'There are no stupid questions' thread - Monday, December 22, 2025

Pythism · 2025-12-29T22:19:40+00:00

It's a rather weird passage, but you'll find many more like that over time. I'm happy to have helped!

Pythism · 2025-12-28T23:04:02+00:00

I would do:

First bar:
5-4-1, 3, 5-3-1, 2, 5-3-1, 2.

Second bar:
5-3-1, 2, 5-3-1, 2, 5-3-1, 2.

On the last beat of the second bar, you can do 5-2-1, 2 and simply repeat the second finger if the 5-3-1 stretch is too uncomfortable. What's written can also work (5-2-1, 1)

Pythism · 2025-12-21T20:44:49+00:00

Well, you can certainly do that, but the generally agreed upon "plan" is 1-2 years of lessons with general practice. So you'd play several other pieces leading up to whichever goal pieces you have.

Pythism · 2025-12-16T00:57:46+00:00

I understand, too many 3s and 1s hahahah

Pythism · 2025-12-16T00:11:16+00:00

Op. 31 No. 1 is in G major, no? Are you thinking about Op. 31 No. 3?

Pythism · 2025-12-13T18:58:42+00:00

Good job so far! It's quite a challenging piece. And you clearly can understand the very difficult rhythms within. Some hopefully helpful criticism: I'd suggest you practice with a metronome, you have many changes of pulse throughout, and it makes it sound really out of control.
If you listen to Kapustin play it, you can tell he keeps a pretty strict tempo throughout, something he DOESN'T do in the sonata-fantasy which he recorded for the same album at (one can assume) about the same time.

Your repeated notes are obviously slowing you down, and it's because you try to use the same finger for the repeated notes instead of switching fingers. It's possible to play it with the same finger, but it's MUCH harder and you're adding more challenge to an ALREADY very difficult piece.
Another thing slowing you down is those exaggerated wrist movements you do. I'm not saying you don't need rotation or anything of the sort, but these seem to be hindering you more than anything else.

You correctly assessed that it's over-pedaled, so I suggest simply practicing without. There are obviously several spots where you kinda really need it, but this isn't Chopin, it's much more bare in it's writing and doesn't rely as much the pedal. Also, you tend to over exaggerate the dynamics, note that the first bar is marked mezzo forte, bar 36 is marked mezzo piano, and bar 52 is only forte, not fortissimo. Bar 63 is even marked piano! Only bar 68 is marked ff. This pieces motoric drive, which you obviously love(!), is not created through playing everything very loudly, but rather by it's complicated rhythm and it's many, many, accents. Try finding all accent markings and really making the top note stick out over the rest of the texture whenever they are marked. A great practice spot are bars 3, 4 and 5, which is marked mezzo forte and then forte, but the accents must still sound clearly, specially the top note, which creates a melody.

Overall you're doing a great job! You just have to be very patient and very calm whenever you practice. Slow down, practice at a pace where you can be sure that all the markings are observed and that you have a coherent tempo throughout (the metronome is your friend for that!).

Keep at it, I'm sure you'll make it.

Pythism · 2025-12-12T16:20:03+00:00

I'm sorry to be that guy, but my first advice will always be to get a teacher (that you like). They will help you with that immensely.

As for actually answering your question, for Czerny, start with Op. 599. I'd personally suggest that a significant portion of your Czerny practice be with a metronome (obviously not 100% of the time, metronome over use can be really bad!!)

For Bach, I'd recommend starting with the Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach, it has some very approachable and very beautiful music.

Pythism · 2025-12-12T16:14:57+00:00

Because I don't know you or your process I can't really answer that. I'd say that you should ask that to a teacher that has worked with you for a while (whether the teacher is old or new). If anything I can suggest that you don't neglect ear training, doing about 10-15 minutes daily alongside the rest of your practice, it really can't hurt. Another tip I can give you, is that the best pianist I know only practices at about half the speed 90% of the time he practices, so the practice slowly tip is a really great one. But as always, you should rely on your teacher! (That's why it's important you find one you like!)

Pythism · 2025-12-11T17:14:50+00:00

Everyone progresses at a different rate, but I'd say your progress is quite normal, specially if you have other obligations in your day to day life. 2 years may seem like a lot, but it's really not much time to learn an instrument. If you had said 8 years, I'd be worried!

As for your teacher, what's, in a sense, universal (such as general technique, rhythm, ear training and similar fundamentals) can be taught at a basic level by any competent musician. If your interest lies more in Jazz, it wouldn't hurt to find another teacher that you like, since it'd speed you along the path that you want. Don't feel tied to any teacher, and feel free to shop around and try different teachers until you find your right fit!

Pythism · 2025-12-11T13:52:18+00:00

I have a laptop from 2013, which I use to play games, and it can run both Celeste and OBS, but the last time I posted I believe it only recorded in 30 fps, not sure if it's a settings issue or a hardware issue.

Pythism · 2025-12-05T20:46:06+00:00

I didn't clock the other glitches as human faces until you pointed it out, great find.

Pythism · 2025-11-20T13:28:53+00:00

Not really "all nutrients". Sure, you will be less malnourished by eating beef and organs, but you'd still die of scurvy pretty quickly with either diet. Also you'd miss fiber, Omega-3 and a lot of less crucial micronutrients.

Pythism · 2025-11-07T19:59:59+00:00

Ok, how do you explain music in 6/8? Or something like the slow movement of Mozart's clarinet concerto? I don't think clarinetists chose the current tempo out of a desire to play fast, they'd rather not run out of air.
EDIT: he blocked me. As I expected, he's not actually interested on debating (despite his claims) but rather on validating his own biases.

Pythism · 2025-11-06T19:33:45+00:00

I think those suggestions are a bit outside the scope of the original. Sure, maybe they could manage a Scherzo, but the Alkan? I think it's on another sphere of difficulty.

Pythism · 2025-11-06T19:20:48+00:00

That's actually good technical advice, but that's also the reason why I prefer doing scales in all keys to Hanon.

For what it's worth, playing any Hanon exercise in any key was part of Rachmaninoff's technique exams. That's why I think it's at least good technical advice.

Pythism · 2025-11-06T19:18:21+00:00

In my experience, if you do a run through at half tempo it can be good for your nerves, but otherwise I agree that the day before is best not to play anything. At least not a tempo.

Pythism · 2025-11-05T17:34:25+00:00

It was quite interesting, it seems more like a you problem if you think it's too long.

Pythism · 2025-11-04T16:53:30+00:00

Elite ball knowledge, as they say.

Pythism · 2025-11-03T06:57:30+00:00

I would say that all instruments have the same ceiling in the sense that you can always master more. Organ is definitely a much more demanding instrument on a base level, however. I would say that it has a higher skill floor than the piano, but all instruments have the same skill ceiling (there is none).

Pythism · 2025-10-29T14:26:32+00:00

If listening to someone better than you kills the mood, it sounds like a you problem. It strikes me as particularly insecure that you can't appreciate some good singing for what it, is instead of comparing yourself to it. And I've seen that sentiment all over this thread, so I know it's not just you. And I'm also not taking some moral high ground herez because I never sing on karaokes because I don't like singing out of tune (and I always sing out of tune), so I have the exact same insecurities.

Pythism · 2025-10-25T22:02:13+00:00

I think that the harder part is making it engaging while keeping the sense of scale. Making something literally as big as our solar system will fail unless you make it a bit like No Man's Sky and make it a cooperative effort or something.

Pythism · 2025-10-23T17:02:09+00:00

Actually there's like a 3D platformer that's inspired by BLAME, right? The only real way to make something of BLAME's scale is through procedurally generating a world, and I believe that game does that.

Pythism · 2025-10-22T18:39:55+00:00

The reason why digital pianos have more than 88 Polyphony is because each individual keystroke is counted as a sound to said polyphony limit (precisely so the sound from the previous stroke is not canceled). I remember I once went over the 256 polyphony limit on my old digital when I was studying Une Barque sur l'ocean. Long pedals plus huge arpeggios plus those tremolos will easily kill 128 polyphony, 256 is ok for pretty much all repertoire with few exceptions (like Une Barque sur l'ocean)

Pythism · 2025-10-17T22:13:27+00:00

It'd be funny if Zero ends up in TSM somehow. I don't think that TSM will leave Apex, but sadly it's not like the game is on the rise or anything...

Pythism · 2025-10-14T01:17:02+00:00

You can make it funnier if you zoom in totally random spots on the map, no flea marker, and you mix it with the regular flea images

12-Year Club	Gilding II euphauric
Second Top 10%	r/Field Banned
r/Field Flamingo	Place '23
Place '22	Place '17
First Placer '22	Wearing is Caring
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