Got a couple more for you dudes and dudettes today - some hoven of the Beet variety
Doing the famous Moonlight Sonata (it's correct name being Sonata No. 14 in C# Minor)
I have the 1st and 2nd movement down, and am now tackling the fudgeing ridiculous 3rd movement. I imagine there may be here some advanced pianists, who have been classically trained etc - I say to those people reading this thread now: any tips regarding the 3rd movement? I'm at bar 65 and it's killing me
If you regret that decision, then I urge you to get back on it!! Thanks for watching, I hope my videos inspire you to do it again. I tell you in complete honesty that learning something I have heard, and being able to sit down and listen to a piece through ME MAKING IT HAPPEN gives me a massive buzz, and there is nothing quite like it.
If you have the time available, please, please, get back on with what you regret quitting :)
Thanks for posting these - it's wonderful to hear what you've been working on!
Out of interest, how well does that digital piano register touch sensitivity? Also how's the sustain pedal like?
1st movement:
It seems like you've thought about your melody (awesome!), so I'd focus more on the triplets. They're somewhat overpowering, and should be providing texture. Try playing the triplets just by themselves and see if they sound meaningful like that.
2nd movement - scherzo:
This is meant to be light and joyful or slightly playful (as a contrast to the 1st movement) so make sure that this mood comes through when you play it
Some things to pay attention to:
- you rush a bit in some places - you generally should keep your timing fairly strict
- make sure you're paying attention to where the rests and staccatos are (as well as the phrase ends) and lifting there - this helps give a light and bouncy feel
- this section should generally be fairly quiet, but perhaps a little louder than 1st movement
2nd movement - trio:
To differentiate itself a bit from the scherzo, this one has more of a stately, steady feel to it.
Lifting at phrase ends and staccatos is still important here, but you'll find that you're generally holding onto notes more than lifting, compared to the scherzo.
This section is generally a bit louder than the above, but shouldn't be as overpowering as the 3rd movement.
Make sure you're differentiating between the two styles in the 2nd movement - they're rather distinct and should be easy for a listener to distinguish.
3rd movement:
If you're already up to bar 65, I don't think you'll find anything that's particularly more challenging than what you've done already.
I personally had difficulty with keeping my notes stable/even, some chord jumps required a bit of practising to get right, though you may be different.
Oh, and make sure not to wear out your left arm in the left hand tremolo parts. :P
If you're starting these from scratch By the way, you've done an amazing job considering the time it's taken - excellent job on that!
Thank you again for your detailed analysis! The sensitivity is ok, but what is lacking now is the responsiveness of the keys when I let go. The sustain pedal is ok too.
I've had the first movement down for some time now, but the 2nd movement I learned last week and I do majorly need to work on my technique. Regarding the 3rd movement, my playing up to bar 65 is NOT smooth haha! I have trouble with the octave trills in bar 30 and 32.
Despite this movement being the hardest piece I've ever worked on, the 1st movement of pathetique is the most tiring - by the time I've gone through the repeat of the allegro e molto e con brio section, I'm done lol.
weterr123 Wrote: [ -> ]I have trouble with the octave trills in bar 30 and 32.
Is it mainly the hand span? Or doing the trill/turn using fingers 3-5?
weterr123 Wrote: [ -> ]Despite this movement being the hardest piece I've ever worked on, the 1st movement of pathetique is the most tiring - by the time I've gone through the repeat of the allegro e molto e con brio section, I'm done lol.
Probably the left hand tremolo I'd guess. It's hard to master, but I presume it's just all about ensuring your arm is relaxed whilst playing it.
Finished it!!! Decided to have a go at recording it, and yes it's sketchy - but completed and stored to memory, just needs polishing. Thoughts please :)
Congratulations on finishing it! It's definitely a technically challenging piece and you've done well.
I'd say that timing is rather strict for this piece, so I would suggest trying it with a metronome to ensure that you're on the beat. This will also help you identify problem areas (including pauses, or parts where you're a bit uncertain) so that you can focus on them a bit more.
Keeping your notes even and hands together (ie, staying in control) is generally difficult with fast pieces like this and is something I'd pay extra attention to get right. Perhaps try playing passages slowly, being very critical of yourself maintaining stability, before bringing it up to a faster pace. Practice of scales/arpeggios/broken chords could be of great help if you're like me and don't like practicing those.
But anyway, you make less mistakes than I recall making when I last played this, so well done. I'm sure you're already amazing family & friends. :)
