What piece do you learn at the moment???

[beethovenfan]

I play Bach, some Preludes (just the easy ones because it makes fun playing bach).

Actually I'm working on playing 3 pieces from Tschaikowskys Seasons and Debussy's Children's Corner.

Do you think it's ok to have4 - 5 pieces your're working on or is it too much?
I mean 4 -5 pieces without the "funpieces" like a Bach prelude. How long do you work for one piece a day?


beethovenfan

[Glissando]

I'm working on..um...(mentally counting up...)....5? Yes, 5 pieces right now.

Bach: Sinfonia No. 3
Chopin: Nocturne in E Flat Major
Chopin: Waltz in C Sharp
Czerny: Etude No. 34
Mozart: Sonata in F Major (just the first movement right now)

I don't think it's too much, but it depends on how much you practice everyday. For instance, if you only practice 30 min. a day it would be too much but if you're practicing 1-2 hrs. everyday it's very doable.
Also if you're playing short (1 page) pieces you can work on more at the same time than if you're playing really long pieces like Sonatas or some of the Nocturnes.
I like to work on 4-6 pieces with them being in different moods, that way I always have something I *want* to practice. For instance the Etude is great when I'm mad (bang! bang! bang bang bang! ), the Nocturne & Waltz are great when I'm in a more dreamy/absent minded/quiet mood, the Mozart is great when I'm in a happy bouncy mood.

[Rach3]

Bach: P&F no. 21 from WTC I, in B-flat minor
Beethoven, sonata op. 81a "Les Adeiux"
Chopin: Scherzo no.3 in c#;
             Nocturne op. 27 no. 1 in c#
Liszt: Transcendental Etude no. 8 'Wild Jagd'
Schumann: Humoreske op. 20

These are all for conservatory auditions, I've set everything else aside.

[noelle]

self-taught, so I work on whatever I feel like, when I practice; generally:

various Beethoven sonatas (1, 8, 14 unless sightreading)
Rimsky-Korsakoff's "The Flight of the Bumblebee"
Rachmaninoff's Prelude in C# Minor
Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker (anything and everything)

[keys]

You really just have to experiment to know how many songs you can productively study at one time. I start to feel overwhelmed if the number of pieces exceeds ten. One time I was studying a piece for church on top of my normal load and the skin on my thumbs started to split. Twas gross.  

[pies]

­

[Skeptopotamus]

Bowen Toccata.  It's a pregnant dog.

[Skeptopotamus]

Bowen Toccata.  It's a pregnant dog.

Apparently, the "B word" is censored.  But for the record, it is a female dog, not a pregnant one.

[ted]

At last I have Gladyse (Waller) and Carolina Shout (Johnson) almost where I want them. Waller, fully transcribed, has to be among the most difficult twentieth century piano music to play really well. You can learn the notes easily enough, but to play all that mass of rapid filled tenths, solid chords and critical rhythm with vitality and lightness is a hard task and no mistake. They say he privately played a lot of Rachmaninoff and Bach; I can believe it.

[jlh]

Do you think it's ok to have4 - 5 pieces your're working on or is it too much?
I mean 4 -5 pieces without the "funpieces" like a Bach prelude.

I don't usually think of Bach Preludes as being fun pieces, but I guess to each his own!

Before college, I generally worked on one piece from each major period of music and got through 10-15 or so per year (I was an ambitious student).

Now, I usually work on 3-4 pieces per semester because the difficulty has gone up considerably, plus I'm always working toward the end-of-semester jury, so I spend a considerably amount of time polishing them.

Some pieces I studied recently:

Rachmaninoff Suite No. 2 for 2 pianos
Rachmaninoff Etude Op. 39, No. 9
Prokofiev Toccata Op. 11
Prokofiev Sonata No. 3
Chopin Ballades No. 2 and 4

Between now and April, though, I'm putting together a Senior recital, so I'm not going to be adding much repertoire until then, plus I have Masters auditions to prepare for, so I'll be plenty busy...

[nose]

Chopin: etudes opus 25 no. 10, 11,
Chopin: sonata no.3 bm,
Scriabin: etude c#m opus 42 no.5,
Bach: p/fs in c#m, bm, from bk 1,
Macmillan: piano sonata.

[Chrysalis]

Debussy - Reverie
E.Satie - Gnossiene 5 (very easy)
Rubinstein - Melody in F
Grieg - Hochzeitstag auf troldhaugen

[yamaha]

C P E Bach Solfeggietto
Scarlatti Sonata in  C  (K159?)
Scott Joplin Maple Leaf Rag
Field Nocturne No 9  Beautiful 
Beethoven Moonlight Sonata 3rd movement 

[kaff]

Bach Italian Concerto
Chopin Etude Op.10 No.3
Grieg Notturno Op. 54 No. 4

All very different, all wonderful.  All just because they're great and I want to play them. I'm a grown up with two kids and a job, so that's all I have time for.

Kathryn

[dlu]

rach prelude c# minor op 3 no 2
scarlatti piano sonata k 27?
bach partita no. 6 bwv830 courante

I'm learning that Scarlatti sonata (Bminor is it?). You MUST hear Wanda Landowska play it! Pletnev also!
DLu

[Vivers]

Otto Joachim: L'eclosion (Crazy modern Canadian stuff. Impossible to memorize, hard to play without laughing at strange moments or getting strange looks from friends.)

Bach: Partita 5 (complete)

Schumann: Faschingsschwank aus Wien (Intermezzo)

Haydn: Sonata #46 (A-flat major)

I could do without the Joachim. I've never heard a recording of it (because there's probably only one in existence), so I never know if I'm missing something very important. Never been a big fan of 12-tone, but it's alright if I'm in a good mood.

[musicg18]

Bach: Double Concerto for Two Violins
         Two-Part Invention IV
Rachmaninoff: Prelude in c#minor
Beethoven: Sonata Op 2 No 2
Vivaldi: Gloria
Muczynski (spelling?): Prelude No 1
Tchaikovsky: March from the Nutcracker Suite.

(is that enough?)

[hodi]

mozart sonata in a minor k310 and on sww  op.67 no.2 (mendelssohn)
i actually finished it working on it a bit..

[Stolzing]

Bach: Double Concerto for Two Violins

Is there sheet music for this for solo piano?

[Allegroconfuoco]

Bach:            P&F No. 2 in C minor, WTC I
Beethoven:    Sonata No. 27 in E minor, Op. 90
Chopin:         Scherzo No. 2 in Bb minor, Op. 31
                   Etude Op. 25 No. 12, aka 'Ocean Etude'

...and a few smaller pieces

Do you think it's ok to have4 - 5 pieces your're working on or is it too much?
I mean 4 -5 pieces without the "funpieces" like a Bach prelude. How long do you work for one piece a day?

It is possible to learn a lot more pieces in a short period of time by using the '7 x 20 method'. For those who don't know the approach Berhard introduced to this forum, here are some really useful links:

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,3039.0.html
Basics of Bernhard's approach

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,5767.msg56133.html#msg56133
Collection of useful links, includes some links to topics concerning Bernhard's method

It should be possible to learn up to 10 (or even more) pieces at the same time by using this method. Try it out! It works!

Allegro

[offenbach]

Learning:
Gottschalks "Bamboula"
Horowitz transcription of "Stars and Stripes"
Liszt HR #9
Alkan Symphony

Focused more on first 2 at the moment.

O

[Bacfokievrahms]

Schubert: Erlking or as it is commonly called, Arlking

[galonia]

Bach: P&F Book II A flat
Bach: Italian Concerto
Haydn: Sonata Hob XVI:50 in C major
Chopin: Waltz op 18 in E flat
Lizst: one of the Paganini studies
Beethoven: Piano concerto No. 2

[beethovenfan]

Of cause Bach pieces are no "fun pieces", sorry.
But it's very difficult to find the right words in a foreign language.
I mean, Bach preludes like "12 little Preludes" are not difficult to play, so I just play them for fun, but in fact I'm working on other pieces from Debussy, Tschaikowsky etc.

[TheHammer]

Bach: P&F in c Minor (first WTC, just finger training )
Mozart: Fantasy in c Minor KV. 475
Schubert: "Wanderer"-Fantasy
Beethoven: 18th Sonata op. 31/3
(slowly approaching:) Beethoven: 1st Piano Concerto (ah the third mov. amazing )

[pianiststrongbad]

Bach Toccata in G major
Beethoven Opus 7
Liszt Transcendental Etude no. 10
Rachmaninoff Prelude Op. 23 no. 7
Prokofiev Diabolic Suggestion
When I have free time: Sightread Bach, work on Chopin Etudes, and work on the second concerto by Rachmaninoff

[Tash]

chopin: etudes op10 no1,2 (7 & 9 to be started soon)
            berceuse op57
            waltz in a flat op64 no3
Beethoven: playing with sonatas op14 no1 and op27 no1, not sure which one i'll end up keeping
debussy: passepied
bach: prelude from the english suite in g minor

[Bacfokievrahms]

ok finished learning the fingering of erlking, now learning to sing along with it.

[MarkAllison]

    * Ludovico Einaudi - Le Onde
    * Mozart - Rondo alla Turca from Sonata No. 11 in A Maj. K331
    * Mozart - Sonata 16 in C Maj. K545
    * Bach - Prelude No3 from Twelve little preludes

[shasta]

In progress:
Albeniz's Suite Espanola
Volodos piano transcription of the Rach Cello sonata
Mompou's Variations on a Theme of Chopin
Saint-Saens Concerto No.5 ("Egyptian")

Finishing:
Rach's Corelli Variations
Scriabin's Nocturne for the Left Hand
Beethoven's "Rage over a Lost Penny"

[jacobspauly]

Seems like I'm always polishing pieces already learned.

Now learning:
Manuel Ponce Fugue from Prelude and Fugue on a Theme by Handel
Albeniz Sevilla from Suite Espanola
Started on Rachmaninoff g minor etude, OP.33 and
                  Bach F-sharp Major P&F

[steve]

Chopin: etudes opus 25 no. 10, 11,
Chopin: sonata no.3 bm,
Scriabin: etude c#m opus 42 no.5,
Bach: p/fs in c#m, bm, from bk 1,
Macmillan: piano sonata.

Lucky [or anyone else, for that matter],

I haven't heard the MacMillan sonata.  What's it like in terms of style/difficulty?

Cheers

Stephen

[Raagshinnah]

Moszkowski - Etudes for the left hand Op.92 - No.4
Beethoven - Sonatina in F Major (I-II)
Clementi - Sonatina in G Major Op. 36, no.5 III: Rondo
Robert Schumann - A Little Romance (op.68 no. 19)
Bach - Two-part invention no.4

I'm almost done with the bach/beethoven/clementi, so here's what will probably be replacing these pieces somewhere around next week:
Bach - Invention No.8
Kuhlau - Sonatina in C Major
Grieg - Elfin Dance
some random twentieth-century repertoire, we haven't really looked into which yet

The Moszkowski etude is a bit above my level but it's making my left hand work out a bit 

[lostinidlewonder]

I just finished off a Beethoven run, did the Sonata Op81a and revised the Pathetique, as well as finaly memorised the Debussy's Children's Corner Suite which I've been teaching for ages but never learnt myself.

Next few weeks on my plate is

Debussy:
Preludes:Feux d'artifice, Les collines d'Anacapri and General Lavine excentric. I learnt these a few years back but i have to sharpen them up for coming up pefromance. I really like how playful these are with sound, and not too weird as some of the preludes can be.

Scriabin: Going through a Scriabin phase again at the moment. Revising/Memorising a few of this preludes and etudes.

24 Preludes (Op. 11) 1,5,10,14
12 Etudes (Op.8 ) 1,2,5,6,7,9
Etudes (Op.42) 4,5,6,7,8

[thierry13]

Currently i'm reading the 36 etudes of liszt ( just bought the busoni edition ). I plan on learning some of them soon 

And i'm learning rach's C-sharp prelude too.... WOW, allmost everybody is learning it  It's REALLY OVERPLAYED  But it's great !

[mikeyg]

I just finished up:
      Chopin Nocturne Op 37 No 1
      Chopin Posthumus Waltz in E Major (which  I really Hate)
      Bach Invention #4
      Mozart Sonata K 332

Going to start:
      Mozart Sonata K 311
      And something else (any recommendations?)

[thierry13]

To mikeyg: Maybe Chopin's Posthumous Nocturne ? (no.20 in C-sharp minor)
It's beautiful ! I made cry some people with it you know 

[mikeyg]

Although that Nocturne is very nice, I am at a stage in piano playing where i am trying to improve my abilities as opposed to building a repertoire, and aside from the scales in the right hand, the piece isn't that challenging.  But thank you for the recommendation. 

[thierry13]

If you're trying to get abilities, try an etude. Seeing what you play a Liszt one would be too much but maybe the easier chopin one. Look at them and listen to them. If you want all the cortot recordings of them, here's a link:
https://www.geocities.com/alfredcortot/etudes.htm
For the sheet music :
https://www.sheetmusicarchive.net/single_listing.cfm?composer_id=4
https://muslib.mmv.ru/piano_chopipn_eng.htm

Look at the ones who look the easier to you!

[vivacegirl]

Chopin: Nocturne in Dflat major Op. 27, no. 2 -i love this song 
Beethoven: Moonlight Sonata, second movement currently
Rimsky-Korsokov:flight of the Bumblebee

[steinwayguy]

Chopin- Etudes Op. 25 No. 5, 10, 12
Chopin- 4th Ballade
Beethoven- Opus 7
Mozart- K.332
Liszt- Mephisto Waltz
Bach- Prelude and Fugue in d-sharp minor from Book II of the WTC
Scriabin- Sonata No. 4
Bartok- Piano Concerto No. 3

Yeah, that's a lot of pieces at once. I don't recommend it.

[DarkWind]

Chopin- Etudes, Op. 10, No. 4, Op. 25, No. 9
Liszt- Tarantella
Chopin- 3rd Ballade
Bach: French Suite No. 5

The topmost one is the piece I'm working the hardest on. The least I'm working on is at the bottom.

[musik_man]

Chopin-Nocturne in E minor Op72.1,  This one is pretty much down, just need to smooth out the little runs a bit.

Mozart-Twinkle Twinkle Variations,  I can play through all the variations except the last one.  I only have about half of them memorized though, and the left hand trill one still trips me up sometimes.

Granados-Spanish Dance 5 'Andaluza', I hate that d*mn jump onto the B-major chord.  It's so hard to land, and it completely ruins the piece if I don't get it perfect.

Schubert/Liszt-Auf dem Wasser zu Singen,  This is one of the most beautiful pieces for piano in my opinion, but's it's fairly difficult for someone of my skill.  I just started a few days ago, and I'm thinking that this'll take me a couple months to get down.


Potential Canidates for future pieces---

Schumann-Aufschwung  I've learned the first couple pages of this piece, but then dropped it.  I can't remember why though.   I really love the theme that the LH picks up while the RH does the 16th note runs.

Chopin-Mazurka in A minor Op17.4  Half my repertoire is Chopin.  I seriously have an addiction.   meh, it's just that all the other composer's piano pieces that I enjoy are too technically difficult.  Chopin writes great simple music.

Finishing:
Rach's Corelli Variations
Scriabin's Nocturne for the Left Hand
Beethoven's "Rage over a Lost Penny"

How hard did you find that one to be?  I want to learn a LH piece sometime, and that Nocturne looks like a good possiblity

[paris]

Hy!

-beethoven- op.7
-brahms intermezzi- op.117 1&3
-rachmaninoff etude-op.33 n.7
-lang-study on third
-chopin-etude op.10 n.1,9

[pseudopianist]

Polishing up my Fantasie Impromptu to "perfection" and the same goes with Liszt first TE etude. I love those piece, they must be perfect, even tho I finished the Liszt piece a month ago.

I'm currently learning

Liszt - Eroica TE etude No7 (I LOVE this etude and hopefully I will be able to play it)
Bach - Gigue French Suite No 5

[ahmedito]

Well... dont know if this information is useful to anyone, but I guess its always tempting to tell others what you are playing:

- Brahms variations op. 21 n1 and 2
- Bach Partita in G major
- Liszt second Ballade
- Mozart concerto number 9 in Eb major

[Chrysalis]

schumann - arabesque
debussy - La valse romantique

[zalmanesd]

Rach 2 (not 3)
Pictures at an Exhibition (not whole thing)

[mikeyg]

I've just decided on the second piece to work on at the moment.  The BrahmsStudy for the left hand alone on a theme of Bach's Chaconne, BWV 1004.  Any one else play this piece?

[etudes]

I've just decided on the second piece to work on at the moment.  The BrahmsStudy for the left hand alone on a theme of Bach's Chaconne, BWV 1004.  Any one else play this piece?

i prefer busoni more than brahms
i work with bach Dminor WtC II
Beethoven Op.31no.3
Liszt la campanella
Balakirev Islamey
Chopin 2nd Ballade
plan to learn all paganini this year