My biggest accomplishment this week was my first voice lesson!!! I'm not a singer (can't carry a tune in a bucket as they say) but I decided that learning to sing may improve my listening skills and help prepare me for the aural part of my piano exam (which I decided to do NEXT spring....rather than this summer)

I was VERY apprehensive and very pleasantly surprised at how much fun it was and how HARD it is to breathe!! My teacher didn't laugh (out loud anyway!!) and I'm looking forward to my next lesson in two weeks.

I haven't had a piano lesson in a couple of weeks as my teacher is away so I'm looking forward also to hopefully showing at least a little progress with my new pieces next week... of course that's when I tend to flub more than usual....sigh, sigh.....

Wonderful!
I've been struggling for a while with voicing, trying to bring the melody out in a piece I'm working on. Well, when I was playing it the other night, my 5-year-old grandson started humming the melody. I think I might be getting close!

Hmm.
I had my first piano lesson in about ten years today, does that count?
I also realised that the keyboard (ugh) I am using at the minute has a sustain option, although it is no-where near as good as a pedal, which has made Moonlight Sonata sound so much better.
Also, I am at least 1/3rd of the way through the aforementioned sonata.
Finally, I have also started learning to properly read music, instead of just playing by ear and memory.

Well, I got that pallet of fieldstone unloaded - a little over two tons worth. Now my wrist hurts, but at least I have some time to practice.

One more thing to add to my achievement of the week: Not really spectacular, but I sat down tonight and prioritized the 7 pieces I've been working on, so at least now I have some direction. Much better than wandering around like a blindfolded howler monkey.

Sounds like everyone has something to be satisfied with indeed!

I love the idea of voice lessons. I notice that I can now sing the music I'm reading fairly accurately rather than just read it in my head, which is very cool. I'd love to take voice lessons, but at the moment it isn't a possibility.

First lessons, prioritizing, tons of physical labour! (did you sing while moving the rocks FF?), mini accomplishments - THREE CHEERS FOR ALL OF US!

My big achievement this week was to learn how to turn a wav file into an MP3 file with "new to me" software. Thanks to a very patient friend!! Since I am not very computer savy this was a big deal to me since this is important for posting my music on this site and doing some other things I want.

AK

My biggest achievement has to be learning to play 'Paul McCartney - Maybe I'm Amazed' at speed with the original track, such good fun with some nice jazzy parts

I had to learn that too!




What fun! "at speed" is a concept I am still struggling with for most of my work!

I'm working on Burgmuller's Opus 100, nr 14 and 15 (Styrian dance and Ballade). Finally getting the left hand reasonably synchronized to the right in Ballade, and I'm starting to get some feel for Styrian Dance.

That Styrian Dance is my biggest achievement: those little jumps start to land correctly, pedaling begins to sound sort of ok, and tempo is not extremely slow anymore. Feels awesome!

Congratulations to everyone's accomplishments. I was finally able to get past a tough(for me) section of my learn to play the Blues book. Modular 12 bar blues. It is not very smooth, but I can do it.

It really helped me to read this thread today, I was beginning to do that [being to tough on myself stuff]. Seeing how others are moving along in the journey helps more than I thought.

Now day tot day I play at the end of the pianoday 'Gute nacht Freunde' of Reinhard Mey.....mmmmm...nice to relax and some noodling at the keys.......

Gute nacht Freunde

Text:
Gute Nacht Freunde, es wird Zeit für mich zu gehn.
Was ich noch zu sagen hätte, dauert eine Zigarette
und ein letztes Glas im Stehn.

1.Für den Tag, für die Nacht unter eurem Dach habt Dank,für den Platz an eurem Tisch, für jedes Glas, das ich trank,für den Teller, den ihr mir zu den euren stellt,als sei selbstverständlicher nichts auf der Welt.

Gute Nacht Freunde, es wird Zeit für mich zu gehn.
Was ich noch zu sagen hätte, dauert eine Zigarette
und ein letztes Glas im Stehn.
2.Habt Dank für die Zeit, die ich mit euch ver-plaudert hab
und für eure Geduld, wenn's mehr als eine Meinung gab,
dafür, daß ihr nie fragt, wann ich komm oder geh,für die stets offene Tür, in der ich jetzt steh.

Gute Nacht Freunde, es wird Zeit für mich zu gehn.
Was ich noch zu sagen hätte, dauert eine Zigarette
und ein letztes Glas im Stehn.

3.Für die Freiheit, die als steter Gast bei euch wohnt,habt Dank, daß ihr nie fragt, was es bringt, ob es lohnt,vielleicht liegt es daran, daß man von draußen meint,daß in euren Fenstern das Licht wärmer scheint.

Gute Nacht Freunde, es wird Zeit für mich zu gehn.
Was ich noch zu sagen hätte, dauert eine Zigarette
und ein letztes Glas im Stehn.

Best regards,
Johan B

Good for you!
You are quite right - we are often too tough on ourselves and we need to focus on what is going well rather than be discouraged about something that went wrong.

Johan -great way to end the day! I don't speak Dutch, but I think the idea of the song (good night Friend?) seems to be one of thankfulness...now I'm curious and will have to look it up. !

Perhaps a bad google Italian translation, but you'll understand the content:

Buona notte amici

Testo:
Buona notte, amici, è tempo di andare per me.
Che cosa devo dire prende una sigaretta
e un ultimo bicchiere in piedi.

1.Per il giorno, hanno per la notte sotto il vostro tetto voi, per il posto al tavolo, per ogni bicchiere bevuto io, per il piatto, che lei mi chiede di te, come se nulla al mondo naturale.

Buona notte, amici, è tempo di andare per me.
Cosa dovrei dire prende una sigaretta
e un ultimo bicchiere in piedi.
grazie 2.Habt per il momento ho chiacchierato con lei, Ver-hab
e per la vostra pazienza se non ci fosse più di un parere,
garantire che non si chiede quando vengo o andare, la porta sempre aperta, dove mi trovo ora.

Buona notte, amici, è tempo di andare per me.
Che cosa devo dire prende una sigaretta
e un ultimo bicchiere in piedi.

3.Per la libertà che vivere come un ospite costante di voi hanno, grazie di non aver mai chiede cosa ci vuole, se vale la pena, forse, è perché pensiamo là fuori, che in più caldi le finestre, la luce splenderà.

Buona notte, amici, è tempo di andare per me.
Che cosa devo dire prende una sigaretta
e un ultimo bicchiere in piedi.

Best regards,
Johan B

Dear Johan, how very kind of you!

I do speak Italian (though English is my first language) and the song is lovely.
Thanks very much!

Well, not really an achievement, so much as an alignment of the stars .

#1 I'm a teacher, and the school year is winding down so I now have time to play again.

#2 My parents have offered their piano since they're moving to a condo--a 1925/26 Heintzman. I had it checked out on the weekend, and it turns out it's in very good shape, only needs a tuning! I was worried that it was going to be way past it's prime.

#3 Then yesterday I got an e-mail out of the blue from my piano teacher (haven't talked to her since September), asking me if I would like piano lessons this summer. Cool!

Oh, here's a picture of the piano (of course ) taken when it was being evaluated this weekend. I'll post pics when it arrives at my house! If you look closely, you may even see the chipped keys from my hot wheels, 30-odd years ago!

Well Glen, that's just downright delightful!
How lovely that a piano you grew up with is now coming to live with you!

and just think....the week has barely begun, who knows what else might be in the stars for you?

Glen, how exciting for you! My husband is a teacher, so I know how your time can just get sucked away during the school year. Enjoy that piano, the lessons, and your summer break!

I am still on my streak of practicing every day. I will be completely away from a piano on Thursday and Friday so I am sad about that.

The biggest accomplishment this week is DD's she's graduating from Wash. U with a double major in history and art history.


Kim in IL

This week I did my first exercise in harmony. My teacher jotted down the melody of a simple children song and asked me to add left hand using tonic, subdominant and dominant chords. It worked great, and I was pleasantly surprised at how cool it sounds

Maybe now I can play happy birthday for someone and I can sort of put it together on the go instead of having to learn it first

Kim - congratulations to your daughter! Great combo! I did literature with almost enough courses for a double major in history, but not quite! And I did one lone course in art history. The fun thing is that I was particularly interested in the middle ages, and now I'm living in a place where they actually happened!
I brought all my university books over when we decided to stay here indefinitely (it has now been just about 16 years!)....and I've had great fun visiting so many of the places I read about.

I too have been practicing every day (144 consecutive days so far! woohoo!) We have a trip coming up and I dread being away from my piano! waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah

Shinichi - I can't wait to be at the stage where I can figure out a bit of left hand work on my own! That's really fun, and a lovely development!

casinitaly, it's simple harmonies, you can learn those in a few minutes

Hi Teodor,
This is a skill I want to have. My husband is in LOVE with an old Greek folk song (a Hadjidakis tune) and actually once said, "That would bring tears to my eyes if you could play that." I have my relatives in Greece looking for the sheet music, but until they find it (if they do), I have begun to play just the melody by ear. I am at a loss as to what to do with chords though.
Your lessons sound really fun. Much more theory-filled than mine. You take two lessons a week though right?

Thanks! And you're right, who knows what will come next...


Yes, teaching is such a double-edged sword. On the one hand summers off, but on the other you're crazy busy during the year. I'm definitely going to enjoy the summer! (My piano will have to share it with my 2 little girls though )

By the way, we have another thing in common--I was a software guy before becoming a teacher.

Thanks for the vote of confidence! I'm going to take the plunge! Maybe I'll call on you for coaching Teodor!

Greg, I'm a teacher too - ESL - and in a way I hate my summers off - most people I know don't have the whole summer free, and those that do tend to head out of town, so I'm at home with no one to play with! .......... But this year I have my piano!

Casi,

I wondered if you were an ESL teacher. That is so interesting. Are your piano lessons in Italian? Or are you teaching yourself?

My daughter would love to see more of that part of the world.

Kim in IL

My lessons are in Italian My teacher doesn't speak English (yet!).... as soon as she is ready I'm willing to swap English lessons for piano lessons, but right now she's swamped...

The funny thing is that she calls the notes do re mi and I call them C D E...sometimes we get a bit confused, but we get along splendidly. She is a perfect match for me in terms of personality and style.

I've been lucky a couple of summers. My wife used to teach, so we had at least one summer off together. This summer we get together since she's still on maternity leave for baby #2. Next year it'll also be good because I'll be able to spend the time with my little girls, rather than sending them to daycare. Of course I also get some good piano time

I did it! lol..... Happy Birthday and Twinkle Twinkle and I'm a Little Tea Pot - with chords, no music.
A baby step, but a most satisfying one!

I haven't been able to play a lot lately, but I was able to figure out the chords/structure to "Skid Row / Downtown" from "Little Shop of Horrors". I've got it to the point where I can play along the track in real time, with only a few glitches.....