Grade 3 stuff

I cant believe how long it has been since I posted on here.  I guess it's because I have been trying to get in as much practice as I can with all the new things that I have to do for grade 3 now.  Since my last post I have listened to a lot of pieces that I had to choose from for my exam.  I had to choose 3 List pieces and 2 Extras.  It was pretty hard to decide.  When I listened to all the pieces from the Series 15 and 16 books they all sounded so hard, but I found that I am very drawn to the melancholy type pieces and also the blues style pieces.  I finally decided on which ones I like the sound of the most and narrowed it down to these.

List A: Abenddammerung (Evening Twilight) by Stephen [Istvan] Heller
List B: Adagio by Carl (Heinrich Carsten) Reinecke
List C: Princesse Lointaine (The far-off princess) by Pierre Sancan

My Extra pieces I have chosen are as follows:

Extra 1: Midnight Snack by Sonny Chua
Extra 2: The Enchanted Castle by Ede Poldin

I took a liking to all of these from the first time I heard them, which I think really helps once I learn the notes and then can add character to them all.  They are all fairly slow except for the Midnight Snack piece.  It has a more jazzy feel to it, but is quite fast for me.  It is also a tricky one because it is in 7/8 time, a timing that I have not come across before.  Very challenging but fun piece at the same time.

I really love Princesse Lointaine.  It has a bizzareness about it which grabbed my attention straight away.  I love playing this piece so far, but at the moment, dont do it any justice.

I am finding the fingering patterns in Abenddammerung quite tricky.  There are a lot of four finger chords in the left hand which over lap what the right hand is playing, so I have to make sure that my right hand stays up and out of the way of the left hand.  I have a small hand so some of the four finger chords are posing a challenge for me that I physically cant reach.  I have had to improvise with my right hand to make up the chords in bar 15 as it is way to big a stretch for me, but it wont stop me playing it.

My technical work is coming along too.  My teacher has given me some different techniques to apply to my scales.  Different ways of approaching them.  I have also got hold of a Czerny studies booklet which has some really good finger exercises to help me strengthen my weaker fingers.  They really do work my hands well.

I have also been working through the How to Blitz Grade 2 theory booklet for the last two terms and my teacher has given me soom mock exams and is happy with the knowledge that I have of it and has now started me on the How to Blitz Grade 3 theory.

Above all of this though I have, during that time, bought a new Roland digital piano and I cant express how wonderful it is to play.  It is so much different to the other two keyboards that I had.  The touch is so sensitive.  I am hoping that it will help me greatly improve in the volume area of my playing because that is such a vital part of bringing out the feel of the piece to the listener, a skill of which I need much improvement.  So now I have no excuses.  I now sit at my piano with a little of the joy of what a good piano play might feel and not just look at it and feel overwhelmed by its greatness.  Not that I am a good piano player as yet but it doesnt feel like such a daunting task but more of a time of small achievements for me.

A new year

We are now well into the new year.  All the festivities are over and done with, but I really haven't done much practice piano wise over the break.  I think its because I feel a bit lost now, having done the exam and passed, it seems that even though I have been given some things to have a try at over the break, I have only just had a little bit of time at the piano.  Lessons start back on the 5th of Feb so my motivation will pick up then.  They may be expensive but I realise that that is what keeps me progressing and pressing on. 

I am looking forward to starting with all the new stuff, but it looks quite a lot harder than the previous work.  I still haven't decided on all the pieces I want to do yet but I have both the series 16 Grade three book and the Getting to grade three work book, by Hal Leonard.  These both contain pieces that I can choose from.  I am still trying to get hold of the Hanons exercise workbook which I have ordered but it hasn't come in yet, and I have a sight reading book waiting for me to pick up when the Hanons book comes in.  I am hoping that these will help me improve the technical side of my playing.

I have had a try at some of the new scales that I have to learn, those being B flat major, F sharp minor, in similar and contrary motion.  I now have to do my scales in staccato as well.  I had a short try of a couple of bars of one of the pieces that I like, but apart from these I haven't really done much but that will all change by my next post.