Instrument players - come and chat!

[NeverEverAnythingEver]

I thought we could have a thread to chat about playing! I play the piano (not as badly as I fear but not as well as I hope) and have recently tried my hand at chamber music. Would love to hear what other people are doing.

CoteDAzur Here's a picture of the instruments they used in Rameau's Dardanus.

Ah sorry, that should have been from Nouvelles Suites de Pièces de Clavecin, the last of his three sheet music books.

I love the fold up harpsichord! Is there nothing the super rich Italians wouldn't do to show off? The dinky clavichord too, his thread is bringing so many things back to me that I'd forgotten.

Well if I can now say one thing I've learned about Rameau that man really loved an ornament. That second piece is beautiful Cote, we are going to have to build a new cupboard just for sheet music at this rate but that's no worry, DS3 is starting lessons too now so we can all make the most of them.

I've spent the last 24 hours learning Clowns Never the notes are actually not hard to master it's just having the guts and gusto to launch and hold on until the end! Great fun.

This is the next piece I want to master from my Neugasimov book, although I left the music on the piano and DS2 has annoyingly nailed it already. His hands are bigger than mine though for the L hand stretches, so unfair!

Do you use any particular study method Mrslant? I have got very old copies of vol 1 and 2 of this, vol. 2 is no longer available.

I also use Cerzny's studies. I love them but I am not sure if they are encouraged these days, they were still used by my teacher in the 70s (Mum) and my teacher as an adult but she was older too.

I don't do exams though so just buy books I like the look of or that are recommended. Kasschau does tutor books too which I used when I started playing again here.

Extracts from book three and four. As someone who had forgotten almost as much as I ever knew I started at book three - I really enjoyed the text.

I don't have any study method at all Barchester! I hadn't even thought about it. I have a piano, music and hands plus the ability to read music I suppose. I've only been playing about 6 months and had two lessons before my grade 2 exam just to get some hints but she said my pieces were absolutely fine, they would have been distinction level if I hadn't been a bit thrown by the exam. It's probably a very bad way to go about learning the piano! I'll ask DS2's teacher what she recommends. I want to learn to 'play the piano' not 'pass piano exams' there's a whole difference there really. The Kasschau books look great, I wonder if I'm good enough to launch in at book 3 or should try 2 first? I am definitely someone who needs motivating by exams though, I'd have thought your maths brain would need everything quantifying too .

I am not that brave, I was a model pupil back in the day and at least can think of myself as a very rusty player who did gr8 at some point in history.

I found myself playing things that I loved that used to be easy and making them sound nice, but, I knew that my method was not perfect. It only talks a couple of weeks of wonky fingering to make it a habit.

So I went to see my examiner friend (we used to play wind/piano together for fun) and bought Kasschau on her recommendation. Then I unearthed my old study books and got cracking on those. They are fab for building technique. I love technical studies, some are absolutely lovely in their own right.

Cerzny or Hanson or Kasschau, have a look there are lots to choose from. Mine are old versions but Amazon have loads.

Hanon not Hanson.

I like the idea of "The School of Velocity"

I don't know if people still do them at all, my Mum is 80 and my friend is 70, so it could be an ancient thing, I love them though.

I have just checked a few of my books and none of them have an ISBN number so they are pre mid 60s . Told you it was a historic method .

I would be interested to hear if anyone else uses them.

Look at this on you tube.

m.youtube.com/watch?v=X8hHPZBznDg

I have similar for flute. I HATED them when I was doing my diploma, I'm sure my teacher gave me the evilest practice ones for no real reason other than to make me miserable.

Very tempted by the piano ones, it's like the composer I mentioned up thread who thinks all pianists should play Bach once a day good discipline and technique enhancing.

Not allowed to watch YouTube yet as The Hobbit is on TV!

I remember Hanon exercises and Czerny ones but DS1 doesn't do any of them... I used to like them. But then I used to love playing, even scales...

I missed that about Bach, I was taught to keep my Well-Tempered Clavier volumes with the Cerzny et al. books by my mother and use them in the same way .

She was quite demanding looking back. In fact it was bits from WTC that made me seek help from my examiner friend, things I once found v easy to get right.

I love scales. Really properly love them. I'm sure it's a maths thing! Ex-h was here when we were practicing and he had a moment of inspiration of how they worked, making the 'gaps' between the notes even from watching C major on. He's a really good mathematician but can't read music. Sings well though, but if you tell him I said that I'd have to kill you .

Must get WTC. Not a demanding mother though, the piano ended up in the hallway because the room it was going into was being painted and it's stayed there because they can't walk past without playing. I have ended up stopping them after a certain time because it drives me crazy! DS3 taught himself the R hand of Clowns today and has played it so many times I want to kill him. Well not really . The sooner he starts actual lessons the better. I know this is a thread for us but I am so in love with my honkey-tonk sounding free piano because all three of my DS' have started playing (even the oldest one) because it's there. DS1 plugs his earbuds in and uses an iPhone app to teach himself the most amazing melodies. He gets them from the piano tiles game he has then downloads the 'how to play' instructions. What a different world to the one we all started in.

Just like the horrible flute practices I was given!

We've been out and about. I haven't touched the piano for days, but has got the tune of one of the ensemble pieces we might try out in my head everyday...

MrSlant There's a thread about children's musical education and activity, if you haven't seen it yet. Lots of knowledgeable people there. [[https://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/extra_curricular_activities/2892005-April-Music-Thread]]

Not sure what happened to the link but I think it works.

I've seen that thread, I goes so FAST! I want to be on it but there are so many people and names and really good little musicians. I dip in and out of it but haven't posted. It's hard not to talk about them on here because we are all doing it together IYSWIM? I do think getting a piano was the best thing we've done as a family (it's just me and the three boys, get's a bit feral as I'm second shortest now so I'm clinging on to discipline by the skin of my teeth ).

I will go over now and introduce myself.

Nooo please don't make this thread about the children! Let's keep it as the one place where we can talk about OUR musical journey

No, promise, this is our haven, too much talking about children everywhere else. I have moved them over to the other thread. Where I am now talking way too much about myself...

Hi all, I play the trombone! Not noticed any other trombonists so far. There's not many female trombone players my age (46) or above as music teachers used to steer towards other instruments, but I absolutely insisted to my music teacher at age 11 that it was the instrument I wanted to play. Still absolutely love it. Used to play in a Championship section brass band but had to give up when I had DCs due to commitment. Now I currently play in a wind band, with a number of ex military musicians (they have so many good stories to tell about where they have played and who for!). I look forward to my weekly rehearsal - it's the best 2 hours of the week.

Topnotes that sounds so cool! I've never seen a female trombone player, either. Have you always played or did you go through a period when you didn't touch your instrument, like some of us on here?

I didn't play at Uni or immediately after for about 6 years, then joined a brass band. I played until I was 6 months pregnant with DS1, then lost my lung capacity, but knew I would have to give up anyway at that point as I couldn't combine the schedule of rehearsals, contests etc with work and motherhood. Then joined the wind band about 4 years ago. But done loads of other group playing as a 'guest' to help out as and when.

Good for you. I'm the same age as you & only went back to playing the piano 3 years ago. I'm kicking myself for forgetting all about it for over 30 years.

Topnotes I am so jealous, most of all I would have loved to play in a brass band. My all time favourite film is Brassed Off and we actually had a brass band play at our wedding! Fantastic to play an 'in demand' instrument as well. There's rather a lot of flautists out there!