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Topic: Tchaik Concerto 1  (Read 1285 times)

Offline goethefan69420

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Tchaik Concerto 1
on: September 12, 2022, 06:23:25 PM
What is a reasonable amount of time someone should be able to prepare this piece by? Months? Years?

I tried practicing some sections today, and octave is one of my strong technique, and it doesn't really feel that challenging. The issue for me is just reading the chords quickly, it takes me a while, I usually just play it in octave first, then fill in the middle lines.

The intro chords technique wise are easy, but, just reading them takes forever and to be fair I should probably work more on theory before I even tackle this, but, just the technique has not been rough at all.

I don't think I am ready to learn the first movement yet, but, technique wise what I have been practicing it hasn't been rough much at all (technique wise), and if I seriously practiced it, I can tell it would become quite easy. There is obviously some tricky passages, like the descending broken notes or whatever, and I haven't tried those, and I know it would be something I'd have to practice a lot, but, for most of the melodies that are hands together in octaves, I can play them pretty quick in a nice way. I like to raise my right hand and let my left hand just do a drop down techique and stay cloes to the keys, and usually use Finger 4/5 on the strong beat of octaves in both hands, to add musicality to it..

Does anyone know some ways where I can read this piece faster, would it be a good idea to write it down on paper note for note and name all the chords or something, because, I would like to learn it eventually.

I would say my current level is about RCM 7-8, there is some pieces I'm learning that are on that grade 8 level, and they pretty fun and should be done soon. Bach Invention B flat, (I've also worked through a lot of the inventions, but, am nearly done with B flat one), Mozart k545 1st movement I started, and I've worked on it for 4 days or so, and I'm just starting to work on the last pages of it, and for romantic I will probably play some chopin waltz/mazurka, and for list D section I can probably learn some Scriabin prelude (the level 8 one is G minor, but, I may just learn A minor, or C major, which I like better)....

I do dabble in more challenging works like Chopin etudes, I can play the first few measures of LH of revolutionary, while accenting first beat of each set of 4 notes and not struggling too much technique wise after some time, but, I only do it a few times a day as warmup.

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Offline nightwindsonata

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Re: Tchaik Concerto 1
Reply #1 on: September 15, 2022, 06:32:28 AM
I will say that I never played this piece through beyond reading here and there.

However ... a good friend of mine prepared it for a competition last year and I got to hear all my teacher's comments on his playing, so here's my take:

For the purpose of screwing around, the first movement of Tchaikovsky is quite fun, and there are many quasi-virtuosic passages that are not that hard to fake or even pull off moderately well. The real challenge comes when you try to tie the whole thing together--memorizing it, preparing it with an accompanist, playing it over and over again to get it ready for a performance.

That's when it becomes impossibly hard. The piece is absolutely huge, and one has to maintain the huge breadth of phrasing throughout, maintaining steady tempos, and very clear articulation, not to mention playing the technical passages absolutely effortlessly. This concerto is a warhorse--it is extremely well-known, and to be taken it seriously you must play it in a fast tempo with all the energy that Tchaikovsky demands, which includes pounding out the treacherous octave passages with the force to match an entire orchestra (while somehow maintaining a brilliant tone and intelligent voicing). I would recommend playing (or at least checking out) Liszt's Eroica Etude to get a feel for how it's going to be--the length of that octave passage in the Etude is not dissimilar from those in the Tchaikovsky. I will add, as a caveat, that the third movement is even more difficult and technical, and there are fewer places to hide.

I would estimate a year for myself to prepare this to a high concert level, based on my skill level and experience as a first-year master's student (for context: I have played four Chopin Etudes and am working on three more right now). For you, it would probably take 2-3 years of slow, section-by-section practice, in which you have no true idea of the scope of the piece, and it only begins to take shape in your mind after many, many hours and run-throughs.
1st-year Master's Program:
- Ravel Piano Concerto
- Liszt Ricordanza
- Liszt 3 Liebestraums
- Liszt 3 Sonnets

- Rhapsody in Blue
- Dante Sonata
- Schubert Sonata D.780
- Mozart Piano Quartet in Gm

Offline goethefan69420

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Re: Tchaik Concerto 1
Reply #2 on: September 22, 2022, 04:38:20 AM
I will say that I never played this piece through beyond reading here and there.

However ... a good friend of mine prepared it for a competition last year and I got to hear all my teacher's comments on his playing, so here's my take:

For the purpose of screwing around, the first movement of Tchaikovsky is quite fun, and there are many quasi-virtuosic passages that are not that hard to fake or even pull off moderately well. The real challenge comes when you try to tie the whole thing together--memorizing it, preparing it with an accompanist, playing it over and over again to get it ready for a performance.

That's when it becomes impossibly hard. The piece is absolutely huge, and one has to maintain the huge breadth of phrasing throughout, maintaining steady tempos, and very clear articulation, not to mention playing the technical passages absolutely effortlessly. This concerto is a warhorse--it is extremely well-known, and to be taken it seriously you must play it in a fast tempo with all the energy that Tchaikovsky demands, which includes pounding out the treacherous octave passages with the force to match an entire orchestra (while somehow maintaining a brilliant tone and intelligent voicing). I would recommend playing (or at least checking out) Liszt's Eroica Etude to get a feel for how it's going to be--the length of that octave passage in the Etude is not dissimilar from those in the Tchaikovsky. I will add, as a caveat, that the third movement is even more difficult and technical, and there are fewer places to hide.

I would estimate a year for myself to prepare this to a high concert level, based on my skill level and experience as a first-year master's student (for context: I have played four Chopin Etudes and am working on three more right now). For you, it would probably take 2-3 years of slow, section-by-section practice, in which you have no true idea of the scope of the piece, and it only begins to take shape in your mind after many, many hours and run-throughs.

Thank you for your answer.

I think I will work more on my foundation before I tackle this piece, I have listened to it a lot so I do understand the scope of atleast the first movement in my head. The other two though will take more listening and more time, and I'm in no rush to play this piece, I would not want to do a disservice to it.

Once I play a lot more czerny, chopin etudes, bach inventions/wtc, and other stuff, I will prepare this. I'd say once I complete 5-6 chopin etudes, I should be ready to start slowly preparing it, and that will probably take me a couple years atleast frmo now.
 

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