I’m competing in an Eisteddfod in five weeks with Chopin’s Revolutionary Etude, a 2 minute song with semiquavers at crotchet=160bpm. To non-musicians this literally translates as ‘TOO FREAKING FAST’. I started sight reading the piece exactly 2.5 months ago.

Still today, I don’t know exactly what I was thinking back then, but I was absolutely enamoured with all of Chopin’s piano works, and had just stole a Christmas concert with Chopin’s Nocturne Op 9 No 2 (I think Telstra uses this as hold music… Which sucks because it’s way too good for that) and Merry Go Round of Life (Theme to Studio Ghibli’s Howl’s Moving Castle), which made me think I was partially capable of the Revolutionary Etude.

I have worked out that if the hours I spent learning this song were all put together, I would’ve sat at the piano for around 1.4 weeks straight learning this piece. So without further ado here lie the reasons why I was wrong, and why I still bother with this piece of raw emotion.

I was wrong because:

1. I lack the required technical skill, though I’ve been playing piano 9 years
2. I’m not physically strong enough to belt out this piece, the only dynamic variation is between F, FF, FFF
3. It’s extremely fast, I consider myself to have good co-ordination, but it’s not good enough for this piece
4. This is concert pianist material! It holds a place in many great concert pianists’ repertoires. I’m not one of them =\
5. I am used to challenging myself, you do not grow without having a goal that is a little out-of-reach. This one was too far out-of-reach, it was unrealistic.
6. I cannot achieve the left/right hand balance

Why I still bother practising it for 3 hours a day, everyday:

1. I genuinely like how this piece sounds, I like the emotions Chopin is trying to convey with the minor scale, this song is a great release of emotions and stress.
2. It’s amazing. I’ve never played any song this professional before, and people in the family like it.
3. I would let so many people down if I chickened out.

Now I’m going to get off Tumblr and practise for my third hour for today XD I shouldn’t procrastinate this much, but I need a break from the song every so often.

This blog used to be all about piano so I thought I’d share my exam list for 2012. The exam will be in either August or November. In order from “easiest” to the most “difficult” in my eyes:

1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PF9dGpsB0fE Assez Modere - Francis Poulenc

2) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqM_OGFkPqI La Cage De Cristal - Jacques Ibert

3) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eegDWPtk37c Sonata in G major K 283 1st Movement Allegro - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Please tell me is you think they go together well. The first two are very similar pieces, and the last is a bit contrasting, as I’m pretty sure the first two are Modern and Mozart is definitely Classical.

Your thoughts?

asitshouldbeitis:

Piano Kitten

=3 NAWWWWW!!!!!!!

thepiano:

This is insanely awesome!

thepiano:

Stairway to Heaven

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