choice of piece

[roger_1948]

Just wondering if any of you may or may not have had experience with any of the following pieces. I just finished up a Haydn sonata , Hob 49 in E Flat.  Tempo is around 115 on the metronome. Left hand is still a little sloppy at times and my legato playing is still not where it should be.  I kind of cheat with the sustain pedal, but the piece is as good as its going to get right now.  So im looking to start my next piece to take its place.  Here are my 3 choices and what I have found out about them on my own just by reading the score.  Just wondering what I dont know about them, that I cant tell from listening to them or reading the score.  And Yes I do have a teacher but she is leaving it up to me. 

So the three pieces are.

Mozart - K332 in F - other than velocity in the last movment it seems fine. 

Mozart K330 in C - I like this one alot ,  temp doesnt seem to offer any problems, but it seems so fragile.  So many little intricate things .

Beethoven Pathetique.  Yes I know this one is a stretch, but it fits my right hand like a glove.  Its the left hand i have my doubts about in the first movment.  Those Tremolo's im not sure about , I would hate to spend a great deal of time working on this only to find out that i just cant get those temolo's under control. 

Thats it - its going to be one of these three. Any insights on what you encountered while learning them would be greatly appreciated. 

Final note, I would rather drop some notes than play a piece at some absurd slow tempo that totally disorts it.  Not to many notes , but a few.  So when I choose a piece I intend to get it up to the tempo that the composer originally intended for it. 

Thanks -

Semper Fi, Roger

[musicluvr49]

Well I don't really like the idea of dropping notes in a piece. I'd rather wait until I'm at a better level where I am capable of playing it better, than playing it wrong.

But anyway, I'm working on the Pathetique Sonata now, and it's a really wonderful piece. Yes, those tremelos are a pain, but this is how I got them right. Before you even start the tremolos, just practice hitting that bottom note with the pinky, and make sure every note is even. Then when you have that down, begin playing the top note, but start out slowly. When have a pretty good speed with that, start playing the double notes in the right hand, slowly with the left hand, and make sure that they are all in time. Keep practicing that, and slowly bring it up to speed.

Also, one thing I'm struggling with is getting the right sound with pedaling of those double staccato notes in the right hand. Any advice?

Good Luck.

[becky8898]

hey Rog:  I have done all three. So here goes.

Dont do the Mozart K330 in C. it is really deceptive. Its beautiful and full of really wonderful little treasures , but its got some Trill work that i think might drive you  crazy. 

As far as the pathetique goes,   here is my thought .  If I remember right you said you where an older student with 3 and 1/2 years under your belt and you also mentioned you still where a little sloppy with your left hand on the Haydn . im guessing even if you get those tremolos under control you are going to run out of steam to fast.  Your muscles are going to cramp up. If you are going to try this Sonata Do it in reverse . Do the last movment first, then the MIddle movment and wait on the first movment. IN the mean time work on your wrist rotation in the left hand. Your teacher i bet can find some stuff for you on that.

If it was me I would choose the Mozart K332 in F. Dont worry about the velocity in the last movment.  It will come. The are a few trills in the First movment that can be tricky but not to bad. THis is also a pretty easy Sonata to memorize.

Hope that helps

Cheers, Becky

[fleetfingers]

You should go with the one that you described by saying, "I like this one a lot." Besides, I also like it a lot...so it gets my vote.

You are right that it is full of intricate details. If you take the time to work out those details, it will be good for your technique. Play with NO pedal, and be sure to include much variation in the dynamics. May I suggest listening to a Horowitz recording of this piece.

If your teacher hand-picked those three as options, he/she knows that you can handle whichever one you choose. It sounds like each will provide a challenge, which is good. Again, I think you should go with the one you like best.

[kelly_kelly]

All three pieces are musically great. If you haven't technically mastered the Haydn sonata, I would say that the first movement of the Pathetique may be a bit of a stretch at the moment, but the other two might be manageable and eventually you will be able to get the the first. If this sonata really excites you and you are willing to work hard on it, then go for it.

Both Mozart sonatas you are considering are wonderful, and I think similar in difficulty (I have played K. 332 seriously and read through K. 330). Becky is correct that the trill work and details in K. 330 are deceptively difficult, but if your right hand is strong (which I think your post implies) they should be a doable challenge. The same goes for the last movement of K. 332. So if you go for Mozart, I think you should choose whichever sonata you prefer (which from your original post seems to be K. 330). In the end, how much you love the sonata is the most important thing, within reasonable limits of course (i.e. I wouldn't recommend Liszt B minor regardless of how much you love it!)