Liszt - Sonata B minor (learning notes)

I use Peters Edition.

So far I've "learned" nine pages of this work. By "learned" I mean they are half memorized in middle tempo. They wasn't so hard as I expected.

First page is all about proper mood and rhythm. I use 3-2-1 for sixteens triplets, so they are not a problem to sound light and sharp. I don't worry about thumb on a black key ;).

Passages on the second page aren't so hard too, fluent hand movements are needed but that's all.

At the third page I'm still not sure about fingering, I don't like to use 5-4-3-2-1 fingerings (first group in right hand).

At fourth page there are some triplets, which need more attention. I use 1-2-3 in right hand for them and 3-2-1 in left hand. I think it's better fingering than indicated in the score. Thumb in right hand needs to be fast to get to the octave, but it's easy to have proper clarity and energy. The thumb needs to be really relaxed.
In left hand the 3-2-1 works good, the passage after this triplet it's easier when started from the second finger (2-1-2-4-5 1-2-4-5) because there is one position instead of two.

I was thinking a lot about fingering in right hand in those bars. I decided to start passage (beginning of each bar) from the second finger, so it's 2-1-2-4-5-1-2-3 5-4-2-1-2-1-2-4-5. There is one problem in that fingering, from 5th finger in last sixteen I need to get to the second finger and the interval between them is sixths, which is a little stretchy for me.

Octaves. I like octaves, but there are some jumps in these (especially I don't like 7ths jumps). Pattern is easy. I practice in a few ways:

1. only thumb in right hand
2. only pinky in right hand
3. only thumb in left hand
4. only pinky in left hand
5. thumbs in both hands
6. pinky in both hands

In this kind of octave passages I try to always use pinky on top note, because it's just less thinking about fingering.

This one seems easy, but chords in left hand contains some repeated notes from part of right hand, so this spot needs some attention.

In this spot I can't still decide which notes I should play by right hand, only melody or use a little help in accompaniament too?

 From the third bar in this picture starts some hard section. It needs to be light, pianissimo, but intervals are quite wide. I use thumb instead of the second finger in this figuration - the second finger plays only last note in each group. I'll see if it will be good.

New repertoire

It is a time for a change of repertoire. Recently I received an offer to become pianist on cruise ship. Cruise starts in June, so I've a little time to get ready with everything. I've to learn many new pieces, but I don't need to memorize them - I don't want to talk about them here, these pieces are just known classical, jazz or even from musicals.

But I don't want to abandon advanced piano repertoire. I'll have limited space for scores, so I decided I'll choose one piece which I'll learn during my cruise. I needed a piece with a lot of changes of mood, because I don't want to get bored. And it should be technically challanging and not possible to polish in four months with extensive practice (to compare on Sonata by Schumann I was working for about three months, I was practicing it about hour or two per day). So I decided to take Sonata B minor by Liszt. It's too hard for me I think, but I'll learn a lot. Also I'll take Etudes by Chopin and that's it.

Schumann - Sonata g minor op. 22

Here are recordings of this sonata. It was pretty hard journey for me. I know that I don't want to play Schumann in the future ;). The score is misleading, some spots seem to be repetitive. But getting it all together is something which is main problem in this work.

First movement - it could be more accurate, also I could fix the balance between left and right hand. It's quite hard to show all the voices and not blur them with accompaniament.

Second movement - I don't like my rubato, I could play more freely. Descending from the climax is not good.

Third movement - it looks like I don't have idea how to interpret this one. There is too much "sameness".

Fourth movement - this one was the hardest one for me. The tempo was killing me, still I had issues with slowing down. The notes are pretty easy, but putting this all together in this tempo with necessary clarity is very hard in this one.

Schumann - Sonata g minor op. 22 mvt 4 (1st recording)

Yeah, I know that I should tune my piano. Technican cancelled twice already, so I've to find a new one.

Tempo
 My main problem in the fourth movement of Schumann Sonata is tempo. I think the tempo of the beginning is maybe too slow, but fast enough to be acceptable. The issue is that I'm inconsisient - the rest fast parts of this piece are in slower tempo. To fix it I should practice starting these parts each after each (so playing a few first bars from the beginning, then from next fast part, etc). Also I'm slowing down and for this I'm planning to use metronome. I rarely use metronome, I prefer to just count, but it's so hard to count even to two in this tempo!

Dynamics
Dynamics I think is quite good, I'm very surprised that I can play these piano parts acutally in piano. Maybe I'm wrong, but I think so. I should play more with crescendos and diminuendos, maybe they help me with showing differences between both big parts of this piece (Bb major and Eb major I mean here).

Voicing
Other problem is showing voices, especially in left hand. There are four spots where I should show it without doubt - these two with hoquetus chords in right hand (E major and H major) and before broken octaves. Also I should play more with harmonies, try to hear them more.

Form
I should better understand the form of this piece. Of course I know the form of this piece, but I should hear connections between parts of it. To achieve it I'll play only melodies from each part.

Technique
I should fix my fifth finger in broken octaves, mainly in spots, where it's mixed with the third finger. I should have more energy in my thumb, to make them more melodic (and faster, more energetic). I should practice them using octave chord, to feel where to move my hand also.
Also there are some spots, where left hand doesn't play with right hand, because there are different hand rotations. I'll fix it using rhythms.

Pedalization
Maybe less pedal in parts with hoqetus chords in right hand (E major and H major) - it'll be a nice contrast. And maybe I should start the "Coda" without pedal?

Slow parts
Slow parts are the same and boring. To fix it I should think about things I can show differently in these parts. I'll try to show more left hand in the repeats of motive. Also the dynamics of each voice could be different. And the ritenutos, Schumann wrote them in strange spots, I don't understand them fully.

Articulation
Should be fixed in Coda - I should practice more using staccato.

Memory
I should pay attention to slow parts and differences between them.

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Schumann - Sonata g minor op. 22 mvt 1 (2nd recording)

I think I should think bigger in this piece. I had some break from this before that recording, but I almost remembered the notes ;).

Mainly I should fix kind of mannier of accenting the first beat in bar. Work more on contrasts. And show more left hand, especially where there is some melody. And of course fix mistakes...

Chopin - Etude C major op. 10 no 1 (1st recording)

This was so bad... It was just my first try to play this piece in middle tempo with pedal, but it seems it was slow tempo ;).

From video I see I don't make many serious movements mistakes - especially the writst rotation seems to be quite relaxed. I don't feel any pain. Sometimes I do weird gesture when I start passage - I need to fix it. My main problem are middle notes in passages, sometimes I don't feel them.

I don't see a point in writing which passages exactly went wrong. Mainly these which are wide and this famous A-major. Before that recording the passage C Eb A Eb was the hardest one for me - I use fingering: 1245, but now it's not as hard as A-major.

So I recommend myself practicing more using chords, some rhythms. Practicing passages alone in faster tempo. I've to feel what notes are in the middle of them.

Chopin - Ballade f minor op. 52 (5th recording)

This wasn't so bad.

Overall it started to have some sense for me. There is sometimes a moment, when everything just "clicks" in a brain about certain piece. Of course there is a lot of work before me, practicing piece like this is like never ending story...

Overall I should avoid sameness, and fix the coda. And fixing a coda is probably a mental thing...
I should work more on the first theme motive - to avoid repeating it in the same way. And also those repeated notes - I've some ideas about them, but still I'm not sure.

Issues:

• don't rush in first small culmination, keep tension in bars 51-53
• fix the passage which goes upper in bar 74
• what happen with synchronization in bar 78
• why I can just play right notes in the second theme, especially in bars 88-90 and 96-100
• start the descending passage in right way in bar 101
• listen to left hand in bars 108-110
• don't ruch descending passage - even slow down a bit in bar119
• listen more to left hand in bars 125-128 - this "trill" comes from the main theme.
•  more smorzando in bars 133-134 - feel it
• listen more to "A" in bar 134 - start the b flat softer
• be sure of notes in the whole "fughato" section in bars 135-144
• don't be too indifferent in bars 145-151
• more melodically sixteens (in middle of passages especially) in whole section in bars 152-168
• listen to sounding of chords in bars 173-174
• have more time to finish that phrase in bar 176
• remove manierism - some show differences in bars 177-184
• focus on clean passage in bars 195 and 197 - it's mental thing... Just have mental strength to do it.
• feel the keys in thirds in jumps especially in bars 195-196
• practice starting from bar 217
• play bars 227-231 like waves

Chopin - Ballade f minor op. 52 (4th recording)

I don't know why I'm so nervous, when I'm recording my playing. Today I was focused, but still there were some slips. Usually in spots when I recently changed fingering or something. When camera is on I feel that my fingers are lighter in a wrong way. I just don't feel the bottom of the keyboard. Maybe it's caused by my piano bench - it's too high for my instrument, I can't lower it more. I'll buy new one probably next month.

My stamina is definitely better - my heart wasn't pounding so hard as last time after culminiation in D flat major.

I would say that the section from the beginning to the second theme wasn't so bad. The section at the end, where is the second theme in D flat major also. The worst part was in middle of the piece and I should focus on this part.

So here are my remarks to my recording from today:

Mental issues:

• fix fingering in bar 154
• more clean inbars 161-166
• passages in bar 195 and 197
• right hand in bar 214
• right hand in bar 216

Issues:

• more melody in bars 36-37 in left hand
• don't accent the C in bar 49, it's an end of a slur
• fix double notes in bar 54
• learn the notes in bars 79-99 (hands separetely)
• fix left hand in bar 106
• fix the acciaccatura in bar 111
• fix the descending in bar 119
• what happend in bars 121-122?
• learn the notes in 135-144 (hands separetely)!
• hands together in bar 169-174
• don't accent the beats so much in bar 173
• learn right hand in 177-179
• more top notes in passages in 191-194
• take off the pedal before Coda in 210 
• thirty two note should be played with left hand in bar 220

Details:

• more colors at the beginning - listen to e minor for example (bars 1-7)
• listen to the directions of left hand more in the first theme (bars 8-57)
• don't slow down too much in bar 57
• more clarity in section 58-70
• work more on accelerando in bars 74-75 and ritenuto in 79
• don't play to fast in bars 125-128
• don't slow down too much in 152
• take time in 184
• don't rush in 190
• more stable tempo in Coda (bar 219-224)
• more tension in left hand chords in bars 231-232

Chopin - Ballade f minor op. 52 (3rd recording)

There are some nice things and some bad things, but I think there is an improvement in the most important things - time. I think now it's the time to focus on being free in this music, more rubato, more imagination. Of course the final and the chords before it was a disaster. But it's not about practice sometimes, I believe that these isuess could be caused by mental things. I felt nervous when I played and I wasn't comfortable at keyboard.

Generally after fixing some issues it'll be a time to build a structure of this piece, be more free and give everything to the music.

There are three spots, where I failed:

1. after the second theme, when I couldn't remember the melody in right hand and I had to start passage once more
2. chords before final  - I started the stretto to soon and I couldn't play those chords in this tempo.
3. dotted notes in final - I just didn't practice right hand alone in the final tempo 

Issues:

• learn the left hand in section in bars 46-57
• do a crescendo in bars 58-62 
• shape a phrase in the second theme (bar 80)
• fix the whole section in bars 100-107. I don't know what happend there. Especially pay attention on slurs when the passage is going up and the sixths when it's going down.
• fix the acciaccatura in bar 111
• shape diminuendo in 118-120
• fix the acciaccatura in bar 122
• learn the melody and the second voice in bars 125-128
• pay attention at slurs in bars 135-151
• fix the trill in 161
• fix the passage in bar 163
• fix the left hand in bar 166
• in bar 177 there is sf in left hand
• fix the passages in bars 195, 197
• fix the chords in bars 198-201
• fix the right hand in bar 219 - probably I can't play it in tempo, and it's a spot where everyhing started to collapse.
• fix the right hand in bar 231

Details:

• sing more the beginning, more legato
• think more about the direction of repeated notes in the theme
• more legato in otaves section
• less noise in 58-62
• work on the second theme
• show the left hand in bars 125-128
• shape dynamics in bars 175-176 
• some phrasing in bars 181-191 and accents in left hand
• bar 202 - more time at fermata
• start the final with more power (there is sf and forte)
• left hand should be quieter in the sixteens in final
• the ending passage shouldn't be so etiudish...

Probably I'll practice the whole sections to interpret them alone. The sections with second theme I'll practice together. And I'll count during playing the stretto chords before final.

Schumann - Sonata g minor op. 22 (2nd recording)

Here I see some improvement. I felt comfortable in this tempo (it's about 112), but I want to play a little faster. Piano in sixteens was definitely better - I practised them in light staccato and in very slow legato almost without finger movement. The second practise method can cause lacks of articulation, so careful with that.

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Issues (bar number in brackets is the corresponding number of bar in reprise):

1. Exposition:
• sixteens in second theme are slower (starting from bar 67 {259}) - it's cause that the coda was in the tempo if the beginning
• sforzatos should be more sforzato (bar 1, 36{229}, 38{231})
• don't rush octaves in bars 23 {216}
• in the section which begins in bars 24 {217} dynamics should be different - chords in left hand and upper crochets in right hand should be forte. The rest of the notes I think that the should be mezzoforte till bar 28 {221}
• don't slow down descending motives in 33-36 {225-228}
• the motive in left hand in bar 36-40 {228-232} should be more aggressive
• don't rush octaves in bars 40-43 (especially the sixteen note) - I think it's nice to build the tension here, but it should be hold.
• I don't like staccato in bars 48 {240} and 50 {242}, I have to hear some recordings to know how it should sound. Don't rush the last eight note.
• I don't know the melody in chords in section starting from 48 {240}, so I don't build this small culmination in 57 {249}.
• Second theme in bar 59 {251} is to slow - ritardando is at bar 65 (but not in reprise). In bar 67 I should go back to previous tempo.
• Left hand in 67 - 70 {259-263} is sloppy.
• In 71-74 {263-267} there are some articulation issues.
• 75 - 82 {267-276) is forte
2. Development
• Bar 118-119 is without diminuendo
• More singing in melody in section starting from 121
• Show more melody in left hand in section starting from 138
• Hold on in 146-150
• Fix bars 179-190, some memory lapses.
3. Reprise
• Fix 233 and 235 - there is octave B flat and in the corresponding bar there is B, it shouldn't cause this seizure
• The descending is in forte 267
4. Coda
• Hold on in 302 (don't rush the last note)

Chopin - Ballade f minor op. 52 (2nd recording)

So today I tried to play the Ballade. I felt better than last time, there are spots, where I'm sure what I want to say. Unfortunetely the right pedal in my piano started to squeak and it was bothering me during my performance (of course this is not an explanation of my mistakes). I was struggling with my memory also - recently I discovered that the edition I was using is a piece of junk with a lot of mistakes, for example changed rhytms, some added or removed ligaturas, etc... So my main goal in this week was to fix damage because of this. It's not easy to eradicate this kind of mistakes and I wasn't sucessful in this.

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Issues:

• Fix the bars 46-50 - chords in left hand
• Fix the bar 53 - the chord on the first beat (previous edition mistake)
• Fix the bars 61-62 - fingering in left hand (previous edition mistake)
• Fix the passages in 72-76. Solution: don't rush before, in bar 70 there is a ritenuto, in 72 a tempo, but not more. Accelerando is in the second half of bar 74, so don't play faster before. Learn the line of the upper notes in passage better with left hand.
• Fix the whole section which begins in bar 80, shape a phrase, relearn a notes (previous edition mistake)
• Fix the left hand in bars 106-107
• Fix the left hand in bar 119, just count it properly while playing. Also fix the passage in right hand - practice upper notes more.
• Fix bars 122-124 - just don't crush and don't rush.
• Fix bar 144 - there is no chords in left hand (previous edition mistake)
• Fix the start of the passage in bar 162 and 167
• Fix the lack of pulse in left hand in bars 173-174
• Figure out why I can't play the polyrhythm in 175 when playing the whole piece
• Fix the passages section starting in bar 191, there can't be any slip
• Fix chords in bar 196 and 198-201. Solution: don't rush passages before and take it easy - I think it's the mental thing. If I rush before there is nothing I can to to build a stretto
• Fix the chords in right hand in bar 219 (previous edition mistake)
• Fix the section starting from 227 in right hand - better articulation

Details:

• Do a ritenuto in bar 6, shape the melody more from the beginning
• Less bass in the not-a-"waltz" section, shape the chords
• More legato in octave section which begins in bar 38
• Add proper dynamics to bars 53-56, more time for tenuto
• Section which begins in bar 58 - more singing in melody, melody more like a phrase, less left hand, show some nuances of the second voice
• Ritenuto in bar 70
• Shape melody more in 102-103 and 106-107
• More majesty in bar 125
• In theme starting from bar 129 more calm in left hand, adjust the tempo to the beginning of the piece
• Leggiero section starting from 112 should be lighter, show trill more, let the sixths fly.
• Bars 137, 141, 144 - the repeated notes should mean something
• Motives in section beginning in bar 152 should correspond more with each other
• Shape more the culmination and the final, think more about the pedal

Schumann - Sonata g minor op. 22 mvt 1

Today I decided to record for the first time my Schumann Sonata. I play this piece for a month now, so it's memorized and I worked a little on a details. It's the begininng of the real work at this piece.

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 Issues:

1.  Wrong balance between left and right hand. Some of it may be because my mic is situated on the left side of the piano, but definitely it's my fault too. 
2. There is too much noise in sixteens, not every phrase in middle voices is shown. 
3. I can't hear the difference between piano and forte. 
4. I don't play phrases melodically, there are articulation issues in them.
5. There are too many mistakes. 
6. My fifth finger in right hand is too loud in the sixteen's section before the start of development.

What is good?

1. The pulse is almost good, the tempo changes at the end too. 
2. I've a good clarity and good articulation in sixteens - I would like to have the same articulation, but in piano. 
3. I think it's the right tempo for me now and I don't see any problems in playing it faster in a month (I want to achieve the Kempf's tempo).

What to do?

1. Work on phrases more, without sixteens
2. Practice sixteens in piano - I still don't know how to achieve that. Any ideas?
3. Work on dynamics in phrases, build a dynamic's structure of the piece.
4. Play in middle tempo - no fast practicing.
5.  Fix the fifth finger issue (change of the techniques)

My repertoire

At September I perceived that I devote almost all my practice time to maintaining pieces. I just maintained them, there was no progress both in my playing and in these pieces. So, I decided to drop them. There is no point in playing one repertoire for the whole life...

I decided to start fresh and have a deadline till I have to do the work. The PianoWorld forum helped me a lot in setting up the term. So here is the list of pieces I'm working now and deadlines:

1. R. Schumann - Sonata g minor op. 22: needs to be recorded till 15-th March (for PW Schumann recital), so my own deadline is 1-st March
2. F. Chopin - Ballade f minor op. 52: needs to be recorded till February (for PW recital), so my own deadline is 15-th January.
3. S. Rachmaninoff - Sonata b flat minor op. 36: my own deadline is 1-st May.
4. S. Rachmaninoff - Prelude b minor op. 32 no 10: this one I'll play for PW ABF recital, so needs to be recorded till 1-st February.

Of course it's not the whole list of pieces I play, there are some only for practice purposes: usually Etudes by Chopin and Scriabin.

Chopin - Ballade f minor

At this weekend I decided to record my progress in Ballade f minor by Chopin, because it needs to be ready till February. I started playing it at September, so it's still fresh piece.

At this point I don't feel it ever be ready. When performing I was nervous, instead of creating music. It's very difficult to build the form of it. I think the Ballade as the whole piece is in right tempo, but I don't use rubato as much as I should.

 My critique:

1. Memory lapses...
2. There are some spots, when I have a problem to start in tempo - I think it's beacause of too much slow practicing.
3. There is no form of this piece in my playing.
4. I don't have considered climax in Db major - I didn't build it and I couldn't stop myself. I didn't count it, I think it's the cause.
5. I started the final with wrong articulation and I was tired mentally. I have a blind spot there. It means that I didn't practice it wisely. 
6. The final should be lighter.

 

What to do?

1. Practice the piece as the whole in middle tempo.
2. Practice in tempo spots, which I couldn't start.
3. Consider a tempo in climax, count it.
4. Practice slowly the final.
5. Practice the begininng of the final with the chords before.

Rachmaninoff - Prelude b minor op. 32 no 10

This month I spontaneously worked on Prelude b minor op. 32 no 10 by Rachmaninoff.

What are the main issues?

1. Lack of controlling emotions, which caused lacks in control in octaves and "trills" (one of them was in different tempo, I don't know why).
2. Too little singing in melody, no real phrase, especially in this "stormy" section.
3. Too little control over dynamics in "stormy" section - I played too much ff in the beginning, so I couldn't show climax. It also caused that the sound was rough.
4. Not planned dynamics for the section after "stormy" section.
5. There are some issues with time - I can use it more in climaxes.

I recommend myself practicing slowly with exaggerated dynamics and no emotions.

Ballade f minor op. 52 by Chopin - the final

The final of Ballade f minor op. 52 by Chopin is very peculiar. There is no obvious melody in it, and I believe that it's the hardest part of this piece to interpret properly. At the beginning there is a storm of notes without any direction. In this cascade of sounds there appear seeds of melody and then there is more and more of it. Is the climax in the passages which are going up?

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I think in my playing there is no phrase and too less dynamics. Of course the final is too slow, but I achieved a sufficient tempo to not be ashamed of myself. I should show more melody in it. I can here some manner in the last beats of bars. The ascending passages should have more crescendo - I should start all ascending passages with less dynamics (even piano). The last three chords are not acceptable. I should show more notes in the bass when they matters, it'll give me more color. The thirds should be lighter.

I recommend myself:

1. Practicing slowly with attitude on melody
2. Practice thirds with light finger staccato without tension and in rhythms.
3. Work on dynamics more.
4. Play the bass notes with melody.
5. Think of the phrases.

Sonata by Rachmaninoff - the third movement

I never considered myself as technical skilled pianist, so playing the Sonata op. 36 b flat minor by Rachmaninoff is a big challenge for me. I wanted to play this piece since I heard a recording of Horowitz's performance. It's the reason I choose to play "his" version of it, if I recall correctly, Rachmaninoff heard Horowitz's version and liked it.

I play this Sonata for a half of a year now and I have mostly problems with the third movement. This movement doesn't fit me, but I still want to play it to convince myself that I can do it. This part of Sonata I play for two months, so it's far from what it supposed to be.

I have to be my own teacher, so here are my comments to my recording from today.

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I didn't breath - I think it's my major problem in this piece.  There are obvious mistakes, which were caused by mental fatigue - it started in the second part of it and killed the coda. The tiredness was caused by not breathing enough - when the phrase doesn't breath, the pianist also doesn't. I kneaded some phrases, because I couldn't stop myself.

I can't hear the difference between piano and forte in my recording, it may be caused by quality of camera, but I should pay attention to it in future.

I think the tempo I had chosen was too fast for my knowledge of this piece. I couldn't manage pulse properly in this tempo, because I couldn't count it. It may be even the final tempo for me, I think it's fast enough. But now is not the time for such tempo.

Rubato sections should be more rubato, but with counting, the will be more natural. I should sing more in these spots.

There is no interpretation in my playing, I just played the notes - I think it's my second major mistake. Maybe when I interpret this the phrases will become more understandable and it will be easier to breathe. Nothing had any meaning, which makes this recording not acceptable.

 

I recommend myself:

1. Practice slowly.
2. Practice with counting.
3. Play in a medium tempo a whole movement, don't make mistakes - it's an "exercise" for my mental problems with it.
4. Pay more attention to dynamic marks.
5. Create an interpretation of it, listen to some recordings more.

What's going on here?

It's my piano practice blog. Since I haven't got a piano teacher I have to be my own teacher. So I'll record myself and critique my playing.