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Some Chopin, some Joplin; ...two videos
Topic Started: Aug 9 2007, 06:20 PM (221 Views)
The 89th Key
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I got a little bored tonight, so here are videos of two pieces I'm working on, which are diametrically different from each other.

Anyway, I'm really enjoying the Chopin piece, and the Joplin piece is fun to play. These are both 1-time takes, with a compressed digital camera with crappy sound and a piano that needs to be tuned, all complemented with numerous mistakes. Now that the excuses are over, I hope you enjoy!

Chopin - Piano Concerto No. 1 (2nd Movement) - Romance Larghetto

Joplin - Maple Leaf Rag

PS. Sorry JBryan, I know you were cringing the whole time during the Joplin piece.

PPS. Also, in the Chopin piece, since it's a concerto, the first minute is actually the orchestral introduction, and then you can tell when the real piano comes in, at around 1:55. Also about half way through(between 1:08 and 1:05) there is another 5-second orchestral transition, if you can spot it.

PPPS. Also, sorry...in reviewing it, looks like the audio/video get out of sync in some parts of the video.

:tomato:
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George K
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Finally
:clap: :clap: :clap:

Well done, 89th. If I may offer a piece of criticism on the Joplin: the tempo.

Too fast.


Joplin said, "ragtime should never be played fast."

According to Joplin biographer Rudi Blesh,
Joplin's injunction needs to be read in the light of his time, when a whole school of "speed" players ... were ruining the fine rags. Most frequently felled by this quack-virtuoso musical mayhem was the Maple Leaf. Joplin's concept of "slow" was probably relative to the destructive prestos of his day.

Take a listen to Joshua Rifkin's performance of Maple Leaf (you do have it, don't you?), and you'll see that a slower tempo accomplishes two things:

1) Makes the melody stand out
2) Makes accuracy easier (not that you have a problem with that- but wait for the trio!)

Try it around 2/3 the speed you're going.
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"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... "
- Mik, 6/14/08


Nothing is as effective as homeopathy.

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The 89th Key
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Will do, GK - thanks for the info. I've heard that about Joplin as well, and thought since I had the camera out, might as well see what my Joplin looks like (albeit very sloppy), and it apparently is much faster than it sounds when I play it. I guess it's kinda like giving speeches, you're always speaking faster than you think...
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George K
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Finally
You DO have Rifkin's recording of Joplin's rags, don't you?

Hmmm?
A guide to GKSR: Click

"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... "
- Mik, 6/14/08


Nothing is as effective as homeopathy.

I'd rather listen to an hour of Abba than an hour of The Beatles.
- Klaus, 4/29/18
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The 89th Key
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I think the question is...what do I NOT have. Much shorter list...thanks to a certain benefactor.
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JBryan
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I am the grey one
Re the Joplin: SLOW THE **** DOWN. It's not a ****ing race.

You will thank me some day.
"Any man who would make an X rated movie should be forced to take his daughter to see it". - John Wayne


There is a line we cross when we go from "I will believe it when I see it" to "I will see it when I believe it".


Henry II: I marvel at you after all these years. Still like a democratic drawbridge: going down for everybody.

Eleanor: At my age there's not much traffic anymore.

From The Lion in Winter.
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George K
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Finally
Supposedly, this is Joplin playing it. It's fast, but still not as fast as you.
A guide to GKSR: Click

"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... "
- Mik, 6/14/08


Nothing is as effective as homeopathy.

I'd rather listen to an hour of Abba than an hour of The Beatles.
- Klaus, 4/29/18
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Pianolicious
Senior Carp
I was looking for a nice mellow thread that wasn't political.

I say if you want to play MLR fast then by all means play it fast. It certainly didn't harm Liberace's bank account to play things slightly up tempo.

Nice job.
Sit tibi vita longa et omnia bona!!! -- Dr. Spock
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The 89th Key
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Thanks all - I really wanted to post the Chopin, which I find to be a beautiful piece (especially when someone else is playing it!), with the Joplin only being a (very sloppy) encore! :2face:
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CTPianotech
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Fulla-Carp
:clap:

This is one of those pieces where for much of it, it just feels good on the hands to play fast. The urge can be difficult to resist!! I think listening to it after though, you'll see you're much more able to bring the music out of the piece. As George has mentioned before, Joplin has a lot of interesting stuff going on in his rags, and using the 'right' timing will help you bring it out.

(especially for those listening---but when no ones lookin... VVVVRRRROOOOM!)
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Horace
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HOLY CARP!!!
good stuff, thanks 89th.

It's my opinion that your tempo for MLR isn't inherently too fast (I've heard, and very much enjoyed, lots of professional recordings faster than that - one by Gershwin springs to mind) but it is probably too fast for how well you know the piece.
As a good person, I implore you to do as I, a good person, do. Be good. Do NOT be bad. If you see bad, end bad. End it in yourself, and end it in others. By any means necessary, the good must conquer the bad. Good people know this. Do you know this? Are you good?
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Frank_W
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Resident Misanthrope
Still and all, nicely done! I hope to be able to play half as well, someday. :clap:
Anatomy Prof: "The human body has about 20 sq. meters of skin."
Me: "Man, that's a lot of lampshades!"
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JBryan
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I am the grey one
George K
Aug 9 2007, 09:24 PM
Supposedly, this is Joplin playing it. It's fast, but still not as fast as you.

This is from a piano roll which can be played any tempo you like. Still, it is not a whole lot faster than I play it.

BTW, 89, you play it quite well. You just need to slow it the **** down. The nuances in the syncopation sort of get washed away when you breeze through it like that. Think of a fairly brisk march. Just my opinion.
"Any man who would make an X rated movie should be forced to take his daughter to see it". - John Wayne


There is a line we cross when we go from "I will believe it when I see it" to "I will see it when I believe it".


Henry II: I marvel at you after all these years. Still like a democratic drawbridge: going down for everybody.

Eleanor: At my age there's not much traffic anymore.

From The Lion in Winter.
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plays88keys
Pisa-Carp
Well done, Issac! :clap: Just parroting what everyone else says when I suggest you slow that rag down...it's amazing you played it so well at that tempo.

You can never get enough of what you don't need to make you happy.
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The 89th Key
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Thanks all - the rag is fun to play (and can be played faster actually), I just didn't realize how fast I was playing it until I saw the video back...kinda like giving a speech in public, you dont realize how fast you might be talking. And it's true it's a better piece when slowed down and you can hear the intricacies of the syncopation.

However, that was only the fun encore piece...what did you think about the Chopin? I'm finding it to be a consistently gorgeous piece. Around every corner there is a new breath-taking set of notes. Chopin is a genius.
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Mark
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HOLY CARP!!!
Awesome Job 89th!

:thumb: :thumb: :thumb:
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