My journey in preparation to an amateur piano competition
Hi, my name is Joao, I'm 56 and live in Lisbon, Portugal. I studied piano in my youth, from 20 to 24 and then life happened (kids, international career) and I stopped completely. Restarted 1 year ago, after 32 years :-).
To make things more exciting and boost my motivation (and stop hearing voices saying "no practice today because of my back pain" ), I've signed up for an international competition for amateur pianists, to be held in Paris next March 2023. I'll be playing the following:
Johann S. Bach - Prelude and fugue no. 2, in C minor, BWV 847, book 1
Wolfgang A. Mozart - Fantasy in C minor, K475
Franz Schubert - Sonata D664, no. 13, op. 120, in A major (1st movement)
Robert Schumann- Novelletten op. 21, no. 1, in F major
Frédéric Chopin - Nocturn in C# minor, no. 20, B.49
Johannes Brahms - Intermezzo in A major, op. 118, no. 2
Claude A. Debussy - La plus que lente, Valse, L.128 (121)
Mozart Camargo Guarnieri - Ponteios, 5º caderno, no. 49, “Torturado”
I'm very excited to be on Tonebase with you guys and I'll post my progress here as I move along.
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Those are beautiful pieces! I'm very excited for you. Is this new repertoire for you? Are you revisiting some old favorites? Looking forward to cheering you on :-)
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Leah Olson Thank you Leah! I remember I played Mozart’s fantasy when I was young, but all the remaining repertoire is new. Quite challenging, to be honest, but great to feel the energy and the drive to practise every single day in order to achieve my goal!
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Wow! That is wonderful! Send you the best success in this great piano challenge!
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Aline Valade Thank you Aline!
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So after a few months of trying to bring the repertoire to a playable level, I tried a few pieces from memory last week. It's far from perfect and still many glitches, but this reminds me of the hard work ahead in these 3 months!
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TAKE 1 / Brahms - Intermezzo in A major, op. 118, no. 2
To fix on the next recording:
- the very start must be lighter
- bars 10 & 11: I hear a triplet, not a quaver in the 3rd tempo
- bars 15: better memorize and watch wrong accents
- bars 23-26: pedal and memory
- this section (bars 16 to 48) is still very clumsy (memory, intent, etc). Trying to play this in a less passionate way here, because it will repeat at the end and I'll use my energy there. But the section as it is now, I find it too apathetic. Find other ways to express this...
- bar 49: a huge drop in tempo, no reason for that. Play with dynamics instead. Also, make the melody in the left hand more predominant in the repetition.
- bars 57-63 (più lento): continue working on the chords voicing, still hearing sound clusters instead of distinct voices
- bar 65: must return to the first tempo (continued più lento).
- bar 67: the last crotchet of the 2nd tempo in the left hand is an A and I played a C#
- bars 69-72: study, study...
- bars 76-84: study... make a mental map and clearly switch here, as lost memories from the first bars may be confusing
- From here to the end, I try to make this section more passionate, in contrast with the previous time. Some memory glitches here and there and I'm not sure about excessive rubatos here. Something to think about
There are a million other issues, of course. I'll definitely go back to study this piece hands separate and with the metronome
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Joao Pio Pedreira This is sounding great. You've made excellent progress. I like the detailed list you made above of where you want to polish--so helpful to have a plan. I like the passion in your ending. This is such a spiritual piece--a quieter, searching opening like you have, with passion and conviction at the end makes for a convincing interpretation. Well done!
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I started with age 23 or 24 and never stopped, but my progress has been slow. You must be very talented and also have studied a lot to play so well with 4 year practice and that big break. I wish one day to feel ready to get into an amateur competition, but the level is so high that I doubt I’ll really make it. I’m also studying that Bach!! And I’m glad you are playing Guarnieri (I’m Brazilian). I wish the best of luck to you, please keep sharing.
