Here is my contribution for this month. I tried to make something different this time.

http://www.box.net/shared/p76rsmr08q

TB

TB - Is this another original composition? Very pretty. It does create a "blue feeling".

Hi TB. Nice job on this song. Did you write it? I'm wondering how it would sound if you voiced the RH louder than the LH to emphasize the melody a little more. I went back and listened to your "Story of a Young Girl" which I like very much. Same voicing issue might apply there too. Maybe I'm just thinking about this voicing thing because that's something my teacher is emphasizing with me right now. It's a real challenge for me to voice LH and RH differently. It makes it even harder to play evenly. Did you record these on your Essex?

TB - delightful piece - not so much "blue" as nostalgic - very well played (as we've come to expect) - I admire your compositional skills greatly!

JF

Hi Everybody, here's a song I wrote a couple years ago called "sultry". I remember that the LH came to me first, and I played it over and over for a few days until the RH part "arrived". As you listen, imagine yourself on a hot summer evening relaxing with a glass of iced tea after a hard day's work.

http://www.box.net/shared/6zcz73vdus

Very nice TureBeginner! Very soothing to listen to, and not so blue, (Hey, I like that rhyme!)

Beautiful piece, and beautifully performed!

Maybe I’ll come up with another original for the December bar. You have inspired me!

Rick

Laurie has on her Christmas sweater:



The Gounod/Bach Ave Maria. You'll probably recognize the keyboard part, the Bach prelude in C from the WTC book 1. I think it's in the back of Alfred Book 3. Gounod decided that it needed a melody, so he set "Ave Maria" to it. He added a measure in the middle, repeated the first four as an intro, and changed the key. I transposed it back to C to suit the recorder.

Notice my feet tucked up under the bench? No sustain pedal on the harpsichord, or any of the instruments available to Bach. The notes stop sounding when I release the key, so I don't play it as written. Instead I hold the notes until they are plucked again or the end of the measure. Sometimes I have to release a bass note early to move my hand for the next chord. Tuck your foot up under the bench and try this on the piano.

And there are no dynamics on this particular harpsichord, so I can't play any louder or softer...

Anyway, we had fun with it - hope you like it.

Sam

TB, I thought it had a Christmasy feel to it, like some of the more subtle, subdued Christmas music. Very enjoyable.

Sam

WoW! You guys don't mess around. It's not even noon yet and already 3 great pieces in the bar!!

Can't believe it's December already!

TrueBeginner, that's another pretty composition from you! Very delicate and lilting.

Larry, nice jazzy/bluesy piece! I could see the sitting on the porch with iced tea angle, but I could also see it as a Gershwiny strolling around New York City piece, too.

Sam, I really enjoyed that duet. I'm amazed at how well the "Ave Maria" works over the Bach prelude. You make me want to learn it so I can talk force my daughter to play her flute with me on it. Give my compliments to Laurie... she confronts that Red Dot like a pro with no sign of nervousness!

Sam, very nice performance. I enjoyed very much listening. Please give my congratulations to Laurie for a fine performance as well!

Ah, True Beginner, what a lovely gift for this morning. I think I'll listen to it every morning, since December is going to be really busy this year with work, and you piece calms the waters. Beautiful.

Cathy

Larry, loved the piece! Nice use of chords and interesting harmonies. I could really hear this in an orchestra for some reason.

Thanks everyone for listening and commenting. It is my original. I haven't listened to other pieces this month yet, as I am still trying to finish listening to all the recital pieces. I am way behind.

Larry, I recorded it on my Casio Privia via line-in. Originally it came out ok (RH sounds more distinct) but then it had loud static noises when you turned up the volume, which bothered me very much. I put the file through the low pass filter (Audacity) to reduce the static noise and it modified the tone and made it like that. I tried to use equalizer to increase the higher frequency, but it did not help much. I swear it sounds better on my Essex Santa really needs to give me a Zoom H2 or H4 this year By the way, I love all your compositions and Chris' (Kalai1)

TB

Thanks Monica, if you want the Bach/Gounod Ave Maria in the key of C just send me a message. Gounod's version is in F which might be awkward on flute. I entered it into Sibelius so I can supply it in any key.

Sam

Ooh... this could well be my first foray into Bach! Let me ask my daughter what key she'd like the piece in and get back to you.

Excellent, Larry! I really like your original compositions! (The playing is excellent too!)

That is great, Sam!! You and your wife make a great duo!! I enjoyed the PM from you the other day!

Let's see, I wonder if I should record something new, or post something I already have on YT? Some of the stuff I have on YT is over a year old and I would like to think my playing has improved since then. Decisions, decisions!

Take care,

Rick

Truebeginner, Larry, and Sam: all pretty pieces. I enjoyed listening to them nice job!

Truebeginner, great work! Your composition reminded me a bit of an old song called If They Made Me King. You seem to have really good hand independence, keeping those left hand apeggios going while playing different melodies in the right hand. Well done.

Larry, excellent composition. I especially like the ending, where you took a simple line and harmonized it in an unexpected and interesting way. Also - that grace note is in just the right place! Very sultry, indeed! Well done.

Sam and Laurie, I have always felt that was one of the most moving pieces of music ever written. I remember that Duke Ellington said one of the things that drew him to music was that, when he was a kid, his mother played this piece so beautifully that it made him cry. You played it superbly! Nice teamwork.

My piece this month is Blue Trane, by John Coltrane. I am playing the piano, but the drums and bass parts are on a backing track that was provided to me.

http://www.box.net/shared/f1kvi1nk9l

Ed

Larry, I agree with Monica about your piece, it is bluesy but with all the interesting harmonic chords, it also sounds at the same time modern and urban. so I definitely get the New York city vibe

Sam, that is a very nice rendition of this piece. I think it works well with this two instruments (harpsichord with repeating chords while recorder playing the continuous melody). In this piece, your harpsichord sounds like an acoustic guitar and with the tone of the recorder, it gives a rural folksy feel.

Riddler, I don't know how you did it, but I guess it must be hard to put the drum, the bass and your playing together and synchronize them. Your pieces always sound great and like a full band.

TB

TB,

I'm on the road so can't find the time to listen to everything on the bar yet ( I can't believe it's already December!!) but I did listen to yours. You really write some very delightful tunes my friend! It does seem blue, kind of longful, to me. I'm down in NY putting up Christmas decorations for my mom and it's kind of sad as my Dad always did it and now he has passed away. Your tune would have been a perfect backdrop for how I felt out in front of the house this morning putting lights on the bushes and railings.

Wonderful composition TB. Beautifully played with delicate dynamics and feeling.

Good one larry, a very interesting composition. Like the mood of this one, just not long enough.

Larry - very nice. You are a talented writer and performer. Well done.

Riddler - I really like it when you play upbeat pieces with the band - you are the ABF King of Swing.

Sam and Laurie - Outstanding. I'm glad to see that Laurie finally got to sit down. I love the way the sun is shining on your hands - at first I thought you were wearing Micheal Jackson gloves.

My submission this month is a Piano Bar standard (I think I remember at least two other versions of this song). The introduction was performed by the Roland String Quartet but they left when I started singing - go figure.

Beautiful duet Sam. You and Laurie make a good team.

The cat likes to take advantage of the photo op huh?

Ed: "Blue Train", very well done, sounds professional just like a trio with the backing and all.

Bill, one of my favorites and one of the best renditions of "Georgia" I've heard in a while.

Good job.

This is the first time I've submitted something to the piano bar. I hope to do the recital some time also. I've been playing with my Zoom H4n recorder and just recorded Tchaikovsky's Italian Song: http://www.box.net/shared/si0n3x5ybp

That was great, Bill! You do a wonderful job with the playing and the singing on that song! That is a song I like to play, but my version is no where near as good as yours! Your version sounds more like the record!

(By the way, it ain't easy to play that well and sing too!!:-)

I enjoyed it much!

Rick

foxyw - What a delightful piece and performance. I admire the way you kept the tempo bright and lively. The Zoom is working well as the recording was very clean and crisp. Well done.

OK, this is my first time posting a recording, plus my first time using box.net, so hopefully this will work!

This is a piece I wrote several years ago called Trovador:
http://www.box.net/shared/c0bjvfsbbv

Riddler/Ed, great piece! I enjoyed listening to it.

Morodiene, I enjoyed your original improvision! It was great! Your real piano sounded great too… what kind is it?

IETDPBOTABFT (I’ve enjoyed the December Piano Bar on the Adult

Beginners Forum today!! )

Rick

Morodiene - Wow!! You can really play! I love the energy and emotion of the piece. Nice!

ps. The box.net recording sounds fine.

Thanks, I have a Petrof concert grand. I really don't have a space that odes it justice though. I should move out to the country and convert a barn into a concert hall! lol

Thanks! I was inspired by how a lot of Spanish influenced music combines major and minor modes together and tried to write in that way.

I really enjoyed your playing, foxyw. This is quite a challenging piece with that jumpy LH!

Bill - very nice! Enjoyed your singing and playing very much! Such a nice voice.

Morodiene - very nice piece! I enjoyed your playing and your piano really sounds great! I like how the piece is both peaceful and intense and has such energy.

Thank you both for your kind comments about my recording of Tchaikovsky's Italian Song. It is a piece that I am just finishing working on with my teacher. It is fun to play and has helped me with phrasing and to learn to better balance the volume in each hand.

Larry - it evoked more tuxedos-on-the-balcony with stars in the background and a tonic and lime in your hand :eyebrow raising icon here: on a sultry summer night Nice composition and playing.

Cathy

Morodiene
liked the way it got denser and denser and almost crazy then suddenly (about 2/3 in) it opens out to complete simplicity again. Thanks

TrueBeginner, I started listening and thought 'this is nice' then after a while i noticed i had beeen gazing out of the window at the beautiful garden in a dream - I think yours is very calming music. And the end was intriguing, like a little question.

Foxyw, nice tchaikovsky, and a perfect rendition i think, well I didn't hear any misses congratulations on nailing it.

Thats all i've time and brain for now, except that sam's (harpsichord, yay!) bach gounod is going to play for me as I make a pot of tea ready for some practice, thanks in advance sam

Sam, yours and Laurie's duets are fast becoming some of my favorite music here. This was great - I love your harpsichord

Cathy

Hi everybody,

What is the idea behind the 'Piano Bar'? do you send in your performances and recordings by month? What is the difference between the piano bar and member recordings forum?

It is good to hear everybody here is enjoying the music!

www.myspace.com/jismusic2

Larry - enjoyed "Sultry", which can be either a hot summer evening or a hot summer evening dress Ice tea would be just fine - or maybe an adult beverage of the Southern kind...

JF

Sam and Laurie, nice job! Brought back memories of my wedding back in '78 when my father in law sang it. What you said about lack of dynamic control on the harpsichord made me think that would be a good instrument for me. Dynamics on the piano is a challenge for me as a recovering accordion player. I think it would be fun to build one from a kit too.

Riddler, that's nice music. Aren't those backing tracks wonderful? I was just noodling around on my synthesizer yesterday and hearing the percussion tracks always inspires new compositions.

b528nf7, very nice job on this one, maybe my favorite of the ones you've posted.. I think the song is very well suited to your voice and style. I love your improvs, you've got good intuitions about this kind of music.

Sam (and Laurie) - excellent playing on "Ave Maria" - you guys work well together and it must be fun for you - I know it is for us.

You're correct - the Bach Prelude is in the so-called "Ambitious Section" in the back of Alfred 3, and some really good renditions of it can be heard in recent posting in the Alfred 3 thread by Undone , Waltz and TTigg .

JF

Poor Squeaky the gray tabby appears at about a minute into the video. She is mostly deaf. Her ears are locked to the front, never swiveling like a normal cat's. She cannot hear low tones, but she can hear high tones. To get her attention we whistle. Her meow is a pitiful squeak, which is how she got her name. Whenever she hears Laurie's recorder she comes running. I can imagine her saying, "I can hear you! I can hear you!"

Thanks everyone for your kind comments. We do have fun playing together, and that's the most important part.

Sam

I haven't posted to the piano bar myself (yet) but saw no one had answered your question yet and thought I'd take a stab at it.

The member recordings forum seems to be a place where people post for critical feedback. Most of what's there are polished pieces or works-in-progress that a member is looking for constructive critique on. It's kind of a "serious" place (in a good way).

The piano bars are just plain fun. Polished, works-in-progress, just-started-on-it, and everything else in between. Make music. Share music. Enjoy music. It's all good. You can ask for critiques or advice here, too, but mostly it's about the joy of playing and listening.

Larry,

I tried but I can't feel the summer heat. Great tune though.

Sam, That was wonderful. It must be really nice to have someone to play with like that. You make a good team.

Riddler - really, really good stuff! - "Blue Trane" is cool, swinging Coltrane - good gravy, I can remember listening to Coltrane and Miles and The Modern Jazz Quartet & Monk and Cannonball Aderly many years ago on the original vinyl - just marvelous playing

JF

Bill - I liked this a lot, as much as anything you've done to date - entertaing version of a great old standard - Ray Charles has to be smiling down on you from that great "Soul Train" in the sky - like the many voices of the Clavinova too (that's what I play).

JF

Thanks Larry B,

That is a very clear explanation. I think it is good to have two seperate forums! critical comments about your playing or compositions when you're just having fun is not fun!

Jis

www.myspace.com/jismusic2 (for fun AND comments )

John Frank - Thanks for the kind words. Although I still have and love my Clavinova this piece was performed on my Roland digital grand that I got a couple of months ago.

Riddler, I think this is my favorite of your recordings so far. It sounds so polished and professional!

Bill, loved your "Georgia"! You made all those runs sound effortless, and your voice suits the song perfectly. I have to say, though, I could've done without the Roland String Quartet.

foxyw: Congratulations on your first-ever piano bar submission! With pieces like that, you'd better submit to the next recital! Your Zoom sounds good, too.

Morodiene: You wrote that?! That was extremely impressive. I loved how it started off with more of a slower, brooding tango air, and then got increasingly more complex, culminating in that section in the middle where it went all wild... lovely! I hope we can hear more from you.

Larry's nailed it. A third option for sharing music is our quarterly AB Forum Recitals (look at the top of the forum page for a thread about the current recital we just hosted).

Welcome to the forum, jis!

Thanks so much, Monica. I'm glad you enjoyed it . I'm surprised this forum is really the only active one with posting recordings. I suppose it's a bit more open and friendly about it than the Pianists Corner. Still, there are some valuable things that could be learned from the regulars there. But it was fun posting it here!

So many wonderful tunes already posted up, very enjoyable.

Here is my crack at it.

I will put up a few more (some old standards and some improvs like this one) as the month progresses.

Happy December!

http://www.box.net/shared/xnb8cyu5de

Glen

Riddler/Ed - another great piece. I was groovin' all thru it

Cathy

Very nice, Glen...sounds very much like the winter we should be getting pretty soon here

Hi Inlanding/Glen,

I really enjoyed your musical presentation to the December piano bar! It was great!

The bass on your acoustic piano was superb. What kind of piano do you have? (If you don’t mine me asking.)

Thanks for posting it!

Take care,

Rick

Morodiene amazing piece!
Inlanding: was very pretty song

Here's another Duet by myself and Augustina Edelweiss from Sound of Music! We might've played it a bit too fast but we get excited sometimes playing duets :P

Here's a video version:
http://s116.photobucket.com/albums/o23/a...t=Edelweiss.flv

Here's an mp3 version:
http://www.box.net/shared/y47v7gabsp

Thanks lady...that's a great duet! One of my favorite pieces, whenever I hear this I always think of when the Captain sings this and gets all choked up

I wrote this last year and just made some changes. It's called "faded Scarlet Bow".

Thank you, Morodiene

It's very definitely cooling off...

Two more to add to December's Bar


Ramblin' On

Moonlight Mvt 1

Bill - I knew when it was you doing this song I was in for a treat Just the right piano styling, and definitely the right voice - really great.

Cathy

Beautiful Glen, very contemplative and relaxed.

Very nice atmosphere you created there Peyton. Thanks for sharing.

Jis

my effort for dec and one of my grade 5 exam pieces for this month.

Very nicely done foxyw - glad you decided to come in to the Piano Bar, where the congenial (and seldom inebriated) patrons always enjoy an Italian song by a Russian composer played on a German piano while drinking an Australian beer and munching on American beer pretzels and Swiss cheese

JF

Ha! The first time is both scary and exciting for any number of things , but especially for playing/recording an original composition and submitting it for audition to the tough critics (paper tigers all ) here at the Piano Bar! Good job all around - love the "Spanish flavor" of the piece and your playing was superb

JF

Nice version of one of my favorite's from one of my favorite musicals. Thanks!

JF

Glen, this one's really fantastic. It seems more cohesive and integrated than some of the others. And there's so much potential for further developing the themes in this song. What you've got is like a great introduction, and I'd love to hear you take the basic themes and noodle around with them. You're really gifted at that, and I think it would be a great longer song.

And that wonderful piano of yours....

Inlanding - very nice piece. I'm with Rickster on this - your piano has a very nice tone - I like the bass and the way the sustain rings out particularly at the end.

Ed, I'm always amazed at how professional your recordings /playing sound. I had my sound system hooked up for recording so could listen to your recording through headphones.. Wow, I have to do that more often. Fantastic!

Bill, another classic from the master! Super playing.

Morodiene, Super piece. I love the spanish flavor. What a wonderful composition.

PianoU1 - Very well done. You have a confident and precise touch which suits this piece well.

Peyton - a wonderful song beautifully performed. Your accompanyment is very creative and compliments the song nicely. I like the runs that simulate snow falling - at least it sounded that way to me.

Sam:
I really enjoyed Ave Maria by you and Laurie. It's always been one of my favorite pieces. It immediately reminded me of one of my favorite arrangements of it that I have on a Windham Hill Sampler CD called "The Bach Variations". The prelude was played on a harp and the melody was played on a harmonica. It sounds like a strange combination but, as you'd expect, the artists on the CD made it sound beautiful. Great job.

TB:
Very nice piece. Delicate and tranquil.

Larry:
I really like the chord voicings on this piece. Very cool.

Riddler:
Awesome job on the arrangement. I know how much of a challenge it is to create a good mix like that and you did it very well.

Bill:
That was a great rendition of "Georgia On My Mind". I can't sing so I can appreciate the fact that you can do both.

foxyw:
Nice job on that piece, very well done. And the quality of the recording was great.

Mordiene:
Wow, what passion! That composition was great. I'd love to be able to hear that one in person to get the full effect.

Good stuff!

Fantastic, Peyton. Thoroughly enjoyed it!

Glen

foxyw~

Absolutely lovely. Thank you so much!

Glen

Ramblin' On
Moonlight Mvt 1

foxyw - What a cheerfully-played piece! Brought a smile to my face as I take a lunch break - perfect

Cathy

Morodiene - that was great. I liked the changing moods throughout the piece.

Larry B - I thought you captured the different flavors of the recording sections perfectly.

Inlanding - I liked this very much - very calming.

Cathy

Peyton - you set a really nice family scene with your fine song-story of the holiday season - excellent accompaniment as usual! Liked this a lot.

JF

Greetings!

I was inspired to conjure three tunes last night for this December Piano Bar, improvising around a chord structure, attempting to not lose my place. One, a familiar standard and the others...some broken versions of blues.

I've developed such a bad habit over time of not counting to change at the right time. These examples are my first public attempt at illustrating what I want to fix.

Misty Noodling

Major Blooze

Minor Blooze

Thanks - have a great day!

Glen

"sister linda" http://www.box.net/shared/ezuag1fra9

I was sitting at the piano one morning as usual, noodling around. For some strange reason I started thinking about this portrait photograph of my dad dressed up in his WW2 army uniform. As I thought about the sadness in his eyes, I remembered that around that time (1942) my parents' first baby was stillborn. It's not something that was ever talked about very much in my family, but as I started thinking about my sister, who they named Linda, I wrote this song for her.

Larry - that is a fantastic piece! What a great brother you are!

Very thoughtful, very well played.

You are a fine player

Glen

PianoU1 - good effort on the delightful Hummel piece.

JF

PianoU1~~

Very excellent! Very much enjoyed watching your hands move as you played. Thanks for sharing

Glen

My extemporaneous version of Autumn Leaves as another addition to this, the 2009 December Piano Bar.

Autumn Leaves

Taking the inspiration from the Christmas songs thread, I wrote this song. In this one, I envisioned people gathering on the holidays, catching up on each others' news, the kids running around having fun. So I called it:

Reunion

TB

ladypayne - what a nice duet on Edelweiss. I remember sitting down with a friend and just playing thru a duet book - great fun.

PianoU1 - what a fun video - your fingers look like spiders on that piece from that angle Cute piece.

Larry Larson - very nice. I like having the melody in the bass.

Cathy

Bill, loved your Georgia. Sounds like you wrote it.

foxyw- Very sweet. I love it. Welcome to the bar... give us more!

Inlanding- Glen... that was really beautiful. Great improvising. Really nice recording quality too. What piano are you on? It has a beautiful tone.

True Beginner, Pretty Piece, I enjoyed listening to it very much
Larry Larson, good job, it was very nice
Sam, Great job:) I liked the recorder in it also. me and my sister try that sometimes:)
Riddler, Nice Blues song:P
Bill, I like that piece as well, wish I could sing like that:)
Foxyw, Great job, I love Tchaikovsky, we played a lot of his pieces when I was in band during highschool
Morodiene, Awesome:) great piece
Inlanding-very pretty also:)
Ladypayne. well.. what can I say.. we did pretty good;)
Peyton- another singer! nice song:)
I'll catch up with the rest tonight:)
Here is My piece,another song from Lord of the Dance
I was experimenting with changing the sounds on the keyboard. here it is;P
http://www.box.net/shared/r5i7mninek

Very medieval, Augustina. Lovely harmonies.

OK, this is the way I wanted my recital piece to turn out. Pretty close to a month after the recital.

Chopin Prelude No 4

Rich

Rich, that was super. Really well phrased and felt.

Only a month after the recital. Mine can be as long as 2 years and still not really be up to par

Cathy

Hi All,

Here is my contribution to the December piano-bar. I recorded this today. I've always liked the song. I've been flirting around with reading music and this piece is a lot like it is written, but I did add lib a bit. (It's hard to break the "by-ear" habit )

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HreQIuq8xaE

Rick

Rick - that was a little different from your usual fare, but I liked it very much.

Cathy

Bill, very professional job (as usual) on Georgia. Fun to play with different voices, isn't it?

Foxyw, very well done. Lots of zest and exuberance in your playing, I'd say.

Morodiene, that really grabbed me - quite beautiful, passionate, professional. WRT the recording, I had to turn the volume up a bit, but it sounded fine. Great job.

Glen, boy those deep bass notes sound good, don't they. A very enjoyable, nostalgic improv; the kind of music that brings back memories, for me.

Ladypayne and Augustina, nice work on your Edelweiss duet. Keep 'em coming!

Ed

Enjoyed it Rick. You have a good voice and you use it very well.

Rick, nice job on Rainbow. You have a good vocal range. Sounds like a real toughy to sing.

Dragon - Great work on that E-min prelude

Rickster - Fantastic - very entertaining, really enjoyed it.

Rickster, Riddler, Peyton, all. The piano is an original 1917 O Steinway - it is such a responsive and inspiring piano to play.

'Misty' noodling

C-min Blooze

Glen

Sweet!

Rickster - A nice performance of one of my favorite songs. Thanks for sharing.

Augustina- You are quite creative with your digital. This is an excellent and interesting rendition. I've seen River Dance the last couple of years when they came to Wolfe Trappe near where I live and enjoy this music very much.

Augustina - I got a kick out of your keyboard sounds. It reminded me of a little field organ/portable organ/pump organ I played Scandinavian music with (2 fiddlers did melodies). The sound didn't come out immediately as you pressed the keys. It also turned out to not be smart to use it on a slick wooden dance floor, because, well, as you pumped, it moved. Away from you. :\ So I was constantly trying to scoot my chair to keep up with it. We thought about tieing it to the chair leg, but finally brought in a small floor mat from the foyer of the building and put the organ and me on it. But it was amusing for awhile Any way, your piece was cute.

Cathy

Good evening my dear friends!

Having too little time lately to spend at the piano, I only recorded 2 new songs this month, one of which I would like to play for you here (it is my farewell to the Fall season :

Stephen Heller. Fluttering Leaves.


Tatiana

First, I apologize for not watching or commenting on any of the other videos. I'm new to the site and still getting my bearings straight.

But I did stumble into this.

Just... Beautiful!

tatiana: Beautiful playing! I imagined a tree losing its last leaf and thinking sadly of the long cold winter ahead. You have a wonderful touch and tone for RCM grade 6. Are you taking the exams? If you are, you'll do well. Lovely hand and wrist movement as well.

Ben - do what you can with the time you have - we're not ogres here, much as we like to hear talk about ourselves But I don't usually make it around to commenting on every submission, either, because, well, I have other stuff going on!

There *is* a lot to PW, and - well, (scuffs shoes, looks furtively around) - it can be addicting :|

Cathy

Thanks for the warm welcome. Upon joining this forum I was fully expecting to get my meager fingers chomped off by some grizzly green ogres, but fortunately the only green I've seen so far has been the welcome mat.

This forum really has a friendly atmosphere. And, yes, it's addicting...

Sweet tune lovingly played - very nice Tatiana

I'm currently working on a Heller Prelude - from Hungary, he apparently had quite a career as both a concert pianist and rather prolific composer in the 19th century - he was a friend of Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Listz, etc.

JF

Some people comment on some or many of the pieces submitted to the Piano Bars - and never or only occassionally submit one of their own.

Others submit one (or more) pieces and never or hardly ever comment on other pieces.

Others submit one or several pieces and comment on most or all other pieces.

It works just fine any way you choose to handle it.

But, in terms of "time management" it is only common sense that if you have time to submit a piece then it would only seem reasonable to assume that you also have time to comment on one or more other pieces - at least. And while this is not a duty or obligation it would be nice...especially if you would like others to take the time to comment on your's...

JF

Cathy I actually laughed when I read that:) interesting that the little field organ would actually move away from you^_^ Bill Thank you. we also played riverdance for marching band my last year in highschool, I loved it. I would love to see them live!
Tatiana.. you play beautiful:)

Tatiana - That was very beautiful piece. It is a joy to watch your hands. You are a very good player.

Thank you for sharing your music!

Glen

'Misty' noodling

Tatiana, you play so musically! Great job

Nice job, Tatiana! (As usual!:-)

I enjoyed listening!


And Glen.... your 1917 Steinway O sounds superb!

Rick

just to prove I can play something written by someone else, here's Chopin's Prelude in E minor.

http://www.box.net/shared/z7dbis92l1

Very pretty piece Tatiana!
Nice singing and playing Rick

Here's my submission: Famous Hawaii song Aloha Oe. Enjoy!
http://www.box.net/shared/t7f6hmnk66

here's video version too:
http://s116.photobucket.com/albums/o23/amanda1528/piano%20music/?action=view&current=AlohaOe.flv

Excellent, Larry! The music you write is just as good in my view! (No disrespect to Chopin )

Keep up the great playing!

Rick

Simply wonderful...
I can keep listening to it all morning.

Thank you Larry!

Rich,
You have so much feeling in your play, this is an outstanding rendition - thank you so much for sharing! (I wish I could 'subscribe' to your playing on YouTube - if you have your recordings posted there).


Tatiana

Sam and Laurie,

I liked it so much! Every month I am looking forward to your new piece - I imagine how great it is to play together like this...

BenPiano, Frozenicicles, Rickster, JF, Augustina, Glen, Morodiene, ladypayne - thank you so much for your kind comments!

Frozenicicles - nope, I am not taking any exams, just studying on my own, without a teacher or any ambitious goals. I just love piano music so much, and still surprised I can continue learning it at my age :-)

Peyton, great song, nicely played and sung. Nice snowfall effect at the end!

Piano U1, sounds very good! Looks pretty tricky at about the one minute point. Nicely done.

Dragonpianoplayer, isn't that a beautiful piece? I always love it. Well done!

Rick, nice job on Over the Rainbow, one of my favorites.

Tatiana, lovely! You have a very graceful way of playing that results in a very good sound.

Ladypayne, great job on Aloha Oe.

Ed

Gee, maybe I ought to try that myself. It is a constant source of amusement to my family that, although I am obsessed with music and am, in theory, a very high tech guy, I listen to all my music with the smallest and cheapest speakers that Walmart carries! Anyway, thanks for the comments.

Ed

Wow, that's a very nice song, I really like it. Great melody, and put together very well. Great melody and I like how you worked with it. I'm anxious to hear more of your stuff.

Nice work Peyton. I admire anyone who can sing and play at the same time! That line at the beginning of the song about feeding the chickens reminds me of a funny story. When my great grandfather Sven died, his bachelor son Ephraim was suddenly now in charge of the family farm in Michigan. At the funeral the preacher was droning on and on in Swedish, and Ephraim, who obviously had his mind somewhere else, stood up and loudly exclaimed "I knew it, I knew it, I forgot to feed the chickens!!", and abruptly left the church to tend to his chores...

TB, I think what you envisioned fits perfectly with the song. Have you thought about writing words to it? Your family holiday gatherings must be more peaceful than the ones in my family. Last year at my cousin's house, while carrying plates of food to the table she tripped and fell, sending food flying in all direction. Her daughter yelled "Mom, I told you not to try to carry all that at once!!" prompting her brother to scream "Don't talk to Mom that way!!" Then they got into a big fight and the brother left the house. Now that would make for an interesting song.

Larry, I know I am bad at writing lyrics so I would not try. LOL about your family reunion. Talking about that, my parents have 7 children and 6 of them are girls (I was the only boy), so that sounds like the same as mine. I got used to it when I grew up, it would be strange that we had a reunion without incident.

Tatiana, I love your Fluttering Leaves. Now, I need to find out more info about Stephen Heller when I got time.

TB

Larry - so very versatile you are, Chopin, too? very nice.

TB - Reunion is very well-thought. You have a very even touch. A real pleasure.

ladypayne - love the Aloha piece - so creative.

Morodiene - Trovador is fabulous. Please post more of your work!

Peyton - I keep listening and watching you play faded Scarlet Bow - a joy. Great work!

Thank you, all of you - such an inspiration to play and practice more!

Glen

ps...a couple of more small pieces

Noodling1

Noodling2

Funny story but I can relate. I really do have chickens and horses. In fact, my original idea for the youtube presentation was to take footage of my chickens and horses and various Christmas stuff and have a music video. It's probably just as well I didn't as it would have been corny as hell.