New semester starts soon at the music school
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I used to love singing! When we lived in Japan, we went to karaoke all the time. Mostly pop music, but singing is singing. And for the record, karaoke in Japan is not like US karaoke, which is not something I have a very favorable impression of. In Japan, each group gets a private room with its own karaoke equipment, you can order food and drink and you reserve the room for some amount of time. So you’re just singing with your friends, no one else. And Mr. SK has a beautiful voice.
I also used to do more accompanying myself at the piano. I had a piano teacher who also taught voice and she taught me a lot of warm up activities and different techniques for bringing your voice out, and how to use your stomach to support your singing etc.
I got away from singing somehow and now my voice is out of practice and I can feel that I’ve sort of forgotten how to sing.
That’s ok, I have more than enough musical activities to keep me busy, but I can imagine that (if I ever get to retire…) I would enjoy joining a choir in the future.
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On the subject of the cello… I believe I have written about my recent experience playing with a cellist who’s a doctoral student (cello performance) in the music school here. Like @kluurs I loved having that amazing resonance in my living room.
I’ve also played with violinists, and I really enjoy it, but there’s something that’s just so compelling about the cello.
The first time I ever played with a cellist was many years ago (maybe around 2017? Before COVID, before I had a grand). I didn’t realize how amazing the cello is as an instrument, and so I wasn’t “emotionally” prepared for having that sound right next to me. As soon as he started to play, I teared up and found to very hard to maintain composure and keep playing.
That’s the essence of music. It vibrates to the very core of your being. I think all music has the potential to do that, but maybe the cello just does it exceptionally well…
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I used to love singing! When we lived in Japan, we went to karaoke all the time. Mostly pop music, but singing is singing. And for the record, karaoke in Japan is not like US karaoke, which is not something I have a very favorable impression of. In Japan, each group gets a private room with its own karaoke equipment, you can order food and drink and you reserve the room for some amount of time. So you’re just singing with your friends, no one else. And Mr. SK has a beautiful voice.
I also used to do more accompanying myself at the piano. I had a piano teacher who also taught voice and she taught me a lot of warm up activities and different techniques for bringing your voice out, and how to use your stomach to support your singing etc.
I got away from singing somehow and now my voice is out of practice and I can feel that I’ve sort of forgotten how to sing.
That’s ok, I have more than enough musical activities to keep me busy, but I can imagine that (if I ever get to retire…) I would enjoy joining a choir in the future.
@ShiroKuro There's a karaoke place here that has individual rooms like that. If I can get a good chunk of my family here at the same time (always a challenge), I think going there would be a hoot.
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@ShiroKuro There's a karaoke place here that has individual rooms like that. If I can get a good chunk of my family here at the same time (always a challenge), I think going there would be a hoot.
@Mary-Anna Oh cool!! I wonder what their song catalog looks like.
The ones in Japan are soooo comprehensive, with all kinds genres, languages etc.
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Bernard, that resonant experience is why I prefer an acoustic piano. It sure would have been easier and cheaper to switch to a digital piano when we moved (or one of the other times I moved), but I can feel the music in my hands and through my feet, and to a lesser extent in the rest of my body. The acoustics in this house are really bright, so I put down a rug, hung window treatments, had the piano voiced, and keep the lid down. With all that dampening, it sounds good now, although I think people driving down the street can hear me.
Acoustic music is its own experience. And you're right, so is singing.
I haven't sung much for more than a decade, and I felt like age was starting to affect my voice, but now I think it was more a case of chronic allergies. I had sinus surgery about a year ago, followed by another minor surgery, followed by more allergies and bronchitis. It dragged on for months and I wasn't sure I was going to be able to do the choir concert in May, but I started getting better about that time. Now, I think I'm finally getting the benefit of the sinus surgery. The hoarseness is almost gone. And it's a good thing, because the ensemble director is sure that I'm a first soprano. I've sung second soprano and alto all my life, so singing first in this ensemble is going to be an interesting experience!
@Mary-Anna Exactly this! I used to have a Roland digital piano, as well as my Weinbach grand. I never played the Roland because it didn’t vibrate through me like the piano does. So I sold it to a friend.
I also love the sound/feel of a cello.
We have a new music director at church; she’s been with us about a month and she’s a great fit. I’m learning a lot in choir!
We have a new music director for our pop choir, too. Lots of exciting change going on.
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@bernard your piano class meets weekly right? What?
I was thinking about your class and I think it’s similar to what they call “studio class” here at the university music school. Except that studio classes are only for music majors, so I’ll never be able to take one.
Today is my piano lesson day. It’s funny how much I look forward to it!
I don’t think I’m making any actual progress with Clair de Lune, but I did add another two measures to the parts of the score I’m working on, so that’s not nothing. But the slowness with which I move through this piece is in stark contrast to how much more quickly I’m moving through the other two pieces I’m working on.
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I went to my first vocal ensemble rehearsal and had a great time.
The director is very creative in running the rehearsals. As I already said, she spends a lot of time with improvisational exercises and movement, which is great musically but also a good way to get comfortable and get to know each other.
She had us move around and stand next to different people, so she could see how our voices blend and place us in our parts. I was really surprised that this ended up with me singing first soprano. I am not all that comfortable in the upper part of my range, so I think this will be a fun challenge, but also that she may end up moving me to second soprano.
Most of the music is a capella, but one had a beautiful piano accompaniment and she asked if I'd play that. The chords and harmonies are unusual, but it's in C and didn't seem to require big hands or a lot of speed, so I said, "Sure," and ended up sight-reading it with the group. It went well, so it looks like that will happen. We don't perform until January, so I'll have time to polish it up.
I'm so happy to be able to do music with people again!
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I went to my first vocal ensemble rehearsal and had a great time.
The director is very creative in running the rehearsals. As I already said, she spends a lot of time with improvisational exercises and movement, which is great musically but also a good way to get comfortable and get to know each other.
She had us move around and stand next to different people, so she could see how our voices blend and place us in our parts. I was really surprised that this ended up with me singing first soprano. I am not all that comfortable in the upper part of my range, so I think this will be a fun challenge, but also that she may end up moving me to second soprano.
Most of the music is a capella, but one had a beautiful piano accompaniment and she asked if I'd play that. The chords and harmonies are unusual, but it's in C and didn't seem to require big hands or a lot of speed, so I said, "Sure," and ended up sight-reading it with the group. It went well, so it looks like that will happen. We don't perform until January, so I'll have time to polish it up.
I'm so happy to be able to do music with people again!
@Mary-Anna That's great, Mary Anna. First soprano! Congrats. Second Soprano is nothing to sneeze at either.
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I just couldn't get it together at class today. Happens sometimes. The piano in class differs so much from mine at home despite being a Steinway and bigger than mine (and the room at school has high ceilings). The treble doesn't have as much power when compared to the bass, if I do say so myself, and the teacher agreed with me. Rough class. I should have a few weeks before I play again, so hopefully I can square away the parts that are causing me trouble.
For one thing, the piece opens FF and goes FFF in the third measure! Not something I'm very well practiced at. In attempting to play big, I get flustered and lose my place. LOL. I think I'll need to remember that big comes from relaxing into, not trying to go beyond oneself. We'll see. They say we learn the most when things go awry, so that's my positive take on it.
The industrial revolution cheapened everything.
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I just couldn't get it together at class today. Happens sometimes. The piano in class differs so much from mine at home despite being a Steinway and bigger than mine (and the room at school has high ceilings). The treble doesn't have as much power when compared to the bass, if I do say so myself, and the teacher agreed with me. Rough class. I should have a few weeks before I play again, so hopefully I can square away the parts that are causing me trouble.
For one thing, the piece opens FF and goes FFF in the third measure! Not something I'm very well practiced at. In attempting to play big, I get flustered and lose my place. LOL. I think I'll need to remember that big comes from relaxing into, not trying to go beyond oneself. We'll see. They say we learn the most when things go awry, so that's my positive take on it.
@mary-anna that sounds great! And you get to sing the fun parts! Also, it's cool that you're able to play the piano for one of the pieces too! What is the music?
@Bernard I'm sorry you had a rough class! It definitely happens to all of us!
I should have a few weeks before I play again
Oh so you don't play every week? Does the class meet every week?
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@mary-anna that sounds great! And you get to sing the fun parts! Also, it's cool that you're able to play the piano for one of the pieces too! What is the music?
@Bernard I'm sorry you had a rough class! It definitely happens to all of us!
I should have a few weeks before I play again
Oh so you don't play every week? Does the class meet every week?
@ShiroKuro Yes, the first soprano part is fun, because in the music we've had so far, it tends to be high harmony rather than the melody. I've always sung alto or second soprano because I enjoyed singing harmony and also because I was usually singing in choirs where everybody didn't read music. Some of these songs are totally in my range and some of them are a leeeeeeetlllllle bit high. Fortunately, one of them is the one where I'm playing piano, so I'm saved from struggling with it.
The music is a mix, so far. We're doing an a capella version of Fleetwood Mac's "Landslide" with som really amazing harmonies. There's a Leadbelly blues song that I think is called "Sylvie." I forget the name of the one I'm playing piano on, but it's a setting of a really beautiful poem about light and community. I sang in the choir director's large choir last year, so I already knew she had what I consider to be good taste.
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