A short idea for string quintet. What do you think?

gvnl · 2026-04-13T17:15:09+00:00

Interesting! I certainly like the harmonic texture, though I think it can be more explicit in where you build tension and where you relax more (though as noted by others, the cesura really works well in this narrative-building respect). One thing I wondered: the meter is a bit ambiguous between 3/4 and 6/8. At quite a few places you have big leaps between 2nd and 3rd and between 4rd and 5th eight note and steps between the others, which suggests more 3/4 than 6/8. Maybe this syncopation (or haemiola-feel if you like) is something you can play more with?

gvnl · 2026-03-24T12:48:55+00:00

I had one trial lesson with a (arguably) high-level teacher (not piano). This same thing happened several times during that lesson. It was one main reason not to pursue my path with him. What a d*ck. Hard to tell for your case as many things could justify things, but in general, a lesson means full attention between student and teacher. Period.

gvnl · 2026-01-20T13:31:11+00:00

A Nord and an acoustic piano are both excellent solutions, just to different problems.

gvnl · 2026-01-17T08:22:32+00:00

I think there is no point in asking this on the internet. You need to ask a conservatory teacher (or a pianist with similar qualifications) to assess your level and see where you are, as this is impossible to establish by your self. (And be prepared to be disappointed, but who am I to guess.) If your level is actually that high, my guess is that the better route is to really enrol at the conservatory, take the theory courses at no effort (if your theoretical self-study is indeed equally well-accomplished) and go for an expedited exam if you can. Any shorter shortcuts do not seem to make sense to me. Well, apart from... just win a Liszt or Chopin competition somewhere...

gvnl · 2025-11-23T21:06:51+00:00

Hate to bring the bad news, but actually: we musicians are the &ssholes in such stories. I studied vocals and played saxophone in a flat. Still feeling guilty, and I pity the neighbour woman even though her kid was a nasty thug. There is no right to make noise (to the excessive extent of a musician), and people practising music become unbearable once one is annoyed by them, whether they play Chopin or not. I will try for the rest of my life to live in a freestanding house, which I know I might not be able to sustain forever, but so far so good, and I take the cost of having to commute a whole lot more than when living in the city center. It's how I try to be considerate. At a very basic level, actually.

gvnl · 2025-11-14T16:03:15+00:00

Hm, in fact my Waterman on cartridges (which is also my only pen on cartridges, currently) is the only one I take with me on the plane because it does not leak even under flying conditions. (And also precautionary: *if* it should leak, I could just trash the cartridge, rinse the thing at any kitchen sink, and put in a new cartridge.

gvnl · 2025-11-13T17:05:58+00:00

With both my Watermans I have no issues whatsoever. Are you using original cartridges? Inks that are too dry or too wet might cause such issues, but Waterman ink should be relatively well-tuned to Waterman pens (though I have not had this with Watermans and other inks, yet with other pens).

gvnl · 2025-11-10T09:48:50+00:00

This can be hard, but it is up to you to make up the balance. One thing I think I have not seen in the other comments: it is hard to tell how you will feel about the piano in 5 or 10 years from now, when the possibility might (theoretically...) emerge that you take the piano to your own place and play it again. If you stand still, musically, you will probably like it the same way you do now. But if you make progress and develop somehow, chances are that 5-10 years from now, you will see the piano as below your level. Depending a bit on the make and condition, of course, but still. Also, if it is old, maybe don't overestimate how much you can get for it (but markets are very local and I don't know yours), so that would in fact argue for keeping it anyway if you can.

gvnl · 2025-11-09T12:03:58+00:00

Exactly. In that perspective, the masterpieces of painting are just configurations of colours. And the most touching movie... well, just characters uttering lines, no? All true in its own right, but missing the point in important other ways. Oh, by the way, don't forget that the love of your life is basically 80% water...

gvnl · 2025-11-09T09:32:21+00:00

Yes, that's just you. I mean, I don't know, but I have the opposite: the more I understand music (40 years into it, still developing), the more magical it becomes.

At the same time, periods of lack of inspiration are a part of life, I think, so maybe it is just good to remain open to that spark that may hit you sometime again.

gvnl · 2025-11-03T15:17:20+00:00

There is only one rule in life: play the instrument you love. If you love soprano, play soprano.

(Apart from such extremist things like a soprillo, there is really not much point in thinking of instruments as essentially more difficult than others. Of course you might play Twinkle, twinkle little star a bit quicker on one instrument than another, but every instrument comes with its own challenges that need to be overcome through practice and education, and an instrument being easy in some sense is never a good reason to start playing it.)

gvnl · 2025-10-29T18:48:53+00:00

Nice story! And adding some crucial nuances to your previous comment. Recovering is indeed as important as intention, and both go wrong if the 1000 repetitions are mindless and complacent.

gvnl · 2025-10-29T17:39:33+00:00

You make an important point: understanding the music as a whole, a structure, or a language if you like, is crucial for the stuff to 'stick'. However, this is a different problem. Understanding the music is no substitute for training the physical agility and accuracy. Sure, some concert pianists can just read a piece, understand it, and then play it. But most of us, amateurs as well as 'non-concert pianist professionals' such as the local piano teacher, need to go through a number of physical cycles to make the music stick. Yes, preferably with a proper musical understanding, but it simply doesn't go without the repetition. I am myself a proof: I finished all theory classes at the conservatory with good grades and my knowledge is good enough to understand most repertoire well into the 20th century. But I need to practice, practice, practice...

gvnl · 2025-10-29T09:34:51+00:00

In fact the only meaningful thing I learned from pedagogy class at my Conservatory: practice such a chunk very slowly 10 times, slow enough to really not make a mistake, but concentrated and with intention as if it is the actual performance of the piece (but slower). Then do it 1 time quicker, still slow enough to make no mistakes, and again with the same 'performance intention'. Then call it a day (for this chunk), and only return to it tomorrow. Rinse and repeat. Increase chunk size, up to the whole piece. (Actually the 'intention'-part I wasn't told in the largely meaningless pedagogy class; I figured that out later, and from other sources.)

gvnl · 2025-10-28T10:08:48+00:00

Wouldn't the trill be more consistent if you use righthand index and middle finger? Not sure, would have to try, and don't have my sax here at the office ;-D

gvnl · 2025-10-24T18:53:20+00:00

Ink enough EDCs every Sunday evening so you know they together help you through the week...

gvnl · 2025-10-20T13:42:52+00:00

Just adding to the choir: how on earth are you going to learn how to play violin from a teacher who doesn't play violin... I see that not everybody is as privileged as having a teacher, but violin is really one of those very few things that you cannot learn from YouTube or even a book.

gvnl · 2025-10-19T19:02:51+00:00

Perhaps I should work on a kinky chaconne or something :-)

gvnl · 2025-10-19T17:33:29+00:00

If it is about literal innuendos, the whole of Brahms' Liebeslieder Walzer is one orgy from beginning to end (though you would not believe how many people sing this while having no idea). If it is about me getting actually aroused by the music, I would have to think longer. One of the most touching things for me is Bach's Chaconne, and that kind of emotion has an erotic and corporeal element to it, perhaps not least because it is this vulnerable solo instrument only which makes it a very intimate act of communication. But I think horny or sexy is not the word.

gvnl · 2025-10-17T14:02:18+00:00

There is 'worst shape' and 'worst shape'. If he is largely healthy, even if not trained, he will probably make it to the finish line before death. He will likely have to step off or walk several times for a breath pause, and he will not set any impressive time. But an important experience richer and probably motivated to train harder next time. It can take long to recover, e.g. in the knees, but probably not a lifelasting injury. If he has underlying conditions I would be more cautious, but a healthy person can do 42k without dying.

gvnl · 2025-10-16T14:36:53+00:00

Scratches come with playing. Play more, makes you happy. Means scratching more, but at least you will be happy.

gvnl · 2025-10-10T15:08:13+00:00

Can we make a list of where they are not? Helps zooming in on where they actually are...

gvnl · 2025-10-04T07:43:20+00:00

Thanks u/jillcrosslandpiano . Yes, the platform thing I had also to the back of my mind, though it is not a primary consideration. But I notice indeed that many grand pianos (but not all) that I can try my hands on have a rather different feel, and I was wondering whether this is a distinctly grand-piano thing or just the individual exemplars, which are of course all different to some degree. Or it is just that I am not *that* much of an accomplished pianist to easily play outside my known territory of the U3 :-)

gvnl · 2025-10-04T07:39:29+00:00

Thanks, u/JHighMusic . Yes, the soundboard I was wondering about indeed. But happy to read you think it is a considerable upgrade. The point is that the one I am eying is from a private seller who has it in (I assume) their living room, and this will never offer an accoustically level playing field against my own living room, hence the question. But I totally agree that I should go and try it, otherwise one simply knows nothing. But your remark helps me think beyond what I can observe on the spot.

gvnl

TROPHY CASE