New Year, new music? Ambitions?
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I'm taking lessons again! I found an excellent teacher less than a mile from my house. He even came to my house last Saturday and will again this Saturday due to me having a full knee replacement 2 weeks ago. I am just now maybe getting approval from my Dr to drive again. He loves my piano. His piano is a vintage 6' Baldwin and it's also very nice. We have the same piano technician. That is how I got his name. I just mentioned to my tech that I was thinking I wanted to take lessons again and he said, "I know the best teacher in the stateline area and he lives very close by."
We started with Chopin's Waltz Op64 No2. It was very challenging and continues to be although I had it memorized in about 6-8 weeks. Still polishing it of course. I hope to get a good recording of it soon.
I am now working on the Op9 No1 Nocturne. OMG is this a beast! Both of these pieces are very challenging to me. The satisfaction one gets when you can finally play a section that was driving you crazy for so long, is immeasurable.
@shirokuro I agree about Bach! I continue to play a couple of the Goldberg Variations daily. I have intentions of re-learning the 2nd Variation and beyond as well. I also use the Prelude in C from the WTC as a "simple" sight reading exercise. I intentionally do not memorize it just for that purpose. lol
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Oh, one other goal has materialized for this semester. Before we moved here, I used to have more opportunities for piano parties. I had colleague who hosted them regularly, and after I got my grand, I hosted some at my house as well. Since we moved here (going on three years now), I haven’t been successfully at finding a music community.
But I found out that a new prof who joined our dept last semester plays the cello, so he and I agreed to get together in February or March and play for each other (we won’t play together yet, but maybe in the future). I’m hoping that can be the start of more regular music parties.
@ShiroKuro That's great! Having someone else in your community to play with is fab.
I want to start feeling out the situation in Plymouth nearby, because it's much closer than the community at the music school. UNH has a campus in Plymouth and they have a music program, plus several NH ensembles perform regularly there. Then there's the NH music festival which takes place throughout the month of July. So there's musicians around, and I would like something a little more local than the music school.
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@ShiroKuro That's great! Having someone else in your community to play with is fab.
I want to start feeling out the situation in Plymouth nearby, because it's much closer than the community at the music school. UNH has a campus in Plymouth and they have a music program, plus several NH ensembles perform regularly there. Then there's the NH music festival which takes place throughout the month of July. So there's musicians around, and I would like something a little more local than the music school.
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@Bernard said in New Year, new music? Ambitions?:
I would like something a little more local than the music school
Good luck!
How much of a drive is the music school?
@ShiroKuro 35 miles one way, which isn't too bad. Unfortunately the route passes through two townships which have 30 mph speed limits. So it takes about 50 minutes one way.
I'm not complaining too much. After all, when I lived in NYC and wanted to do anything in Manhattan I'd have to plan an hour to get there (it wouldn't always take that long, but with bus delays and train delays, there was always an element of unpredictability.
What I do complain about is the fact that years ago all the train tracks linking the Baker River Valley to the Upper Valley were removed. I dream about how wonderful it would be to hop on a train in Rumney (just down to the valley from here) and get off in Lebanon where the school is. I'd be taking the trains everywhere if they existed. But as we know, the US is not rail oriented. In fact NHites seems to despise the idea. Craziness.
The industrial revolution cheapened everything.
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@ShiroKuro 35 miles one way, which isn't too bad. Unfortunately the route passes through two townships which have 30 mph speed limits. So it takes about 50 minutes one way.
I'm not complaining too much. After all, when I lived in NYC and wanted to do anything in Manhattan I'd have to plan an hour to get there (it wouldn't always take that long, but with bus delays and train delays, there was always an element of unpredictability.
What I do complain about is the fact that years ago all the train tracks linking the Baker River Valley to the Upper Valley were removed. I dream about how wonderful it would be to hop on a train in Rumney (just down to the valley from here) and get off in Lebanon where the school is. I'd be taking the trains everywhere if they existed. But as we know, the US is not rail oriented. In fact NHites seems to despise the idea. Craziness.
@Bernard 50 minutes one way is a lot! Especially if something starts in the evening.
Also, I agree re trains. I wish the US had more (and better, more reliable) trains.
Ironically, back when we lived in Japan, the place where we lived was more rural and you needed a car. But when I was in Japan last summer for my research trip, I stayed in a bigger city and getting around was all streetcars and trains. I loved it! Especially the streetcars.
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@Bernard said in New Year, new music? Ambitions?:
@jon-nyc Beautiful pieces. I especially like the g minor.
Thanks. Were you at my piano party a few years back when Bootsy’s son played it?
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@Bernard 50 minutes one way is a lot! Especially if something starts in the evening.
Also, I agree re trains. I wish the US had more (and better, more reliable) trains.
Ironically, back when we lived in Japan, the place where we lived was more rural and you needed a car. But when I was in Japan last summer for my research trip, I stayed in a bigger city and getting around was all streetcars and trains. I loved it! Especially the streetcars.
@ShiroKuro said in New Year, new music? Ambitions?:
50 minutes one way is a lot! Especially if something starts in the evening.
If would be many times more tolerable if I didn't have to drive! Driving puts the kibosh on reading, or knitting or whatever else.
