Week 3: Seeing the Big Picture
Hello and welcome to the WEEK THREE Main Thread for this challenge! 
Alright everyone - this is the thread where we'll all be posting our daily updates.
Make sure you've read the rules before replying (<- click)
Twice a week between August 14th-21th I hope to be reading your daily updates in this very thread right here!
Here is this week's assignment!
I am sure that you have been busy at work on your pieces, fixing fingerings, dynamics, articulation, and so-on!
But this week I want us to focus on big picture work (outlined below) as a lot of us may be gearing up to play in the "back to school" recital OR use recorded videos from this challenge in a Watch Party! (Watch Parties are "pre-recorded" video celebrations, Community Concerts are LIVE performances of pieces).
Assignments:
1. Try and focus on playing larger chunks of your piece this week. Focus on broader strokes.
2. Record yourself in "run-throughs" of the piece, share with all of us! :)
3. Why? because we always need to remember to strike a balance between working on fine tuning the piece, and making sure the gestures and larger picture remain in focus, not becoming to "granular".
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Hi everybody. No video posting this week for me - I started therapy on my shoulder and am having to limit my time at the piano. I'll be doing lots of visualizing (sitting at the piano, visualizing myself playing the entire piece in a couple of different ways: repeats with ornaments and repeats with different voicing) instead of physical playing, which doesn't make for very interesting video! I look forward to seeing everyone's updates and progress throughout the week.
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Michelle R So sorry you can't play this week, but it is always smart to stop when we're in pain!
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Michelle R So sorry! I was looking forward to hearing. I hope you recover quickly!
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Michelle R Take care and hope your shoulder get better soon!
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Gail Starr Jennifer Mehta Priya Viseskul Thank you. It's feeling much better already, but I'm trying not to overdo it this week!
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Michelle R Sorry to hear about your shoulder. Hope it is better soon!
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Vidhya Bashyam thanks, Vidhya. It will be fine very soon, I'm sure! I'm just going to need to relearn how to use some muscles, it seems.
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Michelle R Michelle, I wish you all the best for your recovery! The practice you are doing with visualization is incredibly valuable. I will do some of this too. Even thought I could play, this is such great work.
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Sindre Skarelven Thanks, Sindre. I taught all my competitive gymnasts how to visualize, and am trying to adapt the practice for playing. It can be so very helpful! I'll be back to my regular practice schedule next week, with some modification, I expect.
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Michelle R I hope you get better soon, Michelle! Of course, as Sindre says, it is very valuable to practice with visualization. Take care!
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Sindre Skarelven Thurmond and I thought of you, Sindre, last night at the closing concert from our local Chamber Music Festival. There was a piece by Henning Kraggerud on the program ("Romantarctica"), and we considered how amazing it would be if one year we saw a piece by "Sindre Skarelven" on the program!!
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Juan Carlos Olite Thanks, Juan Carlos. My shoulder is moving much better than it had been (somehow I hadn't noticed how much mobility I'd lost!), and I'm playing in limited amounts of time. My back gets tired very quickly, but as long as I pay attention to that, I should be ok.
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Michelle R I'm so glad you got to witness this beautiful gem by Kraggerud! That you would think of me, means a lot and brings motivation! Maybe one day... :)
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Michelle R That would be amazing next summer! Maybe you can call the organizers in advance, and ask Sindre to create something for 2024?
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Gail Starr That would be pretty amazing! I'm not sure I have much influence, though. This year, each concert pairing had a work by a living composer, and many oboes. The 2023 Festival was in honor of Laila Storch - first female oboist to graduate from Curtis - who passed away in December at the age of 101. Thurmond drew a portrait of Laila from her younger years and presented it to Aloysia Friedmann, Laila's daughter and Artistic Director of the Festival. So it is possible I have more influence than I think, or at least Thurmond might !
(and because I'll take any opportunity to brag about my talented son, I'll attach a picture of the portrait he drew)
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Sindre Skarelven If you compose some chamber music, let me know. For such a small place, our Chamber Music Festival is top notch and does offer some very interesting opportunities!
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Michelle R Wow! Thurmond is such a talented musician and artist too!
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Michelle R Thurmond is such a talented young man, in so many areas! I bet you guys have a lot of fun together.
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Michelle R wishing you a speedy recovery! It's a great idea that you practice visualisation techniques for piano playing. Thanks for the inspiration! I would like to try and do that more as well.
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Michelle R you have every right to be a proud mum! I admire how Thurmond is talented in both art and music!
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Michelle R Wow, that drawing by Thurmond is so beautiful and well done! I really admire his talent, and please keep sharing drawings like this. Maybe he has drawn some famous composers?
I would love to compose some chamber music, but havent鈥檛 done it so far. What I have done is arranging pieces for musicals and concerts in our music school. I think I need to finish my piano album (18 pieces) before taking on a new project, but I may start working on some ideas! :)
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Sindre Skarelven I look forward to your foray into chamber music compostion! I also look forward to your completing your piano album. I enjoy listening to your playing, and find your compostions encourage my mind to relax and "see" with a little more clarity. It's kind of amazing, really!
Thank you so much regarding Thurmond. He's been drawing longer than he's been playing, and recently has started refining his drawing. The one I posted above is one of his best ones - he has a lovely one of Maria Callas (the opera singer) and a striking one of a young Martha Argerich, and I think he has a nice one of John Cage, wearing a mitre! Here's a famous composer he drew a couple of years ago, so it's not as refined as the more recent ones, but is still pretty good. I'll post some more when I post my recording later this week.
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Michelle R Love it! Keep sharing these amazing drawings!
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Natalie Peh Thanks, Natalie. I'm playing in a limited capacity this week - my shoulder is much improved, but now muscles are working in ways they aren't used to working, so I tire easily. I'm planning to post a "final" recording by the end of week 4, with a half-way finished unfinished business!
And it's fun to be a proud mum!
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Vidhya Bashyam Thanks, Vidhya!
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