Group 1
Improve your Scales!
Scales are integral to your technique - all of music is built on them! They are singularly one of the most important things to master for piano playing!
Fellow Participants in Group 1:
Vidhya Bashyam
Ko
Michael
Andrea Buckland
Denise
hanqi4
Barbara Blakeslee
Sindre Skarelven
Jarkko Janhunen
Gail Starr
Harry Neuwirth
Peter Hirsch
Susan Rogers
Fides Cutiongco
Alistair Bertram
Some tonebase productions to get you started
"Creative Scale Practice" with Jarred Dunn
C Major Pattern Scales with Juliana Han
"Choreographing Scales" with Seymour Bernstein
"Scale Technique" with Penelope Roskell
How to get the most out of this course
- Start by watching the introduction video and practice the exercises given in the video.
- Write a post with your experiences with scales.
- Start Practicing Czerny Op.599 no.61, and 69!
- Share two videos per week and help your course partners through feedback on their submissions!
Zoom Check-In: Wednesday, June 29th at 11am PT!
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Hi! My scales experiences? I had two years of piano lessons when I was a kid, but didn't really learn to practice scales. Also when I started playing again more intensively four years ago (during Chemo therapy to keep my fingers moving which were getting more and more numb during treatment) I decided to play repertoire rather than exercises. In fact I played through all the Beethoven sonatas, one movement per week. Although the sonatas were obviously above my level, the 'Beethoven Project' gave me a reason to get up in the morning, brought a lot of joy and fulfillment and certainly helped to get back to vitality. I also got used to playing quite a few hours per day during that time and I'm still addicted to that practice. By the end of 2018 I started taking lessons again, only randomly a few hours per year, working on repertoire. I'm very glad for this opportunity here to work on technique. Thank you, Dominique, for that!
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Vidhya Bashyam Thank you, sweet friend! I just sort of muddle through and take Motrin, LOL!
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Andrea Buckland I just bought a nice, big bottle of Motrin ( a pain-reliever in the U.S.). Some days I just don't play and then the next day I feel better! I am so glad that your pain has resolved and you are feeling all better!
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Andrea Buckland The website is MyGMG.org, and we have members from all over the world.
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Ok, I will go first. I just sat down and did a cold run of my C major scale warm up. This is how I typically practice scales... usually with a metronome. Quarter notes - one octave, eighth 2 octaves, triplets 3, sixteenths 4. I usually fudge up when I get to the sixteenths... Especially with the metronome, and my hands are out sync. I have to admit, I haven't played them this fast cold for a while. Anyway... off to more practice.
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Denise well done, Denise! That’s a great starting point!
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Denise Thanks for posting first! Makes it easier for the rest of us. Nice to see your cute golden retriever coming to hear you play
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Denise Ok, you did great!
I’m pretty sure I’m the ONLY person in Tonebase who hasn’t practiced scales since I was a pre-teen. But the truth is out…and I’ll start NOW, LOL! Gotta make up for lots of lost time…
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Denise Your practice is really effective! I think I'm gonna try it too.
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Here we go...
Burgmüller https://youtu.be/QNxFP01V_KY
Czerny No 61 https://youtu.be/fnN_URyApBY
Czerny No 69 https://youtu.be/NvUGjvtTSHs
G-minor scale, both hands - very slow but nonetheless disastrous https://youtu.be/eJFAvO6Ud5w
Grouping practice G-minor, left hand alone https://youtu.be/Zm_m2QRFGZA
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Andrea Buckland You have a such a warm sound which brings peace.
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Andrea Buckland I really like your economical/efficient movements. Also, everything sounds beautiful- I liked your czerny 61 best.
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Ko Thank you so much, Ko! Such a wonderful thing to say!
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Vidhya Bashyam thank you very much, Vidhya!
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Andrea Buckland fantastic - you did so many of the assignments! You’re Czerny 61 was very musical and pleasant to the ear. Bravo!
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Andrea Buckland I love your phrasing!
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Susan Rogers many thanks, Susan!
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Gail Starr thank you very much, Gail!
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Andrea Buckland I like your Burgmüller the most. The transitions are really smooth!
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hanqi4 many thanks! It’s quite an innocent piece but gets tricky for me when I increase the speed.
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Jarkko Janhunen great tempo for Czerny! Bravo!
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Jarkko Janhunen great idea to practice with the metronome!
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Jarkko Janhunen You’ve inspired me to get a metronome app for my phone. Great idea and lovely energy with the Czerny!
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Jarkko Janhunen Love the nice tempo and how smooth your music sounds!
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1st week assignment
C Major scale
https://youtube.com/shorts/GCEI3ii-TAA?feature=share
g minor from Chopin
https://youtube.com/shorts/UMc2ecsF-Mg?feature=share
chromatic scale
https://youtube.com/shorts/vaV5kIIZ5PQ?feature=share
Burgmüller
I skipped the repeat part.
