Hi everyone:

I've been wanting to play Chopin's Fantasie Impromptu in C# minor for a long while but never got around to learning it. I would start a few bars, then quit. I'm now thinking about starting a daily blog with videoclips of my progress and I wondered if any of you might be interested in following along, if you've wanted to play this piece too? I thought it would motivate me to persevere and complete this sublimely beautiful piece and it would be great if we could all play this piece too.

I have uploaded myself playing Chopin's Raindrop Prelude, if you'd like to watch and comment:

http://www.youtube.com/user/candlelightpiano?feature=mhsn

Cheers!

I just finished this piece, and it would have been very cool (and motivating) to have people follow my progress while I learned it. I'd definitely follow along!

That would be cool to see, I am currently learning his Prelude op. 28 no. 4, and someday soon I will be able to start practicing the Fantasie Impromptu. Good luck on your endeavor!

I would follow it. I have the score for it, but haven't gotten around to it.

Thanks, Sam. I look forward to watching you play it some time. I just created the blog. Had trouble uploading the video to the blog so will have to do it using YouTube. But hopefully will have first video on blog tonight.

Blog address is:

Chopin's Fantasie Impromptu in C# minor Project http://projectfantasie.blogspot.com/

Look forward to having you follow my blog. Here's the address:

http://projectfantasie.blogspot.com/

I'm now uploading my first video of this piece (not the entire piece!!) to YouTube. Couldn't do it on the blog.

Thanks, Irene. Here's my blog:

http://projectfantasie.blogspot.com/

Look forward to seeing you there!

You can watch it on my YouTube channel (in my signature).
I look forward to following your progress!

Goodness gracious! You play it so beautifully I was moved. How long did it take you to learn it? If I could play half as well as you do, I'd be thrilled. Could use your help on this piece.

Thanks!! In response to your youtube comment, I do belong in the beginner forum because I am a beginner (about 14 months now since I started). I started this piece in late June, and worked on it on and off from then. I first recorded it on October 19th, so that should give you an idea of how long it took. The better recording was taken November 14th, so the few extra weeks of practice paid off. And I can play it even better now. There were lots of little mistakes in my recording.

I'm amazed by your sight reading. I can barely sight read at all. I learned this piece note by note. It was a labor of love I think if you put in as much time as I did, you'll have no problem with the piece. You'll probably play it better than me. You seem to like the metronome. I try to use it as little as possible. I didn't use it at all with this piece. Personal preference I guess. It's probably because I don't really know how to use the metronome properly. I never learned counting or any of that.

Which is why...I'm meeting my first piano teacher tomorrow! I've never taken any lessons before so I'm very excited

I just got "friended" on U-Tube by a very talented young man. This should inspire anyone to learn Fanaticaltaesia (sp?) Impromptu:

http://youtu.be/uic7i3AJRgE

Hey, if he can do it, so can I!

PS-give me another 10 years and a teacher..lol. Now, Sam Rose is a different story altogether. Good luck w/your new teacher Sam!

Thanks! It's easy to criticize the way a kid like him plays this piece, but when you look at the fact that he's FIVE FREAKIN YEARS OLD, it's just unbelievable. I'm sure he'll be great in a very short time from now. How do you work with such small hands? When there's a will, there is almost always a way. (my hands are teeny too )

Your first piano teacher? I still have a hard time thinking of you as a "beginner." OK. You're a beginner virtuoso, how's that? I hope your piano teacher is not expecting a student who is just starting out learning scales! Will he or she be in for a great surprise! Good luck. Please tell me how your first piano lesson went.

I went to your YouTube Channel and watched you playing that hauntingly beautiful nocturne and also playing the Fantasie from one month ago. WOW! You amaze me! And you inspire me. If you can play so well with no lessons, why have lessons? I can't figure that one out. You have the gift. Thank you for sharing and for inspiring us all.

That's amazing! Makes you stand up and really take notice. Such a small kid with so much talent. If he can play like this at the age of 5, what will he be playing at age 10? 15? Older? I dare not think of it.

I'm glad you enjoyed it! The truth is, I need lessons if I want to bridge the gap between playing that sounds very good (amateur level) and playing that sounds excellent (pro amateur). And while the technique I've acquired on my own is fair, with a teacher I hope to make it much better.

I met the teacher today, and it was excellent. He's exactly what I think I need to get better. Although he has to judge everything I do in order to help me get better, he's very encouraging and makes me feel very at ease. Although lessons are expensive, I think it will be well worth it

You're so ambitious and I applaud you. I can see you performing Beethoven's Emperor Concerto in a couple of years! No kidding! You're THAT talented and with all the hard work you put into it, you'll go places.

Awwww thanks! You flatter me

I'll try not to let you down!

You write beautifully, too. Did anyone tell you that? Are you in college?

Yes, I am in college. And my English composition teacher agreed with you

Hello everyone:

I just wanted to inform you that I've made a bit of progress on Fantasie Impromptu in C# minor and I've posted my second videoclip to my blog:

Step 2 of Fantasie Impromptu in C # minor http://projectfantasie.blogspot.com/2011/12/step-2.html

I hope you'll go and take a look and comment on it. I look forward to your thoughts.

Choo

Hi Sam:

I just posted my second videoclip. Made a bit of progress but struggling with the next 3-4 bars.

When you were learning this piece, how did you manage playing 4 notes in the RH against 3 in the left? Did you fit them together or did you play HT (hands together) for the 1st notes, then RH, LH, RH, LH? Also, did you find that the RH notes would get messed up when the tempo increased?

Thanks.

Choo

Choo, first of all, let me say that I have not learned this piece myself. But I was looking at it last week and was looking for tips on how to learn to play the polyrythm. Here are 2 tips that I picked up:

1. Learn the right hand and left hand separately first. Learn one hand very well to the point where you can play it through muscle memory alone and focus on the other hand when playing hands together.

2. There is a pattern with the 4 notes (Right hand) to 3 notes (Left hand). The pattern is TRLRLR TRLRLR TRLRLR and so forth. In the beginning of the piece, the bar starts with the left hand and a rest in the right hand, count that as a T (hands together).

According to what I've read, once you can play the polyrythm, the piece isn't so hard.

Hope this helps.

P.S. Choo, I see that you picked up on the pattern. I missed that in your last post.

Choo,

I did what denali wrote. I had a very hard time putting the hands together, so what I did was try to know each hand well enough that it could run completely on its own, without thinking about it. Then I could play the hands together while focusing on just ONE hand at a time while the other hand runs by itself. It can be very frustrating at the beginning, but it was worth the effort.

Thanks, denali. I've tried both methods. On the first page, I basically learned to play hands separately and memorized it, then fit them in together. It seemed to work okay. But in the next 3-6 bars of the second page, somehow, I'm having difficulty with the first method (why, I don't know since I managed to do it on the first page! LOL!) so I'm now working at them TRLRLR and I'll find out if that will work as well.

Thanks so much for watching my video and taking the time to comment and make suggestions. I appreciate it!

Did you also find that when the tempo increased, your right hand got messed up? How many hours a day did you work at it? I'm trying to get an hour's practice each day but I find that the more I practice the fast passages, the worst it gets!

I found that when the tempo increased, the flaws in the memorization came through. What I mean is that in order to play it faster, you have to REALLY have it memorized. You have to be able to play both hands at slow and fast tempos before you try to put it together. Also, focus on making sure that the notes that are supposed to match up between both hands in fact do match up.

I can tell you also that you sure learn a LOT faster than I did...

How do you do that??

Also, the part that you play at 2:20 took me a VERY long time to get, and I am still working on it.

I learned this piece and here are my suggestions. Play it very slowly until you have all the notes and hear the left/right tick tick rhythm and make sure it is even. Don't even begin to play it at the suggested tempo until you have all the notes and a balanced left/right hand polyrhythm.

Make sure you bring out the melody in the right hand.

Don't hurry the process and enjoy. Ellen

I don't feel like I'm learning fast at all. In fact, I feel like a snail struggling to cross the street but worrying about all the cars running me over!

The part at 2:20? I'm sorry but I'm not sure what part that is. Do you mean bars 7-8?