Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum OT, Tell us about yourself

My name's Dave and I just joined this form a few days ago as I started a piano class at the local college a few weeks ago.

I'm from NJ and have always been into music. As a kid I took piano lessons but it just wasn't something I was interested in enough to keep at back then. After a few years I moved to drums and then last year, guitar. Today I'm learning piano and run a home recording studio which I use to record my songs and put them on my myspace page.

Being 21 years old now, soon to be 22...I think I'll be able able to stay with the piano lessons and eventually, learn enough to put some piano lines into my newest songs.

If anyone has any questions on setting up a home recording studio feel free to send me a PM and I'll happy answer any recording questions you may have.

85Dave, other than this Adult Beginners Forum, there is also a very popular Digital keyboard- synth forum within Pianoworld. I am sure your expertise would be very welcome there. Do check that forum out. You may also pick up new ideas and info for yourself too.

Araviski - Bienvenue!

Not too long ago when I posted my own introduction in this thread, there were relatively few young (i.e. under 25) members. I am so glad lately there are a more younger people. In fact there is a very recent thread that some new member started on this topic. Welcome again to both of you.

Hey everyone! Just saw this topic today, and decided to post!

My real name is Ben, but of course I go by z32. If you're wondering why I chose that as my username, you might have already guessed due to my avatar. It's my favorite car, and I finally saved up some money to buy it last summer! Let's see, I recently just turned 22 last August, and I'm studying to be a Registered Nurse here in good ole' Southern Cali. What else, ummm.....I'm Filipino, and was actually born in the Philippines. I came here when I was around 7 years old, and lived in Cali ever since.

I've always dreamt about playing the piano someday, but I just never got around to starting it. I finally did exactly that last January when I enrolled in a beginner's piano class at my school. Ever since then, I've been tinkering around the piano, pretty much just self-teaching myself. I'm hoping to buy a baby grand one of these days hehe! Of course, at this point, I'm fairly happy with my new Yamaha YPG625/DGX620 which I just bought about a month ago. It should suffice since I am still beginner after all.

I don't post much, but I'll introduce myself anyway. I'm 23 and a graduate in web development and programming. I've been working for 3 years as a web developer since graduating. I'm French (my father is Senegalese and my mother French) but I've always liked reading and writing in English. I sometimes think that maybe I would like living in an English-speaking country. I've only been to a one-week school trip in England when I was 11.

I love music since forever. I have videos of myself at 5 or 6 singing and dancing (basically driving my parents crazy). I listen to a lot of music all the time. I've always wanted to learn to play an instrument and since I've had a synth for a very long time, I wanted to try piano. I signed up for lessons last Saturday, after thinking about it for more than a year. It might sound strange, but I'm really happy I'm able to afford that. To me, it's almost luxury. Next step is buying something better than the synth to practice, but I'm reluctant to spend so much money. I'm still thinking. I also take dance lessons since last year and I'm improving each week. Now that I have a job, I'm trying to find a sense in my life and I start with the things I've always wanted to do, but couldn't because my parents were, and still are, quite poor.

I've been a member of this group for some time but haven't posted hardly at all. I am 50 years old and live with my hubby of 28 years on a 7 acre farm. I started taking piano when I was in the second grade but I've never excelled at it. Probably because I was always so busy with other aspects of my life that fitting in practice sessions was just beyond me. I didn't get a lot of encouragement from home either. I did play some in church-mostly for the children's choirs but still no talent to speak of and I was so paranoid about playing for anyone that I would really freeze up when asked to play. I started taking lessons again 2 years ago from my daughter's voice teacher. He only teaches beginner piano but I needed to start over since I realized that I had forgotten almost everything except where middle c was. Anyway I still had my old Baldwin spinet from my teen years and I immediately realized that what I was hearing from it wasn't exactly how a piano should sound . It never bothered me as a kid but as an adult-I couldn't stand the horrible tone quality of the spinet plus the piano was now 30 years old! I bought a digital keyboard to use when I went to our vacation home on the coast on weekends but ended up hauling it up and down the road because I just couldn't stand the spinet. I missed the touch of an acoustic and my husband was getting tired of loading my big keyboard up all the time so 2 weeks ago he gave me my Christmas present early-a beautiful Yamaha console piano . Now I feel like I can actually be a part of this group since I now own an actual piano!! Other than my piano background I guess I could tell you that I am a semi-retired pharmacist and my hubby is a semi-retired engineer and works out of our home as a consultant. We have a daughter who is a sophomore in college studying theater education and she has a beautiful voice. She's been in several plays here locally-always a musical. Someday I hope to hear her on Broadway but that may just be a dream-at any rate she is going to college 30 minutes away so she pops in and out regularly. We have 3 dogs, a dozen cats, a rabbit, a gunea pig, a dozen chickens, half dozen geese and I'm hoping to get some ducks to swim on our pond next spring. (EIEIO?) My other hobbies include crochet, sewing, cross stitch, gardening and fishing. Well anyway, I guess I've bored you guys enough with this dribble about me. I've enjoyed reading all the bios you've posted. Haven't read them all yet but I think its neat to see what we have in common besides piano!

Welcome, Kitty! I think you're living my dream! I also have a Yamaha console (mine is a UX3), and it is a really good piano. Are you working in a particular method book? My kids take piano, so I hear the Faber books being played all the time, and the pieces are very nice.

Look forward to hearing more from you!

Nancy

Kitty, Your bio is most interesting, not in the bit boring. How very sweet of your hubby to buy you an acoustic piano for Xmas!!

I see this picture where you accompany your daughter singing on stage!

I have found my participation in the ABF very motivating, inspiring and informative. By participating in the piano bars, and the upcoming recital, and a couple of improv challenges, it's really given me little goals to "get my act together". Of course it may be the exhibitionist streak in me too

Hope to hear from you more on the forum - but then again, for your benefit, may be it's not such a good idea to get addicted like some of us seem to be! Consider posting your playing. It actually helps me improve, a side effect I didn't expect.

Hello again,

Thought I'd do an update...

One year older and hopefully wiser.

Still playing the piano and enjoying it immensely. Due to the kindness of a fellow PW member I recently found a piano teacher. I resumed piano lessons 30 years after my last piano lesson as a teenager. This time around I really enjoy lessons. I enjoy practicing and I look forward to going to lessons. 30 years ago that wasn't the case. I despised piano lessons and the teacher. Lessons were on Wednesdays and Fridays. Wednesdays and Fridays filled me with dread for many years after I had stopped lessons even until adulthood.

With my teacher I'm currently working on Les Bergeries - Couperin (from the AMB notebook), Sonatina in C Op 36 No 3 - Clementi, and Song of the Fatherland - Grieg.

On my own I'm learning contemporary music theory. I'm using Mark Harrison's Contemporary Music Theory series. There are three levels in the series. I'm currently going through level 2.

My goals are to be able to play classical pieces to the best of my ability. I'm currently at an intermediate level. To be more specific around a Grade 4/5 using the ABRSM grading standard. I would like to learn how to improvise and play by ear much better. I would also love to learn to play non-classical styles such as gospel, blues, jazz, and so on.

I am really enjoying my piano journey this time around!

That sounds great, Musictuary. I take lessons, too, and it's a highlight of the week. I also love getting together with the other adult students and seeing how everyone is progressing.

Glad things are going so well for you!

Nancy

Hello Musictuary !

I'm about your age and also have to kids - I started with piano lessons in february and I'm an intermediate player too.

Of course I'm very happy that you like Grieg, so do I Maybe you can play "Fedrelandssang" (op 12no 8) for our november recital ?

Ragnhild

It's wonderful to learn about so many of our new members. Welcome everybody!

p.s. Kitty Austin, two whole posts in two years?! You really should stop blabbing so much.

Thanks for the second welcome everyone.

Ragnhild,
My cousin who spent her two last years of high school at a United Nations school in Norway told me that Norway is really beautiful. I remember reading some time ago that Grieg would spend his summers at his home where he could take in the breath-taking scenery while composing. I can picture the beauty he witnessed while listening to his Lyric pieces.

All,
To date I haven't participated in any of the online recitals or pianobars. (Lack of recording equipment for acoustic piano and not knowing how to get recorded pieces on digital piano to computer.) However I'm very tempted to take on Ragnhild's suggestion. Thanks to Mahlzeit's excellent instruction guide about recording your piano there is a strong possiblity I may be able to have a piece recorded in time for the November recital.

Regards

Hello all,

I'm 25 and started teaching myself piano about 1 month ago. I did spend a couple of evenings 7 or so years ago learning Trouble by Coldplay, having never played before, but didn't really take it any further. I spent the first hour or so learning to read music and five minutes learning that those sharp symbols at the start meant something, but the rest of the piece was pretty simple.

I went to University for 4 years, coming out with a Masters Degree in Computer Systems Engineering. I spent half a year afterward enjoying myself, then got a job running a property company's IT department. Two years on and I'm Finance Manager for the same company.

Evenings and weekends are taken up with motor racing. I'm an electronics engineer for a race team. When I'm not doing that, I'm racing my own kart. I also play for a pool team, play squash to keep fit, and basketball during the summer. I also love all types of music and reading.

Despite the above, I still manage to get at least two hours per day on the piano. Progress has been relatively fast. I can play most of Vanessa Carlton's Harmonium album (described as Intermediate) and have spent this weekend learning Cristofori's Dream (having seen it mentioned here). I can play all of it bar those few fast measures and bars 17-24 where you have to play the melody with 1st and 3rd in the right hand (I can't quite figure the fingering).

I have Carl Humphries piano handbook, which is brilliant for learning the bits you need to learn for the piece you want to play, but I'm considering private lessons to give myself some more structure and ensure good technique.

Anyway, that's me. I look forward to quizzing you all on the various aspects of playing.

Dave

hello all....

a couple of months ago, i finally decided to sit down at the piano with some determination and discipline, so figure that at 59 years old, i am well qualified to be a member of the adult beginner forum....;-)

am using Humphries "The Piano Book" as a base, but have other books of easy/short classics as well as a couple on harmony, and the newly arrived Tim Richard's book on playing Blues. i'm also reading Chang's online "Fundamentals of Piano Practice"...quite slowly...it is thorough, and excellent.

i'm kinda shy, but want to say how much the posts, suggestions, and comraderie of these Forums has helped and encouraged me. hope i can return the favor as i progress.

i live in Northern Indiana in the winter, up in beautiful NW Michigan in the summers. have a great partner and a fine dog (Vizsla) that is, as a friend called him, the sweetest punk.

david crothers

Hi David and welcome. I'm kind of shy too, but this forum is so friendly it's easy to overcome that. And somehow it's much easier not to be shy with people you're writing to than it is when you've actually got to talk to them face to face! I hope we'll hear more from you - let us know from time to time how you're getting on.

Welcome to PW...I sure you'll find a lot of friends here

Hi,Everyone!
I posted photos yesterday
http://www.pianoworld.com/ubb/ubb/ultimatebb.php?/topic/32/1981/34.html

Today I'll tell you a bit :rolleyes: more about my music story.

I started piano lessons at age nine. My teacher was Sister Anselm, of the Catholic School I attended. She was quite frail, had a bulbous nose, delicate skin and arthritic hands. Her voice was so soft that you had to strain to hear her.

We had this marvelous piano hall - about 12 rooms, six on each side of a creaking wood hallway - with glass walls and doors. When other students were present, it was quite loud in there.

However, I was allowed to have lessons during the regular school hours - and got to miss out on some boring subject or another - so I could learn classical music. Sister Anselm was a stickler for correct posture, hand position, and phrasing. She taught me how to be a musician and a performer.

Recitals were a serious matter. She frequently said that if I reached a certain level of competency that I would be awarded a silver medal for excellence. It was a trick - though I had achieved a high level of playing ability - and I am quite amazed now when I look at the recital sheet music I played - I never received an award. I think now that she wanted to keep me in lessons, to keep me striving. For years, even into adulthood,I was hurt that I never got recognition for my playing.

She would take me to the huge Catholic Church across the street and give me private lessons on the magnificent pipe organ. I was the only person other than John Flynn, the master organist, who was given permission to play the organ. It was quite an honor, and I still recall the majestic sounds of that instrument in an empty church. On that organ I accompanied a choral performance by the school children. I must have been about 12 or 13.

Throughout high school I continued weekly lessons with Sister Anselm. I loved the classical pieces. I also loved playing somber chords and my own impromptu compositions. Even my high school friends enjoyed hearing these wild and emotional creations. I was the accompanist at school events - and I played mostly hymns.

My parents often asked me to play when friends visited. I didn't like that so much, but did it anyway. I felt that my music was more personal and didn't understand why I should have to perform for them. After awhile they didn't ask anymore.

And during high school, my tastes changed. I wanted to play like Carole King. So we found another teacher for me, Ed Vyeda, a real cocktail lounge piano player. He tried his best to teach me about chords and runs, but I just wasn't inspired by "China Doll" and he didn't know about Carole King - you remember her album, Tapestry? So I was still taking classical lessons from one teacher and struggling with jazz with the other. Mr. Vyeda became ill and that was the end of my popular music career.

I married soon after high school (the trend then) and my parents sold the piano. I didn't play again until a few years ago at Christmas time. My daughter and son-in-law have an ancient upright grand. I had the piano tuned so it would sound reasonably good, but it's really in sad shape, not a joy to play. But it's okay for the younger grandchildren (We are blessed with 5 grandchildren from two daughters).

My nearly 7 yr. old granddaughter has a 61 key Yamaha. I started giving her piano lessons this summer and guess what? I fell in love with the piano all over again! I bought music books for my granddaughter, retrieved two boxes of music from the garage (amazing that I saved every book and recital piece through all these years!) and started researching for my own piano.

I bought the same little Yamaha keyboard just for fun, but found it just wouldn't do - that I needed a much better 88 key piano. However, before I returned the keyboard, I immersed myself in music - I played for hours at a time - I was so totally excited about renewing this friendship. I will never forget that weekend, the intensity of the experience of relearning, going through page after page in my old books. It was quite an emotional awakening.

While searching for the ideal digital piano, I came across some posts in the Piano World Forum. I could tell that the people here were genuine, interested in life, supportive of one another and were welcoming.

So that's how I got here. And I look forward to meeting all of you! Your combined enthusiasm is contagious!

Lorna

Great story Lorna and I loved the pictures you posted. Glad you're back to the piano and enjoying it! Welcome to the forum and I hope you're able to participate in our recitals in the future.

Thanks, Greg! I do hope to join the recitals - first I need to get acquainted with the new dp (arriving within a week) and then study up on mahlzeit's superb tutorial on recording. I feel like so many doors are opening since joining this forum!

Lorna

Lorna,

Even though you never got the Silver Award from Sister Anselm, you are poised to be inducted into the Order of the Red Dot from our esteemed Moderators when you submit for your first recital.
Order of the Red Dot

Your piano story sounded just wonderful. Your writing brought it to live! From what you described, I just can't wait to hear another superb pianist amidst us! That recent weekend of music rediscovery sounded magical.