#minor? How do you do it? This is obviously not a sung part, so I was just wondering (perhaps I should go look at the score again).

[bernhard]

It makes it easier to read and isolate the parts. Just imagine the alternative: to cram the third staff on top of the treble staff. Real nightmare. Other composers do the same, notably Cesar Cui and Franz Lizst.

Of course, it makes the structure clearer but takes a while to get used to the sight reading. And you may have to spend some time planning how you are going to distribute the notes between the hands.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[allchopin]

takes a while to get used to the sight reading.

Ha! good luck with all of.. that

[faulty_damper]

"Ok, I am not planning to learn this piece, but I ahve always wondered, what is the deal with the three staffs in Rach's prelude in C#minor? How do you do it? "

Actually, at least looking at the version I'm looking at now, Rach's Op.3-2 Prelude doesn't have 3 staves, it have four.  And I know that it is impossible to play all four staves at the same time.  I'm assuming that you don't play all four staves but just pick one pair that would work for whatever you play after the prelude (it is, after, a prelude).

[schnabels_grandson]

"Ok, I am not planning to learn this piece, but I ahve always wondered, what is the deal with the three staffs in Rach's prelude in C#minor? How do you do it? "

Actually, at least looking at the version I'm looking at now, Rach's Op.3-2 Prelude doesn't have 3 staves, it have four.  And I know that it is impossible to play all four staves at the same time.  I'm assuming that you don't play all four staves but just pick one pair that would work for whatever you play after the prelude (it is, after, a prelude).

You know it's impossible?  Actually, the two treble staves are the right hand and the two bass staves are left.  It's quite simple really.

[faulty_damper]

yes, the first part under "Tempo Prima" you can do with two hands but in the the 7th & 9th measure after the tempo return, it becomes unpossible to do so, at least the first chords of the bar in those two measures.  

Tell me how it can be done and I'll ask your mom to bake you a cookie!  

[schnabels_grandson]

Ooh, cookies!  Of course you cant play them at the same time.  You hit the C#s in both hands and quickly jump to the four note chords.  It's similar to the first L.H notes in measures 28, 29, 32 and 33 where you hit the bass C# and jump to the B.  There's a little vertical line next to all of them that indicates a jump.  

[chopiabin]

I should probably look at the score again.

[faulty_damper]

"Ooh, cookies!"

I only said one cookie.  I don't want your mom to spoil you and get your hands greasy.

But about that line thingy:
That's what it means?!?  I've never seen anything like that before.  So it is unpossible to play at the same time... that's what led me to believe I'm supposed to pick one staff and play it that way.

Anyway, 6th Gen. Beethoven,

Dear 6th Gen Beethoven's mom,
Please bake your son a cookie, just one.  He has great knowledge of what is unpossible and possible and I asked him to clarify some weird notating that Sergei wrote down because it iwas unpossible to play.

Just one cookie.  He actually wants more but don't spoil him.  You can bake a whole batch but just give him one.

What can you do with the rest of the cookies?  You can send them to me.

Thank you in advanced.  I prefer oatmeal raisin cookies.
Sincerely,

faulty Damper.