Group 1
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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Hello everyone! Right now, I only have half an hour for practicing a day. So I will take this Intensive to use this time effectively. I choose 3. movement of Sonata 3. Singing will be interesting.
Thank you Jarred for the possibility to participate. LG Kerstin
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Hello!!
I'm Adriana. Thank you so much for the opportunity!
I'm very exited to keep learning and keep improving my skills with such great teachers :)
If you accept it. During this course I would like to practice the lyrics part of:
- The 1st movement of the Sonata op.35 of Chopin and...
- Nocturne op.48 no.1 (but the recapitulation of the theme, with all the chords).
If it's not possible to do both... I'll stick with the Nocturne.
I'll be sending my video soon! :)-
Adriana López whichever you know better! Both are great for developing a great lyrical tone.
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Adriana López I LOVE No. 1. That doppio is no joke! Can't wait to hear it.
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Bryan Sable Thank you so much!
I hope I make it justice! Can't wait to hear you too!!
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Hi Everyone!
I am excited about this course! It is already a good challenge for me.
I started yesterday trying to do the assignment with Prelude No 15. I was practicing the left hand. Good.
Then I tried to write the chords. I could do about 4 of them for the first 8 measures. Pretty good for me since I never did this before. I am still doing Ben’s music theory course. This is the first practical application I have tried and it’s a good challenge. I will try a bit more before asking for advice here (and also not going to look up the answer somewhere on the internet).
Then I was singing the right hand. Good.
I next tried to put the left hand and singing together. This is a really challenging! It was not instantaneous! I will need to practice this a lot. This is a good lesson.
I thought maybe I should perhaps choose another piece? Maybe a nocturne?
Thank you!
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Wendy if you have the time, I'd pick a nocturne from Op. 9, 15, or 37 - the second theme in the Op. 37 nr. 2 is particularly beautiful.
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Jarred Dunn Dear Mr Dunn, Thank you so much for the suggestions! I will look at those and then choose one. Thank you!!! Best, Wendy
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Jarred Dunn I’ve settled on Nocturne Op. 9, No. 2. It has such a beautiful melody! Thank you!!!
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Hi everyone!
I think I will use portions of the Ballade no. 1 or Nocturne, op. 48 no. 2.
Greatly looking forward to hearing everyone and growing with you all!
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Bryan Sable both great choices for this TWI!
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Bryan Sable it'll be interesting to hear you!!
And what differences we can find in both of our interpretations of the Nocturne
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Hi everyone,
I'm a little (fashionably) late arriving. I will likely choose a Nocturne once I have a look at them. I will reply to myself here once I have decided.
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Ken Locke Have you decided upon a piece?
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Jarred Dunn Yes! Sorry, I have a busy couple of weeks going on at work. I am starting with the Nocturne Op 9 No 2, which has a nice repetitive basic chord progression, since I had to keep things simpler under time constraints. I'm hoping to get a video done tomorrow. I'm realizing I haven't sung out loud in a long time!
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This is the point from which I start.
https://youtu.be/_uZTUSnP2YE?si=QE1lXzjPVJ_TkngJ
I tried to sing yesterday. Not that easy but really interesting. I realized, I can not play to slow.
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Kerstin great to hear you on this amazing movement. A few details based in lyric playing: 0:13 let the ornament (turn) be more dynamic, it should be more like the grace note at 0:31-32 and make the line sway. Good at 0:44 letting the line grow at the top the way a singer would. 1:02 give some time to breathe between the low F-sharp and high F-sharp and then continue in forward motion. Did you try singing this part? 1:28-31 begin this melody a bit softer and grow to the high B. Same for the second time - the call/response here between moving line and chords should be clear. 2:02 make a bigger difference between tones of the alto and soprano arpeggio chord.
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Jarred Dunn Thank you so much. The last part to sing is really difficult. I will try.
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Hi I am way over my head here but like to try. However I’d like to spare everyone the excruciating experience of seeing any videos etc. trust me. However, I have selected nocturne in e flat major. So far worked thru two measures with left hand and identified first chord. Second chord has stumped me. I think that’s enough for now.
thanksrick
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Rick Hi Rick, I’m about in the same place. No worries! This is for fun and learning something new. We’re not supposed to have mastered at something that we’ve never done before. It’s good to stretch ourselves. It’ll all work out fine, Cheers, Wendy
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Rick Ditto what Wendy said! Everyone in this group seems to be truly about the love of the instrument and our growth as musicians. I haven't done much harmonic analysis of anything for a loooong time. Reach out if you want a little help in that area. :)
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Rick Go for it anyway!
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This was a lot more challenging than I expected!
I must admit, I am humbled for a number of reasons; chiefly, I am a high school choir director! I sing and play at the same time ALL day, often triaging at the drop of a hat, switching between singing all four parts in the same phrase to reinforce parts with my kids!
This was a completely different challenge, but I’m excited to see where this nocturne goes. I was shocked at how flummoxed I was by having to switch octaves melodically, and how it distracted my left hand enough to mess up an eighth note here or there.
I also have not flexed my harmonic analysis muscles since undergrad. I’m sure that I missed some chord functions here and there, but given the creative harmonies that Chopin employed in the chromaticism of phrases, I think I got most of the point across…maybe?
I hope I embedded the video correctly!
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Bryan Sable Singing a Chopin nocturne is a tall order! You make more time for high points and lilts - very Chopinian. ?$%#!!! moment made me laugh. Good continuity in spite of that. Next step can be showing different rubato moments in the repeated main themes and attuning your voice to Chopin's specific chromaticisms and playing bass as chords while singing along in a poetic way - you've got most of the notes in your system quickly enough to start thinking about poetic singing. Since you're experienced with choir directing, try listening to it on a recording (Pires, Rubinstein) and conducting it as if choir parts were entering / overlapping / finishing, etc.
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Zoom Check-in: Tuesday July 2nd at 11am PT. Bring any questions you have so far or important lessons/skills you're learning. Hope to see you there! Keep singing...
