|
Welcome to the Piano World Piano Forums Over 3 million posts about pianos, digital pianos, and all types of keyboard instruments. Over 100,000 members from around the world.
Join the World's Largest Community of Piano Lovers
(it's free)
It's Fun to Play the Piano ... Please Pass It On!
|
|
75 members (AaronSF, apianostudent, beeboss, brdwyguy, benkeys, Abdulrohmanoman, 17 invisible),
2,261
guests, and
445
robots. |
Key:
Admin,
Global Mod,
Mod
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 51
Full Member
|
OP
Full Member
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 51 |
Hello I'm sure you've heard people say that your hour or whatever in front of the piano is only part of the learning that goes on. The very best musicians spend most of their time awake thinking about music, and "practicing" in other ways. I do believe this can majorly affect your learning in a positive way so I was keen to discover what sort of exercises/activities you get up to musically outside of just practicing your scales and pieces for example. Personally I wish I could incorporate more music into my routine, I have an ear training app which hopefully after a lot of use will enable me to hear and sing intervals and more, which I want to start using. I also intend to read a book called something like "how to read any rhythm", which should be pretty obvious as to what it does. I also may try to compose a bit, but it takes a painfully long time whenever I do... So what about you? What sort of things do you do?
|
|
|
|
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 6,377
6000 Post Club Member
|
6000 Post Club Member
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 6,377 |
I recently started playing percussion in a community band. My wife is the principal clarinetist. I play the instruments that don't require much skill, like bass drum, cymbals, castanets, wood block, tambourine and triangle. Although this past week I played snare drum - scary. My snare drum roll is pretty ragged. The challenge is in the counting, especially the long rests. One thing I have noticed is that dynamics are so much easier on bass drum. I can go from barely audible to ffffff easily!
And I've started composing, something I haven't done in over 40 years. That's scary too.
Sam
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 51
Full Member
|
OP
Full Member
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 51 |
Cool! I might get one of my friends to give me a bit of a drumming lesson, it seems like a great way to improve rhythm!
Ooo, how's the composing going?
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,019
1000 Post Club Member
|
1000 Post Club Member
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,019 |
I write down fragments of music that I find floating around in my head. When I bring them to my teacher, usually I discover they are from existing pieces, which I heard in my mother's ballet class years ago (often many times, spread over years), but never consciously associated with any specific title or composer.
I find myself internally "singing" the pieces I am working on, even while at work. Occasionally I will actually sing out loud, sometimes without consciously deciding to do so, until my colleagues tell me to knock it off.
For a while, I was trying to learn three against four polyrhythms, and would tap them out on any nearby surface (usually my own thighs) while waiting for the bus, or some such.
I also often research the pieces I am playing, and other related music, to find out when and how and why they were written, and whether any of the information out there can and/or should influence the way I play a piece.
I will occasionally listen to recordings of current or future works in progress. I try to avoid that, though, because having a fresh memory of a recording in my head will greatly deter me from actually reading sheet music when I start learning a piece.
Plodding through piano music at a frustratingly slow pace since 9/2012.
Standard disclaimer: I teach many things. Piano is not one of them.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 51
Full Member
|
OP
Full Member
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 51 |
I might try just writing out little phrases that I come up with during the day, sounds good and yeah I sing my pieces a lot too haha! Of course it is a positive thing to sing it, i feel more attached to a tune if I'm humming or singing it all day I tried to learn polyrhythms once but I can never remember what they sound like until someone does it for me, meaning practicing on my own was tricky. Ooo good advice, and on top of being able to play a piece better, you'll gain more knowledge about composers, different styles and theory! Do you mean recordings of yourself playing the piece or like a recording off youtube? I find it helps to listen as hearing the piece performed can help evoke some emotion in me which I can try to recreate when I practice.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,019
1000 Post Club Member
|
1000 Post Club Member
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,019 |
Do you mean recordings of yourself playing the piece or like a recording off youtube? I find it helps to listen as hearing the piece performed can help evoke some emotion in me which I can try to recreate when I practice. YouTube, or professional recordings, usually off (yes, I'm old) iTunes. But like I said, not very often. And when I do, it's late in the process of learning a piece, pretty much for the same reason as you: when I need ideas about interpretation.
Plodding through piano music at a frustratingly slow pace since 9/2012.
Standard disclaimer: I teach many things. Piano is not one of them.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 1,377
1000 Post Club Member
|
1000 Post Club Member
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 1,377 |
There is music history, music appreciation, listening to music, master classes, reading books. Books might be on theory, biographies, or psychology and methods. In the latter category, The Musician's Way, and Effortless Mastery both influenced my beginner journey.
I've taken various online courses. Many were offered on Coursera.org. I had a mixed experience. All were free. Most are six weeks and get repeated if a person missed one.
I used to watch Youtube tutorials, but don't do much of that any more. I am not advanced enough to get much from videos of master classes, but others might get something from doing that.
Those with sufficient skill might study scores, or do transcription work. Solfege (singing) is another popular ear training activity.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,966
1000 Post Club Member
|
1000 Post Club Member
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,966 |
One thing I do is go Salsa and Ballroom dancing. Great way to practice rhythm ha ha ha. Also I occasionally sit in with my friend's Latin Band, it's a relaxed type of atmosphere so as long as I stay on the right chords/inversions it sounds ok, though not necessarily great (yet). A lot of the Latin stuff just needs percussive chords so it's relatively easy.
Outside of piano practice, I've loaded my iPad with several music theory books and other music related books. I recently just finished Liszt's 3 volume biography by Alan Walker.
When I'm away from the piano, I like to work out music theory ideas manually in a notebook, so when I get back to the piano, I can tryout the new ideas. The thing I like about working this way is that it forces me to imagine keyboard in my head.
I also just got Practiceopedia and Scales Bootcamp (paperback only), so I've been starting to browse through them when I'm away from the piano. I'll work out ideas in my notebook and use them the next time I practice on the piano.
I also bought the electronic versions of two books, which have matching YouTube videos online. The books by themselves are kinda dry, but with the videos, it creates a nice rhythm to absorb the information, a lot of information sank into my brain. These are the two books:
"A Piano Chord Book You Can Actually Use!" "Piano Scales, Chords & Arpeggios Lessons with Elements of Basic Music Theory"
We are the music makers, And we are the dreamers of dreams.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 10,512
Yikes! 10000 Post Club Member
|
Yikes! 10000 Post Club Member
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 10,512 |
wHEN I FIRST GOT THE COMPUTER (still can`t handle typing) in 2008 I got it for cheap train tickets. Then I saw what was on it and its potential for art (painting) and music (recording). plus of course, videos associated with music and everyday pastimes.
I always wanted to record, but the fear factor was high. But I did it eventually, including some of my own stuff; did the painting bit too (that`s wonderful, you don`t get yer hands mucky) and now . . . it`s the recitals and similar. Like moving up a gear, sort of enforced practice.
And when a song`s recorded, I`m pretty much through with it . .!
It`s all good.
"I am not a man. I am a free number" " "
|
|
|
|
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 699
500 Post Club Member
|
500 Post Club Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 699 |
I'm probably the last person on the planet to discover Kenny Werner and Effortless Mastery. But im glad I did. While I've been delving into music since the early eighties, KW speaks out about what took me twenty or thirty years to arrive at: It don't matter at what stage of your "mechanical development," one can cash in on it at most any stage. PLAY! Let yourself win. I've taken this to excess. Even with a new instrument to me, like piano, I actually practice very little. I'm having too much fun. I know it's not a contest. I know I'll gain techniques eventually. Yes, I record stuff. It makes one concentrate on production and arrangement. I know if I stink, all I have to do is back up until I don't stink. Even if it's the simplest song in the world, back up and enjoy not stinking. Enjoy the feeling off, "I got this." One can do this at most any stage of the game. And I do.
nada
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 223
Full Member
|
Full Member
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 223 |
I listen to as many different interpretations as I can find and think about how each interpretation makes me feel, what techniques the performers use, what I would change. I like reading about the composers and try to imagine what it might be like for them when they are writing the piece--were the young and just moved across Europe, old and crotchety.
I search Piano World for people who have discussed the piece or recorded the piece.
I try to study the theory behind the music, but I'm not very good at Music Theory. I suppose it's something I need to spend more time on.
Working on Beethoven's Appassionata Sonata, Mvt 3.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Piano
by Gino2 - 04/17/24 02:34 PM
|
Piano
by Gino2 - 04/17/24 02:23 PM
|
|
Forums43
Topics223,405
Posts3,349,434
Members111,637
|
Most Online15,252 Mar 21st, 2010
|
|
|
|
|
|