This is another thread like the one of the same title in the Keyboard forum for all string players to discuss the pieces they are currently working on...
Right now I am working mainly on 3 things (on classical guitar):
J.S. Bach - BWV 1006a
Falla - Asturiana (for voice and guitar)
William Beauvais arrangement of I Will Give My Love an Apple for voice and guitar.
I'm currently re-learning some of Brouwer's simple studies. I used to know the first 7 of them, I'm in the process of re-learning 4 through 7, after that I plan to also do 8-10.
After many years I am relearning Recuedos de la Alhambra and the Villa-Lobos first etude. Lots of right hand in these. I am learning, for the first time, Albeniz's Tango in D. Lots of left hand challenges here.
Had a great lesson with Taggart & my fiddle teacher on keyboard playing the whole 24 Apted tunes.
This week's practice will concentrate on playing Playford in parts. This is a new skill for the raw home duo, but very satisfying, and good for us musically too, I think.
The teacher I started working with February of last year couldn't seem to fit me into her schedule and so I got ditched. Disappointing really. She's good. So I haven't had lessons for about 16 months. That's usually not a problem, but I like to have lessons once in a while to help me with something new and keep my playing fresh and improving.
I've started with another new teacher. Two lessons already. This teacher lives upstairs and over two apartments. She's a local professional playing with the opera orchestra. She also occasionally plays with the symphony orchestra. She comes downstairs to my place. This is brilliant because I can spend time prior warming up, and spend time immediately after practicing what we've just done. She's giving me a $5 discount because we're neighbours.
I'm working on The Lark Ascending by Vaughan Williams. I started this once before about 5 years ago, but it went no where. This new teacher has performed it, she knows it well. She's got some good fingering and bowing. I will possibly perform this at a masterclass in July. It's a masterclass full of adult amateurs like me. Not too much pressure. I've performed in previous years too.
Last week we had a lesson in the afternoon and then I saw my new teacher (and previous teacher) perform Also Sprach Zarathustra with the local professional orchestra.
Two more lessons are scheduled. I'm going to ask her if she wants to continue giving lessons. But at $75 per hour the price does add up quickly.
The teacher I started working with February of last year couldn't seem to fit me into her schedule and so I got ditched. Disappointing really. She's good. So I haven't had lessons for about 16 months. That's usually not a problem, but I like to have lessons once in a while to help me with something new and keep my playing fresh and improving.
I've started with another new teacher. Two lessons already. This teacher lives upstairs and over two apartments. She's a local professional playing with the opera orchestra. She also occasionally plays with the symphony orchestra. She comes downstairs to my place. This is brilliant because I can spend time prior warming up, and spend time immediately after practicing what we've just done. She's giving me a $5 discount because we're neighbours.
I'm working on The Lark Ascending by Vaughan Williams. I started this once before about 5 years ago, but it went no where. This new teacher has performed it, she knows it well. She's got some good fingering and bowing. I will possibly perform this at a masterclass in July. It's a masterclass full of adult amateurs like me. Not too much pressure. I've performed in previous years too.
Last week we had a lesson in the afternoon and then I saw my new teacher (and previous teacher) perform Also Sprach Zarathustra with the local professional orchestra.
Two more lessons are scheduled. I'm going to ask her if she wants to continue giving lessons. But at $75 per hour the price does add up quickly.
I did play The Lark Ascending at the masterclass in the summer. It's a low pressure masterclass full of adult amateurs like myself. I played though 2/3 of the piece, it's quite long. I played for nearly 10 minutes in front of ten people. It's wasn't a particularly good performance but considering I had only really been working on it six weeks I was pleased. And my audience was appreciative. I go year after year, and I'm usually the only one brave enough to stand up and play in front of the others.
I'm still working with my neighbour / teacher. I'm now working on the Franck A Major Sonata, and the Andante from the second Solo Violin Sonata of Bach. The Andante is really difficult. My intonation is not good, and the pulsing bass line difficult to maintain. But that is what practice is for. The Franck is lovely. I downloaded an MP3 file of the piano accompaniment. There is a professional accompanist who sells online piano accompaniments. I have not played along yet to this but I will soon. I have no experience playing with a piano accompaniment.
I'm working on Lalo Symphonie Espagnol 1st and 4th movement! The runs and shifts are pretty exposed, so its tough. Also getting the right expression at the same time... I'll keep practicing.
Autumn break for me and finally time to practice a lot. I'm getting ready for a piano/guitar recital on November 22. We are playing the Villa-Lobos concerto, "the Albeniz concerto" by Stephen Goss and hopefully Desafio by Marlos Nobre and a solo each. We've played them before some years ago, except Nobre. Right now I feel it's too much but had some good practice sessions today. Getting psyched up.
Recorded Sir Andrew Aguecheek this afternoon. Videoed it with the score as the recording blended a few takes and it felt lame to try to video myself playing along. A few gliches still, but here it is:
I am working on a composition for string quartet. Unusually for me it travels backwards and forwards through several keys: F#mi, C#mi, Bmi, and A maj and ends up with a melody essentially in the E major key over a chord sequence of D, C#min, Bmin, A, G, F, Eb. It's good to work outside your comfort zone.
Greetings to the TC folk, this is my first post.
Currently working on the Koussevitzky concerto for double bass and Annibale Mengoli's Study no 16 for double bass from the Petracchi Simplified Higher Technique book. So I basically came here to cry.
It's been a few months since I started working on these, have already developed my thumb callus and my hands feel strong but there are still so many things to fix.
I just bought a guitar arrangement of Vivaldi's Violin Concerto in D major, Op.3, No.9, RV 230 first arranged by Bach for keyboard. It's quite challenging, so I'll see how it goes. It will never sound this good, though!!
Since I also play piano, I think I'll learn it on that instrument instead--it's actually easier in some respects. The guitar is not really equipped to handle keyboard works, at least not without a lot of modifications/simplifications.
Trying to get the hang of Tullochgorum - based on arpeggio techniques but with Scottish snap coming out of its ears.
Not the Scott Skinner variations featured here - just the basic tune, in C.
Some Irish tunes - they're so beautiful. I can't play them to speed, but I can luxuriate in the melodies.
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