Restarting my piano practice
The pandemic changed many things, for a lot of people. Personally, I bought a treadmill. And I decided I would learn the piano on my own, no teachers, just me, a book, and my musical geniality (ahem!)...
Tag: piano
Allemande, Schein
An allemande is a type of dance very common in baroque suites. As I keep working through Grade 1 repertoire, I'm starting to encounter more and more of those dances: allemandes, rigaudons, and many, m...
Piano: "T. Rex goes for a Stroll" by Christine Donkin
For the past two years I have really struggled to keep up with my piano studies. I'm a bit disappointed in myself that after 2.5 years I'm still only a grade 1 student, but it is what it is. Just need...
Piano: "Taking Turns" by Christine Donkin
Discovering Christine Donkin earlier this year was a game changer for me. I love studying classical music and I love playing recognizable pop/rock tunes, but what I didn't know is that I truly LOVE fa...
Piano: "The Tired Turtle Express" by Christine Donkin
The Tired Turtle Express is an early elementary piece from the book "Comics & Card Tricks: 12 elementary piano solos", by Christine Donkin. I had so much fun practicing this one: first time I encounte...
Reinagle Op. 1 No. 11
Yet another of Reinagle's charming 18th century miniatures! This one was also present in my edition of Essential Piano Repertoire (prep grade). I really liked the dynamics and tempo indications in Sne...
Reinagle Op. 1 No. 6
I have been working through Reinagle's "24 Short and Easy Pieces" in order, since they seem to be mostly arranged by difficulty. All the pieces in Op. 1 are early elementary level, ranging for prepara...
Jumping in the Mud: 10 early elementary piano solos
"Jumping in the Mud" is the title of the first book in Christine Donkin's Piano Pieces Vol I: Elementary (there are three piano books in this volume). This is an early elementary (preparatory grade) s...
Piano: Echo, G. Armand Ferté
Echo is a small étude by French pianist G. Armand Ferté. This is piece no. 101 on the Russian School of Piano Playing method book. Armand Ferté (1881 — 1973) was a French pianist, conductor and music...
Lullaby, Isidor Phillip
Lullaby is an adorable composition by French pianist and child prodigy Isidor Philip (1863 — 1958). I honestly love that the Russian book I'm learning from is full of those small pieces, études, minia...
The Rain is Drizzling, Anatoly Alexandrov
I learned this as part of the piano beginners' course at Piano Career Academy (online self-paced course). This is piece no. 93 in the Russian School of Piano Playing method book. At first, the structu...
Kabalevsky Op. 39 No. 2 Polka
A little polka from Kabalevsky's "24 Pieces for Children", Op. 39. I've seen this book recommended everywhere and I finally decided to get a copy of it. Even though most pieces are beyond my reach at...
Kabalevsky Op. 39 No. 1 Melody
I just started working on Kabalevsky's "24 Pieces for Children", Op. 39. This is the very first piece in the album, "A little melody" or "A little tune". Dmitry Kabalevsky (1904 — 1987) was a Russian/...
Reinagle Op. 1 No. 2 Minuet
I recently bought the Schott edition of Reinagle's Op. 1: "24 Short and Easy Pieces" and have been going through all the charming 18th century miniatures in order. I'd consider them more like short ét...
The Shepherd Plays, Tatiana Salutrinskaya
I first learned "The Shepherd Plays" (or "The Shepherd's Flute") a couple months ago, following the progression of the Russian piano method book we use at PCA. Recently I realised the score was in my...
Kabalevsky Op. 39 No. 3 March
This is a cute March, piece no. 3 in Kabalevsky's "24 Pieces for Children", Op. 39. I don't know where to find the individual sheet for this specific piece, but there are quite a few editions of Opus...
Little Sonata, C.H. Wilton
Sonatina in C (or "Little Sonata") is a prep grade piece by Charles Henry Wilton. The tempo is allegro moderato, which should be somewhere in the 100112bpm mark. I got the sheet for this piece from th...
Completed Piano Career Academy Grade 1!
I have finally finished the first book in the Russian School of Piano Playing method! Which means I have also completed the first level of Piano Career Academy beginner course! Can't believe I made it...
The Entertainer (7 months piano progress)
Who would have thunk I'd be able to learn this?! 😀 Seven months into my journey, I'm playing Scott Joplin's "The Entertainer". Well, a simplified arrangement by the Fabers, but still. Yes, I know I pl...
Reinagle Op. 1 No. 4 Allegro
The tempo of the piece should be Allegro, but I found it way too fast. First, I cannot yet play that fast, but also the piece made me think of a little ballerina in a music box, so I decided to go wit...