Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum Alfred's Basic and ALL in One Adult Piano Course Book #1

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Dave, have you checked out this thread?

http://www.pianoworld.com/ubb/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?/topic/32/7708.html

Pete the author of a book is helping many of us out using his book which works off of the Fake book principal. In the thread is some free links to give you an idea what its all about. Print out the stuff on his wonderful "Hola" piece.

Here is an early version of his Hola piece...:

http://www.box.net/shared/tlpmk7g4zh

When my Visa card recycles I'm getting his book. I'm using it as some fun side work to my Alfred and classical studies.

Mark...

I am following that thread closely, and have made a couple of posts in the thread. I need to progress a little more into the Alfred's courses before I tackle that, it is a direction I do wish to go in and will be investing in his book in the future.
I did pick up one book called Rock 'n' Roll piano last week with a CD (why am I such a compulsive buyer?). It didn't take long for me to realise that it is one for the future. My enthusiasm has to be tempered back with reality sometimes but I do have goals and heading there at my own pace.

Just keep working the program and I'm sure you will meet your goals.

I'm also keep buying sheet music that has to wait for me to catch up to...

Can anyone here offer some hints about playing legato with repeated notes?

I am currently working on "Rainbow Connection" out of Alfred's Greatest Hits Level 1 book. In the opening phrase after the intro, there is a repeated eighth note with finger 5 of the right hand -- the weakest one.

At slower tempos, I can almost make it sound smooth. But once I pick up the tempo, things really start to break down: the first note of the repetition sounds more like staccato because I'm in such a rush to release for the next strike. However, if I linger on that first note, either I am late with the next one, or I get insufficient lift and the next note sounds weak or not at all.

How is one supposed to achieve smooth legato of repeated notes without relying on the pedal? Is this just a finger-conditioning issue?

Hello everyone!

My name is Jordan, and I just got accepted as a member into the community. I just turned 19 years old this month and got a new keyboard (Yamaha YPG-225). It's really pretty nice and I have been practicing like nobody's business anyways having only one year of lessons in my life (and can't pay for lessons now), I have managed to master every page up to 96 so far (currently learning "Rock It Away!") I have been spending the first part of my practicing time on Hanon's exercises from the 60 exercise book and then normally I go to the AIO book and work on mastering each page by playing the songs perfectly with the provided CD. I am also currently working on "The Rainbow Connection" from the Greatest Hits Book which is quite difficult for me, but I am slowly getting it.

Anyways, now that I gave everyone a lot to think about lol... I just would like to ask for any advice, comments, or questions to maybe help out with my piano studies.

Thanks so much! Jordan (Haftaway)

It sounds like you are doing great. I would just keep it up.

My only suggestion would to start scales and cords with their inversions.

Welcome!

Mark

Thanks Mark..., Undone and Dave123!

You all are too nice. I truly appreciate it, and glad that I can contribute.

Much success to you all as well.

Key Notes

Hi Silky,

Thanks for the note and update. Even if you can't have your way with those "Yummy" keyboards, I hope that at least the weather has been cooperating for you over there as well as another successful and safe trip.

We've been blessed with some more rain recently here, so I took these indoors opportunities to start work on my Alfred book 2.

Cheers,

Key Notes

HIya Keynotes,

How is Alfreds 2 coming along???? And yes that rain was quite a welcome sight. Did you get the sudden downpours down there that we got up here on thursday??? Oh and we got severe storm warnings here too!!!! But today was nice and sunny.

Update on me:
I just got done working on "Cafe Vienna", and im not too excited about "Lullaby" so I have the gist of it and im going to move on. I got "Rock it away" in one day so im now on to a little bit of theory for the next few pages.
I am also working on two other pieces that my teacher and I chose together. One is a duet and the other is "Piano Concerto No.1". Well, thats where im at.....


I hope everyone had a wonderfull weekend.

KaylaX

I am now ironing out cockles and mussels and starting to look at the blues section. I noticed that 2 of the pieces are taken from the Alfred's jazz/rock course (#3134) has any one any insight to this course and what it is like? I saw a table of contents on one site but not to familiar with allot of the tunes listed.

Haftaway,
So how do you like that "Greatest hits"book??? I have it and I tried it and I gave up on it. It was way to frustrating for me. I can play "Love me tender", "Edelweis", "My heart will go on", "Puff the magic dragon", and thats where I stopped. I tried "Its a small world" but then gave up towards the end of the piece. Im glad to know that im not the only one that is challenged by that book. Maybe i'll try the book out again in a few weeks. I have a new teacher now so maybe she will be more helpfull than the last one. Keep up the good work and dont give up like I did!!!!!

Angelojf,
How is "Cafe Vienna" treating you????

KaylaX

KaylaX, I've sort of put the "Greatest Hits" book aside for now also. The supplemental books are much harder than the lesson book. I will try again later. I'm working on "Love Makes the World Go Round" from the Pop Songbook. It's the third song. First one was Over the Rainbow which was easy. The second was You are My Sunshine, which I had to work at a little. I knew both of these books were a little tough, because my friend has them, and I would look at them from time to time and decide I wasn't ready for them yet. But I put them on my Christmas list, and my son bought me Greatest Hits and Pop Songbook. It's okay. I'm not letting myself get frustrated. There are lots of great songs and I will grow into it.

Well, I have started in on BTMD and now I understand what everybody has been talking about. What is crazy is that each hand is easy to do separately but try to put them together....

I am so discouraged I am dreading practice today.
Over the weekend a good friend who has been playing a long time, sat down and just played it first time through! Made me feel worse.

dukeofhesse, don't dread it, consider it a challenge. You'll get it.

I actually made a copy of it and drew dividers between every beat in every measure. That way I knew exactly when I had to hit one note, and when I had to hit two, HT. I practiced it that way, a measure at a time until I had the whole thing. Then when I could play it correctly from the clean sheet, I threw the "cheat sheet" away. BTMD is the only song I've had to do that for so far. It was the only way I could make sense of it.

Just find whatever way you can break it down so it works for you. And take it slow. You'll be telling us that you nailed it any day now. :-)

mom3gram, thanks for the kind encouragement. My wife said she has never heard so many swear words in such a short period of time as when I'm trying to play BTMD!.I guess what concerns me isn't so much conquering BTMD as what it may say about my ability to play other songs. Alfred's level one is really basic, if I'm having trouble here, what does that suggest for advancing? Have you, and any other folks had any thoughts about that?

Take heart in the fact that nearly everyone here struggled with BTMD and I think that everyone who has tried has mastered it eventually, it took me ages but I promise you it will suddenly click.

My advice is to play it slowly, really slowly, absurdly slowly! Slow enough that you have time to think about each movement/note. Keep as strict a time as you can (use a metronome if possible) a stick with it. Even at a rediculously slow pace it may take a while before you can play is smoothly but it will come, then you can start to build up the speed a bit.

Dukeofhesse. Don't worry about your ability. It will come. The challanges you are facing with BTMD is one we have all gone through. To me BTMD was a real breakthrough. Try slowing the tempo down, very very slow. It will give you time to think about each hand. It will get easier as you practice.

KalyaX.. I have been working on "Its a Small World" from the greatest hits. I am thinking of submitting it as my recital piece this Feb. Its alot of fun. But my wife won't let me whistle it as I do with alot of the songs I am working on.

dukeofhesse:

I had trouble with BTMD too. I'm not too far more advanced than you in the book, as I am now on "Cafe Vienna" (which is taking time for me to learn too!).

You wrote:
I guess what concerns me isn't so much conquering BTMD as what it may say about my ability to play other songs. Alfred's level one is really basic, if I'm having trouble here, what does that suggest for advancing? Have you, and any other folks had any thoughts about that?

Rememeber, our job as students is to turn off the part of our mind that is self-critical. Our job is to just do the work. Translation: Just keep practicing, with no self-criticisms about ability. Just do the work, and persevere. Our job is to hang in there and persevere, and keep producing minutes of practice time. Our job is not to put ourselves down. This is all in a book called "The War of Art." If we take care of the quantity, the quality will take care of itself.

If we take care of the quantity (minutes of practice time), while shutting off the self-critical mind, the quality (BTMD)will take care of itself...

Good luck!

BazC, WJ3,Angelojf,
Thanks much for the suggestions and words of encouragement. Fortified with that, I will boldly approach my old Lester with a positive attitude later on. Vodka might also help. I'll keep y'all posted on my progress or lack thereof.