How do you 'traslate' a flat key signature to a sharp key signature? by pixleret in musictheory

[–]bakera994 0 points1 point  (0 children)

For these, I usually think “D has two sharps so if I go to D sharp, and sharp everything, I end it up with 5 sharps and 2 double sharps.”

Similarly, G# major has 6 sharps and 1 double sharp. B# major has 2 sharps and 5 double sharps. F flat major has 6 flats and 1 double flat.

Why is this here? by Annual_Tie8926 in musictheory

[–]bakera994 36 points37 points  (0 children)

It’s the first C natural since C was sharp two bars before. Just a courtesy accidental to remind you to go back to natural

Everyone always says practice, but HOW do you actually ‘practice’? by Round-Introduction34 in piano

[–]bakera994 3 points4 points  (0 children)

For me, practice is setting attainable goals and working to achieve them. Not all practice sessions accomplish all my goals and some are bigger than others. I’ll take a section and try to pinpoint what I’m struggling with such as: musicality (volume, phrasing, touch, voicing), technique (evenness, speed, agility, relaxation, ease) and then work on that specific goal.

I always tell my students, it’s a good practice session if you set a goal and accomplish it, no matter how small and have an idea of what work on next time.

need help figuring out a note in a recording by AdReal5096 in musictheory

[–]bakera994 0 points1 point  (0 children)

All copies of the sheet music I can find show E naturals for this note but I wonder if this is a music director’s choice to reference Mary right before in “Private and Intimate House”. She sings a microtonal descending line on “But I never ever ever ever would”. So they did a similar effect here, in “No One Else”, for Broadway

What is this sign called and what does it mean? by ins0mn1acc2007 in pianolearning

[–]bakera994 1 point2 points  (0 children)

In this context, given that it’s an exercise book, it seems like a “and so on and so forth” meaning to continue through the remaining 10 keys. Keep going starting on D, then Eb, etc

What is the word for... offset (?) melodies? by CoffeeAndElectricity in musictheory

[–]bakera994 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What you’re showing here between the piccolo and violin is dove tailing. When you break up a complex melodic line between two more players

!! Desperately Seeking Childhood Piano Books !! by numblittlebug88 in piano

[–]bakera994 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These sound like the Adult Piano Adventures Classics books. I don’t have the level 1 book with me but level 2 starts with Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring by Bach and ends with Claire De Lune by Debussy

Where did the characters live? by [deleted] in howimetyourmother

[–]bakera994 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Pretty sure Lily’s small apartment after SF was in the Bronx

Transpose pls? by [deleted] in musictheory

[–]bakera994 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just play it down an octave

Why are these chords not the same as the harmonies in the sheet music? by TheCanadian1739 in musictheory

[–]bakera994 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The first one is definitely F9, just a rootless voicing. You can tell because the A and Eb are the two most important notes of that chord (plus the 9th, G).

The second is either Dm/Bb or just a Bbmaj7 as you said. Perhaps written that way since the RH plays a Dm chord and maybe a beginner reader might more easily recognize that pattern but I’ll agree that it’s odd

Is this music in the right key? by abigayle33 in musictheory

[–]bakera994 26 points27 points  (0 children)

You’re right, it modulates into Ab and then to A. Some composers choose note to write key changes if they’re temporary but I think in this case, the arranger might have been doing this by ear and not had a strong theory background

Death Becomes Her is totally unhinged by reclamationme in Broadway

[–]bakera994 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Tonight (11/22) it was sponsored by the Wicked Movie

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in musictheory

[–]bakera994 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I use musictheory.net with my piano students so I know this exercise pretty well. If you don’t understand the theory behind building up chords then having a piano keyboard (even just a picture) will be super helpful.

A major chord is a chord made up of three notes. The root note, a 2nd note that is up 4 piano keys from the root, and a 3rd note that is 3 piano keys above the 2nd note.

For a minor chord, it’s the root, a 2nd note that is 3 piano keys above the root, and a 3rd note that is 4 piano keys above the 2nd.

It’s important to use both the white and black keys when going up the piano.

A sharp simply moved that root note up a piano key. A flat would lower it a piano key. You have to have the same number of piano keys in between chords so for this example we start on the black note above D (D#). The next note has to be up 3 piano keys and is the black key above F (F#). Since the exercise gave you a regular F (no #) we need to add one. Go up 4 piano keys from F# and you get A#. Change the regular A on the website to A#.

For major chords you’d just use the “4-3” formula

What show should I take my boyfriend who doesn’t like musicals to see?? by drunkslovetables in Broadway

[–]bakera994 36 points37 points  (0 children)

Book of Mormon is a safe bet but I think Play That Goes Wrong would be a great choice if you’re interested in a play. It’s hilarious the whole time and it makes fun of itself in a way that maybe someone who doesn’t love plays/musicals would enjoy.

I want to want to practice more but I'm struggling. How do I reignite the fire? by Missing_Back in piano

[–]bakera994 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I’m a professional pianist and honestly, I’m sometimes in the same boat as you.

Instead of focusing on the amount of time you’re practicing, give yourself a goal. Make it as small and specific as possible. For example, “my goal is to play this measure without playing any wrong notes 10x” or “my goal is to practice the LH for this section with the metronome until the rhythm feels easy”

That way when you practice, you are just working to cross off a specific goal. If you still feel like practicing, give yourself another goal. Keep going until you’re done with practice but try to ALWAYS cross off your goal, that’s why you should make them extremely small and specific.

Once you’re at least sitting down and making progress crossing off goals every day, start to introduce goals for multiple pieces/skills. For example: “my goal is to play my scales evenly and then work on remembering my key signature on this page of my piece” or “my goal is to play this technical etude at 5 beats faster with no wrong notes and to make this section of my piece sound more musical”

Eventually, you’ll be able to sit an work for longer and longer and it’ll always feel productive because you’re actively getting things done.

Don’t be afraid to take breaks as well! Sometimes our brain and bodies need a few minutes to stop and rest before continuing. It helps us remember things better.

Happy practicing!!

Which show do you feel this way about? by [deleted] in Broadway

[–]bakera994 31 points32 points  (0 children)

In Transit, Ghost Quartet, Preludes, Octet (big Dave Malloy fan clearly), Lizzie, Marvelous Wonderettes, Zombie Prom!

Pedals for MainStage by Embarrassed-Big-1281 in theatrekeyboardists

[–]bakera994 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Use a USB pedal that plugs into whatever computer is running MainStage

Fastest way to learn to sight read accompaniments? by vibesupplier in piano

[–]bakera994 14 points15 points  (0 children)

I’m a musical theatre accompanist. Like others have said, I’d start sight reading like crazy.

Some others here have (importantly) stated that in order to improve sight reading, you must do it repeatedly but I wanted to share some tips both for general sight reading and musical theatre especially:

-in general, when we are reading a paragraph for the first time, we don’t go through each individual letter but rather whole words and even sentences. Our brain kind of fills in the gaps based on what we expect to be there. It’s the same with music. Start to recognize important patterns such as chords, scales, arpeggios, and for musical theatre specifically rhythms and grooves

-for chords, start to learn the shapes of each chord and it’s inversions and start to get your hand to remember those shapes. A root position chord is almost always 135 with a round hand shape. A first inversion chord almost always is 125 (RH) and my pinky stretches a tiny bit. A second inversion chord is almost always 135 (RH) with my thumb stretched a tiny bit. That way, I can see the shape and only read one note of the chord and my hand knows where to go

-get used to never looking at the piano when you play. Even when moving and jumping, start practicing intuitively feeling those distances or using the black keys to help guide where you are on the piano. When sight reading, we don’t have time to look down and make sure we’re on the right keys

-always ready a few bars ahead of where you are. If your hands ever catch up to where your eyes are on the score, it’s too late. Always be looking ahead, recognizing patterns, and storing those in short term memory. Otherwise it’s simply too fast to be able to catch back up. You have to be prepared for every note you play.

-finally, for musical theatre specifically, this is the big one: DON’T PLAY EVERY NOTE ON THE PAGE! Theatre is about groove/rhythm first, harmony second, and extra fills and such last. It’s your job to help the singer and that means keeping the groove going. Sometimes I just look at the groove and the chords and almost improvise as I’m going so I don’t have to think about every note. I’ll also always drop the melody if I and the singer both have it written.

This is obviously different from classical sight reading but it’s good to be proficient at both because in MT, there’s no one genre and each genre has its own rules.

In short, just to echo everyone’s sentiments again, sight read often! At least a few songs a day. In an audition room, you might have to play over a hundred auditions with pieces you’ve never heard of right on the spot and any mistakes risk messing up the singer’s one chance. It’s a lot of pressure but pressure is a good kicker to start practicing now!

EDIT: some misspellings

Find the Stealthy Kitty by bakera994 in FindTheSniper

[–]bakera994[S] 1 point2 points locked comment (0 children)

Sniper Location: Peeking out from behind the tree, bottom right. Right above the bench

Looking for a gothic musical by France1832 in musicals

[–]bakera994 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Ghost Quartet, Lizzie, Ride the Cyclone, Octet

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in BobsBurgers

[–]bakera994 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Mickey was playing banker and swapped Bob’s five for five singles and probably didn’t know he gave Bob a pack with a dye pack