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I've been wanting to play piano since I was four years old. I don't recall much but I do remember that I was being taught how to read and write by my grandmother who was overly ambitious about me. She had a nice upright piano and I remember sitting at it and just pressing the keys back then and I asked her to teach me. She was more interested in teaching me other things though... So in the end I could read my children's books and short stories by the time I was 5 and I could also write but I never learned a thing about music because no one in the family was interested in music and so they didn't care enough to introduce me either.
Sixteen years later, and two years before graduating from college, I find myself thinking about piano again. At first I tried learning the guitar because it was inexpensive to get one but I quickly realized it's not for me. I saw a tutorial of a song by a singer I really like called Stars Falling down, very simple tune but it made me want to be able to play it. That, plus Fur Elise, of course... I had been trying to figure out the main theme since I was 10 or so during the ocassional visit to my grandparents house. So I saved up some money and bought a cheap keyboard. It didn't take me long to learn those two "songs" and I was soon able to play even the first part of Fur Elise decently. But 2 weeks after I started I decided I want to learn much more than that and got a teacher. I started working on building up theory and practice at the same time. I'm watching documentaries about composers, reading about music and listening to a lot of classical. So far it's been a wonderful trip. I had my doubts and maybe I still have some but I am steadily moving forward towards the future... My ultimate goal is to be able to play all movements of the Pathetique Sonata as well as lots of Chopin, even his most difficult pieces.
Last edited by Teodor; 01/26/10 02:18 AM.
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.....I am more looking for personal experiences of "the first piece that did it for me", instead of my favorite pieces.... Jeff: Here's the problem......The title of the thread is misleading. Most people are answering the title rather than the 1st post. If there's a way to edit the title, you really should. Otherwise, you'll keep getting mostly what you've been getting.
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.....I am more looking for personal experiences of "the first piece that did it for me", instead of my favorite pieces.... Jeff: Here's the problem......The title of the thread is misleading. Most people are answering the title rather than the 1st post. If there's a way to edit the title, you really should. Otherwise, you'll keep getting mostly what you've been getting. Thanks, Mark C. I don't seem to be able to amend the original post's title. Amended title for this one, let's see whether the thread's title changes. Many thanks.
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Hi Jeff, What happened in my case: I was listening one of those CD selections of classical themes with 10 or 15 songs, I don recall exactly, and the Chopin's op 9-2 was clearly what kept my atention. I used to listening Richard Wagner when I was studying to some very hard tests to get a job here in my country (side note: here in Brazil we don't have interviews to get a spot in the federal goverment staff, and it's not like US where the best jobs are outside the public sector, here the best ones are at the federal government and you have to pass some tests to get one of the 1.000 spots against sometimes 500.000 people trying the same , I don't know how this works in China). Then I found another CD from a Readers Digest collection and listened to clair de lune (debussy) and chopin étude op 10-3 by the first time. Needless to say that I fell in love for the piano right the way.
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Hi Jeff, I think you will find "La Campanella" means "The Little Bell"......
Last edited by Elissa Milne; 01/26/10 07:28 AM.
Teacher, Composer, Writer, Speaker Working with Hal Leonard, Alfred, Faber, and Australian Music Examination Board Music in syllabuses by ABRSM, AMEB, Trinity Guildhall, ANZCA, NZMEB, and more www.elissamilne.wordpress.com
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If I had to name a single piece that has lead me back to re-starting the piano after getting on for 40 years it would be the Andante from Schubert's D960 Piano Sonata - the dream that it *might* *just* *perhaps* be possible to attempt it eventually. (In the hands of a great musician it is one of those movements tears come to my eyes and where time seems to stand still.) I got to know the sonata many years ago through Brendel's recordings and live performances: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPZgp_yU6QsBut I also love Clifford Curzon's different approach: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAxIMueuv2o(I suspect this isn't what the opening post was asking for though )
Last edited by John_B; 01/26/10 09:27 AM.
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I know that the piece that I heard was "live" and touched -moved me...I could really "feel" it, from a pianist working part time selling pianos in a mall. I didn't know what the piece was, I then decided I wanted to play myself.....That was over 20 years ago- and I just started playing a year sgo myself. Now , the piece I want to play is this---THE ONE THAT I COMPOSE MYSELF .
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John B., I can certainly understand why that work is your inspiration. The Bflat is, by far, my favorite Schubert sonata. I own that Brendel DVD (as well as the studio recording). de Larrocha's version of the same sonata is another favorite of mine that's greatly underappreciated.
"And if we look at the works of J.S. Bach — a benevolent god to which all musicians should offer a prayer to defend themselves against mediocrity... -Debussy
"It's ok if you disagree with me. I can't force you to be right."
♪ ≠$
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I am touched by all of you. Some music mentioned are those that I love dearly. Chopin piecies, Al-Mahed, the Op.9-2 I play still play every other day. And I have just mastered the most touching part of Etude Op.10-3, going on to try the middle part. Teodor thanks for sharing your experience. I am interested to look up what Star Falling Down is like Pianonewbie1, I hope one day you will find the piece that you heard 20 years ago in the mall . Some are new to me (at least by title, but perhaps not by sound). I have no doubt that they have "the power". Rest assured that I will listen to them all. And THANK YOU !!! Thank you, John B. It's getting late here in Beijing, but I will check out "the Andante" soon. (unfortunately youtube links don't work here ). Hi Jeff, I think you will find "La Campanella" means "The Little Bell"......
Elissa, thank you so much for telling me that. In Chinese, Clock and Bell share the same word ... . Now I know which "djung" it is !
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.....to amend the original post's title. Amended title for this one, let's see whether the thread's title changes.... Looks like it worked!
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For me it was Jack Nicholson playing Chopin's E minor prelude http://www.box.net/shared/z7dbis92l1 in Five Easy Pieces in 1977. It just busted me up and I vowed to learn it. I bought a piano for $50 off the back of a pickup truck, bought the sheet music and went to work. It took me forever even though it's only one page long. I had accordion lessons as a kid, but never played piano. So I learned that piece, and a couple others, and then did not do much with piano until 3 years ago. Then I saw a Rufus Wainwright piano/singing concert on TV and it happened again, but this time I've never looked back. I don't think I've missed more than 2 days of rigorous practicing since then. Plus I've experienced an almost manic frenzy of creative energy, resulting in the composition of over 100 pieces at various stages of development. I've posted many of them in the Adult Beginner's section, if anyone's interested.
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Yes it did, Mark C. But it is because BB Player (Greg) has kindly amended it for me . Many thanks to him. And many thanks to all of you who contributed here. As you can see, a great table of content is emerging, for a series of sheet music books. And the personal experiences of contributors here will inspire more people to finally "fall in". Hope this thread can run for a while ... it is personally fascinating for me, which piece did the work for the individuals. And thank you, PianoWorld.
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Thank you, Larry.
Fascinating story. And what beautiful music (listening to it now). It makes me want to walk to the piano. But it's 1am here.
Jack Nicholson? The actor?
Would love to check out your compositions. How do we find them?
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Thank you, Larry.
Fascinating story. And what beautiful music (listening to it now). It makes me want to walk to the piano. But it's 1am here.
Jack Nicholson? The actor?
Would love to check out your compositions. How do we find them? Hi Jeff, and thanks. Yes, Jack Nicholson the actor in the movie "FIve Easy Pieces". It's a great flick, you should check it out. If you go to the "piano bar" section of the "adult beginner" section here on PianoWorld there's a lot of my stuff there, especially in the November, December and January. Here's a couple samples: "even mormon girls get the blues" http://www.box.net/shared/d4oqf26zrhand here's one using a synthesizer on which I wrote and recorded each individual voice track into an 8 track digital recorder. I did use acoustic piano for the piano part though. I don't like plastic pianos! "it's happy somewhere" http://www.box.net/shared/dh81mat90f
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'Chopsticks' and 'Heart and Soul'. I was 10 years old.
Last edited by Roger Ransom; 01/26/10 02:41 PM.
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What convinced me that piano would work for me was when I played When the Saints Come Marching In from the Alfred book for the very first time. It actually sounded like music and it was fun!
Gary
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Well, I only started playing the piano at the beginning of this month but the piece I heard that completely blew my mind and made me want to start playing was: gaspard de la nuit scarbo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ym3VYNjWNhII heard that piece played around november of last year and it sent chills down my spine. whenever I listened to it I would imagine myself playing it. My goal is now is to take that from a fantasy and make it a reality. No matter how many years it takes, my ultimate goal is to be able to play that piece.
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Chopin's Grand Polonaise and then anything Chopin ever wrote... to everythign Beethoven wrote to Liszt and then Rachmoninoff to Prokofiev to Shostakovich to Stravinsky to Schumann and the rest all fell in line after.
Last edited by D4v3; 01/26/10 05:29 PM.
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This one is easy. When I was a child my parents had a recording of Moonlight Sonata. I think it was Horowitz. I learned to play on an old chord organ, and when I was 15 I bought a piano and decided it was time to get serious and learn to read base clef - by learning Moonlight Sonata. I still have that music book 35 years later, with the lettering for the base notes written in. I've been able to play the first movement since I was about 17, but never really gotten any further.
Now I have my own Horowitz recording of Moonlight Sonata - in fact it's 3 Beethoven Sonatas: Moonlight, Pathetique, and Apassionata. My life's work is to play all 3 of those, but I'm not too sure if I'll ever get there. I'd settle for all movements of even one of them. Whenever I lose sight of why I'm struggling through piano lessons as I approach 50, all I have to do is pull out that CD and it refocuses me.
Pianist and Computer Nerd Kawai GE-30 Yamaha Clavinova CLP-370
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Thanks to all. Great pieces and great stories. I can see what great books they will be.
I have come to the right place for this!
Jeff
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