I have taken Seaside Lee's advice and posted my debut piece 'Moon River'. Remember I started playing piano again after 35year break and had my first proper lesson on January 20th this year. I would appreciate honest comments from listeners and advice on how I can develop my style and technique. Thanks

http://www.box.net/shared/01j9mxhppx

That is very nice. And, I know from personal experience, the bass line is not easy to pull off.

For a first post this early in your return to the piano is impressive. I do not know if I could play it as nicely and I have been at it for 16 months now.

I will leave the advice-giving to those more qualified.

Nice job, indeed.

Yay Gilbert!!!

After a long break hearing anything from start to finish gives me goosebumps.

It might be elsewhere on here, but what kind of piano did you record this on?

Thanks for all comments so far, they boost my confidence. The piano is a beginners Yamaha YDP-131 which I recorded directly to the piano itself. I then transferred the sound recording to a mini-disc recorder - digitised it on the computer upstairs and thats how it sounded on the day. Nervous but I'll get there.

Gilbert,

Great job, especially for only 3 months back!

I wish more newcomers and returners would follow your example of courage and post their recordings.

The thought of posting a piece is a tremendous motivator to continue practicing, I've found.

Thanks so much, Gilbert.

Mel

Very nicely played, Gilbert! Will you be submitting it for the recital or do you have another piece in mind for that?

Very nice. Keep up the good work!

Very nice, indeed! Played very well.

I am just a self learning beginner. So I am not sure whether I have enough knowledge to comment on it. Simply, I loved it. It was melodious. I've added it to my piano recordings library.

The tempo/timing was consistent, so you've a skill that many folks struggle with. A great early piece in your repertoire. We look forward to seeing you progress with future pieces.

Nice. I started again in December after almost the same hiatus, so we are in a similar situation. And the first two pieces I started were "Moon River" and Bach's Prelude in C (WTC 1). The Moon River I play is a slightly different arrangement, but similar enough. Difference is...I haven't had the guts to post a recording yet! Nice work. I look forward to more, and I'll join you as soon as I get my H4 (soon).

It is very nice and better than I can play it. If you wanted advice, I would work on practicing while speeding up and slowing down, and then again varying between more legato and more stacato. This will give you ability to vary technique a little. My only advice would be to try to smooth out between the notes, as though you were playing this while trying to get a toddler to fall asleep. I think this is a mystical song, and should sound as though it floats over the water through morning mist as you play it.

Way to go, Gilbert!

You're doing a great job for such a short time back at the piano.

My only advice is that you continue what you are doing. I agree with Dannylux about the motivational aspect of posting your recordings. It's not easy to put your efforts "out there" for scrutiny by others, but by so doing on this forum you get good, positive feedback.

Lisztener,

Excellent job, Gilbert. Keep up the good work. Your progress for 3 months back is quite good. Come on, J Mark, post a recording for us. You know we are all quite supportive of everyone. It will help your confidence to do so, and maybe some one can come up with some helpful hints for you.

Thanks, Dennis. I will. Truly, at this point, it's just a technology issue. I really do look forward to joining in this supportive community with some real music. Thanks for the support.

Hey Gilbert,

That's not bad at all!

Are you going to submit this to the May online recital? (You should!)

Although you might want to lower the recording volume a little: near the end the sound distorts, which is a bit of a shame.

Keep up the good work!

Can I thank everyone for their comments on my first recording. I must admit that I was very nervous recording it and feel much more fluent at the piano when I'm not in record mode. However, what everyone has said is good and especially thrilled to see thats its even made its way into Vijays personal library. I'm not sure what is meant by the May recital Mahlzeit, can you explain this please. Thanks everyone!

Gilbert, for more information on the recital, look here. The more you record, the more comfortable you will become with the process. It's kind of like the first time you play in front of strangers. Not that I've done that in 25 years, but I still remember the nerves. Well, I guess the first time I played in front of strangers I was 6 years old and didn't know I was supposed to be nervous, but later on I realized my error.