10.18.19
B2p no1 2:55
Memorized no13 1st page HS
11.1.19
Ok so in less than 20 days I have b2part 1,4 and 13 decently well memorized. Just need to gain speed. Not sure how long that will take. Trying to play them at least 3 times each every day. Which takes 30 minutes now.
Bach air on g is half memorized. Frustratingly slow. Can't break it down or chunk it up. Really want to get on to field nocturne 1 which appears far easier.
Haven't been sight reading. No time. I should make time. Ought to sight read field nocturne 1 even though i already memorized the first page HS.
Reading The Long War series by AJ Smith. The Lovecraftian monsters are nice. I like Randall and the Gorlan mother. It's ok.
If I didn't previously mention it Lilith by Geirge Macdonald is good. Need to finish it. Ought to be a tv show or something. It's up there with Lewis. Surprised i never hear much about Macdonald.
And Senlin series by Josiah Bancroft is good. Vaguely steampunkish. Nice main character. Nice characters in general. Awaiting book 4.
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
10.6.19
Bach 2 part no1. 5:15. 4:59
Learn 1, 4 and 8 first. Really want to get some Bach down.
Beethoven sonata 8 1st movement 2nd half of second page.
Bass bflatx3 then aflatx3 then dflatx1 eflat x1
10.10.19
Bach 2 part no1 3:58
Started 4
10.11 19
Bach 2 part no1 3:31
No4 ran through but not much at end
Started 13 (much harder)
10.12.19
No4 4:10
No13 3 measures in lol
Started greensleeves
10.13.19
B2part no1 3:03
Memorized 1st page greensleeves
B2part no4 3:35
B2part no13 is a bitch. Probably need a ton of HS. But if I can ever play it without looking at my hands I think my playing will greatly improve in general. Have gone through first page now.
Bach 2 part instead of Czerny for last 8 days.
So I have really been sight reading consistently for only two months. I guess it's been pretty good. Lots of improvement. Happy with what I've done with Bach two parts in only 8 days. Might learn all 15...?
Maintaining canon in D, pathetique 2nd movement. Memorizing Greensleeves and then air on g which is much harder. Would like to keep those 4 in my memory eventually. Then perhaps some Chopin of Pathetique 1st movement.
Figured out recliner causes right leg sciatica. While sleeping flat causes bad sleep due to back aching in the night. Inversion machine seems to maybe remedy this I think...
Bach 2 part no1. 5:15. 4:59
Learn 1, 4 and 8 first. Really want to get some Bach down.
Beethoven sonata 8 1st movement 2nd half of second page.
Bass bflatx3 then aflatx3 then dflatx1 eflat x1
10.10.19
Bach 2 part no1 3:58
Started 4
10.11 19
Bach 2 part no1 3:31
No4 ran through but not much at end
Started 13 (much harder)
10.12.19
No4 4:10
No13 3 measures in lol
Started greensleeves
10.13.19
B2part no1 3:03
Memorized 1st page greensleeves
B2part no4 3:35
B2part no13 is a bitch. Probably need a ton of HS. But if I can ever play it without looking at my hands I think my playing will greatly improve in general. Have gone through first page now.
Bach 2 part instead of Czerny for last 8 days.
So I have really been sight reading consistently for only two months. I guess it's been pretty good. Lots of improvement. Happy with what I've done with Bach two parts in only 8 days. Might learn all 15...?
Maintaining canon in D, pathetique 2nd movement. Memorizing Greensleeves and then air on g which is much harder. Would like to keep those 4 in my memory eventually. Then perhaps some Chopin of Pathetique 1st movement.
Figured out recliner causes right leg sciatica. While sleeping flat causes bad sleep due to back aching in the night. Inversion machine seems to maybe remedy this I think...
Monday, September 30, 2019
9.18.19
Switching to 50/50 sight reading/ memorizing per discussion where pretty much everyone said memorizing is just as much an improvable skill. This instead of scales and then just sight reading. Was up to f sharp major on contrary scales. Still an hour a day. Wife won't allow longer. Still Czerny 30 to ...47 or so. Over and over.
9.26.19
A month of sight reading for an hour a day really helped my ability to learn memorize repertoire. Canon in D and Pathetique 2nd are both good except for occasional pause in last couple lines. Mostly memorized first page of Pathetique 1st movement 1st page in two days and quickly moving through 2nd page. Also relearning Rach c sharp prelude ending.
Need to keep up with Czerny 599 some every day considering how much it helped. Wow. Put aside scales and my etude for a bit.
9/30/19
I feel very humble thanks to piano playing being my main hobby / interest. I really have a whole lot of nothing much going on while also not really being very good yet at piano.
The people who have forsaken me, I am not feeling moral outrage about anymore, because I'm not much of anyone. Perfectly understandable they wouldn't want to associate with me. This of course goes beyond the piano.
I wish I had been playing for an hour minimum daily from a young age. So nice to just play piano and not bother with people.
Switching to 50/50 sight reading/ memorizing per discussion where pretty much everyone said memorizing is just as much an improvable skill. This instead of scales and then just sight reading. Was up to f sharp major on contrary scales. Still an hour a day. Wife won't allow longer. Still Czerny 30 to ...47 or so. Over and over.
9.26.19
A month of sight reading for an hour a day really helped my ability to learn memorize repertoire. Canon in D and Pathetique 2nd are both good except for occasional pause in last couple lines. Mostly memorized first page of Pathetique 1st movement 1st page in two days and quickly moving through 2nd page. Also relearning Rach c sharp prelude ending.
Need to keep up with Czerny 599 some every day considering how much it helped. Wow. Put aside scales and my etude for a bit.
9/30/19
I feel very humble thanks to piano playing being my main hobby / interest. I really have a whole lot of nothing much going on while also not really being very good yet at piano.
The people who have forsaken me, I am not feeling moral outrage about anymore, because I'm not much of anyone. Perfectly understandable they wouldn't want to associate with me. This of course goes beyond the piano.
I wish I had been playing for an hour minimum daily from a young age. So nice to just play piano and not bother with people.
Thursday, September 5, 2019
LOW B12!!!!!
14. 4(43m?) 0 0 6(69m) 0 4(43m) 0-14
Last one did 6.8mph vs 4.5mph per mile. Feeling better with b12 going up.
15. ??? 2 and????
16. 8mi@0.2 (2hr) 4hr sleep 2hr nap, 3mi@1.0 (26:45) good run, 2hr runs really makes a difference - 11 (Friday) 8mi@.5 (2hr) last 20 min @.7° and last 10 @4.1mph
17. 3.2mi in 27:35@1.0° yay! But motherboard gave out. 8.4mi in 120m@.7° 7 hrs sleep-11.6 sleep not ideal
18. 7.5mi in 90@1.0°. 8.4mi in 115@1.0°. Way too hard. Maybe wore out from previous. -15.9
19.
Actually missed a day of work because I overdid the last run so bad. Pretty stupid. I have no patience. Need to ease up.
9.4.19 few days into 1/5 interval etude 8 wrote. Frustrated. 45 pieces into 599 but really need work. It's going to really take a while. Hawth can play twinkle and c major scale. Working on g major. Trying to start HT and note names.
8.30.19 frustrated. Long run maybe makes harder. Contrary is harder.
8.28.19 all 12 scales but need work. Contrary is even harder.
8.22.19 frustration, impatience. Op599 pg 13
8.18.19 up to 10 scales but really have mistakes on some. Like f#major. Added arps. Just C to start. And octave scales/arps and 8th/5th scales. Clearly improving at sight reading with metronome but it's slow. 599 will take many months but I will be so much better eventually. Patience. Hawthy is getting hang of C scale 1 octave each hand. Started twinkle today. Playing about 7 minutes a day. Me about 8 hours a week.
8/11/19 czerny op 599. Practical method for beginners. Treating myself like beginner. Using metronome. Sight reading. Patience. Humility. Will go through all 59 pages. Also up to 7 major scales.
8/10/19: already feeling quite frustrated with not looking. No discernible improvement from day to day. Bought czerny book.
8/5/19: added scales, trills, sight reading/not looking
14. 4(43m?) 0 0 6(69m) 0 4(43m) 0-14
Last one did 6.8mph vs 4.5mph per mile. Feeling better with b12 going up.
15. ??? 2 and????
16. 8mi@0.2 (2hr) 4hr sleep 2hr nap, 3mi@1.0 (26:45) good run, 2hr runs really makes a difference - 11 (Friday) 8mi@.5 (2hr) last 20 min @.7° and last 10 @4.1mph
17. 3.2mi in 27:35@1.0° yay! But motherboard gave out. 8.4mi in 120m@.7° 7 hrs sleep-11.6 sleep not ideal
18. 7.5mi in 90@1.0°. 8.4mi in 115@1.0°. Way too hard. Maybe wore out from previous. -15.9
19.
Actually missed a day of work because I overdid the last run so bad. Pretty stupid. I have no patience. Need to ease up.
9.4.19 few days into 1/5 interval etude 8 wrote. Frustrated. 45 pieces into 599 but really need work. It's going to really take a while. Hawth can play twinkle and c major scale. Working on g major. Trying to start HT and note names.
8.30.19 frustrated. Long run maybe makes harder. Contrary is harder.
8.28.19 all 12 scales but need work. Contrary is even harder.
8.22.19 frustration, impatience. Op599 pg 13
8.18.19 up to 10 scales but really have mistakes on some. Like f#major. Added arps. Just C to start. And octave scales/arps and 8th/5th scales. Clearly improving at sight reading with metronome but it's slow. 599 will take many months but I will be so much better eventually. Patience. Hawthy is getting hang of C scale 1 octave each hand. Started twinkle today. Playing about 7 minutes a day. Me about 8 hours a week.
8/11/19 czerny op 599. Practical method for beginners. Treating myself like beginner. Using metronome. Sight reading. Patience. Humility. Will go through all 59 pages. Also up to 7 major scales.
8/10/19: already feeling quite frustrated with not looking. No discernible improvement from day to day. Bought czerny book.
8/5/19: added scales, trills, sight reading/not looking
Monday, August 19, 2019
Autobiography of Tony Iommi followed by auto of Ozzy Osbourne. The second because I was curious about a different POV for the same events. And indeed. Tony leaves out things like spending some time in prison. Ozzy in general is way more forthcoming. Tells a lot of negative things about himself. Beating his wives. Constantly cheating. Extreme cruelty to animals.
I got into Tony's first because he just seemed interesting in interviews. But not terribly so actually. But hearing about both's childhoods in England was interesting. Best part for both is before they were famous.
Same with previous autobiography of Joe Jackson. A much more intelligent guy who made music that really wasn't as good. Interesting childhood in england though. And Steppin Out and a few other really good songs. Interesting thought about Eye music and how classical music took a wrong turn. But now pop music certainly has also.
Really liked The Urth of the New Sun. Think it should have been part of Book of the New Sun but Wolfe wanted it separate I guess. First part takes place on a spaceship. Then he is "judged". It's really quite strange and works just right. Saving the world type books are so hard to end well.
The Art of Playing the Pianoforte by Cary Czerny. On a Czerny kick. His nocturnes are underrated. Learning op 599. Sightreading it with metronome. Read this and partially many others. Also lots of articles online. Developed my own technique practice. Scales and arps done many ways followed by trilling exercise. Then sightreading with metronome. No less than an hour. Closer to 2 on weekends.
Revisting Perelandra. For ideas for my friends sparse story about Samael, Lilith and Adam. The world is just so empty. How to make other than a very short story? Looking at the conversations between Ransom and the Green Lady.
I got into Tony's first because he just seemed interesting in interviews. But not terribly so actually. But hearing about both's childhoods in England was interesting. Best part for both is before they were famous.
Same with previous autobiography of Joe Jackson. A much more intelligent guy who made music that really wasn't as good. Interesting childhood in england though. And Steppin Out and a few other really good songs. Interesting thought about Eye music and how classical music took a wrong turn. But now pop music certainly has also.
Really liked The Urth of the New Sun. Think it should have been part of Book of the New Sun but Wolfe wanted it separate I guess. First part takes place on a spaceship. Then he is "judged". It's really quite strange and works just right. Saving the world type books are so hard to end well.
The Art of Playing the Pianoforte by Cary Czerny. On a Czerny kick. His nocturnes are underrated. Learning op 599. Sightreading it with metronome. Read this and partially many others. Also lots of articles online. Developed my own technique practice. Scales and arps done many ways followed by trilling exercise. Then sightreading with metronome. No less than an hour. Closer to 2 on weekends.
Revisting Perelandra. For ideas for my friends sparse story about Samael, Lilith and Adam. The world is just so empty. How to make other than a very short story? Looking at the conversations between Ransom and the Green Lady.
Thursday, August 8, 2019
It's funny that there could be disagreement over something as fundamental as looking at your hands for piano. Some very good players feel very strongly that it doesn't matter. Look at your hands if you want to. I have been I think very unfortunately influenced by them. I have finally decided to very consciously not look at my hands. I will try not to think about being 46 when finally deciding this. I don't like needing my eyes constantly going all over the place and I think it's limiting me. I suppose my memorization could be a lot better. And if it was it would be somewhat less of an issue. But even I have two hands. Perhaps I need to get better at just staring inbetween the two instead of whichever is doing the harder part. But I prefer to just learn to play without looking.
I actually wrote a learning exercise last night called "blind jumps". It's thirds, 4ths, 5ths, 6ths and 8ths going up to two octave jumps.
My routine:
All 12 major scales. Both hands. Just two octaves. This is something I have neglected that I need to get better at.
Trills. Just ten seconds for each combo.
The blind jumps exercise.
Sight reading.
Going back over old repertoire while not looking at hands.
Maybe some new.
I have almost completely neglected technique exercises and sight reading up till now. Not sure why in the last few weeks I suddenly care. I haven't eaten sweets in 38 days. Maybe this has caused some subtle change. Previously I ate them everyday. Sometimes to excess.
I recently suddenly love Chopin nocturnes. It caused me to search and see if there's anything else I suddenly love. Chopin etudes are nice. I seem to feel the same about everything else. Maybe learning his Funeral march is what did it.
In other news Hawth and I moved to the tree room. Always loved this room. He is finally got the attention span somewhat for real movies. Watched gremlins and now raiders of lost ark.
Also I'm forcing him to play the piano. Just 5 minutes a day. Trying to get him to enjoy the process of improving. Which he clearly is so far everyday.
I actually wrote a learning exercise last night called "blind jumps". It's thirds, 4ths, 5ths, 6ths and 8ths going up to two octave jumps.
My routine:
All 12 major scales. Both hands. Just two octaves. This is something I have neglected that I need to get better at.
Trills. Just ten seconds for each combo.
The blind jumps exercise.
Sight reading.
Going back over old repertoire while not looking at hands.
Maybe some new.
I have almost completely neglected technique exercises and sight reading up till now. Not sure why in the last few weeks I suddenly care. I haven't eaten sweets in 38 days. Maybe this has caused some subtle change. Previously I ate them everyday. Sometimes to excess.
I recently suddenly love Chopin nocturnes. It caused me to search and see if there's anything else I suddenly love. Chopin etudes are nice. I seem to feel the same about everything else. Maybe learning his Funeral march is what did it.
In other news Hawth and I moved to the tree room. Always loved this room. He is finally got the attention span somewhat for real movies. Watched gremlins and now raiders of lost ark.
Also I'm forcing him to play the piano. Just 5 minutes a day. Trying to get him to enjoy the process of improving. Which he clearly is so far everyday.
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