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Can anyone here play a musical instrument?

Off Topic » Can anyone here play a musical instrument? (Posts 61 to 90 of 106)

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      CommentAuthorDemetris
    • CommentTimeDec 26th 2012
    Get your children some formal musical education and guidance, you will be surprised by the results!
    Love Maintitles. It's full of Wanders.
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      CommentAuthorBregje
    • CommentTimeDec 26th 2012
    Thank you all very much for your replies, especially Christopher! You gave me a lot of insight in this subject.
    I will keep you all posted.
    smile
  3. My pleasure smile Playing the piano is a passion of mine. I think everyone should do it! By the way, how old is your daughter?
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      CommentAuthorBregje
    • CommentTimeDec 26th 2012
    She is twelve (and a half) years old. Too old to start to become a professional I guess? wink

    What I like about your story is that you have two experiences actually, your own and your brother's. I agree that the most important thing is to keep the enthusiasm alive.

    Thinking about it, a bit of pushing is not wrong, we do that in school all the time. I know there are some educational people who think all learning should come from inner motivation, but a child can not over see everything we can and sometines they have to go through difficult stages and not quit because of that. So motivation is a wonderful thing but we cannot do everything we do fully motivated all the time.

    But for now, she said she would like to have lessons perhaps, so we could try some lessons to see what it's like. If it turns out she has a bit of talent it could do wonders for her self esteem as well.
    • CommentAuthorJosh B
    • CommentTimeDec 27th 2012
    Bregje wrote
    She is twelve (and a half) years old. Too old to start to become a professional I guess? wink


    Nah. But then, she probably doesn't want to be a professional. It's a tough field and to get that level of technique, you have to practice at least three hours a day. wink

    (I was up to four in my college years.)
  6. Bregje wrote
    Thinking about it, a bit of pushing is not wrong, we do that in school all the time. I know there are some educational people who think all learning should come from inner motivation, but a child can not over see everything we can and sometines they have to go through difficult stages and not quit because of that. So motivation is a wonderful thing but we cannot do everything we do fully motivated all the time.

    This is a very wise paragraph.

    At 12 she has plenty of time to become proficient, and I think her maturity will serve her well, compared to younger students who will take longer to learn than she will. I hope the lessons work out well! I think piano lessons served me well in lots of aspects of my life. I'm really grateful for a mom who forced me to practice as well smile
  7. Josh B wrote
    Bregje wrote
    She is twelve (and a half) years old. Too old to start to become a professional I guess? wink


    Nah. But then, she probably doesn't want to be a professional. It's a tough field and to get that level of technique, you have to practice at least three hours a day. wink

    (I was up to four in my college years.)


    Man, you must be really good. That's awesome. What are you doing with it now?
    • CommentAuthorJosh B
    • CommentTimeDec 27th 2012
    Man, you must be really good. That's awesome. What are you doing with it now?


    While in college, I took stock of my options, decided that a solo career wasn't for me and went into accompanying, working with instrumentalists and especially, with singers. It's much less lonely working with other people one-on-one and I'm not forced to travel from city to city, living in hotel rooms.

    I still play solo pieces, though. I'm a big of sticking one of them on a recital I'm doing with another singer. Gives them a break and me a chance to show off a little. wink
  9. Are there any recordings of you playing on youtube or anything? And can you play the final mvt. of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata? That's a piece that I tried to tackle recently and gave up on. I'm too out of practice, I fear.
    • CommentAuthorJosh B
    • CommentTimeDec 27th 2012
    Sure, I have a few up. Here's some Bear McCreary (which got recognition from the composer himself, very flattering): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HPbiSb1QaM

    Debussy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6xNRfDzn4Q

    When I was a teenager, I spent a great deal of time just playing through all the Beethoven sonatas. Not necessarily well but I wasn't looking to perform them. I was just having fun and as a result, I became a really good sight-reader (which has helped me immeasurably in my work as like studio musicians, I often have to play pieces that are put in front of me for the first time). The downside is that I never took the time to properly learn those sonatas for performance. So while I've played that final movement many times, I'd never have the balls to actually record it. wink
    • CommentAuthormarkrayen
    • CommentTimeDec 27th 2012
    Thanks Christopher for an insightful read on the previous page. I'm fascinated by reading about the value and necessity of piano lessons, as seen from the "outside" by those who have little or no experience with them. But I'll join you on advocating the importance my education has had for me. I am lucky to have played with many teachers over many years, and many of them have been exceptional. Many encounters with my teachers have inspired, changed, or even revolutionized my musical "thinking", and sometimes it can genuinely feel like a spiritual gaining of insight. Obviously, I'm strongly biased towards the question of what value lessons have, since I've not been able to imagine doing anything else than music since the age of 15, so I won't try to answer it by strength of my own experience! Still, the enrichments of musical sciences Ive encountered through the direction of many deeply talented individuals, and the education I've had in piano, has left me with a deep respect for the general dicipline of music pedagogy and the blessing of having good teachers.
    www.markcandasamy.no
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      CommentAuthorDemetris
    • CommentTimeDec 27th 2012
    Piano lessons, regardless of the solo musical instrument, will give them a wider spectrum on all things music; more spherical understanding of harmony and rhythm as well as melodic phrasing which is much more difficult to realize in other instruments; the fact that the piano has an enormous range and also an optical representation of the whole thing helps tremendously. Also the dynamic range is vast in the piano, unlike other instruments. Overall adds crucial general understanding on music and helps musicians of all kinds immensely.
    Love Maintitles. It's full of Wanders.
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      CommentAuthorBregje
    • CommentTimeDec 28th 2012
    Demetris wrote
    Piano lessons, regardless of the solo musical instrument, will give them a wider spectrum on all things music; more spherical understanding of harmony and rhythm as well as melodic phrasing which is much more difficult to realize in other instruments; the fact that the piano has an enormous range and also an optical representation of the whole thing helps tremendously. Also the dynamic range is vast in the piano, unlike other instruments. Overall adds crucial general understanding on music and helps musicians of all kinds immensely.

    Good point D.
    I experienced this the last couple of days while playing a bit on the keyboard. It seemed to me that piano is an easier instrument to play. By that I don't mean it's easy to play but I mean what you just explained very well, it's visually clear what you do because the notes follow up in the keys and you can play many chords and harmonies. Very different from guitar or whistle, the two instruments I have some experience with.
  14. Josh B wrote
    Sure, I have a few up. Here's some Bear McCreary (which got recognition from the composer himself, very flattering): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HPbiSb1QaM

    Debussy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6xNRfDzn4Q

    When I was a teenager, I spent a great deal of time just playing through all the Beethoven sonatas. Not necessarily well but I wasn't looking to perform them. I was just having fun and as a result, I became a really good sight-reader (which has helped me immeasurably in my work as like studio musicians, I often have to play pieces that are put in front of me for the first time). The downside is that I never took the time to properly learn those sonatas for performance. So while I've played that final movement many times, I'd never have the balls to actually record it. wink


    Cool! You're very good, Josh. Your piano is beautiful, too. It's hard to tell over Youtube, but I'm guessing it has a really nice sound. Was that your arrangement of the McCreary piece? That was very impressive! It's awesome that McCreary awarded your performance. I think it was well deserved, though. So does accompanying pay the bills? Is that your full time profession, or do you have to do something else to make ends meet?
  15. markrayen wrote
    Thanks Christopher for an insightful read on the previous page. I'm fascinated by reading about the value and necessity of piano lessons, as seen from the "outside" by those who have little or no experience with them. But I'll join you on advocating the importance my education has had for me. I am lucky to have played with many teachers over many years, and many of them have been exceptional. Many encounters with my teachers have inspired, changed, or even revolutionized my musical "thinking", and sometimes it can genuinely feel like a spiritual gaining of insight. Obviously, I'm strongly biased towards the question of what value lessons have, since I've not been able to imagine doing anything else than music since the age of 15, so I won't try to answer it by strength of my own experience! Still, the enrichments of musical sciences Ive encountered through the direction of many deeply talented individuals, and the education I've had in piano, has left me with a deep respect for the general dicipline of music pedagogy and the blessing of having good teachers.


    Well said! My musical education pales in comparison to yours, so I'm honored that you would find my post insightful.
    • CommentAuthorJosh B
    • CommentTimeDec 29th 2012
    Cool! You're very good, Josh. Your piano is beautiful, too. It's hard to tell over Youtube, but I'm guessing it has a really nice sound. Was that your arrangement of the McCreary piece? That was very impressive! It's awesome that McCreary awarded your performance. I think it was well deserved, though. So does accompanying pay the bills? Is that your full time profession, or do you have to do something else to make ends meet?


    Thanks, sir. The piano is my prized possession. It takes up half of the living room but we prioritize. wink And no, that's McCreary's arrangement. He released a book of pieces from BSG a few years ago. In the case of the piece I played, it was originally written for piano so it's not even an arrangement.

    I pretty much make ends meet, although I'm not close to well off. It's one of those tradeoffs where I'd rather be happy with what I'm doing (albeit never going out to eat or most other luxuries) rather than rolling in dough but miserable.
  17. Josh B wrote
    I pretty much make ends meet, although I'm not close to well off. It's one of those tradeoffs where I'd rather be happy with what I'm doing (albeit never going out to eat or most other luxuries) rather than rolling in dough but miserable.


    :respect:
    • CommentAuthormarkrayen
    • CommentTimeDec 31st 2012
    Great stuff, Josh! The excellent performance of the McCreary piece deserved a better sound recording. Respect indeed smile
    www.markcandasamy.no
    • CommentAuthorJosh B
    • CommentTimeDec 31st 2012
    Doing an audio recording of it would have been easier, actually (along with better sound quality). Instead of being forced to get a five minute piece done in one take, I could have done some splicing. I think that particular video recording was take 4 because every time I made a noticeable mistake, I had to start over from the beginning (usually with violent swearing). I also made my life harder by not adjusting the pages in a way so that the turns weren't as perilous. wink

    But thanks!
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      CommentAuthorBregje
    • CommentTimeDec 31st 2012
    Just wanted to let you know that I taught myself the following things. By the way, playing is very addictive. The worst thing is I really don't have time for this! There is work to do, things that need to be finished in a week and work for my studies as well, brrrr, but I just have to play a bit each day. Some days last week that bit was two to three hours. Yeah I know this all started with my daughter, but here is my own update:

    The first piece is Davy Jones. I tried that a while ago because I wanted to make a music box, but then I gave up. Later on my daughter discovered the synthesia clips on YouTube and said to me hey, now you can finish that song you started trying out! And because we have two weeks of now, we brought the keyboard downstairs and then my new addiction started. I can play this till the 1:12 mark, which is enough for me so this song is finished haha:
    http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SjB-_ejiKH4

    Then I started practicing and repeating The Misty Mountains. I can play till the 0:22 and I can play all the chords till 1:00. I do not play all the short notes obviously but I do chords instead plus the melody. Makes sense? I also cannot play it full speed but very slow... Now I have to glue the chords together nicely, that's what I practice each day. But I am proud that it really sounds like the song:
    http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=z9FtB2fnL7A

    I started Una Mattina because it looked simple but it is not. I practice each day and it gets better:
    http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tIznIhfiL3o

    And because I am driving my kids nuts with playing the same stuff over and over again I wanted to surprise Julian with some Deadmau5. I did the four chords of this one:
    http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=e4y_aFRRdek

    I'm curious what will happen after my weeks off... Perhaps I don't touch the keyboard ever again, perhaps in the next weeks off (february or may?), perhaps I keep playing a bit every now and then.

    Was this interesting to read to anyone? It really is an obsession to me at the moment haha. smile
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      CommentAuthorBregje
    • CommentTimeJun 22nd 2013 edited
    Almost summer break, so time for keyboard again!
    I'd love to buy a piano but we measured our living room several times and a piano would mean letting go of important furniture such as part of the couch or our cupboard. Quinn (who wants a piano too) offered to put the cupboard in her room in the attic, but then we would have to go the attic each time we need a plate or a cup!
    wink

    Anyway, I wanted to ask if Mark Fowler and Noud van Harskamp are members here perhaps. I'm enjoying their film music piano pieces on YouTube a lot.
    smile
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeJun 22nd 2013
    Silly question, maybe, but why not put the piano in HER room?

    Oh, and wave. Nice to see you again! smile
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorSarah
    • CommentTimeJun 22nd 2013
    I don't i am completely musically untalented outside of my head, But i happen to know Steven plays the Pia Pia Piano wink
    "Class is having lunch with the homeless and dinner with the Queen."
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeJun 22nd 2013
    Lies and slander!
  25. Sarah abd Steven have a history. What's the story?

    popcorn
    Bach's music is vibrant and inspired.
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeJun 22nd 2013
    You don't want to know...
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      CommentAuthorSarah
    • CommentTimeJun 22nd 2013
    He's the most talented piano player i've seen, and i've watched Britains Got Talent biggrin

    He's also going to stab me for telling you But seriously he's goooood
    "Class is having lunch with the homeless and dinner with the Queen."
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      CommentAuthorBregje
    • CommentTimeJun 22nd 2013
    Steven, why are you blond?
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeJun 22nd 2013
    Captain Future wrote
    Sarah abd Steven have a history. What's the story?

    popcorn


    Indeed. Secrets of the maintitles board....intriguing.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeJun 23rd 2013
    Bregje wrote
    Steven, why are you blond?


    It's white!

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