Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum Ecco Fatto Café post your first recordings here!

For those of you who have always wanted to post a recording, but were nervous about jumping in: this thread is dedicated to you!

It takes guts to post your first recording. There are plenty of places to do so: You can post it in the monthly Piano Bar, or participate in a themed recital, or take part in the Quarterly ABF Recital. We would love to have you participate, no matter what your level is. You can even start your own thread and title it "Listen to me!" Go for it!

Not all of us have that rock star confidence, though. With all of the continuously progressing players around here, it's easy to feel overwhelmed. And if that doesn't bother you (and I hope it doesn't), it's awfully hard not to be nervous. It's the Internet, and a lot of people might hear you!

It took me a while to participate, myself... I get anxious if I even think that the neighbors hear me! I am notorious for hesitating and losing my place in my pieces, and polishing my pieces are not my strong suit. So I never even thought I should bother. But one day I was peer-pressured (ha!) into a themed recital and nervously posted a recording. But I'll tell you what - the kind words and encouragement I received from forum members after posting that piece put me at ease. These people are amazing! It also helped me focus more on my weaknesses, and want to give better performances, instead of blowing through pieces. I can't tell you how helpful it is, and I wish I'd done it sooner.

So I would like to encourage you not to wait as long as I did!
It can be your first piece from Alfred's, Ode to Joy. It can be that first piece that feels like "real music" to you. A Lady Gaga piece you learned from a YouTube Tutorial. Or you've just come back from a 30 year hiatus from playing and want to dust off Clair de Lune. The C scale. Or, if you've just learned where middle C is and want to show us. That's an accomplishment! We want to hear it!


There are no deadlines, and only one requirement.. that your recording is your first musical offering to PW. Please tell us about yourself, too!

Already posted something on PW? Feel free to lend your support to the newcomers - we've all been there.

Come play with us!

FAQs:
How do I record myself?
Recording your piano
Recording using Zoom

How do I share my recording?
Use Box as an audio link to your recording
Create a Youtube Video

How can I create a video using an audio recording?
Creating a Youtube video with an audio recording

What does ecco fatto mean?
It's Italian for "There! It's done!" You will think this with relief after you get your recording finished. Hop to it!

Yeah, I get to be first:

https://www.box.com/s/v5l0k7ps4lu9atw3ahng

Up until recently I was a mad ultra running nut. I lived for the sport, trained nearly every day and had just competed in my first 100 kilometre & 100 mile events both in 2012.

Unfortunately age has caught up with me and I have stopped running completely, but now I have poured all that normal energy into learning piano. I have been playing for five months and love the instrument and all it's complexities.

I am currently taking lessons and playing from a wide range of music including the Alfred's all in one course from which this song comes.

This is great earlofmar - nice steady tempo, and the trills or ornaments or whatever they are called are clear and lively. Congratulations on posting your first recording!

I too, am feeling my age - I'm going on a 100 mile hike in June - but I plan to take a whole week and it's definitely not a race!

Sam

Earlofmar - congrats on being the first! I really enjoyed listening to this piece and I think you're making wonderful progress after six months! You must practice often and efficiently!

I particularly liked the ornatmentation, and you really sound "in control" all the way through, no rushing or fumbling about ----I could picture a raven haired couple, he in black and white, she in stunning red, dancing about and clicking their heels. She of course had a fan.

Most enjoyable!

AimeeO --- what a super thread -great intro and background information - wonderfully encouraging - I'm sure this thread is going to be very active!

Great job earlofmar! And this after only 5 months--amazing. I've been learning this song very recently and my main problem was the timing of the trills (probably the wrong word but I hope you know what I mean). Mine are often too fast and I also wonder whether yours have the right length. In any case, it sounds very good and fluent. I'm curious to see what pieces you'll be playing by the end of the year. Best wishes, Oliver

Nice playing, earlofmar!
In Portugal "Fandango" is a traditional music and is danced in a very special way:

Earlofmar, that's very nice. The song consists of several simple elements, but then has those ornaments that can be pretty tricky when just starting out. Thanks for sharing!

(This would totally fit in the upcoming recital, by the way.)

Very nicely done, earlofmar.

Excellent job Earlomar! You showed great expression and steady rhythm throughout. That is quite a lively tune. Great progress in just a few months!

I do have a recording of my very own version of "Greensleeves".
I sometimes record my playing "to check up" whether I still would like my version of a piece if I would "only listen to it", but I have never filmed myself because that does not seem important to me in the context of my learning how to play the piano.

Would that do or is it important to have it filmed as well?

Thanks from Kristina.

Just audio is FINE !

Congratulations, earlofmar, on the being the first to post in the new thread and making your first post on the forum.

For five months you're not short of confidence. This is a very enthusiastic performance and you've captured both the spirit and the rhythm very well.

Well played!

Congrats earlofmar! Nice work on the fandango and nice that you've been able to focus your energy in another kind of activity. Piano is wonderful, isn't it?

Well, that made me smile, which is hard to do this early in the morning. As others have said, nice trills - but what I really think is cool that is that you kept going - the music comes first! It was really quite lively and spirited - just right, very clear and musical. Excellent.

Kristina - I never submit videos - audio only. So it's perfectly acceptable to me.


Cathy

Oh, and Aimee - great post, and great title for this place! I'm getting fat already

Cathy

I'm not going to post any recording cause I've already "popped my cherry" at the April's Piano bar . But, as a newbie pianist and forum member, I'd like to take this oppotunity to formally introduce myself.

My name is Michelle (or Elle). Started piano in January cause I was jealous of my 7 year old niece My parents never really pushed me to take up any kind of instruments as a child but I've always had the desire to learn as I was growing up but never the time and money to take lessons (or buy a piano for that matter). I'm at a point in my life now where finances are stable and I have the time to commit to learning this art, I figured it would be the best time to learn. I was never the one to think that it's too late to learn anything so here I am...obsessed with piano. I'm not in to running like earlofmar, but I am passionate about snowboarding and cooking.

I'm glad to see this thread get off the ground! Could someone make it into a sticky, perhaps?

Earlofmar: pretty polished performance of the Fandango! I'd heard it before, but there is something about the conviction with which you play that makes this into something more than just a person going through a piece from a method book. You've managed to make the music 'speak'.

And yes, I know that's very vague and mushy and everything, but this is me: I think and speak primarily in terms of the feelings it evokes in me, when it comes to music. That's the most important bar to clear for me: even if it's not technically perfect, does the music tell a story? And you've cleared the bar admirably. Way to go!

ooooh, all my recording equipment came this morning by FedEx!!! Time to get cracking!!! Thank you so much for the links in the initial post to this thread! Just the step by step instructions I need! It will take me a bit of time to get things figured out. But, thank you for this thread as first foray into recording on PW!!!

earlofmar

Sorry to hear you can`t run so well now. I`m having the same trouble and looking . . ,.ever looking for a solution!

Your debut was confident and well played. Onwards and upwards!! Nice piano too.

Excellent first recording! Mine was nothing like that, it was messy!