Wednesday, October 22, 2008

I Can Hear Music

I have taken up playing the piano,or more technically, the organ. I dug my old portable keyboard out of the garage and plugged it in. I had heard Fur Elise played on the piano and had grandiose visions of myself replicating it. I always wished I learnt the piano but we didn't have one and my parents wouldn't pay for lessons. Hence the organ, which was really good, the type that has all different instrument settings and rythmns and automatic chords. Ah chords, that was my downfall so perhaps it was best that i didn't take up the piano. I could never get my head around what both my hands were doing at the same time. If it was a one note chord on the left hand I was fine, but three different keys and stretching the hands to reach the keys and usually being slower than what the right hand is playing just totally threw me off. I could play the right hand fine; i should point out that this was when i was ten so i was using books that printed the letters of the notes on them and weren't too complicated. Songs like Wooden Heart, Jingle Bells, easy versions of classic compositions. I liked the fact that my organ had a program where you could hit one chord note and it actually played the three at once so it sounded a lot more professional. So i have been reacquainting myself with my old books. Its pretty much all coming back to me. I was trying to remember why i gave it up; I think it must have been because i was getting older and i couldn't be bothered taking the next step to learn how to read music and thus practice more difficult songs. And judging by how quickly the songs came back to me and how quickly I got a bit bored, I think the same song selection would have bored me.
But boy haven't things changed in the 15 or 20 years. Whereas I used to have to go out and hunt for sheet music today, thanks to our old friend the internet, you can print them out yourselves. A lot of the sites you have to pay for the sheet music but there are a few sites that have free sheet music, usually public domain or classic songs. The problem that I find is that I have not heard the tune being played so therefore I have no idea how it goes and am just kind of plucking at keys. I have aldo decided to start learning the proper three chords, slowly, i seem to have got my head around the basic white keys ones, its when they throw in a sharp or a flat that i have to contort my hand to hit them. Plus I am playing everything s-l-o-w-l-y as i am learning it. I downloaded Pachelbels Canon for piano (a pretty basic version) and spent today practicing it. I started about 2 o clock or so and by dinner time I had both hands down pat and could play four lines together and it actually sounded like it meant to. Its just a matter of practicing it to committ it to memory. Its hard not to get flustered and hit the wrong key; i actually notice that my mind wanders and i am not concentrating, even just slightly like i take my eyes off the keyboard or sheet music or look down at the floor and interrupt my train of thought and I am like, wait where am i up to.
Anyways I have tentatively downloaded a basic version of the entertainer to try tomorrow. But i may have bitten off more than I can chew as its timing between the left and right hand is so different that you literally are playing two tunes at once and i can't seem to not focus on one and not neglect the other. But i shall think of it as a challenge. Plus its keeping my occupied. Time really flew today, instead of clockwatching. Its nice for a change.

0 comments:

About This Blog

  © Blogger template Cool by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP