Monday--November 18, 2002

I don't think I've been practicing an hour a day. I think Saturday I did but Sunday prob no more than 20 minutes. The Schubert impromptu is coming along. I hope to have the piece memorized before I leave for Chicago. I wonder if Will has been practicing that Beethoven Sonata...hmm. The Sonetto 104 del petrarca is almost learned. I can play it through at almost the optimal tempo. I need to work on the second run and play the notes even faster. Executing the off-the-blocks/liftoff perfectly is like the holy grail. So far I might miss a note here and there; perhaps I shouldn't curl my fingers so much, increase the surface area, although the point of contact is less focused now...but more evenly distributed. Which is a tradeoff. It may be possible to learn and memorize this piece before my trip..although highly unlikely considering that I have a marketing midterm tomorrow, have my marketing presentation and paper to work on (due early next week i think). My accounting project is due this Wed, and I want to attend the piano recital that night too (that means I get to miss my boring ass computer class. I'll have a legitimate excuse. YES!). I have an accounting midterm next Monday, so that means maybe I should go to Tampa on Friday (instead of Ruth Eckerd Hall on Sunday) to the performing arts center for the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto concert. I'll use my piano practice time as stress-relief...study breaks.

There's a Rachmaninoff prelude that I want to learn (after the G minor). It's the G flat minor prelude. It's not that long of a piece, but it does look somewhat daunting.

Wed-November 13, 2002

It's really Thursday now, but since I wanted to (but didn't) write an entry for yesterday, this will count for Wed. I received my Schubert Complete Sonatas for Pianoforte in the mail yesterday. Was so excited that I fell asleep looking for the sonata I wanted to learn--Sonata in A major--D959 (so wish passive diffusion of knowledge would work here!). I managed to play through the first movement (with repeats--i'm not used to them since i've been playing mostly chopin and liszt and other Romantics)...and man, it was long. It felt like playing a movement of concerto. I think a polished playing would take around 14-15 minutes. I probably took around 18-20 (the first movement was surprisingly easier to play (than I had anticipated). Then I played the Andantino (which sounds so awesome!--very slow movement in triple meter (at least in the beginning)...I get the image of someone heartbroken--from a loss of some sort--on a rocking chair...Played a bit of the scherzo after that...which is an interesting movement to play...some notes you think would be played with fingers 2 and 3, i end up playing 3 and 4. And then I played through part of the Rondo. I'm starting to like all 4 movements...before, I guess I only liked the 2nd and 3rd--since it sounded "sexier". I'm not sure how long learning this piece will take me. There are parts where I'm gonna have to bite down hard because it may sound like filler to me. It's possible I could learn this piece before the end of the year. Although I won't guarantee that, since there are other pieces I"m learning/memorizing at the same time. I've also decided which pieces I'm going to learn from now till sometime early next year:

1. Rachmaninoff Prelude in G minor (memorization)

2. Schubert Impromptu Op. 90, no. 3 (memorization)

3. Liszt Consolation No. 3 (memorization)

4. Liszt Sonetto 104 del petrarca

5. Schubert Piano Sonata in A minor D 959

6. Chopin Fantasy in F minor

7. Brahms Rhapsody No. 2

8. Schumann Kleiseriana Op. 16, No. 7

9. Schubert Impromptu in A flat Op. 90, no. 4

10. Liszt-Horowitz Rakoczy Marche (Hungarian Rhapsody No.15)

Not sure if this is a good idea, I guess i'm just sampling a bit right now....with emphasis on the earlier numbered pieces because I'm almost done with those...and I'll move down the list. I think I need to focus on improving my piano technique and expanding my repertoire. That's my priority I guess...the Rachmaninoff Second Concerto could wait awhile...I think I can learn the notes fine, but probably won't play it "well" right now--especially with so many pieces at the moment.

Mon-November 11, 2002

Haven't been practicing much last couple days because I needed to spend those precious two hours of my time cramming for the midterms that I took today. The Schubert piece and the Rachmaninoff prelude in G minor need to be memorized. I also printed out Schumann's Kreisleriana Op. 16, No. 7. It sounds like challenging piece, but it wasn't that bad actually. It's just one of those pieces that sound hard. Of course, playing it well is a different story.

I'm still waiting for my Schubert Complete Sonatas for Pianoforte (Dover edition) to arrive in the mail.

Also, once I'm done learning a couple more pieces, I'll attempt to learn the Liszt-Horowitz Rakoczy Marche (aka Hungarian Rhapsody No. 15)--sounds totally different from Liszt's original work. I like Horowitz's transcription better! I first heard this piece played in this Arcadi Volodos recording that I borrowed from the library. And someone had the music in pdf format posted on the internet...luckily I got it in time (he's since taken it off). It looks more challenging than Liszt's.

Sat-November 9, 2002

I've been practicing an hour each day and I'm making progress. I can get through the Schubert Impromptu Op. 90, No. 3 without any major slow-downs/pauses since I'm more familiar with the notes. Still need to work on the left-hand trills and try not to play 'em too loud. I personally prefer the tempo slower (than Schubert's recommendation or 84). I think right now I'm playing at around 76. I'll probably end up playing it differently each time...playing it at 84 and maybe even slower than 76, maybe 74. I prefer less pedaling with this piece....and hope to play the notes lightly and make the transition from p to pp (forgot which measures these are)...to be very uh...what's the word? Well, you know what I mean. Like when you're jumping from top flight of stairs...and you want the landing to be as smooth and quiet as possible...dampen the noise...delaying the impact? Horowitz pulls this off extremely well in this one recording I have. A friend asked me last night if there might be another artist that I prefer listening to (for the pieces that Horowitz plays)....probably not. Maybe one or two Scriabin etudes by a lesser known pianist on this budget CD I have....i'd prefer over Scriabin's playing of those particular pieces. I may have 5-6 recordings by Horowitz, which really isn't much if you think about it. Like I don't know what his Liszt paganini etudes sound like..don't know how he plays Chopin's piano concerti. For those, I prefer Claudio Arrau...For Beethoven, I like Arrau as well...also Brendel. I like Rubinstein's Chopin also...(esp Polonaises). Horowitz just has a knack for creating a very pleasant, sonorous, and unorthodox sound at the piano bench.

The Rachmaninoiff prelude made my fourth finger (on my right hand) sore...not so much the finger, but the tendon and muscles at the carpals. Probably should rest it for a day.

Wed-November 6, 2002

Practiced Rachmaninoff's Prelude in G minor, Schubert's Impromptu Op. 90, No. 3, Chopin's Fantasy in F minor, Liszt's Sonetto 104 del petrarca, and played a few Mendelssohn's Songs without Words .

I've been playing Rachmaninoff's prelude too fast and I need to do a better job of playing the chords with clarity and maybe try practicing the piece without pedaling. What I find most challenging is "bouncing" back quickly after a succession of 3 chords. This is very difficult to execute on the Yamaha grand (since there's a lot of resistance to the keys) whereas it's manageable on my Steinway upright. With more practice, I should be fine.

With Schubert's Impromptu, I need to play it through many times and work on the left hand trills. Tomorrow I'm going to make markings in the book....and determine which fingers play the left hand notes. I've noticed that I play some notes using different fingers each time, which is probably slowing me down (in terms of memorizing the piece). I think I have the first two pages memorized....and the tricky thing about learning this piece is that it's full of variation of themes....there are subtle differences between the variations....and I have to make a note of how they're different.

I've been putting off Chopin's Fantasy in F minor for awhile now. It's just a lot of chords (that seem foreign to me..a lot of chords) and it takes around 20-30 minutes to run it through once. Should I break it up into sections and practice that way? Like Schubert's Impromptu, it's a series of variations and there are subtle differences among them...As Will pointed out with my recording of the Raindrop prelude, my pedaling needs some major work. With the raindrop prelude, i didn't half-pedal as often as I probably should. So I'll make a mental note of that when I practice tomorrow. Back in March, I heard Olga Kern play this piece....and she played it rather well. In this Notes from the Bench book I recently bought, the author (Berman) writes how the wrist should sway laterally when I"m doing the phrasing. I guess this is similar to the Barcarolle.

With Mendelssohn's pieces...they're fairly short and the ones I practiced sounded like fugues. The pieces are not difficult to play but will be more of a challenge to memorize. I haven't picked out the ones I want to really learn, yet.

Liszt's Sonetto 104 is progressing along nicely. I have to remember what Cathy told me about the pedaling with the b notes and notes adjacent to it....how i should let go of the pedal right after playing B. Did i get this right?

Just practice, practice, practice.