WEEK 3 Practice Updates, and a harmony micro-challenge: Cadences
Dear Pianists,
We've made it to week three of Bach in March!! Some of us started sooner and others of us started later with our pieces and it's all good - progress is persistent and always available. I look forward to seeing your practice videos below if you're interested in sharing those.
A brief reminder to sign up for the interactive masterclass with me on March 31st, and a note that the community concert has been rescheduled for April 1. The Bach in March watch party will take place in early april - be on the lookout for a message from me. I'll write you if I'd like to play your video!
The Repertoire for the interactive masterclass will involve on piece from each of the following categories: A Little prelude / invention / sinfonia, a prelude and fugue, a dance suite movement, and a Goldberg variation.
Many have asked about the Goldbergs this month, and I encourage you to check out our ongoing Goldberg variations challenge. It's never too late to start, and I always suggest committing to a variation that feels within your technical capability. How do you assess whether something is right for your level? See how far you can sight read into it, at an even rhythm and slow tempo. Do you feel like your fingers can find the right notes, where your ears seek them out? Do your hands feel strong enough to play the piece? Can you already hear the piece in your head before you begin playing?
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Nico's livestream on Friday March 18 inspired me to share an idea I had with you! In pretty much all of Bach's music, cadences play an essential structural role in organizing his music.
- Where's the first cadence or a shadow of a cadence you come across in your piece?
- What about the end of the first section, or the first phrase?
If you haven't been able to make as much progress on your challenge piece, no worries: here's something much smaller, a micro-challenge!
Pick up that first cadence in your chosen piece, and play it as a chord progression! If you can, make a recording of that chord progression and compare it with you playing the piece up until that first cadence. How do they sound? Alike or Unlike? What do you take away?
I'll be back soon with an example, to help you better understand how to do this.
Hilda
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Hi Hilda Huang , thanks for sharing the updates to the schedule. The new date for the community concert, unfortunately, makes it difficult for me to participate. But I may be able to watch it live. The weekday events are hit or miss for me as I'm often interrupted by work emails/calls. But I look forward to potentially participating in future events.
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- I need to practice
Hi Hilda Huang , I watched your Bach repertoire replay again yesterday. Where can I find the list of repertoire that you mentioned? Thanks!
- I need to practice
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Episode 3&4 of Bach BWV 992 Capriccio sopra la lontananza del fratello dilettissimo “Capriccio on the departure of a beloved brother”.
Having failed to convince the brother to leave...
3rd Episode: Lament from this friends. 4th Episode: Friends gather to bid him farewell. The lament aria in ep. 3 is interesting because it features a figured bass. If you listen to different recordings of this they vary because each performer “improvises” a bit adding in missing notes. I don’t have the confidence do to this with Bach so I follow the Henle suggestions (in small notes).as in the example below.
The last 2 movements are my favorites but also the most challenging. I'm hoping I will be able to finish by the end of the week to complete the piece for this challenge.
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Brett Gilbert Bravo!
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Brett Gilbert , amazing. well played.
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Brett Gilbert Beautiful playing and interesting piece!
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Brett Gilbert wonderful playing!
I like the overhead view, too. -
Thank you everyone for your comments.
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Brett Gilbert The lament was beautifully played.
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Brett Gilbert Great observation - and a good idea to fill it in. Descending bass lines offer opportunities to practice improvising - you can just repeat the four descending notes over and over again. No worries about not having enough confidence - you'll build it up over time!
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Brett Gilbert Very good playing!
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Brett Gilbert interesting choice, and good reading, with a nice steady beat.
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Brett Gilbert thank you so much for recording this piece - I had not come across it before. Really enjoyed your performance as well!
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Work in progress…
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Andrea Buckland Beautifully played, I love this variation. Thanks for sharing.
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Brett Gilbert Thank you, Brett! I absolutely love this piece.
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Andrea Buckland So lovely, Andrea. You’ve inspired me to look into the Goldberg Variation. Thank you so much for sharing!
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Andrea Buckland This is a really moving variation... thank you so much for playing it for us this week! I enjoy noticing the improvements in your legato!
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Andrea Buckland Very good playing, Andrea! Beautiful variation!
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Hilda Huang many thanks, dear Hilda!
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Juan Carlos Olite thank you, Juan Carlos!
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Andrea Buckland the beauty of this shines through, even in a slow reading. Thanks for sharing.
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Charlie Gesualdo thanks, Charlie
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Andrea Buckland that’s really beautiful- thank you
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Angela Fogg Thank you, Angela!
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