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Re: Omg. It has arrived...
Gombessa
20 minutes ago
Yes, thanks! Responded a bit late as I'm out traveling on business this week! Programming is my first love, though, and I'm still helping my daughter with some of her ideas. So, I have plenty of options to keep me busy. After my own heart. I'm not a swe by trade but have moonlit as one, and frequently wish that was the path I chose out of school. I would have been horrible at it though, so I know where I am now is pretty good for what I can do. But I always kept playing music. So I keep music also as a job option in the back of my mind (maybe more of a dream), just knowing it's one of the harder fields to land a promising career in. Best of luck! Whether it's tech writing, data science or music, pick one you think you can be passionate about, dive into it and commit, and give yourself some real time to develop experience. Then, see where life takes you next!
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Tuning Yamaha CP-70
MSnow
22 minutes ago
Well no matter how I hide piano work continues to find me , so today a request from a touring band to tune their Yamaha CP-70, now believe it not in my 40 years in the business this is only the second request to service/tune this model and believe it or not the previous was in 1986 from Peter Gabriel in the UK just before I moved to Boston to take the tech. position at BU, Peter Gabriel at his converted farmhouse music studio outside Bath UK was having Paul Macartney and Linda over to do some studio work , it’s all true folks , so at that time I was totally an aural tuner, which I may do on this request that came today but wondering if you have any tips for setting FAC on Accu Tuner on these gnarly instruments esp. in the bass with strings barely 24” long….thanks.
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Re: Voicing
Emery Wang
23 minutes ago
Ps: Rick, I tried an old C7 at the piano store yesterday and I can see how it can sound amazing with good voicing. It's a great piano. If your hammers are responding to needles less and less, that sounds like my situation. My last attempt was angel shot voicing that I'd read about in a PTG Journal issue, and when that had zero effect, I knew my hammers were beyond needling. Since the next step was replacement, I figured I'd try modern chemistry first, and it is working so far. But I know that one day the itch to try some new Ronsens or Renner Blue Points will be too great and my wife will be wondering why I'm taking our "perfectly fine piano" apart yet again.
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Re: Interesting link between musical abilities and video games.
thepianoplayer416
40 minutes ago
Interesting study anyway.
I’ve been to gatherings where young people wait for their turns to play the latest video games but… nobody was keen to show off their musical abilities.
While there maybe a strong connection between video games & playing music, people get addicted to video games at the expense of practicing music. There is someone in the family who is probably autistic (being antisocial). He took piano for about a year. The parents allowed him to quit. Unable to attend school due to his condition, he is basically homeschooled. After learning the basics reading, writing & arithmetic, he’d be playing video games. Never touch piano since.
People who are gamers are not necessarily music lovers or enthusiasts. They play guitar hero for fun. Learning to play real guitar chords is for another day.
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Re: Am I imagining this?
Jethro
40 minutes ago
This guy appears to believe dusting a pianos strings makes a huge impact on tone. ArticleThe skeptic in me says what a bunch of baloney. I can see years of neglect can cause corrosive changes from rust, but major changes in tone after dusting the strengths every few days. I say pafooey! Best just to use a toothbrush to one’s ears and THEN you’re on to something.
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Re: First Time Piano Learner: 1990 Yamaha G2 or 2001 Yamaha C1
chromaticvortex
52 minutes ago
I see. Yeah, that makes sense. Hmm. I guess I'd be on the lookout for more wear with the 1990 piano, even if only cosmetically. I wouldn't expect the 1990 to play as nicely as the 2001. But it very well might have a slightly fuller tone, given the size increase. Keep in mind the C1 is already 20+ years old at 2001. That's kind of where I start to think pianos will be wearing out (but every instrument is different). My 1984 Yamaha, when I bought it (4.5 years ago), seemed almost like new to me. So they can definitely last. Anyway, you save space with the smaller piano (which can be a nice thing, depending on your room/house size). Do you have a fairly large space, or more medium? Because C1 very well might be plenty. The showroom is always bigger and can usually flex the muscles of the pianos better than most homes.
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Re: Yamaha's LP1 triple pedal - looking for internal wiring
SouthPark
1 hour ago
I didn't encounter any case (between any pair of pins) that had a spectacular change in resistance ---- such as flipping from 'infinite' resistance to zero resistance, or vice versa. There were even no cases encountered for occurrences of regular resistance (eg. 3k) flipping to zero resistance across any pair of pins. Just for clarification. I meant for the case when a pedal was depressed and/or released. No spectacular change in resistance was seen, such as finite resistance to zero (or the reverse), or even relatively large resistance to zero (or the reverse). I did notice that the depressing of the right hand pedal, and other pedals resulted in change of resistance such as from 3kohm to 2kohm etc. That is - some changes in resistance, which could be considered 'significant' change. The situation will become clear (or clearer) with some more scouting/probing. Will keep looking into it tonight.
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Re: Kawai GL30 or Boston 156?
Emeraldwynn
1 hour ago
Tbh, the Boston 156, appearance and sound wise were love at first sight but again, I’m a newbie. I missed a good deal on a near new 2021 156 over the weekend. If I want this now, I will need to pay full MSRP at $25k. Given this is a 156 baby grand, I tried to compare it with a Kawai GL30 which is 166cm since it is around the same price and both made in Japan and very likely at the same factory but of course ppl are telling me the Boston has better materials. I am not sure can I even compare these two pianos side by side.. but for sure I want to get the best value if I’m paying $25k for a piano as a newbie. Thoughts?
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Re: Recital #66 - General Discussion Room
Rachtoven
Yesterday at 11:59 PM
Some more comments:
13. peterws - Summertime Ended
This was a really interesting and inventive take on Gershwin’s Summertime. I really enjoyed it.
14. facdo - Elegie Op.3 No.1
Beautiful! Both your play and the piano! This is quite an accomplishment and I can tell this piece means a lot to you. I love the Elegie, too.
15. Serge88 - Ballade pour Adeline
This is an entertaining piece and I enjoyed your performance--the ending was played especially delicately.
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Re: Bach little prelude
probably blue
Yesterday at 11:53 PM
For me, I set my metronome then, I do a measure or two and remember the beat and after that I just tap my foot to the beat 🤷♂️
For notes in between beats I just try to match the ones that ARE on the beat. Don’t worry. Eventually, you will need to use your foot for the pedal— so you might consider not using it to tap the beat. If you can’t internalize the beat, stick with the metronome. For easy pieces-forgot to write that. It’s not like I’m doing that for a hard pieces with pedal LOL. For me, I set my metronome then, I do a measure or and remember the beat and after that I just tap my foot to the beat 🤷♂️ That sounds more like using a metronome to set the tempo rather than to keep the rhythm steady. Someone who does not play with a steady rhythm could easily end up tapping their foot to what they play or not tapping their foot steadily. IOW if one is using the metronome to keep the rhythm steady one should generally keep it on while practicing. Ok? (Deleted)
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Re: Playing freely with other Instruments
alexii
Yesterday at 11:16 PM
I definitely do not have a good ear - i just tried doing interval recognition on an app and even using only major thirds, perfect 5ths and octaves, i was still making errors!! Also my knowledge of theory is currently dysfunctional - since resuming playing a few years ago, i have focused solely on playing & learning new repertoire, so i'll have to change that.
So no doubt - the odds were stacked against me. For reference, the first song we tried was unknown to me, but we had a video to listen to. The singer didn't yet have sheet music for it, but had memorized lyrics anyway. The second we tried was Bernstein's "Somewhere" from West Side Story and whilst i could pick out a melody by experimenting, i couldn't work out appropriate chords. (Sheet music of course exists for Somewhere - but i wanted to try without, with a piece i was familiar with)
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Re: Making a book of sheet music into a ring-bound book?
Adagiette
Yesterday at 11:15 PM
I am a little late to the party here, but was inspired by this thread and just picked up my newly spiral-bound copy ($4.25 at Staples) of a book which had been driving me nuts. It is SO much better and I can't wait to smoothly and gracefully  turn the pages (previously I was nearly driven to flinging it across the room). Thanks for the nudge, ShiroKuro!
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Re: Piano buying advice needed
Emery Wang
Yesterday at 11:02 PM
Hi Jak. I've always liked Alamo Music's videos on YouTube, they do a lot of video reviews of pianos and talk about pianos in general. They seem to carry some Chinese brands that tend to be cheaper, as well as the Japanese and other better known brands. San Antonio is about 4 hours away from DFW, but you could check out the Riverwalk and the Alamo while you're at it.
Back to pianos, my friend has a Pearl River upright which I expect was pretty cheap new. I expected it to play and sound mediocre given the reputation I've heard regarding Chinese pianos, and Pearl River is the company's entry line. However, I was pleasantly surprised and really enjoyed playing this piano. So if you're looking at staying around the $4k mark, you may get good bang for your buck in a Chinese piano. Also, not all Chinese-made pianos have Chinese-sounding names, but the guys at Alamo should be able to help you identify brands and where they're made.
A local piano store (I'm in Portland) sells used Samicks, which are about on par price-wise with the Chinese brands. They routinely list full size Samick uprights in the $2k and under range, and another friend of mine bought one. It plays well and with a little voicing should sound quite good. The action also felt good and was not heavy. Make sure to take your son so he can try out the pianos.
Good luck!
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Re: Sound Generators - Quality? Capacity? Options?
Charles Cohen
Yesterday at 10:57 PM
. . . in most cases studio monitors don't sound very good, flat frequency is chosen as a common ground for mastering, but that doesn't mean it sounds good, in fact to most people it would sound harsh and fatiguing. This is a wild over-generalization, and over-simplification, of the "hi-fi speakers vs studio monitors" argument. I haven't seen any studies that would support a "most people" conclusion. There's a free demo of Pianoteq available -- complete, except for a few silent notes. You might put it up on your computer, and use whatever MIDI keyboard you have now, to drive it. You might like it, or not -- but some experimentation would give you insight into what's available.
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Re: A mysterious and irritating phenomena..
Rallent
Yesterday at 10:10 PM
*I’d caution people not to attempt to diagnose someone via the internet, even slightly. Only a licensed, trained, & certified professional can & should make mental health/psychological diagnoses.*That said, I’ll attempt to comment from a solely pianistic/technical point of view. Reading your description, I wonder if it’s possible to practice too much; to become so analytical, that you brain doesn’t have one single way to perform the piece set in stone & to rely on. So that when you perform, you have so many unsettled/unofficial/un-secure ways of playing the piece, that you don’t have that one way wherein that near-subconscious, muscle memory means of performing takes over. You say you practice “additive, backwards, transposing to new keys, blocking, hands separately, slow-fast alterations…”; well, have you ever just tried practicing one way….play it slowly, find a fingering that works, stick with it, get it up to tempo…and there’s that. As both a performer & occasional mentor/teacher, I’ve never been a fan of the “play it forwards, play it backwards, transpose it, block it, separate hands, choreograph arm motion like a dancer” etc. means of practicing. It’s so over-analytical that it doesn’t allow for the “settling in” of a piece that needs to happen. This over-analysis method has always seemed odd to me for this very reason: it causes the pianist to be obsessive about the method of practice, and that becomes a block to performance beyond practice, which is perhaps why you don’t have this issue when you practice, but only when you perform. Performing requires that you have a way of playing a piece that has become near-subconscious, where you don’t have to think about the technique. And that only happens when you find how you’re going to play a piece, stick to that, perfect it, and do it the same way each time, technically. That way, all you have to think about is the music. I think it might be helpful to change your practice style. I also think some people have made some great points about practicing in a way that you wouldn’t perform, or becoming too much of an observer of your own playing. Over time, your brain becomes automatic in how it processes what it’s doing. When you start trying to actively involve yourself in that near-subconscious process, it’s possible to throw yourself off. Sometimes, when I show a person how to play a piece, if I try to play it slowly, I have a memory lapse, I forget what is coming next, I’m unable to play it slowly. However, if I play it up to tempo the way I would perform it, it comes right back. Too much analysis & observation can ruin things. It also sounds to me like you’re freaking yourself out. Sounds like things aren’t “magically” or unexplainably getting worse over time, especially if you don’t have the issue when you practice. It seems like you make a mistake on a difficult part when you’re performing, then you start to obsess over that mistake & over the “difficult part” so much that, every time you have to perform it (not practice it), you’re obsessed with the previous mistakes, and obsessed with getting it right, getting it perfect, & not making a mistake. That fear & obsession is freaking you out. And I think you need to sit with that & find out why. Give yourself permission to make mistakes. Even the greatest of the greats do it. You listen to old recordings of the masters play, and even their studio recording had mistakes. This “hyper perfect” performance world will live in is powered by recording processes where people splice their recordings together (sometimes hundreds) and do take after take until it’s right, or by live performers who are like robots mastering every technical issue but lacking any music. I don’t think you want to be either. You’re only human, and from that humanity, comes what inspires music. May I also say: some have suggested stage fright (a form of Anxiety) or Anxiety as a disorder. I will not attempt to diagnose you, but I will say that, as a person who A.) actually has Generalized Anxiety Disorder & takes medication for it, and B.) is a regular performer who deals with it’s manifestation as stage fright every time I have to perform…what you described doesn’t sound like that. Panic attacks, hyper-ventilation, racing heart to near tachycardia, nausea, gastric disturbances, fainting, vomiting, depersonalization, a feeling of a loss of physical/mental control, retreating, uncontrollable anger or sadness…those are symptoms of Anxiety as a disorder (of which stage fright/performance anxiety is a type). Horowitz being white as a sheet, nearly mute, unmoving, & having to literally be pushed on stage because he was freaking out before a show is a sign. Argerich pacing backstage, hyperventilating, complaining of fever, crying, and canceling shows last minute is a sign. Having a “mental freak out about a particular part of a piece”, getting scared and skipping a difficult part or messing up, but still being physically fine, mentally fine, able to walk on stage without fear & being able to finish the concert without any other disturbances except worrying about a difficult part of a piece doesn’t sound like Anxiety, Performance Anxiety, or Stage Fright to the point of disorder, i.e. not something that requires psychological/psychiatric assistance. And if this isn’t manifesting in any other area of your life, then I don’t think this is some sort of psychological disorder, and I’d caution you to take those suggestions as just that: suggestions.
That said, if you have these kind of “freak outs” in other elements of your life, panic attacks, feelings of illogical fear & fight/flight, real physical symptoms before you go out to perform, or if this is impacting your ability to live a healthy life, then perhaps you should see a therapist. And if you feel you’d like to see one just to rule some things out, I think that’s a good idea, too. Consultations can always help. Good luck & happy playing! Taushi, thanks for this truly thoughtful post. A lot of what you have mentioned -- particularly regarding the ways in which I'm trying to practice in too many different ways and therefore not really building a true foundation on anything -- is something I had actually already been considering as a culprit of this issue for a while now, and it gives me confidence to hear another person has the same reaction and theory towards this type of work. I'll respond to some other posts in this thread as well -- it's been a busy week and a busy school year. A jury that went OK, but not what I would have hoped for the amount of work I put into is behind me now, and now since the summer started I've been home taking it easy and re-evaluating my practice methods. Thank you all again, PW!! I kinda like this old-fashioned internet as opposed to the social media that everybody is caught up with these days instead
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Re: Best keyboard touch-wise under $5k?
Doug M.
Yesterday at 09:50 PM
1. Arturia KeyLab 88 MkII (Cheaper lighter controller with onboard sounds) 2. Kawai MP 11 SE -Studio stage (heavy, use Roadies) 3. Kawai VPC1-Soundless piano controller with no knobs (also fairly hearty, stylish) 4. Nord 5 Stage - manual knob/slider stage piano with limited functions 5. Roland RD-2000 - Multifunctional stage piano 6. Studiologic Numa X Piano GT -Cheaper lighter controller with onboard sounds
Thanks a lot, P You don't seem to have identified a market segment you're decided upon. All these mostly operate in a different market segments. Nord are expensive, but if you go that way, the Nord Grand has a Kawai RHIII action that is nicer to play. If action: MP11SE VPC1 RD2000 MP7SE ES920 FP90X P515 Top two are designed to give top action on a slab (the USP) RD2000 and MP7SE/ES920 both have great actions, along with the P515. RD2000 has 1400 sounds and lots of stage functions.
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Re: Onkyo’s bankruptcy and effect on Kawai Novus?
fauxbourdon
Yesterday at 09:49 PM
I wanted to offer everyone an update on this, since I said I would reach out to my local Kawai dealer...
They, in turn, reached out to their contacts at Kawai, and were told: "The Onkyo situation has been brewing for a while, and our engineers have managed to continue production of the Novus and CA series without interruption. We have a supply of certain Onkyo parts that are still being used and eventually we will use redesigned circuits that our engineers have been working on. In short, Onkyo’s problems are not impacting our production."
This puts my mind at ease a bit about the NV-10S I'm waiting for. :-)
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