Calling All Musicians - what is your dream piece?

[NeleusTheStatue]

Do you (or your DCs as in my case) have any dream piece dying to play/learn? It can be your next piece or a piece you are planning to learn in near future, or something big so more of a life time dream.

Having a rather dull day at a dull place (in rain) so just to cheer myself up... It's been very quiet since the breach issue so I may not get any response, but here you go!

I am flying through DS's old music book (well, it's far below grade 1 sort of level anyway...). After finishing the next baby book, I was thinking to move on to The Joy of First Classics just because I have it at home. I remember DS used it between grade 1 to 3 (he didn't take grade 2).

Then someone recommended Adult Piano Adventure. After quick research, I thought I would purchase Piano Adventure Scale and Chord and Adult Piano Adventure All in One Book 1. They seem to have good reviews. Not sure if I am at right level for them though. I like easy books...

I can carry on using DS's old books. Obviously I save money but also I know most of the tunes as DS played them so it makes learning a bit easier (phycologically). However I may enjoy less babish type of books more. Hmm.

I think if anything you might find APA1 a bit basic. Or the first half anyway - you could look at the topic list and sample pages on Faber's website and see what you think. I did some of the kids' PA books with my two when they started and really liked the method and the pieces.

Thanks, thirdfiddle. I've ordered them already. I am impatient when excited... I don't mind going through what I have already known rather than skipping what I should have learnt without realising then suffer later.

Enjoy then! Can't hurt can it. DD ended up doing 3 or 4 complete beginner books between teacher and home, it really set her up with sight reading.

Arrived already! APA1 is coming tomorrow. Love Amazon Prime.

Actually my reading isn't bad, probably because of a good few years of sitting with DS. I used to play with him up until grade 1ish, then stopped playing as decent effort started to be required. I still continued to sit with him when I could until grade 5ish. I gave up trying to read his music after that because it became too hard without lots of effort. I turned into a good audience/PA thereafter.

But that means I am OKish with reading up to grade 5ish.

By sight reading I mean playing at sight. Playing lots of easy to you music should mean you can just sit down and play it right first time, so you're practising sight reading skill. At least, assuming you can't play grade 5 level pieces at sight, if you can PA isn't going to give you much!

I know what sight reading is, thirdfiddle. As I said above, I stopped playing with DS when he started playing grade 1ish because I started struggling to sight read at the level (I always sight read when I played with him until then). When I said 'I am OKish with reading up to grade 5ish', I meant literally 'being able to read up to grade 5ish at ease'. No playing, just reading! So yeah, I need PA. For a long time!

Then I misunderstood sorry - thought you were saying you didn't need sight reading practice because you can read music. If only! My music reading is good, my piano sight reading is dire. Though reading music will mean you can skim over swathes of beginner piano books, they tend to assume you're starting from scratch with notation.
(Is it harder to follow a score at higher grades? I thought it was the playing bit that was harder!)

I'm a very bad pianist, but I'd love to be able to play the 3rd movement of Beethoven's Moonlight sonata - never will though!

I'm much better as a singer and I'd like to learn more Verdi arias, I've not done very many.

thirdfiddle, yes it's harder for me to read a score fluently at higher grades. I can still read it if I'm allowed to take time, or I can be a page turner as I can follow a score, but no, I can't read as fluently. I won't recognise all the notations without slowing down.

My reading isn't great. But it's definitely oddly better than the knowledge in theory (such as harmony) and playing ability, thanks to siting with DS during his early stage of learning.

Hello Echobelly. It seems Moonlight Sonata is proving its strong popularity! Do you have any intention to improve your piano? If so you would have a much better chance to be able to play Moonlight Sonata than me as I am still very, ahem, primitive! I don't really know many vocal works. I would check Verdi. This thread is great for me as it helps me discover some amazing music I am so unaware of.

And, it arrived!