Roy

Youtube Playlist

Link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxU_OGndc5q9lKqep2q7d1OpjO3_GlURY

Google Drive

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13fwrTXyMc1Pr86Qz_mbixIuaRHHeJ3a4?usp=sharing

Aural test advice

1. intervals, but it includes the minor scale
2. inversions (new)
3. sing the top or bottom
4. cadences (new)

• perfect (5-1)
  • grand sound
• plagal (4-1)
  • calm sound

Pick Grade 6 this week

Long term goal

• Grade 6

22 Jan

List B

• have to phrase everything
  • all slur endings soft

8 Jan

List C

• subtlety – details that are not necessarily that big
• mark the melody, make sure accompaniment is softer
• calando – to die away

List D

• dynamics need to be precise

List A

• metronome practice may help for evenness
  • recommended 85 for normal, 75 for practice

• you have to listen out for evenness actively

List B

• do pedal where recommended
• aim to be precise with notes, don’t play with too many mistakes
  • perfect practice

14 Dec

List A

• first page more balanced towards LH
  • generally more balanced towards LH as well
  • never lose track of LH when listening, important to be able hear cuckoo motif

• 2nd page, watch dynamics, soft needs to be softer at 33, then cresc at 39
• bar 40 is missing!
• 2nd couplet dynamics too small
• bar 53, dip at cresc

List B

• 2ND PAGE
  • G# bar 53 LH
  • softs even when staccato need to be soft. Don’t lift high
  • dynamic needs to be ‘munbling; volume’
  • mp dolce, more long and soft notes

• in mp dolce sections, where he melody moves strongly in one direction, can phrase

7 Dec

List B

• treatment of mp dolce way too rough. also applies to p
  • LH needs to be a lot softer, esp chords
  • RH, only a bit louder than LH
    • enough to hear melody clearly

• bar 53 G# LH
• continue to watch articulation
• check LH at 93
• are dynamics precise at 93?

Cuckoo

• details shouldn’t be independent of speed
• speed should be managable
  • assess whether it’s even at this speed. there is a speed that is fast, but still managable.
  • separately slow practice
  • rhythm practice

30 Nov

Arpeggios

• all about speed now
• check fingerings in Eb major

Cuckoo

• fast practice
  • check all the things that you would normally check
  • some things can only be done at a faster speed, specific expressions

Allegro

• be careful when learning notes this week.

Berceuse

• mark melody, play the main melody louder.

23 Nov

Cuckoo

• articulation
• dynamics
• constant speed
• check speed
• check ornament in bar 12 RH
• ALL at the same time
  • requires concentration during practice

Allegro

• add pedal bar 1 for extra texture
• bar 32 rhythm incorrect
• mp dolce, don’t slow down

16 Nov

Scales

• start F# minor arpeggio
• practice carefully

Allegro

• managing mp dolce
  • start LH soft as possible
  • RH as soft as still can be heard

• watch articulation in 2nd page
• bar 48, sudden change to f dynamic

Fiesta

• more freedom in rubato sections

9 Nov

Scales: F# arpeggio, all inversion

Allegro

• details are a bit dead
  • need to be ‘vivid’
    • accurate time wise
    • accurate size wise

• when forte, heavy balance towards here
• dolce – sweet
  • voiced RH, with phrasing, but never too loud
  • super soft LH

• 2nd page RH watch articulation, especially in RH

Le coucou

• dynamics are similarly dead
  • two layers of dynamics
    • soft loud of cuckoo
    • general dynamics

2 Nov

Scales

• F# arpeggio all inversions

Allegro

• dynamic balance is critical
• LH RH balance, generally RH is louder
• phrase
• all of these things are to be like a voice singer

Le coucou

• LH cuckoo needs to continue to be a priority balance
• accuracy from bar 54 onwards
• speed up, but with great caution

26 Oct

Coucou

• consistency still needs attention
  • either right or wrong

• balance
  • ‘generally’ balance towards coucou

• softer dynamics need to be softer
• dynamics need to be watched in general

Mission Impossible

• bar 7 spread out the quavers

19 Oct

Fiesta

• good effort, continue to maintain attention to details

Le Coucou

• WARNING! Serious wrong notes!
  • can be disasterous if left unchecked!
  • can be wrong for up to 6 months!

Mission Impossible

12 Oct

Homework: as much of Mission Impossible as possible. Finish off le coucou last page to good standard.

Technical

• contrary motions need work
  • hands separate practice for difficult contraries
  • 4th finger rule

Homework

• F# chromatic
• chord progression
  • correct fingering

Cuckoo

• bar 41 this note should be tied. also some notes are longer than others and should be held

• consistency in quaver articulation, all quavers consecutive should be legato
• textural adjustments to 1st page
  • LH slightly louder than RH. minimum volume needed to be heard
  • articulation
  • RH ‘wings’ light and soft. Softer the RH is, the more you can hear the LH

Fiesta

• watch pedalling bar 43
• soft dynamics often missing
• 59-60 need to have 6 quaver beats

• ending an example of missed pp

• in essence, missed markings are letting down the performance (pedalling and dynamics)

5 Oct

Technical

• finish 6A
• finish all contrary motions
  • don’t forget 4th finger rule

Le Coucou

• opening page needs to be lighter
• tips for improving technique
  • dotted rhythm practice
  • staccato practice

• lower E in LH bar 25

• bar 33 keep semiquavers legato
• bar 44, watch notes carefully here

Fiesta

• bar 47 LH, octave lower
• watch out for technique bar 39-42
  • these sections should be practiced separately due to increase of difficutly

We will start new piece next week. Have an option picked, can start learning

29 Sep

Cuckoo

• LH articulation important. keep staccato light (soft)
  • articulation is improtant for cuckoo sound

• keep first page soft
• gradually increase speed
• work on second page this week

Fiesta

• only quaver gap between 14-15

• dyanmics need to be clean, as in carefully following, don’t make up dynamics
• bar 34, check spot

• pedalling bar 35
• bar 39-42, check notes carefully
• bar 47 LH position

• check notes at the end, must be octave higher

Scales

• 4th finger rule for contrary
• Homework: G# harmonic minor

23 Sep

6B

• needs phrasing
• needs pedal

6A: homework

• all notes facing downwards are LH, all notes facing upwards are RH

Scales homework: B major and G# harmonic minor contrary

You can stop practicing Grade 5 pieces.

Fiesta

• wrong note bar 36

• wrong clef LH bar 39
• bar 45-46, check large chords notes. broken chord is to be split
• overall should be played soft

Homework: as much le coucou as possible

14 Sep

Technical

• Eb major, check 4th finger rule
• finish down the scale
• in future, Roy sets his own homework

6C

• can be faster

Homework: 6B

Fiesta

• all dynamics exaggerated
• sfz ‘shocking’

• bar 11-14
  • rest in LH, gap between notes
  • no cresc. all soft

• bar 15
  • RH in wrong position
  • circled note should be 10 quavers in total

Coucou

• prescribed for this week to learn:
• finger speed
• articulation
• dynamics

ALL GOALS TO BE SET BY YOU

7 Sep

Tarentelle

• increase of speed priority
  • but maintain articulation
  • include phrasing

• senza pedale
  • without pedal

• dynamics

Fiesta

• accuracy of fingering vital at start
• accuracy of notes difficult to determine at the start
• homework: first page (ideally hands together)

Technical

• 6C homework
• grand scales: Eb major and C minor
  • see format as written
• Similar motion: F# major
  • all sharps except B

31 Aug

Jingpo

• all about maintaining tempo
• 3rd page, hit accents hard

Notes on Grade 6

• need to know historical context
• more difficult pieces
• likely to take longer (est June-July 2022)
• requires
  • scales and exercises
  • 6 pieces, 4 main, two extra list
  • sight reading
  • aural tests
  • general knowledge, but it is much harder than Grade 4

Skills assessment:

• sight reading: C+
  • practice sight reading
  • the best sight reading practice it to challenge yourself on how fast you can learn pieces

24 Aug

Jingpo

• bar 31 onwards, watch out for RH tie, long notes
• dim bar 39, get softer
• don’t slow down in bar 44, keep going
• check for extra note in bar 45

• bar 66, can hit sf and accents hard

• bar 81, dim
• bar 87, check LH notes
• bar 86, cresc, start soft, end louder

17 Aug

Jingpo

• make sure speed is maintained throughout
  • reference starting speed

• make sure pedalling is accurate
• check note bar 68

• to reach the speed at 86, use patterned learning
  • also double check the position of notes

• bar 43 is missing?
• bar 38, small bump in dynamics to get dim

Legend of Tanis

• tick received, but middle section not great
  • incorrect mood, wrong tempo, wrong dynamics
  • but it was fixed after

Spinliedchen

• soft dynamic in some places (especially middle page) not ideal, must be focused and intentional soft

10 Aug

Jingpo

• accent first beat slightly for extra impact
• is pedalling correct?

• are dynamics sufficiently contrasted
• are accents sufficiently contrasted?

• bar 23, is the pp as soft as possible, soft pedal
• bar 31, mp a bit louder, because it just came after pp and there is a dim in 39
• bar 46, accent on the first beat louder now, hold extra note for as long as possible
  • don’t slow down
  • loud in general

• finish this one this week

Tanis

• push speed of first page
• bar 15, is all LH caught by pedal? put pedal down earlier

• rall. must be a lot bigger. Wait two beats on bar 19

• dynamics 35? needs to start softer
• 23

3 Aug

Jingpo

• 46 check fingering
• 23 transition from previous bit, must be immediately soft
  • no change speed

• 31, quick flick with accent

• learn to the end

He’s a Pirate

• accuracy in RH
  • practice slow

• phrasing
  • must start softer if wanting to go louder
  • generally planning is already good, just need to do it

Spinliedchen

• accent must be placed on the right chord

• soft is a bit inconsistent
• messy
  • slow practice

27 July

Jingpo

• increase speed
  • main challenge comes from speed

• complete 3rd page if possible

Tanis

• middle section, like slow motion
  • usage of slowing down rubato critical
  • take an overall slower speed
• riten, rall, molto rall, all slowing down
• bar 15, a tempo critical so you can slow down more later
• molto rit, you can

Pirates

• expression is phrasing based, phrase based off the melody
  • softer softs, louder louds

20 July

Jingpo

• follow all markings very carefully
  • it can already sound good just with that alone
  • LH soft and light from the start
  • watch out for accurate pedal
  • adhere to all dynamic changes
  • pp soft pedal

Legend of Tanis

• contrast based dynamics
  • loud and soft
  • short and long

• bar 1, faster LH chord broken
• bar 4, softer
• all staccatos short as possible
• bar 15, bass note to be captured by pedal. also needs to be faster overall

• middle section
  • sleepy
    • less phrasing
    • softer overall
    • gap rubato,

• bar 31, less phrasing, keep lighter sound. mp maxiumum volume

13 July

Tanis

• bar 10 LH in wrong in spot here

• use this coordination method

• 31, count in 3s

• molto expressivo
  • lots of phrasing
  • can experiment

• piu mosso – more movement
  • ending can be loud

Pirates

• experiment with pedalling

Spinliedchen

• don’t lose speed in the middle part
• start softer before cresc.
• start softer before p

7 July

Pirates

• focus on RH seperate and get technique
• 12/8, four groups of 3 quavers
  • always try to count in quavers

Legend of Tanis

• broken chords, quicker

• first page can be more ‘violent’
  • more accents and contrasts
  • staccatos aggressive and quick

• bar 7-8, needs to be ultra soft
• 15-19, softer and more expressive. molto rall slower, last note not loud

• 2nd page
  • much more careful phrasing
    • start soft bits softer. plan phrasing carefully
  • LH much softer

Spinliedchen

• keep technique + staccato crisp
• keep softs soft

30 June

Spinliedchen

• main question:
  • can you get faster, but maintain current expressive details
  • metronome at 100
    • for example, bar 11 can you plan a cresc. at 100?
    • poco riten at 100?
    • accuracy at 100
    • ultimate goals 112

Tanis

• broken chord here needs to be faster (only slow broken chord later on)

• molto expressivo
  • a lot of expression
    • phrasing
    • rubato (next time)

• phrasing needs to start from a low point
• 2nd page check LH

• expression in this piece is based of drama, sudden changes and exaggerated decisions
• first page and 3rd page are technique based
  • bar 15, drill hands seperaely, two bars at a time. aim for speed
  • this will develop muscle memory technique

22 June

Spinliedchen

• start soft and keep fingers close to keys
  • aim for bottom of the keys

• cresc. must be planned
  • p, mp, mf, f
  • accents extra loud

• poco rit, the gap between each note gets bigger

• 2nd page, louder LH by far. LH has a natural disadvantage
• bar 40, dip, bar 42, suddenly get soft
• don’t hold notes over rests
• bar 43, hyper clear RH by very soft left hand
• last page, start mp louder, get softer and slower according to markings

Legend of Tanis

• broken chords, do seperately

15 June

Moonlight

• balance considerations
• phrasing considerations

Spinliedchen

• softs need to be soft (difficult)

8 June

Machines on the loose

• metronome at 300
• no doubt about dynamics

Recording techniques

• put the worst piece first so you don’t have to restart
• what mistakes would require you to restart? what standard are you looking for
• all dynamics need to be exaggerated to appear on a recording

Scales

25 May

• play all forte
• preparation and mental space
  • after a bad scale, it’s important to take a break

Etude

• choose a speed slightly under maximum
  • think about the speed before you start
  • subdivide each beat into 3 in your head

Mazurka

• make sure LH chords can be heard bar 5-8
• accuracy in hairpins in the middle of the piece
  • especially the softs

• smorz, slow down

Tartan

• subito is not good
• dynamics 33-41, not accurate

Brain games

• don’t give yourself two chances
• be always on the lookout for mistakes
• lookout for details
• practice your 3 pieces, exam styles

18 May

Excercises

• more preparation time
  • focus on phrasing

4C – not too harsh, don’t lift from the keys

Etude

• can hit accent harder bar 18, don’t roll

• 33 onwards, softs mumble

Mazurka

• bar 8, hairpin

• following an accent, must get soft
• generally, hairpins need to be more accurate
• memory
  • hands seperately
  • start from anywhere

• notes after an accent are soft
• smorzando – be careful

Tartan

• hairpin accuracy here as well, in first page
• bar 46, more dim
• tehcnical practice
  • slow
  • small sections

11 May

General knowledge given today

Machines

• softs softer

Sonatina

• on the right track

Learn one page of Moonlight Serenade

Etude

• bar 8-9 transition more sudden mf. stay soft until change. first note of mf loud
• phrasing 9-16
• bar 17 p is not soft
  • focus on LH soft
  • phrasing
• in general p is not soft
• sounds flat, softs are not soft, louds are not loud

4 May

Etude

• phrase 9-16
• 17-24, crescendo must be gradual
• 33, f and p must be accurate
• these points are simple, but are required for a solid performance result

Machines

• don’t need

27 Apr

4A

• consistency of semiquavers

Scales Practice

• separate hands
• 5 second preparation
• not in order

Etude

• staccatos need to jump
  • jump off keys
• bar 33 dynamics
• think about dynamics
• slow
  • motivated by memorising notes
  • motivated by dynamics

• seperate hands

Tartan

• watch out for decrescendo
• before any large decrescendo, get softer, ‘drop’
• ff easy to hit with pedal, don’t need to play too hard with hands

20 Apr

Sonatina

• extra list, manage the dynamics and speed yourself

Tartan

• staccatos need to be short and consistent. Should add to happy character
  • don’t jump too high on staccatos

• 17 soft staccatos don’t lift. loud staccatos we can lift off

• subito in bar 33 could be more precise
• layer dynamics carefully 33-42

Etude

• watch out of stops on second page
• push speed, but concentrate on mistakes

14 Apr

Excercises

• semiquavers need to be even in all excercises
• should be perfect

Scales

• aim for evenness

Etude

• bar 1-8, should hit the ‘floor of the keys’. slow practice. keep grounded
  • is it even?
    • slow practice
• bar 9-16, not coordinated well
• bar 18, shorter accent staccato. keep staccatos crisp
  • LH not loud

• consistency issues in bar 33-60
  • metronome may help

• make sure softs are soft, especially before <

Tartan

23 Mar

Mazurka

• how to get a piece performance ready
  • slow practice
    • helps mental memory
    • helps rhythmic stability
  • LH only
    • helps mental memory
  • recording practice
    • helps emulate pressure
    • helps self evaluation
  • starting from the middle
    • helps mental memory
    • if you get stuck, you can start from there

Machines

• check notes 33

Tartan

• good dynamics
• also practice for stability here

Notes 16 Mar

4C

• natural seperation, not too short

Scales: next week, at least one up to standard. Pick your own scales

Machines

• goal finish this week
• drill small parts to increase speed
  • first page

Tartan

• avoid stops
  • stop to find mistakes
  • start from the middle to help memory

• critical to identify mistakes then fix, or else learning process could be long

Etude

• dynamic range needs to increase
• metronome 132

Notes 9 Mar

4A

• phrasing shouldn’t affect rhythm

Tartan

• last note octave lower
• staccatos snappy but soft
• dynamics need to be much clearer and direct
• before hairpins, good trick is to ‘dip’

• forte, LH still not overpowering
• 31 check LH articulation

• dim bar 46 bigger

Machines on the loose

• first line an octave lower
• must have layered dynamics
• bar 28 goal

Notes 2 Mar

4A

• needs more phrasing in RH
• speed needs to be stable

Tartan

• dynamics are not accurate now
• subito
  • very loud just before, very soft, when you get there

• ‘m’ dynamics, more focus on f or p, than the m
• ff, doesn’t have to be too heavy focus on flow. pedal will make it loud
• ending needs to be soft

Aural

• chords
  • sing up from the bottom note

• rhythm
  • stomp from side to side to find the whether it is triple or duple
  • duple is same, triple is different

Notes 16 Feb

Scales

• keep increasing speed
• keep practicing seperate, especially LH
• scales must be successfully produced the first time

Tartan

• for accuracy, practice slow
• perfect challenges
• try dynamics before next lesson, we will talk about that next lesson

Mazurka

• all semiquavers equally snappy, try to come into semiquaver later
• no gap between 18-19 and 26-27.

• gaps also need a clear difference between mf and p
• still watch out for smorzando at the end

Notes 9 Feb

Scales

• all in good in condition

Etude

• at the start, be careful of many starts. Also needs to be softer.
• bar 9, immediately louder start

• 17 onwards, softs need to be softer so louds can feel loud
• 33, don’t take breaks to get softer
• Consistency is key

Tartan

• fadeaway dynamic needs to be consistent

• bar 10, get LH involved with dynamics

• subito – suddenly, before it is mf, then suddenly get softer

• 17, keep it energetic
• goal 45, bonus end of page

Mazurka

• same advice as last week, careful with dynamics.

Notes 2 Feb

Ex 4A:

• phrasing is there, but needs to be carefully made and obvious
• check RH bar 4

Scales

• Don’t practice in order
• practice LH hands seperate
• do arpeggios

Etude

• bar8-9, sudden difference between p and mf

• bar 17, not a sudden difference when doing <. start soft at the start of <

• ending can be loud

• bar 33, don’t rush dotted crotchets. Also helps dynamics

Mazurka

• chord on beat 3, not too loud should be in background. note in beat 1 louder

• bar 5, accent not too loud

• bar 9, make sure mf goes thorugh the entire section

• sf is only ‘temporary’

• smorz, dying away, slower and softer

Notes 27 Jan

Mazurka

• greater dynamic difference required. Still don’t lift fingers too high in
• make sure semiquavers are the same here

• bars 19 onwards, watch dynamics for interest, especially hairpins <>
• sf marks SURPRISING CHANGE

Tartan

• technically difficult with speed, requires ‘perfect practice’

Etude

• Attention to detail when practicing, other details are already established

Notes 20 Jan

4A: do more phrasing

4B: keep practicing

Chromatics and continue contrary

Mazurka

• note directly after an accent, play lightly. Roll on second note.

• bar 1-4, LH long
• bar 5-8, LH long even with staccato. Staccato, don’t jump high

Start learning Tartan

Etude

• to play this section soft, RH energetic, don’t lift RH

• bar 53 keep soft

Notes 13 Jan

Scales

• 4th finger rule is required
• finish all contrary motions

Ex 4A continue learning

Ex 4B, aim for rhythm accuracy now.

Mazurka

• syncopation, empasis on beat 2. anti-accent on beat 1 with staccato. Phrasing here applies

• bar 5-8, mood shift to ‘sneaky’, smaller ideas
• prepare something hands together

Etude

• mf larger in bar 9
• start metronome at 100, increase bit by bit. minimum 132, aim 150

Notes 6 Jan

4C

• use wiping technique
• relax arm

4B

• phrasing using dynamics provided. Going higher, get louder, going down get down

4A

• fingering is really important
• phrasing is important

Scales

• A major and F# harmonic minor contrary

Etude

• evenness of quavers number 1 priority, practice this slow
• bar 9, mf, also, curve fingers

• bar 22-24 phrasing is critical

• bar 36, keep fingers close to the keys, especially for

Notes 1 Dec

Tambo Tango

• precision: notes of chord must be lifted at the same time for cleanness
• marcato: there must be a big difference between the melody and accompaniment
• bar 13, arrive early to jump note so it’s quicker
• bar 20, split between LH and RH (see what i’ve written)
• rall: the gap between each note gets bigger

Technical

• do Ex 4C and if done, 4B
• do first page of scales
• Learn Etude, good quality

Notes 17 Nov

Spanish

• to phrase big, start soft
• crescendo needs to be gradual
• 2nd pages, clear layers between dynamics
• watch coordination bar 30-31

Scales: Try the scales sheet this week

Have a go at the new piece this week

Notes 3 Nov

Spanish Dance

Expressive ideas

• slurs need to be legato. Also fingering needs to be correct to do that
• dynamics are based on how high the melody is in this piece
• try to also get the staccatos right
• Learn the 2nd page by yourself to see how well you learn
• You can have a go at noterush as well