Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum Alfred's Basic and ALL in One Adult Piano Course Book #1

Nice work GracieCat, you're making great progress. I enjoyed The Can-Can and The Marine's Hymn. The Marine's Hymn seemed easier to learn and more difficult to get proficient with and it was just the opposite with The Can-Can.

I couldn't agree more with you on the reading of the bass staff. I am having a tough time getting really familiar with the notes and I think it's because so much emphasis is placed on interval reading and less so on note reading. I need to do some off-line work on reading the bass staff.

I haven't really doodled much at the end of the book. I do look at the next pieces from time to time but have only tried playing Amazing Grace once or twice. I am looking forward to getting to Scarborough Fair and Amazing Grace. I like both of them.

Ed in El Paso, that was excellent!

I've been lurking for a while, and thought I'd post here, though I have not much to say. I picked up a digital piano (Yamaha P-85) about 2 months ago, and have been taking lessons the past six weeks.

I am now up to "Beautiful Brown Eyes", which I am finding quite a challenge at the 3rd and 11th bars...

I am finding my lessons stressful, as my playing reliability drops significantly due to nerves. There are times I completely shut down when I am asked to repeat a passage (especially one that is rhythmically challenging).

Due to all of the comments about "Blow the Man Down" here, I started practicing that one early. I am hoping that by the time I get there, I'll be able to deal with it...

Welcome Pianomaly

Ive only been on this forum for about 6 weeks myself but ive found it to be very very helpful, if not perhaps technically but definetly motivationally which I believe is just as important.

Maybe you and your teacher arent well suited to each other. I think id need a teacher who was pretty laid back and put me at ease and allowed me to enjoy the experience otherwise I think id feel like you say you do and be too nervous and would probably start to stress out before lessons.

maybe try another teacher or have a talk with your existing one about it ?

Welcome Pianomaly. I can empathize about the stress at lessons. In the beginning, the only thing I looked forward to in my lesson was getting new pieces to work on for the following week. Fortunately, six/seven months later, I am finding them much more enjoyable (although I still have considerable difficulty with my nerves). I almost NEVER play a piece in lesson like I play it at home, but my teacher knows that. I remember once attempting to play a piece in a lesson (one that I had to practice so much that I had it perfectly memorized)and my mind went COMPLETELY blank. I sat there frozen, not being able to read the music, or place my hands on the proper keys. My teacher very politely said "This happens all of the time, just sit there and it will come to you." She was right, but I thought that the experience was completely freakish, one that I had never experienced before (sure,sure we experience things slipping the mind, but this felt akin to forgetting your name, or the century in which you were living).
I had difficulty with Beautiful Brown Eyes too, and those were the exact measures that gave me trouble. The Blow the Man Down rhythm pattern appears again and again in later songs. You will amaze yourself with how nicely the skills acquired in BTMD generalize to other songs.
Enjoy learning Beautiful Brown Eyes!!!!

That is very much the experience I have had. I have a feeling I am memorizing too much -- I have been playing Bach's Minuet in G, and when I am at home I rarely look at the sheet music. When I am at the lesson, I think the extra stress causes my memory to fail, and then I can't even find the place in the music that I am at. My teacher tells me to start again from the D, and I can't even remember what a D looks like...

I think that my nerves are coming from my embarrassment at how awful it sometimes sounds; I have played guitar for 20 years, but almost never in front of anyone else.

My teacher is good; I like the strictness. I have often found that instructors of adults are not willing to be strict, and I don't really do well with insincere compliments. Though last time I had a couple of beers before the lesson (for unrelated reasons), and I have to say I played better than the previous times...

I had that complete shut down experience playing Lullaby in session. I just went blank and pure white noise filled my ears. I had it so bad I completely stopped breathing. I was toitaly exposed in my embarassment and horror. Take heart Pianomaly. It was truly freaky weird to me too. It is like the worst experience I could even imagine going into piano. So I figure nothing worse can happen now. That is my small measure of solace.

I do not typically have anyone listening to me at practise. Just me and my piano. Nobody over the shoulder, no conversation, no 'count out loud' or 'keep your elbow in'. But that happens during sessions. So I have developed a habit of talking to myself. If I decide to repeat a section for practise I say out loud, 'Start again from the D'. 'measure 13' or 'second ending again'. Then it is not so strange to hear that in session. For me, I just don't sit around talking that lingo or having those things said unless with the teacher. Then in session it seemed strange to verbalize these concepts I had been keeping in my head only. I accustomed myself to having those concepts out in the air by talking to myself. It is a lot different to say descending thrids than to think or visualize descending thirds. The first time you say it out loud it sounds odd. Then it starts to be a normal way to phrase a concept. Maybe that is more freaky weird, but it works for me.

Teaching session did not instantly gel with me. I have become quite comfortable over time. I started in Novemenber, so I have 7 months experience. Not a real lot. But I have largely gotten over the antsy, nervous, tense feelings. Not 100%. I still tingle and cringe here and there. But I get a lot out of the sessions, moreso now than at first.

Personally, I think since I got by my Lullaby, I am now confident going forward through anything. Funny how the worst things work out.

mom3gram,

thanks much for the comment. It's nice to get a little positive encouragement. I usually practice with earphones (don't want to subject the family to my endless repetitions at excruciatingly slow speeds) and am pretty isolated in my computer/kb room. I reviewed everything in Bk 1 but only tried to perfect songs I like. Actually Scarborough Fair is the only song I really liked from Bk 1 so I worked on it a lot. (here's a link to it: http://www.box.net/shared/cdfforresb

I have several level 1 Alfred supplementary books and that's what I usually select from. I'm currently trying to perfect Ain't misbehaving and just starting Canon in D variations from Bk2

Ed

Just learnt my first scale ! lol

cool smokestacklightning! Is it C Major?

Yep

Im still working on BTMD, Cafe Vienna and Lullaby but ive got them to the point where im happy to proceed further. Rock it Away didnt take long. Just have to be wary of going too fast and missing something important.

Like the tetra chord bit. maybe it was just late at night and my brain wasnt functioning properly but something seemingly simple took me ages to get to grips with.

Oh. My. God.

that stretch in measure 5 of Got Those Blues! is a killer. need to go put my little finger in a splint !

came across this piano wallpaper today. thought Id share..

http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs51/f/2009/298/4/8/Piano_love_by_Fort_o.jpg

AND THAT GUY CAN STILL FOCUS ON WHAT HE IS PLAYING??? I feel so cheated, all I have ever asked is to be able to play a piece in front of a human being, not with one ON me!!!

lol, infront of/on you, either way works for me.

what ive always wondered is if a grand piano can actually take the weight of a woman (usually in a red dress) lying across it like you see in the movies ?

has anyone tried it ? its not quite as romantic with a small digital piano lol

Perhaps you could ask a small digital woman to sit on top of it?

lol I like the mental image but the reality would probably just freak me out !

ive just started on the can can tonight. maybe she could do a wee dance for me as I play

I do better alone also. I asked DH to sit in the room with me so I can do better with someone in the room. My teacher noticed how much better I was doing once when she left the room. I am looking forward to working on this at the Sonata camp I am attending.

Kim in IL

Whats a Sonata camp ?

Oh sorry! It's an adult piano camp. I am going in October and I am a little geeked out about it.

Kim in IL