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Some thoughts have recently eeked into my mind. After seeing benjamin grosvenor at a recital, im not sure whether I am anything remarkable, I was recently in the final for EPTA, the only reason I did not win was that I used music, my current studies are: Chopin; scherzo no.2, ballade no.3 and his first waltz; Beethoven; Sonata op.14 no.1, Debussy prelude book 1, and DR gradus ed parnassum, I am 13, thoughts would be welcome

My thoughts are the following :
- some of us don't know what EPTA is/are
- your "current studies" tells us nothing about how long you have been working on this repertoire nor how well you play these pieces
- there are twelve Preludes in Bk I of the Debussy Preludes : which one?
- why would you think you are anything "remarkable" - what does that mean, by the way?
- Capitalization of names and titles would be nice!
- What sort of "thoughts" would be welcome?
This all sounds somewhat vague.

Regards,

Grosvenor is a musical genius and one of the top pianista his age in the world. If you are saying that your skills are not comparable to his, then 99.9999999% of pianists your age are in that same category.

If you play those pieces well(and it seems you probably do based on your results), then you are still much more advanced then almost all pianists your age. But there is a difference between being very advanced for your age and playing at Grosvenor's level. Don't worry about making music into a competition.

That video has got to be the best usage of the trololo meme... EVER

...and BTW, am I the only one who actually loves that song?? I find the orchestration to be fantastic.

I second this. That absolutely cracked me up.

You sure about that?
I'd guess strongly at least that it wasn't the full reason -- first of all because I would think that decisions usually aren't that simple or one-dimensional, plus that "using music" usually (not always) goes along with one or more other things that aren't the greatest, like not knowing the music as thoroughly, not playing as confidently, not playing as freely or expressively, not having as-good communication with the audience....

It is pretty catchy in its own way. I think part of what makes this one work so well is that you can believe Cristopher Lee's singing would sound like that.

epta is a piano competition held every year in Britain, sorry i thought i specified which prelude, no.1. Sorry my grammar was awful. And i have been studying these pieces for a few weeks, and i have the Beethoven 1st movement under my belt, the second and third still need work, the Chopin's are improving, and the debussys, are also at a reasonable standard. By remarkable i meant, is this anything out of the ordinary for some-one of my age? Thoughts would be welcome, i want to know your opinion

From what you have written, it is not possible for anyone to say that there is anything particularly remarkable about your achievements. What would be remarkable would be if you were to have studied piano - and these pieces - for only a very short period of time and yet were able to play them at a high level of professionalism with flawless technique.

I have seen, at the local Conservatory, many young pianists who perform remarkably difficult works with style, panache and aplomb partly because many of them have been studying piano since they were five or six years of age, partly because they work very hard and partly because they have innate musical talent. Their achievements put my long-term efforts - and struggles - to shame, but that doesn't concern me in the slightest.

I think that more important than wondering if you are remarkable in any way, is to profit well from the teaching you receive, to understand thoroughly the works that you play and above all to enjoy the experience of music-making. That, it would seem, is far more rewarding - for a longer period of time - than wondering whether or not you are a "remarkable" pianist.

Regards,