Small notes on page

[immortalbeloved]

Hey everyone,

I apologize for this question in the first place, but I do not even know how to google the question, and my teacher rarely checks her email, and so, I thought I would try my luck here.

So I am playing a piece and all the notes are regular normal size, but then, there is a section with 8th notes but they are written in incredibly small font, almost like grace notes, but just a full section of notes. Do I play these small notes very fast, or normal speed, or what is the point of it.

Thank you all for your help and I hope this question does not prove too much a bother.

[iansinclair]

How big a section?  How many notes are we looking at here?  Is there, by any happy chance, a number over or under the group of notes?

Or... could you tell us the piece and where in the piece this happens? 

If this were Chopin, and there was a number over or under the notes, my first reaction would be that this was an ornament of sorts, with the intent being to fit all of them into a measure, or part of a measure.  For example, you might have three notes in the left hand, and in the right 11 eighth notes written in the same space, usually with "11" written in.  The idea would be to play those 11 notes evenly in the same time it took to play the 3 in the left hand.

Clear as mud.  Sorry.  I'm not much good at written explanations... does that help any, though?

[immortalbeloved]

No thank you Ian, that really helps. Chopin just has the ability to amaze me everytime!

[mjames]

Give us the name of the piece so we can help you with it?

Anyways like Ian says, with Chopin strict time alignment between the right and left hand during a series of ornaments isn't important. The idea is to fit them all in and make them "free flowing"..as in completely independent from the left hand.

But some people are just incapable of using that kind improvisation type style so they have to align each note to their proper place. You can probably do that by evening them up by turning them in to 32 notes or quintuplets etc.

But we'd have to know whiccch piece you're talking about.

[dcstudio]

are you referring to the Liszt Liebestraum 3? 

it fits your description... its in many Hal Leonard type "best loved" piano collections .. and that section is on page 2 in most editions which is why you didn't notice it until you got past the easier first section

just a guess..

[mjames]

if its the Liszt then it's a little different because it's a "quasi cadenza" passage, whereas with something like for example the climax of Chopin's op. 27 no. 2 nocturne the ornaments have to "flow freely" under strict time/rhythm.

[immortalbeloved]

Hey all,

Please forgive me for not replying back--for some reason I just stopped looking after Ian's response.

The song is called ''Autumn Leaves'' it is in volume four of the Faber and Faber piano jazz series book (a hard find I would assume for many here since you are all probably much more experienced than I am).

[dcstudio]

Hey all,

Please forgive me for not replying back--for some reason I just stopped looking after Ian's response.

The song is called ''Autumn Leaves'' it is in volume four of the Faber and Faber piano jazz series book (a hard find I would assume for many here since you are all probably much more experienced than I am).

here is me playing Autumn Leaves... my version is way better then those Faber kids..lol if this indeed the tune your are enquiring about.

[immortalbeloved]

DC!

That was such a wonderful rendition. In fact it was so good, that I almost feel embarrassed playing my own Faber rendition 

Great job

[dcstudio]

often times with stock editions like Faber notes are smaller simply to save space.. it may mean nothing at all.

Thanks    

If you are at level 4 of F&F you can probably start formulating your own renditions of jazz standards.   Autumn Leaves is a jazz standard of standards... one you must know in every key and be able to play as swing, bossa, jazz waltz, whatever...   there is really no wrong way to play it...lol...  well... you know what I mean.