More chitchat about repertoire
Moderators: Feg, Gill the Piano
More chitchat about repertoire
Apologies if such a thread has already been started and I have not noticed it.
A number of years ago my teacher persuaded me to have a look at Bartok's Romanian Dances. Hitherto I hadn't been keen on Bartok but as I learnt these pieces I became to like them and also better understand his music. I played some of them at a little concert organised by my teacher for her adult pupils. At the end of my little stint at the piano one of the other adult students present said; " What on earth made you choose those pieces...? " We all laughed.
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
The Minster played OK but there were a couple of little faults, one with the music desk and one a larger than is normal gap between two specific white keys. The Cavendish was very nice indeed. The Kawai seemed also to be offered at a good price.
I bought my little Kemble Classic upright in 1994 and I do like it. It's only short comings are speed of repetition of notes say when trying to play a tremolando...maybe it is me that is the limiting factor. The Kemble doesn't take up much room in the dining room but to replace it there with a baby grand would cause a little furniture congestion. We do have room in our sitting room but the grand would have to go just inside some south west facing French windows and in summer it would get sunshine from mid day onwards.
Have you posted about your new piano Gill ?
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
I posted some pictures of my piano in this post.It's the one with the black case.
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=9763&p=46337&hilit= ... sic#p46337
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
(Many,many years ago I was resident in the Thames valley and my wife's childhood home is the Windrush valley. I lived in a hostel not far from Didcot and got back into playing because there was a piano sat in the foyer. I even had that piano tuned a couple of times.)
Went for my piano lesson last night and teacher said she quite liked the Einaudi pieces in the book titled I Giorni but she is not keen on the more recent stuff in the other books. She has let me borrow Michael Nyman's "The Piano Collection".
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
At the piano club, which is hosted by a public library, we play on a 120 year old, six foot (or thereabouts) Bechstein grand. Looking at the condition of the hammers and strings and also that it has been fitted with square legs I would venture a guess that it was substantially rebuilt say 40 or 50 years ago. It plays very well for its age and has a slightly softer touch than my Kemble. Repetition rate is better than the Kemble.
There is no evidence of cracking in the Beckstein frame.
Going back to my nagging feeling that a grand would serve me better when playing trills or tremolandos, I can remember visiting Forsyth's music shop in Manchester perhaps in the late 1990's when I was learning the Beethoven Pathetique sonata. On a Yamaha C1 grand I tried the left hand tremolando in the first movement.... ah, I can play this quickly on this piano.... then ....I can play this both quickly and quietly.
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
Yes, toning would make a difference to your teacher's piano, I expect. Has she ever considered it?
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
We have a Skoda Citigo and all the parts are labelled VW. Good for local shopping but not quite quick enough for longer journeys. Luckily we have a quicker German estate car as well.
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Teacher has much the same opinion of Brahms as yourself but he is one of my favourite composers. I think I got her to change her mind slightly when she helped me to learn some of the Op118 Intermezzi.
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
I moved your Broadwood question to the Piano Advice bit, as I think it will find a greater audience there...sometimes I think it's just thee and me here! Good idea to get it evaluated; most Broadwoods are worthwhile instruments, but a lot depends on how it's been treated in its life. Looks to be 1930ish to me, but I'm sure someone will be able to help. Is there a serial number on it? That will date it more accurately. Look amongst the tuning pins, on the frame ir under the strings near the gap through which you can see the hammers.
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
My wife calls Beethoven "old grumpy" but with so much joy in both Brahms and Beethoven's symphonies they both must have had some sparkle deep within.
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Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Gill the Piano »
![nice piano :piano;](./images/smilies/piano.gif)
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Post by Cooksen »
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
The first time we played it together in rehearsal was mid February and I got lost in three or four places so I brought it home and worked on it for another four weeks. Next rehearsal was mid March and we played it through without major mishap so we played it in concert that afternoon. It went OK but my violinist partner got away from me in the last five or six bars which was a shame. Still I think people enjoyed it.
So to answer your question it was tricky to follow but with enough rehearsal not insurmountable. We just live too far apart to be able to get together apart from the days we have the meetup.
For April's meetup my partner has sent me Bach's Arioso and Purcell's Rondeau from Abdelazar.
I am still enjoying pieces by Einaudi for solo performance although I am awaiting for a new book of Philip Glass' piano music.
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Hi “Gill the Piano” - I’m new to all this so forgive a direct approach but I recently purchased an old Bluthner VIII which had been partially restored but with issues with the keys playing (regulation?). The seller had done the restoration and came back three times, after delivery, to address issues. Each time other notes stuck, made noise, or didn’t play properly, so I eventually returned it and got my money back. However, there was so much I loved about the piano I made some inquiries with Bluthner, in London and asked it they would look at the key action for me. They wouldn’t touch it! So when I saw your comment above I wondered where you took your Bluthner to get regulated, and how much it costs? I haven’t got loads of money but have wanted a grand piano for 30 years. I learnt on an upright and have never had the funds to buy one until this year. If you could recommend a good place to go I would be grateful too. Many thanks.Gill the Piano wrote: ↑09 Jan 2018, 17:27 How old is your Kemble? Are you sure it wouldn't benefit from a good regulation? I had my old Bluthner restored and whilst the new strings and hammers and so on made a difference, it was the regulation that impressed me, and I could play with far more control than before. My new German one is even better - but then so it should be. Don't discount the uprights; you can often get a far better tone than a short grand, without writing off the floor space.
Re: More chitchat about repertoire
Welcome to this forum. If you would like to let us know whereabouts you reside perhaps someone may be able to suggest a piano technician local to you. Also it would be useful to know the age of the Bluthner to determine if it could be fitted with a patent action.
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