Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum Mary Had a Little @#$!!

Gabytu,

I bought the book "How to play piano despite years of lessons" too. I actually bought it before I bought a piano. I have not really started it yet. Which parts do you like best?

Matt H -- did your daughter play it (Mary had a...) with full accompaniment? -- then I would be really impressed

I failed the Mary test -- took me about 20 minutes to figure it out -- and that was just the melody line Am I beyond all hope? Rhetoric question -- I don't want to hear the answer

Here's a challenge you Piano Magic players -- what can you do with that theme? If it was good enough for Mozart to do variations on "Twinkle Twinkle" .....

Wade, I like the way the authors Cannel and Marx debunk a lot of myths about piano playing.

I already understood theory, and my way around the keyboard, but picking out a melody was something else again.

Therefore, for me the most helpful part was Chapter 35, page178 where they tell you which note of the chord the melody starts on (the root, the 3rd, or the 5th). Once I understood that I was able to play a chord, and from it, determine which note was the beginning note of the melody. After that everything fell into place.

Gaby Tu

Hello bruceee

20 minutes thats good for a first try , it would have taken me hours when I first started

hmmm what would I do? good question...


First of all I'd have a little play around with it like this:-

http://www.box.net/shared/92i466mpo1


and then I'd try something like this:-

http://www.box.net/shared/8ih4216ta5


How's that?


Tommorrow it would be different...but, hey its a fun tune aint it

maybe not Mozart?...however, I had a 10 minute pianomagical blast with it...

Q. When is a kiddie tune not a kiddie tune?
A. When its grown up


Lee

OUCH!!

OUCH!!
I'm curious, can you notate it as easily?

I have that book by Cannell and Marx. I better dig it out. The hardest part for me was figuring out which note to start on.

bruceee, My daughter just played the melody. But she does sometimes play a I-V accompianment with songs she learns by ear. She does this with "I'm a Little Teapot."

Seaside made me do it:

http://www.box.net/shared/fticazurso

Excuse the sloppy recording and the lousy piano sound, but I was in a hurry.

Chords are: C A7 (or C#dim, which is basically the same thing) Dm G, repeated throughout.

Yes, in the key of C:

e d c d e e e r d d d r e g g r e d c d e e e e d d e d c off the top of my head where "r" == rest.

Change e to e flat if you want to make Mary sad.

Wow. Seaside's rendition is fantastic. Loved it. Got me so inspired I rushed to the piano to try my hand at it.

I played around a bit with the tune, and had the most fun playing it in c minor. (just flatted all the e's. as moo goo suggested.) My playing is very elementary so far, but at least I was able to pick out the melody all way through and embellish it with some full chords, arpeggios etc. What fun. I think my ear is beginning to get fine tuned and eventually will be able to direct my fingers to the correct notes, without the fumbling in between.

This has opened a whole new area of exploration for me. Bless Mary and her little lamb. She is leading me to new heights of musical prowess.

From now on, I am going to incorporate some playing by ear into my regular practice sessions.
Gaby Tu

Well, here's something. Not great, lots of brain freezes, but I was really stretching (for me) trying to play this with a few key changes. I went through the first time in C, then in Eb, then in F, then repeated the last bit in Gb and G ending the song in G.

Mary had a little lamb with a few key changes

quote:
-------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by bruceee:
Here's a challenge you Piano Magic players -- what can you do with that theme? If it was good enough for Mozart to do variations on "Twinkle Twinkle" .....
-------------------------------------------------

Hello bruceee,

I've been with Pianomagic since Jan '06. I tried to teach myself piano for a year and a half, before that. I'm 45 years old. And have lurked here alot. And, this is my attempt to show you what direction I would go with Mary had a little "something" :-).

http://www.box.net/shared/kukfmxusl0

I don't know about variations to much,, but it was fun recording it!
YeCats

YeCats. That was great. this thread is wonderful. I don't know when I have had such fun at the piano, as well as listening to what others have done with this ditty. Mary's little lamb really is bringing out the creative spirit in a lot of us.

And DeepElm, did I notice some blues notes in there? Whatever it was, it sounded great.

Gaby tu

Wow!! you guys are all brilliant -- at least that's the way it seems to someone who can't play like that.

Thank you all for sharing.

Mahlzeit: Glad I made you do it

DeepElem: I have decided I want to be you

Yecats: Sounding good, nice to hear you play its been a while

Gabytu: yes "fun"!...who'd a thunk it huh?

brucee: Nah ..we just have a brilliant teacher


regards


Lee

Hi All -

Here's one more .... "The Ballad of Mary's Lamb" ...

http://www.box.net/shared/qhrv1y77gv

Balladeer (who else would play such a thing!)

Balladeer,

I don't think I've ever heard a finer pure version.

Thanks,
YeCats

PS: Oh,, thanks Gaby tu, brucee, and SeaSide for the nice words!

I don't believe that I'm adding this after hearing Balladeer, and Lee, and Matt, and YeCats, etc... but hey, Seaside asked....

This is pretty raw - I've only been at this about 5 months. I only put 1/2 hour into it and there are many clunkers and a few pauses where I was thinking too much so watch your ears.

Mary Had A Little Lamb

Sorry it's late,
Troy

Hey Troy -

You aren't giving yourself enough credit, buddy! Nice experimentation throughout. At 5 months I couldn't have come close to what you have done here

Remember though, it's not a race or contest. Just keep seeking your own "voice" by thinking like the music.

Balladeer

Troy, that was really very very nice. I love the way you brought in different harmonies. I have been playing the piano longer than 5 months, and my version is no where as nice as yours.

Who would have thought that Mary's little lamb would unleash such creativity.

As an added bonus, when I had trouble falling asleep last night (too many of Starbuck's lattes, which they heavily load with caffine),instead of counting sheep, I began to mull over in my mind different versions of Mary had--a you know what.--playing it with an alberti bass, thirds, 6ths, octaves, etc. What fun.
Gaby Tu