An amateur take on Scriabin's 5th Sonata

[pazzi]

Hello all! I'm 24, and I'm a self taught amateur (had a teacher for 2 months) and have been playing for 4 years and some months.

I would like to share with other musicians my amateur take on this sonata, since I haven't show anybody before, except my parents, which don't like it, I posted on facebook as well but I think nobody there cares too hahaha.

Also I would be glad with any advices you could share!

Recorded with my notebook camera on a Yamaha P95 (there are some awkward sounds from my pedal, chair and cars in the street)

Thanks in advance
I'll probably keep working on it for some more months

[amytsuda]

Just out of my curiosity, if you can self teach this so well within only 4 years, why don't you actually get a teacher and try to become really good? Now you are 24, you can earn some money to pay for your piano lessons? I don't get why so many amateurs underestimate the value of learning from good teachers (unless you live in an area with no teacher or you have financial difficulty to pay for one).

By the way, I found playing on a digital piano is a big disservice to this wonderful piece. I don't know how much more can be done on your piano for this piece. It's a very unusual piece for a self-taught amateur to choose by the way. What other repertoires do you play? Do you play any other instrument? (You sound as if you do)

[pazzi]

Thanks for your reply!

I just left an applied maths course in university to apply for architecture this year. I don't have my own money.

I'd say I prefer a free approach to music and learning discipline, also there aren't good teachers in my current area and I wouldn't have time to travel for it. But I always like to talk with friends about technique and learning, sharing ideas, it's a nice subject for a conversation!

I can't afford a good acoustic piano. But I used to "invade" the Arts Institute to play on Kawaiis, eventually I met some musicians and teachers, made some friends!  

I played some Debussy (Suite Bergamasque except Menuet; Serenade for the doll; Reflets dans l'eau) and Bach (Prelude in C minor from WTC I) which were my first pieces so my takes were very poor, then some Chopin (Op.25 no.1 no.9) and Ravel (Jeux D'eau; Sonatine; Le Tombeau de Couperin except Forlane; Alborada del Gracioso from Miroirs) and now this Scriabin.

I have played Jimi Hendrix, jazz and some transcriptions in guitar, but my technique was very very primitive haha

[amytsuda]

Now the choice makes more sense. You are quite an unusual self-taught amateur. So math, architecture, and music, a sort of a renaissance man? What do you plan to do with your piano playing? How does your Jeux D'eau sound on your piano? Does it work better than Scriabin 5?

[pazzi]

I don't plan to be a professional, just wanna do it for myself and friends.

Jeux d'eau was the piece I most played and in my opinion it sounded better than the Scriabin in a digital piano, overall I think impressionists delicate touch sound nicer than strong russian pieces in these pianos...

And what about you? Are you a pianist? Teacher? What's your repertoire?

[quantum]

A fascinating choice of music for the background you describe.  Are you interested in Scriabin's music in general, or was there something specifically about this piece that attracted you to learn it?  Nonetheless, it is an impressive feat for someone that is primarily self-taught.

Just an observation: you seem to have large hands from the video, yet prefer fingerings with more frequent position changes and less stretching. 

From a critique standpoint, you could work on better differentiating the various characters presented in the piece.  In a somewhat related note, don't forget to breathe between phrases.  The listener needs to hear when one idea ends and the next begins.  As the performer you have the license to shape how you would like those breaks and breaths to take place, but the important thing is that they are there.   Sometimes you may wish to jolt the listener into the next idea or other times bring one idea to a close before starting the next, however there still needs to be a sense of the breath.

[amytsuda]

Share your Jeux D'eau with us too!

I am just an old amateur I did want to do music when I was a kid, but my family couldn't afford it (particularly after my dad who liked music died). Nonetheless I figured out how to learn music without money quite well (incl. discovering a cello in school's storage) to taking lessons from a retired music prof (who didn't play piano but had tons of scores), till my family finally banned me from music.... Now finally after 25 years I came back and no one can stop me now So I feel like I have to support rebounders and self-teaching amateurs like yours.

Keep going! Don't be shy of sharing your music with others.

[pazzi]

Sorry for the bump,
Thank you so much for your observations quantum, they were very useful in my studies in the past month! I'm very interested in all Scriabin works!!!

amytsuda, I stopped playing jeux d'eau for months, then revised it in december, I recorded a video yesterday with the pieces I'm working but jeux d'eau went very badly!I'm trying some things I saw in Lefébure masterclass on it.... Well at least I'm feeling more confortable with the Scriabin sonata...

[amytsuda]

Pazzi, I really appreciate your performance. Jeux d'eau sounds great on that piano, but I wish you could get a acoustic piano...!!! You probably want to pay attentions to the pedaling on Beethoven, though I know it's really difficult with an electronic keyboard. I used to play on Yamaha Clavinova and found playing Beethoven was impossible. No plan to get an acoustic piano?

What is the next piece in your cooking?! You seem to like similar repertoires!

In the new year, I finally started on Scriabin Sonata No 2 but came down with a flu and haven't been able to stay vertical for 9 days... I also started on Chopin Heroic Polonaise. I also need to get back on Beethoven Op 110 (I started on it last year, but got distracted by other things). And maybe, Bach/Busoni Chaconne or Liszt 3 Sonnets. That's my plan till May or so

[diomedes]

I have not looked at the video, might later when i have time, but by the sounds of it I'd only voice a strong concern with working on a digital keyboard with an unfamiliarity of how a piano would feel. I'm assuming that's the case.

I'm all for doing learning work on a keyboard and I do for the sake of noise, but i have a very extensive background with fine instruments.

I also noticed there was a comment about fingerings and habits. I wouldn't approach something like Scriabin 5 with those conditions, I don't know how far you are with your work on 5 but each of his Sonatas is a monster with the exception of 9. It also depends what standards you're setting too, so if you're not uptight then one would suppose that's fine.

[j_menz]

I have not looked at the video, might later when i have time, but

You won't let that lack of any actual information stop you expressing an opinion?