Discoveries among the keys

[larryhammer]

Another entry in the blogsphere's continuing demonstration that everything is like everything else: You know that flicking look you give to your rear-view mirrors? -- where you don't actually focus, but just barely glance? That turns out to be useful while playing piano. And not just for keeping track of where your hands are on the keys, but for glancing ahead into the next measure so you can prepare for it. Who knew life skills were useful in the arts?

My finger skills are not yet back to what they were when I was 18 -- which is a resounding DUH! given it's been, what, six weeks. I'm getting there with runs, but arpeggios are kicking my butt, as are advanced trills (such as with the left hand, or using my little fingers). However, to my surprise, I'm a better sight-reader than I ever was. I can't presto, but I can see/hear/feel the right notes more quickly.

Another surprise: I'm drawn to, not the Baroque music I played so much, but the high classical composers -- Mozart, Haydn, Clementi, et al. In fact, I've managed a play-through of Haydn's sonata No. 48 at least as good, if not better, than I ever did. The Impressionists still entice, though my chops aren't up to them yet -- I managed to creditably mangle "Clair de Lune" last week, but anything more (*cough*Ravel*Faure*cough*) is beyond me. For now.

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I haven't figured out how to look this up, so an appeal to the lazywebs -- what is the technical term for playing three notes with one hand in the same time as playing two (or four) with the other? For that matter, what's the term for playing three in the time of two, marked with that little 3 above the notes?

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Damn but I'd missed playing piano. How could I have not realized that?

---L.

Comments

[kip-w.livejournal.com]

Might be "contrary rhythm." I just usually call it "three against two" or whatever.

The easiest Ravel is probably the Pavane for a Dead Princess, or the Pavane of Sleeping Beauty (solo arrangement), a couple of the Valses, and there's an early Prelude that's not hairy.

[larryhammer]

I don't actually have much Ravel -- less than I thought. Aside from a Pavane for a Dead Princess, all I have is the Sonatine (which I used to play half-decently). Coulda sworn there was more in one of these books.

OTOH, where'd this book of Satie come from? With -- oh hey -- Three Pieces in the Shape of a Pear, among other hairy things.

---L.

[galeni.livejournal.com]

chords and triplets?

Congratulations - I'm in awe. That's something I keep thinking of getting back to, but I haven't (and probably won't until retirement or the kids move out). But then, I was never very good despite four years of lessons.

[larryhammer]

Not quote -- triplets and duplets (see below).

---L.

[rushthatspeaks.livejournal.com]

Three in the time of two is a triplet.

[larryhammer]

Ah, so it is -- thanks.

Digging around, I find the general term is a tuplet, with a two-in-the-time-of-two being a duplet. And playing a triplet the same time as a duplet is ... three-against-two polyrhythm (or 3:2 for short). Yay!

I am sometimes such the nominalist.

---L.

[palomapus.livejournal.com]

You are so inspiring! I started piano at 6 years old, took them for about ten years, and could not take another year after a long stretch with one teacher who liked to do piano and organ duets - and favored WWII songs (?!?) and Gilbert and Sullivan. So, while I tried to learn what I knew to be better classical pieces, I also had to practice "The Lord High Executioner" (The Mikado) for my lessons. Oi.

The scary thing is a million years later, I can still sit down and remember most of the Mikado pieces a bit well. Why couldn't it have been the Brahms?

[jankenstein.livejournal.com]

I use that exact same glancing technique when I play guitar. Sometimes it's just reflex, sometimes it's intentional.

[larryhammer]

Ha. Useful to know.

---L.