Midterm Piece

Hey guys! Yesterday I was practicing my midterm piece, Minuet in G. I learned this in high school but totally forgot the second half of the piece. I practiced the right hand and I am starting to remember it! Tomorrow I will practice the left hand, so hopefully all goes well. Good luck to everyone with their piece!

Week5

Hey guys sorry about the lack of posting, I just keep forgetting. Anyway I've been working on learning House of the Rising Sun, just the main tune for now though, and when I get that down I'll try my luck on the organ solo. See you guys tonight!

- Matt K.

Weeks 2 and 3.

I forgot to post last week, but last week i spent about two hours in one of rhe practice rooms reminding myself how to read sheet music again while practing my midterm and final pieces.  Today, i spent about an hour and 45 minutes focusing on my mid term piece, Lavender's Blue.

Week 4

I practiced 3 times this week, once Sunday, and twice on Monday.  I spent the time practicing the beginning of Welcome to the Black Parade, as well as the first CALM notes of etude opus 25 no.11 (winter wind).  I found out that my left hand is too slow and messes up with the decisions my right hand makes, and I also discovered that there is no easy way to hit 3 notes with one hand especially if they are G C and E.

I just had my last practice before the practice midterm tomorrow. I worked on a new piece that i had learned a few years ago but hadn't touched in a while. Its not perfected but sounds pretty good. Hopefully it will sound even better by the time of the actual midterm.

Extra Credit/Makeup Lesson Opportunity!

Good morning, all!

I wanted to make you aware of an event occurring next Thursday in Fusco Hall. If you attend this event (and check in with me) you will receive extra credit, or it can count as a make-up lesson. I hope to see many of you there!

Music at Marist:  “Words with Friends”Charles Anthony Silvestri, poet/lyricist & Tracy Resseguie, guest conductor
Thursday, October 8, 2015 -8:00pm
Fusco Recital Hall
Performances of the texts of Charles Anthony Silvestri, who has worked with famed choral composers Eric Whitacre, Dan Forrest and Ola Gjeilo and many others.  Guest conductor Tracy Resseguie, of Staley High School (Kansas City, MO), visits to work with the Marist Singers in this musical lecture and presentation.

Laura

Week of 9/21

After spending the first couple weeks learning notes (which I am still focusing on), I decided it was time to try and get both hands on the piano. My left is obviously a little weaker, and cannot play simulaniously with the right, but I am making some progress. Hopefully I will have a piece ready for the midterm.

Finally getting there

Hey guys! I have been guilty of neglecting posting on the blog, but here I go! I have finally mastered Ode to Joy but I'm struggling with keeping the rhythm of the song 'nsync ( I had to =) ) with both hands. My hands like to jump up when I add my left hand, so that's something I have to work on. And I have bendy finger syndrome, so that's a work in progress too. For my midterm, I think I am going to to Minuet in G. I learned it in high school, but forgot most of it. I tried to find it online, but I am having trouble finding the exact version. If anyone has suggestions of what websites are good, please let me know! Hope you are all doing well!

Important Midterm Info

Hi all,

Here is some important midterm info for you all.

We will rehearse for the midterm THIS TUESDAY, October 6th at 8:00pm in the piano lab (I know, it jumped up on me too!). The rehearsal is so you have a chance to play in front of your peers and get your nerves out. It doesn't have to be perfect at this point, but it should be pretty close.

The midterm will be next Tuesday, October 13th in either Fusco hall or the piano lab. You don't have to get dressed up for the midterm.

For those students I'm meeting at 4:30pm, we'll do the midterm during your usual time. You don't have to come to the 8:00pm midterm, but you will need to be at the final (either Tuesday, December 8 or Thursday December 10 between 6 and 8 pm.

Choose a piece to play that is not the same as your final piece (if you've already picked that out- if not- no worries, you have tons of time). Your midterm piece can be as long or short as you're comfortable playing right now. Wherever you are in the book or supplemental music is great. Play something you will enjoy playing for the group. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns about this.

See you all on Tuesday,
Laura

Hi all-

Since a few of you are working on remembering the notes on the staff and the placement of the notes on the keyboard, here are two websites that can be helpful.

The first one is intended for mallet percussion instruments, so the black keys aren't colored black, but the placement is correct. The notes discussed here are all in the treble clef, or right hand of the piano.

http://www.vicfirth.com/education/keyboard/speednotereading.html

The second site is intended for upright bass players, but the notes are the same as the bass clef, or the left hand of the piano.

http://www.studybass.com/tools/bass-clef-notes/

If anyone has any other suggestions, please post them here!

Week 3

My practice session was this previous Sunday around noon.  I practiced welcome to the black parade and learned to use my left hand in the book. I kept missing the e note in my song and replaced it with an f.  Hopefully I will learn to NOT do that.

First, Second, and a Little of the third week

Been going to the piano room frequently. Started the song "Little Talks" by Of Mice and Men. Not too difficult to play. Having trouble keeping left and right hands in sync. Have learned each part (L and R) independently. Will try and combine throughout the week.

Week 2

Last week i went to practice my song Let It Be. I worked on the second page of the song. Its slow but i have the hands together. Also before playing the song i worked on my finger strength with a technique the teacher explained. I would tap one finger at a time without allowing my knuckles to collapse. Overall, felt like a very productive practice.

Week One and Two....oops

Sorry I'm late to the party! Week one was rocky for me, learning how to read the music. I am still plunking vocal notes, but I am getting better at reading music and am finding piano pieces to begin on! Everybody sounds great by the way!

Thank you for all your posts about your practicing experience! Please also remember to post a  video once during the semester, and also to respond to your peers' posts.

Practice Week 2

Practiced for about an hour and fifteen minutes today.  Spent about 15-20 minutes on finger exercises, trying to keep my fingers from flattening out while playing.  Afterwards, did some dexterity exercises (while at the same time brushing up on some theory) by playing some scales up and down including blues scale, major/minor scales, and minor harmonic scales.  It was pretty tedious, so I plan on starting a piece sometime next week.

2nd week practice

Started working on the left hand. I really love this piece of music and can't wait to be able to play it all together!!

Practice 2

Practiced some of the intro exercises in the book on Sunday around 2:00 for about an hour.  During this session, I was able to master ode to joy with my right hand like the book taught me.  Not being able to refrain from hitting more than one key was pretty tricky, but I learned how to keep my fingers on one key and not on others.

First Practice

Yesterday i went to the piano room and practiced for a bit. i just fiddled around with a few pieces that i have. Even though i already know how to play, they aren't perfected yet. I am excited to get them to the full pace. Also today i went and bought a piano book to hopefully choose a piece for the final recital. there are a few songs i am excited to learn.

Week 2 practice

I practiced some songs I have played before for an hour last night. I focused on Canon in D. It had been awhile since I last played it. I kept pausing, not really sure if I was playing the right notes. I need to keep practicing, but I was able to play it a little smoother by the time I left.

First Practice

Went to the practice room in between my 8AM and my 11.   Played my solo piece from last semester's recital ("DavyJones" - Hans Zimmer from Pirates of the Caribbean).  Then I messed around with the blues scale, but I can't improvise while also using my other hand for a rhythm.  Maybe a goal for the end of the semester?

1st Practice Session

Today I spent about an hour and fifteen minutes beginning to get my bearings on "Für Elise" by Beethoven.  I started out a little rocky, however, after taking some time and working on both hands individually, I was able to get the beginning of it down pretty good.  Here I am uploading a video of how far I was able to get today.  I did not have anybody to video tape for me so it is just audio, however, any constructive criticism would still be greatly appreciated.

Week 2

Good morning piano class!

Now that everyone is getting accustomed to the set-up of this class, please remember to post about your experience each week. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone tonight!

Laura

1st Practice Blog Post

Went to the bookstore to pick up the book for class.  They didn't carry it.  I walked into practice room around 8:30 pm today after not having the book for class, and met Brian.  Turns out he was in BG Piano 1 last year and still had the book.  Got my hands on it and did some basic reading/ stretching.  Got some basics down, but still cant play anything resembling music.

Piano Practice Post

I started practicing a piece called "Liz on top of the world" by Dario Marianelli yesterday ( 8:30-9:20 pm). I've almost gotten the right hand down for the first page and a half so that I can play it smoothly but the left hand I'm still having trouble with and I have yet to begin playing with both hands together. I'm also not sure if I am playing at the correct tempo. Besides that I'm really enjoying learning the piece and look forward to being able to play it completely.

Bass & Treble Clef notes

Flash cards and matching games to help memorize notes. See if anyone can set a new high score on the matching game. 

https://quizlet.com/15206618/lwc-piano-bass-clef-notes-flash-cards/

https://quizlet.com/15206659/lwc-piano-treble-clef-flash-cards/

Welcome to Lab Piano at Marist! We will use this blog to communicate with each other each week. Remember to post at least once a week and to respond to at least three other people's posts.

Your post should include the following items:
1. Day/time of practice session
2. What you practiced
3. What went well/what was tricky
4. etc!

You should also include video or audio of what you're working on at least once during the semester. This recording can be anywhere from a small section of a piece to a whole piece.

We'll talk more about this during our meeting tonight. I'm looking forward to meeting everyone!
Laura