Hello! Sorry this post is coming to you a day late – I had an assignment to finish last night.
In other news, I am happy to announce I am a contestant on CBC Music’s Searchlight: The first round is voting-based, so if you wanted to hear my original music and maybe shoot me a vote it would be much appreciated! This is the link, and my artist name is Adina V: https://www.cbc.ca/music/searchlight/#/vote
Dvorah
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes a day
What to practice: Rodeo (review song), Russian Folk Song
How to practice it most effectively: Please always make sure that you’re playing around middle C, and counting 2 beats for all half notes. In Rodeo, please double check your LH ending notes (the back and forth pattern stops after 3 bars). In Russian Folk Song I’d like you to say the 1-2-3-4 counts while you’re playing. There are lots of repeated notes in the piece to watch out for! Even when playing a piano dynamic, make sure you’re going all the way down into the keys.
Diya
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes a day
What to practice: Little River (warmup song), Sailing in the Sun (first 2 lines), “woo woo woo” and do-re-mi warmups, My Favourite Things (lyric video AND karaoke, alternating!)
How to practice it most effectively: For Little River, we are practicing legato playing, meaning we play connected from one finger to the next. This piece is all steps (moving line-space-line-space in order on the staff). For Sailing in the Sun, use your sayings to figure out any notes you’re unsure of. If there’s a note beyond the staff (like RH D or LH B), go from the nearest staff note you know. In this piece we play legato between the hands. The most important thing here is to count one beat of silence on those quarter rests. The “woo woo woo” warmup is the same as last week; for the do-re-mi warmup do your best to sing up the scale in one breath, take a breath at the top, then sing down the scale also in one breath. For My Favourite Things, use this karaoke track: Don’t watch the count in for your entrance, rather listen to the strings since you’ll come in with them on “raindrops”.
Marco
Recommended minutes to practice: 15 minutes a day
What to practice: Young Hunter, Halftime Show
How to practice it most effectively: For Young Hunter, please play once hands separately whenever you go to practice before putting it hands together. There are many repeated notes and skips to be on the lookout for. In Halftime Show, we learned that treble clef spaces spell the word FACE (lines 1-2-3-4). In this song, RH plays only skips in the spaces. We are in a new position – F position! We only did the first 2 lines in class, but if it starts feeling comfortable feel free to read ahead.
Oliver
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes a day
What to practice: Old MacDonald
How to practice it most effectively: This song introduces eighth notes by themselves as well as eighth rests. Please say your “1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and” counting in all bars that have eighth notes. In the 3rd line, we were whispering all the “ands” that have rests on them. If you think of how you would sing Old MacDonald, the timing will also feel more natural.
Alice
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes a day
What to practice: Little Do You Know, Attention, Octavius the Octopus, Football Game
How to practice it most effectively: For Little Do You Know, please try isolating and singing the 2nd chorus a capella (no video) to practice staying on the melody. E above middle C is your guide note for the “I’ll wait” and especially “the pain“. After doing this a couple of times, continue singing the whole song along with the lyric video. You can continue singing Attention with its lyric video as well. For piano, Octavius the Octopus and Football Game are both review pieces. Please double check when you are stepping versus skipping, and for Octavius the Octopus we will play the 2nd line using LH C major scale fingers: 5-4-3-2-1-3-2-1 (crossing over the thumb with your finger 3).
Linda
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes a day
What to practice: Distant Chimes, Cry Me a River
How to practice it most effectively: For Distant Chimes, you can now try the full form (with the 1st and 2nd endings, labelled 13a and 13b). In class we spoke about what chords the open 5ths in lines 2 and 3 are making – you can try condensing the notes into a closed position to find those major 6 chords and suspended 7 chords. In Cry Me a River, please try doing inversions for the F#-7b5 to B7 chords: F# and A will stay,C and E will move to B and D#. In the first 2 bars, it’s the A-(#5) that uses F instead of E; for all other A minor based chords you can play the E.
Emet
Recommended minutes to practice: 20 minutes a day
What to practice: C, F, and G minor triads (hands separately 1 octave), Walk Don’t Run, Tarantella
How to practice it most effectively: For your triads, please make sure LH uses finger 2 on 2nd inversion, and RH uses finger 2 on 1st inversion. Slide up into the keys for all inversions to make reaching the black key easier. In Walk Don’t Run, most of RH’s intervals are 6ths. You can try until bar 12 hands together by the end of the week. For the Tarantella, please do all lines except 4 and 6 hands together. In those 2 lines, RH should focus on really nailing all the slurs. For these triads as well keeping your hand up in the keys will allow you to do the legato easier. LH please use fingers 1-5 for the octaves in lines 3 and 5, and also double check octaves at the end of the piece.
Kollel
Recommended minutes to practice: 20 minutes a day
What to practice: D, E, and A major triads (hands together, 1 octave), The Black Pony, Dance of the Dragonflies
How to practice it most effectively: For your triads, please make sure LH uses finger 2 on 2nd inversion, and RH uses finger 2 on 1st inversion. You can put the intro and outro of The Black Pony hands together with pedal – just make sure hands play in the correct octaves. The middle section can be put hands together later in the week as well, just please double check LH notes in bars 11 and 19 first. Staccatos in this piece are very important. For Dance of the Dragonflies, experiment with the first section, playing with an overall lighter touch – even LH’s second note of the slurs I would consider staccato. Let’s work on getting the final 2 lines the same speed as the rest of the piece.