At my very first piano lesson at age six I was taught the scale of C with a little song:
I know a little pussy
Her coat is silver grey.
She lives down in the meadow
Not so far away.
Although she is a pussy
She'll never be a cat,
'Cuz she's a pussy willow
Now what do you think of that! Then you played the C scale descending with: Meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, SCAT!
That was all of 71 years ago and I still remember it! Now they are not taught scales until level 2.
Originally posted by ale1552Wow! What kind of inappropros piano teacher did you have??
At my very first piano lesson at age six I was taught the scale of C with a little song:
I know a little pussy
Her coat is silver grey.
She lives down in the meadow
Not so far away.
Although she is a pussy
She'll never be a cat,
'Cuz she's a pussy willow
Now what do you think of that! Then you played the C scale descending with: Meow, meow, ...[text shortened]... s all of 71 years ago and I still remember it! Now they are not taught scales until level 2.
Originally posted by scherzoThings were different in those days and she was already 62 years old when I was 6. That means she was born in 1875. I have student books from that era. They expected little kids to be playing material in their second year of piano that we would expect now from a student at the intermediate level. I had to write the lives of the famous composers that first year of lessons into a notebook. She furnished the portraits. I still have it! The only problem was that I couldn't write yet so my mother wrote in the first ones, and I had to print the later ones.
Wow! What kind of inappropros piano teacher did you have??
Hi, I just got a nice keyboard, would rather have had a real piano but can only afford the electronic kind. It is a very good one though, a Kurzweil PC1x, 88 keys, weighted, touch sensitive and aftertouch (which is not a piano thing). Anyway, I compose simple folkie kind of tunes on that and guitar and mandolin and dulcimer, you can hear some of my compostions on myspace.com/donjenningsguitar
all one word. I don't have a piano piece there as yet. The question I have is my right hand is much better at making up melodies than my left has is for making accompanyment for the melodies. So what can I do to become more sophisticated in left hand technique? Like I just wrote a waltz for my grandaughter Kali, strangely enough called 'Kali's Waltz🙂 and I do some arpegiation and um pa pa kind of thing with the left hand but how can I make it sound better than that?
My tunes don't sound totally stupid but you can pretty much tell it isn't Mozart either🙂 Trying to figure out how to improve that.
Originally posted by ale1552Although I am not a pianist, my high school music teacher studied piano with a student of Brahms.
Things were different in those days and she was already 62 years old when I was 6. That means she was born in 1875. I have student books from that era. They expected little kids to be playing material in their second year of piano that we would expect now from a student at the intermediate level. I had to write the lives of the famous composers that first ...[text shortened]... t I couldn't write yet so my mother wrote in the first ones, and I had to print the later ones.
Antigonish
As I was going up the stair
I saw a man who wasn’t there
He wasn’t there again today
Oh, how I wish he’d go away...
When I came home last night at three
The man was waiting there for me
But when I looked around the hall
I couldn’t see him there at all!
Go away, go away, don’t you come back any more!
Go away, go away, and please don’t slam the door... (slam!)
Last night I saw upon the stair
A little man who wasn’t there
He wasn’t there again today
Oh, how I wish he’d go away
Hughes Mearns
Originally posted by sonhouseWas this question the one you PM'd me about? Doing the arpeggiated chords is a good way to go. I am sorry that I cannot access these websites....no sound on my computer and not videos either. Someday I will get something better. I am just happy to have a computer at my age! You might try experimenting with melodies in the left hand ...or crossing over and playing the melody with the right hand in the bass with your left hand playing a delicate accompiment in the treble. This should only be done for a line or two, however. A fine Christian gentleman who posts only on the Spirituality column has sent me four CD's of his own compositions for the guitar. He sings the words of scripture only. Good voice too! I am amazed at the wonderful talent we have on this site. Practicing some of the exercizes by some of the old masters will help strengthen your left hand. What is lacking is coordination. The left side of the brain controls the right hand and vice versa. Pianists have brains that have trained both sides of the brain. This is a benefit for those who have had strokes...no kidding! Good luck and keep in touch. Attila the Horn, too. I have not answered your last PM. Wonderful background there!
Hi, I just got a nice keyboard, would rather have had a real piano but can only afford the electronic kind. It is a very good one though, a Kurzweil PC1x, 88 keys, weighted, touch sensitive and aftertouch (which is not a piano thing). Anyway, I compose simple folkie kind of tunes on that and guitar and mandolin and dulcimer, you can hear some of my composti ...[text shortened]... you can pretty much tell it isn't Mozart either🙂 Trying to figure out how to improve that.
Originally posted by ale1552Uh huh. I've been playing piano for decades, and I had no such strange thing to memorize.
Things were different in those days and she was already 62 years old when I was 6. That means she was born in 1875. I have student books from that era. They expected little kids to be playing material in their second year of piano that we would expect now from a student at the intermediate level. I had to write the lives of the famous composers that first ...[text shortened]... t I couldn't write yet so my mother wrote in the first ones, and I had to print the later ones.
Originally posted by scherzoWell, I guess six-year-olds need special things to hold their interest that seem rather silly. I have taught only one four-year-old, and the material is geared so that cute songs are sung, tiny stuffed toys with stories at each lesson.... not at all how you would teach an 8 year old. It seems to work. She has practiced faithfully without a summer off for 5 years and is an eager student.
Uh huh. I've been playing piano for decades, and I had no such strange thing to memorize.
Originally posted by Green PaladinThat's the creepiest f-ing poem I've ever read.
Antigonish
As I was going up the stair
I saw a man who wasn’t there
He wasn’t there again today
Oh, how I wish he’d go away...
When I came home last night at three
The man was waiting there for me
But when I looked around the hall
I couldn’t see him there at all!
Go away, go away, don’t you come back any more!
Go away, go awa ...[text shortened]... an who wasn’t there
He wasn’t there again today
Oh, how I wish he’d go away
Hughes Mearns
Originally posted by ale1552Also from my grammar school days:
One I learned in grade school:
There was a young lady from Niger
Who smiled as she rode on a tiger
They returned from the ride
With the lady inside
And the smile on the face of the tiger.
"to the nestle's jingle"
N-E-S-T-L-E-S
cram it up your A-S-S...
Side-Ways
Amazing what one remembers from those formative years
😉
Originally posted by AttilaTheHornMy big claim to fame is my piano teacher at Palomar College was Dave Brubecks brother, Howard. They have a music hall in Howards name there now. I saw Dave a couple of times visiting Howard and I was in love with Howard's beautiful, tall, lithe daughter Ginger, had a gym class (badminton) with her, was awestruck. I tried to contact her or Howard years later only to find out he died around 1993.
I forgot to add that one of my professors in university was a student of Kodaly and another was a student of Hindemith.