Does anyone fancy a piano chat thread?

[LemonViolet]

I’m awaiting delivery of a new piano, squeee!!! I haven’t played regularly for 20 years. I got to grade 6 as a teen, failed grade 7, carried on tinkering for a bit but have not really lived anywhere with a piano since age 18 so am well out of practice.

Whilst I hope/plan to put a baby grand in our front room, once it is done up - which may be some time - at the weekend I just realised, what am I waiting for, I want a digital anyways for playing at less sociable hours, so went ahead and ordered myself a nice Kawai digital and it arrives on Friday!!!

There’s a music chat thread on the extracurricular board but that’s more parents discussing their offsprings’ exploits, I have seen on the music board it’s quite pianissimo but there clearly are other grown up women around here playing/learning/relearning piano for our own pleasure, entertainment, therapy etc! So thought I’d post to see if anyone else is interested in hanging out on a piano thread to chat about our piano journeys, successes and failures, pieces we like, what we’re practicing etc?

It could be called the piano bar or the pianist beaker, seeing as this is MN

If there is one I’ve just failed to find, please point me in that direction.

If anyone fancies a rip-roaring tune at around g4/5 level I would thoroughly recommend Flood Time by Thiman. It's all arpeggios!

but grade 5 theory is something I never took- it looks hard 😬

LilaGrace I did grade 5 last year and I’m no spring chicken!
I had a brilliant teacher who was very patient and went through stuff over and over again until I understood. Then we did loads of practice papers.
Anyway, long story short, I got distinction which I was delighted about.
The hardest question was four descending minor scales which you had to match to the correct clef. They had one melodic minor which of course descends in the relative major - a completely legit question but it stumped me for ages.
It was done on line because of Covid and I was nearly disqualified as I failed to press the right button before doing a room sweep with the camera. My dh is the techie one but of course no one was allowed in the room when I was doing it.
You can do it! (I would recommend a teacher though, rather than teaching yourself).

@LilaGrace Hanon is an ancient ( reprinted) book of exercises. I hated them as a child but revisiting as an adult is not so bad and I can see the purpose of them now.
I playing for about an hour a day but then I am retired, have no children living here and only am required for grandchild care once a week!
I’ve just listened to Lang Lang play rondo alla Turca on you tube, oh dear, I’ve missed that boat. I can do the first page at half the speed and adapting the consecutive octaves!

@Knittingnanny re Hanon: ah, I see. Kind of like "A dozen a day"? Did you do those? I actually bought those before I started having lessons, mainly for nostalgic reasons! They increase in difficulty in a 4 book series. I've realised whilst practising the Chopin piece just how important finger strength and flexibility is so I'm going to try and stick with them,
Rondo alla Turca- never tried that one but am familiar with its jaunty style. Apparently it's roughly grade 5/6. It's definitely an impressive piece because of its speed, maybe one to work up to?!

@Andante57 congratulations! Distinction is really impressive, and what I'm hoping for too. I've done so many practise books and papers and am currently finishing grade 4 so feel pretty confident with the clefs, key signatures and looking out for sneaky accidentals which change the key signature. This time a couple of months ago I would have struggled to remember any of the key signatures at all so I've made some progress- but I'm surprised at how technical some of the theoretical stuff is. It's actually quite mathematical! My least favourite is grouping notes and rests- there are so many rules and I feel like I'm winging it!
Will you do any further theory or stick with grade 5? How long did it take you from starting grade 5 to taking the exam? I'm going to continue to self teach but can ask my piano teacher if there's anything I don't understand.

LilaGrace I never got the hang of grouping notes and rests!
It took me about two years, though there were a couple of breaks as my teacher broker her ankle and didn’t teach for two months and she went to New Zealand for three months.
My dd was very scornful as she had to cover the syllabus in 3 months .
I have started grade 6 and I’m finding it really really hard and I’m not sure I’ll master it.
It’s the composition rules which have stumped me.
I’m going to see what the teacher says - she did warn me that it’s a big step up from grade 5.

Can I join? I have loved reading through this thread. I am a total beginner at piano although did go up to grade 5 in a number of woodwind instruments in younger years. Any tips on where to start learning/books etc would be appreciated.

Found these today in a trip to the attic! No names of pieces though sadly which is what I was hoping for

Grade7 with merit!

What a lovely find!

I am going to google the death out of the internet til I find out what the syllabus was!

I also found this! Aged 10, how on earth did anyone learn anything in a class of 47!!!!

And I’m sure we all learned to play the recorder!
I’ve also found my first certificate grade 1 piano 1967 so more or less one grade a year.

@Knittingnanny that's impressive! Grade 7 is a serious achievement. Did you stop there or continue on to grade 8? I'd love to find my old certificates but can't face the thought of my parents attic, which is where they are. I've considered asking ABRSM for them though.

Had my first lesson back after the summer yesterday. It was great. My teacher thought the Chopin was coming along really well and said I could start grade 5 exam prep whenever I wanted to. In the meantime can anyone recommend a fast paced grade 4 level piece? My teacher wants to give something fast a go to see how I get on.

Sonatina A Minor by Benda(?). Abrsm I think. G4.

@LilaGrace I didn’t take grade 8 exam as I was doing a level music and had to play other pieces for the practical part of that . Then I did a primary teacher training course with no time for personal development on the piano! Although my main subject was music and the visiting piano teacher was from the neighbouring Birmingham college of music ( now the conservatoire ) we had to concentrate more on the general subjects.

Hi everyone! Inspired by this thread I got my digital piano out of the attic where we put it due to lack of room. I have now MADE room by pushing the dining table halfway out of the dining room and that's where it's going to stay cos PIANO DAMMIT!!!

I only started learning at 25, had a hiatus when the kids were young then took lessons again a couple of years ago but didn't give it the effort it deserved. Was working on G5 when I finished but wasn't in a place where I would have even passed that! So I was expecting a dreadful noise when I played earlier, but good grief I was pleased to say quite a lot has stayed in my fingers!

I'm going to go through some of my favourite old pieces and get them to a good state before I start on something new, I think - I loved them so it won't be too boring. I'm calling it "Project Repertoire Resurrection" :) My first two candidates are Jelly Bean Rag by Martha Mier and Bach's Invention No. 1 in C major, BWV772. Happy days ahead, and thanks to you all for the inspiration!

@Buggerthebotox I'll check that one out, thanks. The ones from the grade 4 syllabus 2019-20 and 2021-22 are uninspiring- well, the fast ones anyway.
@Knittingnanny - you're practically a professional- you must have a huge repertoire of pieces under your belt to be rediscovered!

@BloodiedButUnbowed hello! This thread is very friendly and encouraging and came at a great time for me too, who has just got back into piano after a long break. I'm so impressed with anyone who starts from scratch as an adult! How long did you have lessons for? It's amazing how much comes back, isn't it? I'm going to look up the pieces you mention as I love the inspiration that comes from this. Enjoy your project!

Hello! Can I join you. I've been learning for about five years all in on. Digital piano. I don't give it as much practice as it needs really but I have weekly lessons and I enjoy that. Currently learning berceuse by Faure. I've been doing it for months!

Can I join too? I got to grade 8 as a teen, moved out, and only recently bought a house with enough space for a piano again! I keep sitting down to try and play, but the kids immediately join me and bash the keys

@LilaGrace that’s very kind of you but I think I’m a “ fake” near professional due to my ability to vastly simplify hard pieces and make them sound sort of ok!
My eldest now nearly 40(?!?!) us the only son to take up music as a serious hobby. He was in the infants where I taught and I could see him wince out of the corner of my eye when I played a duff note in assembly!
I may have already told that story on this thread, but I am hoping that piano playing is on the list of things which stave off memory loss and the tendency to repeat stories!

@Knittingnanny: simplifying a hard piece is a skill in itself, though.

@Buggerthebotox thank you!
My first teaching post for a year ( before I moved swiftly to primary!) was in a huge comprehensive school where I was 3 years older than my eldest pupils! I was required to play hymns in whole school assembly without notification of which hymn, so honed my simplification skills rapidly.
The senior teacher leading the assembly was apt to say “ miss knittingnanny that’s a bit high can we have it a bit lower?)
“ of course” replied miss knitting nanny.
I would fiddle around play a few different chords and then play the hymn in exactly the same key as written and no one was any the wiser. Transposition at sight is not a skill I could ever master,

A strange thing happened today in my piano/sewing room. I opened a library book of Mozart sonatas at the B flat one and my fingers seemed to know what to do. After a few bars I knew what was coming next and remembered practising the trills. It must be nearly 50 years since I looked at it as I would have played it as a teenager and I’m 65 in 2 weeks time! It really gave me shivers.
How are you all doing?