Michelle

Student of the Week

Youtube Playlist

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxU_OGndc5q8RhWysLTM0MEMlk03IKO37

Google Drive

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ukYaP2Tb-Gk_fccXyGf8UtjlTUv9Mh50?usp=sharing

Long term goal

  • Grade 4

25 Jul

Tambo Tango

  • see revised fingering on page
  • see LH and RH split in bar 13
  • can actually finish this week due to repetition

Kitten n Mousin

  • should be completed this week šŸ˜”

Let the Good Times Roll

  • dynamics

18 Jul

Kitten

  • very correct, just slow
  • start from 25
  • line by line
  • NEEDS TO BE DONE BY THIS WEEK
  • bar 29, make sure that it is seperated

New Song: Tambo Tango

  • please follow fingering
  • key signature: F# and C#
  • first two lines

8 Nov

Song of Twilight

  • RH louder, LH super soft
  • phrasing
    • we want the most phrasing in bar 9
  • that’s it

Toccata Ritmico: 16 bars hands together

18 Oct

Main issue is dynamics

Petite piece

  • are your dynamics exactly correct?

Dragon fly

  • use soft pedal when it says
  • watch out for staccatos
    • especially in LH

11 Oct

Script

  • My name is Michelle Chen. Today is the (date) and I am presenting for an examination Grade 2 Piano for Leisure. My first piece is _________

In between pieces, you must say “I will now play ______”

Petite Piece

  • choose a slower speed as a solution
  • do big dynamics

Dragon Fly

  • same as Petite piece

Kinabalu Sunrise

  • this is good

Tango for Two

  • this is good

RECORD THIS WEEK!

4 Oct

Petite Piece and Dragon fly need greater consistency, work on that throguhout week

Retry recording and upload BEFORE lesson. See Google Drive Link Above!

  • for Petite Piece, listen to recording

13 Sep

Petite Piece

  • improved but still needs further speed improvements
    • maybe four bar chunks, hands separate
    • needs higher time spent on practice

Tango for Two

  • remove tiny gaps in slurs bar 9 onwards
  • annoying detail but gets lots of free marks

Dragonfly

  • needs to be perfectly even
  • don’t slow down bar 13

6 Sep

Petite Piece

  • break down if you’re stuck
  • an extra time, makes it better
  • dynamics
    • don’t get faster when you get louder

Homework: record Kinabalu Sunrise. Upload to Google Drive link above

Kinabalu Sunrise

  • ritardando – get even slower
  • mf in general get louder
  • wait longer on last note

Dragonfly

  • dynamics need to be EXAGGERATED!
  • consistency is improved, but can be better
  • watch for staccatissimos in LH
    • keep them soft
    • keep them short

Record dragon fly week after

23 Aug

Dragonfly

  • slow practice
  • rhythm (long short long short) practice
  • perfect 3x practice (6-8 bars at a time)
  • all about technique and consistency

Kinabalu Sunrise

  • dynamic that goes p, getting louder, mf, needs to be better

Petite Piece

  • stable, not rushed!
  • read using notechart this week

16 Aug

Dragonfly

  • use soft pedal
  • focus on dynamics today
  • still some notes need to be improved, but heading in the correct direction

Tango

  • this is ALSO all about phrasing, start soft then get louder

Kinabalu

  • dynamics in key areas (bar 29)
  • molto rit – slow down a lot

Petite Piece

  • revise notes this week

9 August

Dragonfly

  • play soft
  • use soft pedal
  • perfect practice (2x)
    • 8 bars at a time
    • important to identify whether it’s good or not

Kinabalu

  • pay attention to markings carefully
  • soft can always be softer
  • molto ritard. – get a lot slower
  • get very slow and pause at the end

2 August

Kinabalu sunrise

  • ritard. – delay the last C#
  • keep LH soft all the time
  • don’t forget to get louder here
  • molto ritard. – slow down a lot

Dragonfly

  • consistency
    • metronome at 80

26 July

Kinabalu sunrise

  • wrong note bar 25
  • last bar position
  • work on dynamics in general
  • ritardando – get slower

Petite piece

  • don’t forget this piece!
  • try to relearn this week

19 July

Kinabalu Sunrise

  • wrong notes
    • bar 8 LH
  • bar 16 LH
  • 25 LH
  • 27 LH
  • last bar, LH
  • pedal makes things louder
    • so we have to play softer
    • dynamics should be adjusted
  • 21, loud and soft contrast, mountains and clouds

12 July

Dragonfly

  • speed is still a lot too slow for this stage of learning
    • chunking (small section practice) needs to be taken a lot more seriously

Kinabalu

  • most of the first page sounds very good
  • 2nd page, you have to watch out for being in the correct spot

Tango for Two

  • phrasing!
    • up is loud, down is soft
    • focus on down is soft

Notes 15 Mar

Notes 8 Mar

Exam standard scales this week:

  • B natural minor
  • B harmonic minor

Petite piece

  • next week, fill in the two red circles for bar 17-24

Meandering Mazurka

  • bar 16 LH, bonus bar 16 hands together

Notes 1 Mar

Scales

  • better fingering this week, well done!

Meandering Mazurka

  • bar 9, sharps are still missing, we’ve written them down today
  • good to do two bars at a time when combining
  • when doing left hand, make sure you say the notes out loud if it helps

Notes 22 Feb

Scales

  • fourth finger rule: know where fourth finger goes
  • continue with same scales

Meandering Mazurka

  • make sure you know where middle C is so you are playing in the right spots
  • key change bar 9! F# and C#. Go through this slowly and make sure it’s correct first.
  • Start learning LH. make sure you read the bass clef

Petite Piece

  • continue working on dynamics and flow

Notes 15 Feb

Scales

  • new scale G natural minor

Petite Piece

  • dynamics need to be clear. flow is getting better!
  • bar 21-24, repeat for confidence

Meandering Mazurka

  • bar 8 hands seperate

Notes 8 Feb

Scales

  • do more scales hands seperate
  • try Bb major

Petite piece

  • good time to curve fingers more
  • dynamics need to be big BIG DIFFERENCE between p and f
  • still play hard sections one bar at a time
  • okay sections, 4 bars at a time

Notes 1 Feb

Scales

  • First 3 similar motions, keep practicing

Petite piece

  • The best way to do hard things
  • seperate hands, 1 bar at a time
  • we also want bar 21 to be the same speed
  • check bar 24 notes

Notes 27 Jan

Do contrary motion G major and B natural minor, but check your fingering carefully.

Petite piece

  • do dynamics, they are relatively simple
  • cresc., remember to start soft
  • bar 17-18 watch fingering
  • check note bar 21

Notes 20 Jan

Scales

  • continue to learn more scales hands together
  • Check fingering very carefully.

Petite piece

A rainy Saturday

  • two things: phrasing and dynamics
  • add pedal if possible

Summer Toccatina

Notes 13 Jan

Scales: free learning of scales

Summer toccatina

  • add dynamics
  • the softer you start your cresc, the louder the cresc will sound
  • don’t speed up when you go faster
  • accents mean play loude

Notes 6 Jan

  • Learn Summer Toccatina
  • Learn Scales