Group 3
Welcome to the NEW TWO WEEK INTENSIVE on tonebase!
Improving your Lyricism (feat Chopin)
Post your progress with videos and written commentary on how things are going for you!
- Course Period: June 26 - July 10th
- Class Size: ALL are welcome!
- Optional check-In via Zoom: July 2nd at 11am PT
- ZOOM MEETING LINK:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/5557629304?pwd=F1jnbTtCaEZxci7lDSSss66kvLtCVT.1
Assignment #1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQpw6fZBOlE
- Pick a short piece (Mazurka, Nocturne, Prelude) or excerpt of a longer piece (Ballade, Polonaise, Scherzo, Sonata, Concerto). Focus on lyrical/slow sections.
- Learn bass carefully, labelling all chords and cadences.
- SING melodic line. Practice singing until your voice can identify the melody instantly.
- Submit a video: playing the Bass while singing the Soprano.
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Assignment #2
https://youtu.be/ri2UD1z8sKE?si=w36XWzqb_rao3RAu
-Label all breathing points with an apostrophe between phrase markings. Practice deep breaths between significant points or use a regular breath for phrase changes.
-Sing Bass notes of all chords while playing Soprano melody.
-Submit a video: playing hands together (performance).
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Here is my video āsingingā the first section of Mazurka 24/1.
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Vidhya Bashyam I hopped over to group three to see what you all were working on. Glad I did! Beautifully done! Iām loving hearing what everyone is doing, and the different nuances people feel in these works!
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Such an interesting excercise to try to sing the melody of the Mazurka I'm learning. I think I'll continue to try this when I practice...just quietly in my head.
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Gail Starr great work so far - and nice reaching up for the high D-C in m. 2 and capturing the marcato articulation. Do you find the breathing helps you pace the melody? I hear good changes in your pacing already - bass beats 2 and 3 sound like a Kujawiak lilt. Keep going!
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Gail Starr What a brave singer you are, Gail! Love it!
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Jarred Dunn Thank you for listening. This was very much out of my comfort zone, but it is a remarkably useful exercise.
Trying to sing is helping me express the kujawiak phrasing and accents I heard in my head, but havenāt yet translated into playing the piano.
In fact, I can see that singing in general can help with ābreathingā some of the articulations Iāve been struggling with in other composers.
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Juan Carlos Olite This was SCARY, but I think it will help me in the long run.
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Gail Starr lovely singing, and glad that you picked a mazurka too!
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Gail Starr This is wonderful, Gail! I actually enjoyed listening to your ājoyful noiseā so much that I listened twice! This type of exercise is probably one of my favorite things Iāve done with my teacher this year - and Iām kind of sad I canāt join in on the singing with all my piano buddies.
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Michelle R Joyful noise! I love your creative "re-branding". And please join in and sing whatever you like. We love hearing you, no matter what you are working on.
On a more serious note, I can now see how valuable trying to sing is. I just tried singing the theme of the Bach Fugue I'm working on (since my husband was out for a fun).
I think singing is helping me get a better feel for what Bach wants to do with each of the voices.
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Gail Starr itās sounds great! I love the way you use different sounds for different articulation.
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Gail Starr oh I love this
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Gail Starr so well done! You Lily so beautifully around this melody. I hear the love you have for this work in your singing!
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Hi everyone,
Very impressed that people have got videos up already, congratulations! Iām always seem to be running a week behind on these things! However Iām going to work on Chopin Mazurka Opus 6 No 1. The first section in particular.
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Hereās my effort (Etude Op 10 No 6, first page)
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Harriet Kaplan thatās beautiful, Harriet!
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Harriet Kaplan Great Harriet!
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Harriet Kaplan You totally nailed the goal of this exercise.
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Harriet Kaplan this is lovely Harriet!
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Andrea Buckland Vidhya Bashyam Gail Starr Natalie Peh Thank you!
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Harriet Kaplan Great work, Harriet!
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Harriet Kaplan good analysis and LH work: that's a lot of new material in a short time. I would suggest on ends of phrases, don't change the syllable, keep singing an open vowel - feel the the sound/colour extend for longer time and the phrase tapering naturally. Singing some note changes continuously rather than changing the vowel will attract your ear to legato. Good work at 0:58 reaching the high point a second time - could this one be more supported than the first (compare your first E-flat at 0:25).
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Harriet Kaplan Sounding good - lovely warm sound.
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Analysis:
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Harriet Kaplan so...what exactly is Bflat elbow?
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Gail Starr
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