What's My Problem?

[movesaturn]

I'm currently playing (can play at full tempo without mistakes):
1. Liszt's Liebestraume No.3 (loved this piece quite a bit )
2. Chopin's Minute Waltz
3. Debussy's Suite Bergamasque Menuet
4. Joplin's Maple Leaf Rag
5. Chopin's Fantaisie Impromptu in C-Sharp Minor (oh God, was this one hard)

I'm finding these pieces absurdly difficult to learn (which is my question--is there anything in common within this list that might explain my problem?):
1. Debussy's Arabesque No.1
2. Albeniz's Malaguena (yes, I'm not kidding... )
3. Albeniz's Asturias
4. Liszt's Un Sospiro
5. Chopin's Nocturne Op.9 No.2

I want to eventually be good enough to play:
1. Liszt's Paganini Etude S.161 No.3 "La Campenella"
2. Rachmaninoff's Prelude Op.23 No.5 (I kid you not, this is my absolute favorite piano piece ever--even if I can't play it)
3. Liszt's Un Sospiro
4. Albeniz's Asturias

(I was entirely self-taught. Never had any professional piano training or even tutorial books. I've been playing for six years now. Might explain some discrepancies in what I can and can't do.)

So, my questions.
1. How would you rate me? Beginner, intermediate, or advanced (lolnope)? I think I'm high beginner. But I've never had piano training. Lol, it's all a fun hobby. So I've no clue.
2. I'm not sure why I'm having difficulty with some specific pieces. Can you spot anything that might indicate my problem?
3. I always pick pieces I enjoy playing. What new piece should I try to play assuming all of the above are pieces I like?

[jimbo320]

Your name wouldn't be Sam would it?

[weiwei88]

wow self taught? I'm curious how do you teach yourself? by ear? that's awesome:D

[pbryld]

If you upload some recordings it will be a lot easier for people to point out your problems.

Also, there is no need to be ridiculously modest. Obviously you know that you are not regarded as a beginner when you can play pieces like Liebestraum no. 3 flawlessly.

[asiantraveller101]

Best solution: take a few lessons from an established teacher. He or she would be able to diagnose your discrepancies, if any. Best of luck.

[gsmile]

Upload a recording so that we can hear where you're at. You might be able to play the notes, but you might not necessarily have the "music", if you get what I mean.
If you're entirely self-taught, then you must be a very persevering person!
Here's a little help: you don't have a problem at all!
Liszt's Un Sospiro is time consuming to sight read even for some performers, especially in the middle section with the quick patterns. Un Sospiro is a piece that some students learn in university, along with other Classical pieces like Pathétique.
I love La Campanella! It's a performer-level piece obviously, but it's hard even then. You have something great going on, and I applaud you! You'll get there if you want it badly enough.

I recommend these sites for learning piano: Artiden (e.g. 64 Essential Music Resources, Dynamics 101) and Pure Lessons.
The first is a project written by well-known piano performers and educators, for beginners and beyond. The second is a site with videos showing you how to play certain pieces categorized by level, not taught by professionals but worth a look if you need help on fingering or something.

Good luck! You're doing great!