A year and a half ago, before taking piano lessons, I didn't know who Grieg was. I knew "Morning Mood," but I didn't know it had been composed by this wonderful composer. Then I was introduced to the "Lyric Pieces" and a wonderful world opened up before me.
They are all beautiful; I haven't studied them all, but I love two of them in particular. Of course, I must have destroyed them, but at least I experienced so many emotions studying them. And I want to propose them to you, friends.
Thank you for this performance. Perhaps the tempo is a bit hesitant. The piece, in my opinion, should be more fluid. Now, I don't know if it depends on the sound recording, but I sense little to no variation in touch. The extreme cantabile part must be full. The central part lighter. The change in the bass on the last line is interesting. Overall, the piece is "felt"... perhaps a bit too little "liquid". It should, again in my opinion, appear more "simple". What do you think? Anyway, well done, and well done for emphasizing the importance of these masterpieces, so different from one another!!
Thank you, Paolo, for having the patience to listen carefully to the pieces.
Now I wanted to ask something of you, Simone, or anyone else who has expertise.
Do you think, listening to what I have proposed, that after 18 months of lessons, playing on average an hour a day, and with just under 2 years of study undertaken 34 years ago (1978-80), I am:
1) Behind schedule
2) At standard levels
3) Quite advanced
I need this to understand if I am wasting my time (though I have never had this feeling) or if something decent will come out if I keep working hard.
I don't think I am able to answer this question, just like the others. Everyone has their own timing... However, I take the responsibility of stating that it doesn't seem to me at all that you are falling behind; it is evident that you haven't listened to certain repertoires, and we need to see what your goal is; it doesn't seem to me that you are wasting your time and you are already presenting quite decent pieces. The only thing I observe is that you record one or two pieces a day. Perhaps you should spend a little more time on them, not much, to perfect them. To understand well, however, now I must ask you a question... What are you aiming for? What do you want to do with the piano? Do you want to settle for stopping at a dignified 5th-year level, or would you like to play more complex pieces as well?
I don't think I am able to answer this question, just like the others. Everyone has their own timing... However, I take the responsibility of stating that it doesn't seem to me at all that you are falling behind; it is evident that you haven't listened to certain realities, and we need to see what your goal is; it doesn't seem to me that you are wasting your time and you are already presenting pieces that are more than decent. The only thing I observe is that you record one / two pieces a day. Perhaps you should spend a little more time on them, not much, to perfect them. To understand well, however, now I must ask you a question... What are you aiming for? What do you want to do with the piano? Do you want to settle for stopping at a dignified 5th-year level, or would you like to play more complex pieces as well?
Dear Simone, I do not record 2 pieces a day. You got this impression because I proposed them all at once and it is my fault, but Grieg's Arietta is from April 2011, the Berceuse and Bach's Prelude are from December 2011. Only Chopin and the Two-Part Invention are from this month. It is all on YT on the channel "myhobbyispiano". I don't know exactly what I am aiming for; I certainly know that I will never be a concert pianist. The only certainty I have is why I started. I wanted to be able to interpret a score correctly and follow my love for music that has accompanied me since I was little. I made a mistake quitting at 17, I have great regret about this. I will go on as long as life allows me, but I don't have precise objectives.
I want to thank you for the passion you put into this forum and for the interest you show for the members, myself included. I hope to be able to let you listen to something better in the near future.
I wouldn't want to have been misunderstood. I imagined that you don't do 2 pieces a day, but I believe that before moving on to another piece, it is advisable to perfect the one being worked on as much as possible, especially if it is intended for a recording that, however homemade it may be, is then put on a video search engine (YouTube) to which users from all over the world connect. My reflection was more about this aspect. It is also true that you cannot spend a year on the same piece, but let's try to find a middle ground. I perfectly understand your desire to set things up and see them finished; I had it and I still have it today. However, I try to control myself, playing and making public only that which I no longer have doubts about, whether they be at an executive level or a stylistic level. In life, there are few certainties, but unfortunately in music, one must take a position. Playing everything in a short time while neglecting important passages, care for style, technical aspects, or playing a little less while taking all the aforementioned things into account?
I wouldn't want to have been misunderstood. I imagined that you don't do 2 pieces a day, but I believe that before moving on to another piece, it is advisable to perfect the one being worked on as much as possible, especially if it is intended for a recording that, however homemade it may be, is then put on a video search engine (YouTube) to which users from all over the world connect. My reflection was more about this aspect. It is also true that you cannot spend a year on the same piece, but let's try to find a middle ground. I perfectly understand your desire to set things up and see them finished; I had it and I still have it today. However, I try to control myself, playing and making public only that which I no longer have doubts about, whether they be at an executive level or a stylistic level. In life, there are few certainties, but unfortunately in music, one must take a position. Playing everything in a short time while neglecting important passages, care for style, technical aspects, or playing a little less while taking all the aforementioned things into account?
Nothing could be more right; I will try to curb my impatience and wait for the best moment to make a video. You know, the problem is that my timing is so slow, work takes up so much of my time, and I think that for no other passion would I get up early in the morning, especially in a harsh winter like the one that just passed. Unfortunately, I am always "rushed" with my things. Bye Simone, after your advice you won't see another one of my videos anytime soon 😃. Thank you.
Simone says something precious. I use a metaphor: If we put water on the fire and extinguish it before it boils, we will have to relight it to make it boil, with a considerable expenditure of energy. Making the water boil means deepening after having learned. Now, it is true that in the field we must recognize that there are pianists who have a great performance output. See Askenazy or Baremboim. Michelangeli had a rather narrow repertoire. It is worth producing much; it is worth deepening much. One must decide. One must also see what is most congenial to us. There are pianists who learn a piece in a week. Some take months or more.
So I really appreciate that you know how to record pieces at a continuous rate; of course, making the "water boil" is important, but it takes time and involves having to choose a narrower output. Rubinstein knew Chopin's Mazurkas so well that he recorded them at the RCA on Via Tiburtina from 3 in the afternoon until 11 at night... he had no more time, the next day he had a flight to London where he had to play a concert... Incredible!!!!!
