Piano Guidance
Piano Guidance
Photo: George Becker
Its texture is homophonic because the chords accompany the dominating melody. There are elements of the work that are very enjoyable. The song was written and dedicated to Countess Giulietta Guicciardi, a student of Beethoven.
Transponder key (Chip Key) is a key equipped with RFID (radio frequency identification) chip inside its plastic head. This technique prevented car...
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The Average Value of a regular, unrestored Upright Player Piano varies from about $200-$2000, depending on the type/quality of the cabinet and the...
Read More »Ludwig van Beethoven was born December 16th, 1770 in Bonn, Germany. His early training came from his father and local musicians when he was young. He earned money as a teenager working as an assistant to his teacher then was given half of his father’s salary from court musician to care for his younger brothers as his father became an alcoholic. He played viola in orchestras and began to take on commission from compositions. As a member of the court chapel orchestra, he traveled and met members of nobility. Beethoven moved to Vienna in 1792 to study with Franz Joseph Haydn whose humor helped form Beethoven’s style despite their rocky relationship. He began a composer and pianist career in 1794 and around 1800 began to notice his gradual deafness. Beethoven had antisocial tendencies and in his later years was plagued by personal problems including many failed romances and a custody battle over a nephew. He had a period of compositional inactivity from about 1811-1817 then came back. His later works contained an exciting quality in which many have found magical significance. The piece was originally called “Quasi una fantasia” which translates to “almost a fantasy” but was renamed “Moonlight Sonata” after Beethoven’s death by Ludwig Rellstab as the song reminded him of reflected moonlight off Lake Lucerne. Today it remains the title. One stylistic feature of the piece includes its rapid progressions. The sonata does not follow the traditional movement arrangement of fast-slow-fast-fast. Instead, it’s first two movements are slower and the third movement picks up rapidly. The writing has many fast arpeggios and strongly accented notes along with some quiet and weaker notes. The piece overall is terraced dynamics because the first two movements don’t gradually work into the rapid progressions of the third movement. The mood in the song changes from slow and sad sounding to fast and upbeat. It contains a variety of melodies and rhythms and the tone color sticks to only the piano. The crescendos and decrescendos are not predictable in the piece because the transition between versus is not smooth. Its texture is homophonic because the chords accompany the dominating melody. There are elements of the work that are very enjoyable. The song was written and dedicated to Countess Giulietta Guicciardi, a student of Beethoven. Soon after their first few lessons, the two fell in love and he proposed to her. Although she was willing to accept Beethoven’s proposal, forbiddance by one of her parents prevented her from marrying him. That information makes one look at the song in a different way of how it conveys emotion and makes it more personal and easier to connect to. The third movement was definitely the most enjoyable because of its mystery and fast progressions. The first two movements do not prepare the listener for what happens in the third movement. The piece is also very interesting to watch as it is being performed.
Kurt was known to use Dean Markley strings, gauge . 10-. 52. He used Dunlop Tortex Standard picks, orange color.
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Although the number of possible melodies is finite, it is so very large that for all practical purposes, the supply of new tunes is infinite. Nov...
Read More »Whenever someone says something like, "I have my grade 6 in piano", they're likely referring to one of two music schools: The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM)
Linked above are full videos and blog posts detailing these three music schools. Basically, these schools divide piano music (or whatever instrument you're learning) into difficulty levels ranging from preparatory (RCM) or grade 1 (ABRSM) up to grade 10 (grade 8 for ABRSM). Beyond that point are the diploma levels. These schools not only give a list of music appropriate for each level, they also have an examination system in place so that you can test your skills and get certificates. I encourage my students to take exams, but even if they choose not to, I still use these systems as a way to gauge what level a student is at, and what music is appropriate for them to learn at their level.
Dear [name of teacher, professor or manager/HR team], I wanted to let you know that I've been struggling with my mental health recently [you may...
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Pianoforall is one of the most popular online piano courses online and has helped over 450,000 students around the world achieve their dream of playing beautiful piano for over a decade.
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75% is the common name given to keyboards that have a compact layout, roughly 70 to 75% of the width of a full-size keyboard, but retain the F key...
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The 16 best pieces EVER written for piano Beethoven – 'Moonlight' Sonata. Clara Schumann – Piano Concerto. Debussy – Clair de Lune. Chopin –...
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