Rach Prelude Op. 3 No. 2 (mjames)

[mjames]

Lol, I think the iPad's way too close to the piano but yeah here's my recording. Got a bit nervous along the way so I ended up making quite a few mistakes, including losing count near the end >.< but yeah, i hope it's doable. Enjoy, i guess...

Be as brutal as you can be, I can take it.

[ajlongspiano]

Nice work James! It's coming along nicely. Tomorrow morning I'll post some more thoughtful ideas. Really nice energy going on!

- AJ

[mjames]

I was afraid to go a little faster during the repeat because of nerves and possible mistakes so I went safe with it. I feel like I killed the momentum by doing that...

Sigh, the stuff that happens when your head gets in the way of music making but yeah, thanks for listening. Kind words from someone as talented as you is a big moral booster.

[distantfieldrelative]

I just want to mention that everyone who plays this should listen to Rachmaninoff play it. The best by far.

Anyways, I agree with you about the ending needing some velocity except for the closing chords.
At first I thought you were using too much pedal for the beginning A section but after thinking about it I decided that it works out brilliantly. I think it gives it a more encompassing feel of darkness.

My only real advice would be to let the B section start slow and let it grow faster until the repeat.
I recall reading that the story of this was something like waking up in a coffin (Rachmaninoff was terrified of being buried alive) and not knowing it: A section. But then realizing it and panicking: B section. Then finally after failed attempts of escaping finally dying: A repeat.

[mjames]

haha, seems like you like the rubistein approach too. he also kept the intensity in the agitato as low as possible in order to make the repeat GLORIOUS.

The only problem with that approach is...I'm too impulsive. I'm not nearly musically mature enough to enjoy that kind introspective type of playing especially when I'm playing something as rad as the agitato..........

[distantfieldrelative]

Too impulsive? I guaranty that some of the best pianists in history were impulsive as much or more than you. Liszt was undoubtedly impulsive on stage; I do not know for sure if he was but his music suggests that to me. He used his impulses to create magnificent musical ideas on the spot. Again I have no clue if Liszt was impulsive or not but I gather it from his works.

Not musically mature enough? I don't think that is the case. Careful planning and consideration of all you options could make up for your musical immaturity if there is any of it to the degree of which you speak.

I'm sure that you are more than capable of exceeding your expectations with some effort.

[ajlongspiano]

The biggest thing I would work on is voicing the tops really well. Right now the melody is kind of mixed in with all the other textures to the point where it has very little individuality or distinctiveness.

[mjames]

The biggest thing I would work on is voicing the tops really well.

;-; Yes, that bothered me as well. I'll post an update as soon as I can. Btw do you plan on playign any medtner sonatas, if so, which one do you plan on tackling first?

Too impulsive? I guaranty that some of the best pianists in history were impulsive as much or more than you. Liszt was undoubtedly impulsive on stage; I do not know for sure if he was but his music suggests that to me. He used his impulses to create magnificent musical ideas on the spot. Again I have no clue if Liszt was impulsive or not but I gather it from his works.

Not musically mature enough? I don't think that is the case. Careful planning and consideration of all you options could make up for your musical immaturity if there is any of it to the degree of which you speak.

I'm sure that you are more than capable of exceeding your expectations with some effort.

Kind words, kind words..

Someone else on pianoworld pointed out to me that there's too much rubato in the A sections. I kind of sort of agree with him/her, but the problem is everyone does it??? I thought that since it was so widespread I thought it was okay for me to do it as well. <.< But yeah, I'll try a different approach tonight. Since I already posted a video I'm pretty sure I'll be less nervous!

[ajlongspiano]

Btw do you plan on playign any medtner sonatas, if so, which one do you plan on tackling first?

I've always been particularly fond of Sonata 1, along with the D Minor Sonata Triad.

[mjames]

Sweet, I look forward to it. Although I'm a few years off, I plan on tackling the c major Triad sonata. It's beautiful beyond words!

[dcstudio]

yeah that A section IMO is really over rubato-ed  by most pianists.   I play it pretty steadily and with a lot less drama so I can build through the agitato and make the recap as bombastic as possible.  You know Rach hated this one don't you?  lol.   Said he would have never played it if he had known it would follow him around for the rest of his life.


Anyway, Mjames it's great to hear you play.   Anybody with the cajones to post Rach here deserves some respect.


so.... respect.

[chopinlover01]

Initial thoughts:
Like the slow introduction, where you establish the motif. However, after that, you don't really seem to emphasize that 3 note phrase that comes up all the time.
Also, your pedaling is quite blurry a lot of the time. Along with this, your voicing, while not terrible, could be better. The combination of the two, however, is my major gripe with your A section. The rubato was fine, I think, but I think it wasn't special primarily due to that.
Also, I'd take a little more time going into the agitato.
Like AJ said, the textures in the agitato are also very blurry; in addition, I'm hearing eighth notes instead of triplets. The third note that should form the triplet is just getting buried due to the textures blending (not helped by the pedaling here, either).
As for your cadenza, it was alright, albeit distorted due to audio quality, but you could definitely make it better. Really try to "feel" the alternating triplet pulse, similar to what Beethoven does in the ending of the first movement of the Appassionata.
I think you could take the recap a tad quicker. The music doesn't really feel like it's moving to me.
Some note/chord issues to fix throughout, just so you know, though I'm sure you're aware
Again, more pedaling issues. You seem to just put a brick on the sustain pedal, if you'll excuse my saying so..
While I like the time taken in the outro, it's a little excessive and it sounds like you're unsure of when the ending is.
Also, the final chord is voiced with a G# on top; very important!!
Overall, it wasn't horrible, but there's definitely some things to work on.

[mjames]

thanks for the advice chopinlover

Question, so if I want to make my pedaling more precise in the A section but still want to keep the bass notes sustained do I use the sostenuto pedal for the bass notes and use the damper for the rest? i feel like it's the only way to keep bass while keeping a cleaner sound.

[chopinlover01]

You could, if you have access to such a pedal. However, it's possible to keep the bass notes in the listeners minds without sustaining the entire thing. The motif is a three note phrase, not a slowly played chord consisting of C sharp minor+an A. What I would do is just pedal each note of the motif individually with its respective chord, if that makes sense. So,


   Chord      Chord
A'         G#'          C#
[         ][            ][------

Hopefully that makes sense. If you'd prefer, we can talk/play over Skype at some point