Hello,

I'm sure there was a topic on this, but it seems to have been eaten! So, what pieces have you chosen, and how are you finding them? Any tricky bits I should steer clear of before I make a decision?

I've been listening to the cd as per my teacher's instructions, to see which ones grow on me. At the moment I'm leaning towards A1: Allegro, B2: Einsamer Wanderer, and C1: Feelin' Good. Not sure about C, though, as it's pretty fast with some rather stretched chords and might tie the fingers up in knots - and I wonder if it will be so popular the examiner will be sick of it! I like all the C list pieces this time, which is very unusual!

I quite like the Vals Poetico, but I learned it years ago when I was doing grade 5, and I'm afraid I would find it hard to "make it new" again, as I learned it rather badly (bad fingering, imperfect timing, etc.). Let's just say, the version on the cd doesn't sound much like I remember it, although the score is identical.

Look forward to hearing what G6 pieces others are learning.

Cheers,

Fred

Hi Fred

I have just started the Chopin B minor prelude and Lavender's Kind of Blue, although these may not be the final choice for the exam as my teacher wants me to try out a few of the pieces.

In the alternatives for the C list, Lavender Field by Karen Tanaka is lovely, and not too difficult either! I've got a pupil who is working on it at the moment, and she really likes it.

QUOTE (Fred @ Feb 1 2005, 02:30 PM)

I've been listening to the cd as per my teacher's instructions, to see which ones grow on me.

You mean instead of playing them, and your teacher was too lazy or preoccupied to play them?

no fiurther comment.

QUOTE

You mean instead of playing them, and your teacher was too lazy or preoccupied to play them?

Well, it depends how you look at it. We have 30 minutes for a lesson. At the moment 15-20 minutes is devoted to marking theory test papers and discussing the questions. It would take virtually an entire lesson for her to play every piece on the syllabus. Instead she went through the book with the 9 selected choices and played excerpts of the ones I couldn't hear in my head or sightread reasonably well for myself, then let me borrow the cd to mull over for longer.

I think her idea is, you can't really judge a piece on one listening, and alas, I can't afford to bring her home and have her play them all through a couple of times a day!

Mm, I sightread through Lavender Field and it wasn't too hard - but it didn't really grab me. Perhaps it will grow on me as I listen to it played properly...

Surprisingly I didn't much like the Chopin selection for this grade, although he is my favourite composer for piano. Are you planning to sit your exam in the summer, Lucia?

QUOTE (Lucia @ Feb 1 2005, 02:51 PM)

Hi Fred I have just started the Chopin B minor prelude and Lavender's Kind of Blue, although these may not be the final choice for the exam as my teacher wants me to try out a few of the pieces.

Do you find the Chopin tricky?

A lot to it!

I really like A1 (Loeillet)
and A2 (Arne)

never can get into Bridge - hoping it will grow on me,

but like the Greig (always like Greig actually), and thought the Tcherepnin (sp?) was quite fun.

haven't explored any of the "extra" pieces yet.

Maggie

hi

im doing A3 Allegro by Dussek but i also like Corant

List B- im doing the Vals Poetico

and list C im doing prayer of the matador

is this a good combination?

QUOTE (Fred @ Feb 1 2005, 05:03 PM)

Surprisingly I didn't much like the Chopin selection for this grade, although he is my favourite composer for piano. Are you planning to sit your exam in the summer, Lucia?

I really like the Chopin. I will be taking my exam in November.

QUOTE

Do you find the Chopin tricky?

I will get back to you on that one, I have only just started it so am not playing hands together yet. However, I suspect that some parts are likely to be quite challenging.

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 1 2005, 05:49 PM)

Your teacher should play them all.It really doesn`t matter that it takes up all of ONE lesson.

except that some of us aren't made of money...

QUOTE

get off your butt,use your hands to open a book with some music in,then use your brain to interpret what the written music is saying

Get off my butt? I usually play sitting down, btw. I sight-read all the pieces (in the book) before ever hearing the cd, which gave me a good impression of them. However, I am not advanced enough to perfectly sight-read G6 pieces capturing the mood and demonstrating what they can sound like after some study. This is where the cd comes in handy. As for my teacher playing them all - there are ideal situations, and there is reality. Would it be any different if she had recorded them herself?

Amadeus, your comments about how to select a repertoire are interesting. I have tried to choose a variety of moods, but I confess I would like more guidance from my teacher about where my own strengths and weaknesses lie. I suspect she is leaving it up to me because I'm an adult learner and she doesn't want to cause offence. However, being adult does not make me all-knowing and I worry that in choosing the longer or more difficult pieces I might be setting myself up for a fall... Something to ask about next lesson, perhaps.

How have others arrived at decisions over pieces for exams - do you choose, your teacher, or a mixture? Do you think it's better to play something you like the sound of, or something that shows off your playing in the best light?

Going back to something you said at the beginning of this thread ...

QUOTE

Not sure about C, though, as it's pretty fast with some rather stretched chords and might tie the fingers up in knots - and I wonder if it will be so popular the examiner will be sick of it! I like all the C list pieces this time, which is very unusual!

I thought you may be interested to know (if your teacher hasn't already mentioned this) that the teaching notes for this piece do say the suggested metronome speed seems "a touch frantic", and that the piece could be played a bit slower as long as the feel is right.

Maggie

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 2 2005, 12:35 AM)

"except that some of us aren't made of money... " I`m certainly not. But over a number of years it is manageable to build up "stock" music by whatever means possible.For example,picking up sheet music 2nd hand or swopping with friends.

my point was to do with paying for lesson time actually, as should be clear from the point I quoted... lessons can be extremely expensive, and if one has a limited budget, spending a whole lesson listening to a teacher demonstrate every piece in the syllabus could well be seen as not the best use of time when a cd demonstration is available, especially when, as in this case, the student is also studying for a Theory exams and is losing out on piano-learning time already while papers are marked. Consider also that some people cannot afford to have a lesson every two weeks... so if a lesson is entirely taken taken by that demonstration, effectively one would go for a whole month without a lesson..

QUOTE (maggiemay @ Feb 2 2005, 09:11 AM)

the teaching notes for this piece do say the suggested metronome speed seems "a touch frantic", and that the piece could be played a bit slower as long as the feel is right.

Phew, that's a relief. Although for many, it's keeping to a slow enough tempo which is difficult - especially when a piece is almost, but not quite, learnt! (Except Gypsy Rondo. Gypsy Rondo can never be fast enough.)

I am an adult learner and have vowed never to sit another exam in my life (sat too many already) but I've looked at the pieces and really like the Chopin prelude and think Prayer of the Matador is *fantastic*. I'm definately going to do that with my teacher and *may* even think about doing the exam later if I can get them both to a high standard.

All depends on list A which I almost always find very hard!

QUOTE (clarinetlover @ Feb 1 2005, 09:15 PM)

hi im doing A3 Allegro by Dussek but i also like Corant List B- im doing the Vals Poetico and list C im doing prayer of the matador is this a good combination?

How are you finding Allegro? Bit of a marathon isn't it? Sight-reading, I start to flag at about the half-way point. I quite liked A2, also, although all those ornaments put me off!

I love the sound of The Matador, it's deliciously dramatic. You can see the flourish of a red cloth in those F-G-F-E demisemiquaver turns. Or, I can, but maybe I'm just weird...

For what it's worth, it sounds like a good combination of fiercely jolly A, elegant dance B, and drama C. Personally, I doubt the examiner will much care about the combination, provided we all choose one from each set. I think selecting good combinations now is good practise for diploma, but I doubt it affects the marking at this stage. Someone correct me if I'm wrong!

Fred.

QUOTE (Fred @ Feb 2 2005, 12:11 PM)

[QUOTE=clarinetlover,Feb 1 2005, 09:15 PM] hi I love the sound of The Matador, it's deliciously dramatic. You can see the flourish of a red cloth in those F-G-F-E demisemiquaver turns. Or, I can, but maybe I'm just weird...

I get very strong image of a really arogant matador dressed up in his suit of lights absolutely *strutting* around.

Yes, the grade 6 pieces are really good. But they were last year as well.

Glad to see you like the Chopin prelude, Stumac. I would certainly choose to do it if I were doing grade 6. How well, is another question. I am having a go at it already and finding it tricky and challenging.

QUOTE (Fred @ Feb 2 2005, 12:11 PM)

How are you finding Allegro? Bit of a marathon isn't it? Sight-reading, I start to flag at about the half-way point.

StuMac- yay you like Prayer of the Matador too! you should do it in the exam, i am!

Fred- ah the wonderful Allegro, it took me a while to get a sort of hang of it!

um my teacher says i stil need to get more dynamic contrast in it. the thing is becuase its so fast i kind of forget about dynamics oops!and when i go wrong, i lose it completely and completely lose any confidence i had, and then its a disaster!

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 2 2005, 09:56 PM)

I do not agree with that.Weekly lessons are more beneficial and to sight one major problem with this is the pupil becoming too ingrained with a bad habit that is allowed to develop over two weeks rather than one.

Well one lesson every fortnight is better than no lessons at all - and for some people (myself included) that is the choice. As for spending money on little luxuries... piano lessons ARE my little luxury. The only other thing that could be termed a luxury is 'net access - which costs me £6 a month, so if I gave that up I could have half an extra piano lesson every month. All the rest of my money basically goes on essentials - such as food and electricity. Saying "you have to have a lesson every week" is all very well except that it just ain't practical for some people. Presently I'm saving up to have one flute lesson A MONTH! And I'm still not sure how I'm going to manage that...

Amadeus

You are a marvel - not only do you know exactly how everyone should learn their instrument, and how their individual lessons should be structured, but you also know all about their personal finances!

Or maybe you only think you know all this....?

Maybe you are wrong..?

Is it possible?

-

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 3 2005, 01:01 AM)

At least my posting has received the reaction I thought it would.I`m glad I have raised some heckles here.

Hahahahahahah! My, what a CLEVER boy you are! Did you hire a Philadephia lawyer to tell you to expect a response? Of course you'll get a response. Just don't be so bloody rude next time. Be SUBTLE.!!

Just a shame you're sufficiently a coward to NEED to post under a duplicate ID. Sad, that.

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 3 2005, 01:01 AM)

Nice to see the English language being used by you (WooHoo) and your apology is accepted.

Thank you. Good.
Would you prefer another language?
Unfortunately I not quite as fluent in rudese as you but...huhhh, I'll give it a try.

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 3 2005, 01:01 AM)

I have no interest in Sarah`s financial circumstances,and she is a lady that doesn`t need anybody to come to her defence.

PURLEEZE! Look at your own statement. Porkies! Don't compound your sins by trying to retreat. Proves you were being rude with intent. Who says anyone was 'defending' anyone else.
Allow me to explain about discussions. A discussion is about resolving issues between different parties and can embrace all shades of argument between two or more vantages. I needed to clarify from which part of this spectrum I was arguing from. The person you mentioned was your most proximal opponent. (Did you like that? Most proximal? Not bad for 9:14am) And I'm an ipsilateral supporter.
Get some in, old boy, get some in!!!

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 3 2005, 01:01 AM)

It`s a shame that Sarah and myself first made contact in relation to her request about a piece of music and I provided the information to her,but now it has come to this.

next time try to be civilized then it won't.

QUOTE

Yes indeed! So great minds think alike.I tend to agree with all of your points here.

An interesting postulation. Your earlier blurtings suggest you speak(type) without thinking. Are you calling yourself a great mind? I trust not or we might as well all give up.

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 3 2005, 01:01 AM)

Alas! You are very,very wrong on your last point though. I have been down and out with a wife and 3 kiddies to support,but clawed my way back to a modest standard of living plus the obligatory mortgage that still has a number of years to run.

Just as you are as wrong on your insistence about lesson frequency. Clawing back may have sharpened your claws but looks like you lost your grip.
Please post under your regular id next time.
byeeee

Rhaps!

HOW do you know that Amadeus is a regular poster masquerading under an alternative identity?!! Spill the beans!!

Cheers

I just spoke to my Philadelphia lawyer. He said "Be prepared, Ms Amadeus is about to try to evade owning up by taking any opportunity to divert attention from herself/himself."

Hm, I wasted my money. I could have worked that out.

QUOTE

my Philadelphia lawyer. He said "Be prepared, Ms Amadeus is about to try to evade owning up to himself

??
well I guess lawyers were ever ambiguous.


M

QUOTE (maggiemay @ Feb 3 2005, 10:11 AM)

QUOTE my Philadelphia lawyer. He said "Be prepared, Ms Amadeus is about to try to evade owning up to himself ?? well I guess lawyers were ever ambiguous. M

Hahahahahaha! Yup, that's the whole pitch about being a lawyer in said town!

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 3 2005, 10:26 AM)

Both my wife and myself are teachers.We use the same ID.Hope this clarifies.

After your rudeness you don't think I'm going to idle any more time of day, do you, on whoever you are and under whatever id?
My original point was made a couple of posts up there.
cheers.

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 2 2005, 09:56 PM)

As for having lessons every two weeks I personally do not agree with that.Weekly lessons are more beneficial and to sight one major problem with this is the pupil becoming too ingrained with a bad habit that is allowed to develop over two weeks rather than one.

Yes, you are quite right.

Hm. I agree that bad habits get too quickly ingrained between lessons - somehow it takes longer to "unlearn" a small mistake than it does to learn 3 pages of music - but I don't think it's lesson frequency that is at issue here. Surely at Grade 6 pieces should take priority, as pupils should have enough autonomy to learn scales in their own time, and ask about any difficulties with aural (which the pupil should otherwise be able to study in isolation).

In my lessons we scarcely have time to go over one piece. Studying 3 pieces at a time means that I may have been practising a piece (wrongly) for 3 weeks before my teacher hears it. This problem is currently being caused by the need to concentrate on theory, and hopefully after March 3rd there will be more time to actually play the piano.

All of this returns me to the original point (one of them), not that lessons should be longer or more frequent, but simply that the time spent actually playing and being criticised is too precious to waste on my teacher playing pieces that are already available on cd. Of course now I have listened to them we will use some lesson time to discuss the relative merits, etc, but I see no need for a first-hearing dissection.

Often a piece which sounds pleasant on a first play-through will subsequently become grating after numerous repetitions, whereas a piece that at first repels may grow on one. A quick play-through by my teacher could not tell me which will do what after several listens - only hearing them a number of times and playing them through myself will do that.

Sarah-flute, thank you for upholding the sane end of this discussion. Indeed we are not all made of money, or I would be having clarinet lessons, too, and separate theory lessons to free up piano-time. Maybe another teacher for aural, too! Furthermore we do not all have infinite time available for lessons (which we have to travel to, unlike practise which is free and we can get at home!). I am a firm believer that it is the quality, not quantity, of both lessons and practise, which are important

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 3 2005, 10:26 AM)

Both my wife and myself are teachers.We use the same ID.Hope this clarifies.

Quite clever. each of you can blame the other one.

Daft argument altogether. Students as well as their circumstances differ widely. Some aren't capable of going a week without learning bad habits so they'll never be on the stage big time anway. However, let them fulfil their roles in the economy.

.'.

QUOTE (Silver pianist @ Feb 3 2005, 12:23 PM)

QUOTE (Amadeus @ Feb 2 2005, 09:56 PM) As for having lessons every two weeks I personally do not agree with that.Weekly lessons are more beneficial and to sight one major problem with this is the pupil becoming too ingrained with a bad habit that is allowed to develop over two weeks rather than one. Yes, you are quite right.

Absolutely. *laughing away*

*whispers aside*
Which one is right? Him her it or any combination of all three?
.'.

Amadeus said:

QUOTE

I`m sorry,but I just cannot accept you are living on such a tight shoestring and only have so little money left over per month that you can afford one flute lesson per month.

Well, welcome to the real world where some of us live. I haven't been able to afford flute lessons at all for many years, so having one a month is a step up. Lucky for you if you can afford to have as many music lessons as you like: some of us can't, and so time with our teachers is at a premium - and at the risk of touching the subject with a barge pole, that's one of the reasons the AB cds are useful. It's all very well saying it "doesn't matter" if it takes a whole lesson to have all the pieces demonstrated... evidently, to some of us, it does matter.

Fred said

QUOTE

I am a firm believer that it is the quality, not quantity, of both lessons and practise, which are important

Well said, Fred. Personally I'd rather spend my hard-earned money on one lesson a month with a really good teacher than on 2 or 4 with a mediocre one. (Right Said Fred... lol...)

Surely anyone learning at G6 standard or above is beyond the point of learning bad habits and getting them so ingrained that they can't be unlearned? And surely anyone at that standard has some idea of how to practice efficiently. As it happens 1 lesson a month is a very good arrangement for some people who are at a higher level. I would not have more than 2 lessons a month on the flute even if I could afford it - I don't need a lesson every week.

Anyway I've had enough of being told to sort out my finances by someone who doesn't know anything about me or my situation, so I'm exiting this thread while I'm still feeling vaguely civil. If you're truly surprised that a conversation takes a downwards turn when you tell someone essentially that they are lying about what they can and can't afford then.... blimey. If you've had financial struggles yourself then I'd hope you'd be slightly more sympathetic to those faced by others. Evidently not. I was very grateful for the information provided in another thread - and believe I said so. (sadly a music book costing £8.50 is going to end up on the Christmas list in case one of my family is feeling generous) It doesn't make me feel obliged to put up with you being rude to me here.

Not worth wasting any more time on this nonentity of a hermaphrodite thing. S/he's gone anyway, posting away under another id and having a smile. And fine - it gave us all a bit of practice!

You know what's sad about this character/ess though? That in real life they might be extorting money for real lessons, no matter what presence/id they have here. The quality of lessons from someone as pathetic and insensitive...well, is there any doubt? Think of the victims.

Just had an amusing but malevolent thought. If he/she/it really was a hermaphrodite I could make an interesting suggestion about what he/she/it should go and do.

.'.

Anyways, Im doing

A1 Corant..
B3 Spanish song.
C1 Feelin' good..

I hope that is a good combaination.. i love my first two choise but im not too sure about Feeling' good.

you need big hands for Feelin Good!

QUOTE (clarinetlover @ Feb 3 2005, 08:58 PM)

you need big hands for Feelin Good!

* looks at my hand * uh what do you mean by big? i can just about reach an octave.

i think you need to be able to stretch more than that, unless you spread the chords of course. thats why i chose Prayer of the Matador... and its slow!

QUOTE (clarinetlover @ Feb 3 2005, 09:36 PM)

i think you need to be able to stretch more than that, unless you spread the chords of course. thats why i chose Prayer of the Matador... and its slow!

That's very rare for you: you don't usually pick exam pieces without allegro somewhere in the title !

i know LOL!! i decided to have a change for once!

I am amazed that noone has referred to Stephen Heller's "Song Without Words". It did not jump out at me on the CD, but it has been a joy to play and a joy to teach. My student has also learned the Grieg but he will most likely use the Heller for examination as to us it is a more substantial offering.

"Feelin' Good" feels good - the stretches on second page (with optional omitted notes in parentheses) can be managed with good lateral motion technique. I feel also that the CD takes it TOO FAST - it sounds admirably smart and slick on the CD, but I find the jazziness is better demonstrated at slower speed.

I think "Lavender Kind of Blue" is worth learning - think of all the occasions when the student could play this - school talent quests, for friends - it is so catchy. It may help that Christopher Norton is like me a New Zealander - but right now I cannot purchase a copy. Can someone provide me with a suitable internet supplier that could provide.

Of list A, I think A3 Allegro by Dussek is well worth the effort of learning. It is again a coherent Grade 6 piece, quite long, but with plenty of interest.

I also agree with other subscribers when they say "reputation doesn't matter". The Chopin, to my ear, is not especially meritorious by Chopin's standards.

In response to an earlier query, my belief is that a student is best motivated if HE or SHE chooses the piece. In ABRSM, there are 3 lists of 6 pieces - ample scope for any student to learn 2 per list and ultimately whittle performance down to three for the exam.

The worst thing to do is pick the 3 easiest technically per exam; this does nothing for anyone's motivation, and it inhibits the opportunity for growth.

Hello George,

www.musicroom.com have Lavender's Kind of Blue (in a Christopher Norton collection), and will deliver worldwide.

I agree with you about "Feelin Good", the cd speed does seem a little manic. When I think of the music, it seems it should be more relaxed, and I am surprised how fast it is played. At the moment I am learning the Grieg and the Dussek, and planning to start on Feelin Good in week or two. Not sure if I'll have time to learn 2 from each list by the summer, but it sounds like a good idea to try. I'd certainly like to learn the Tcherepnin from list C, and the Telemann from A is loveley (although I'm still a little nervous of all those ornaments!).

List B normally contains my favourite pieces, but this year they all seem to be so sad I want to weep rather than play, or else rather gratingly jolly! I preferred last year's: Albeniz Tango, Schubert Scherzo, Debussy Page d'Album, Murgorsky Une Larme were all lovely.

Thanks for all your comments. I should warn you the moderators tend to frown on people posting their email addresses!

Fred

Am playing

A3 Allegro
B3 Vals Poetico
C1 Feelin Good

Am unsure about feelin good myself, although I can reach the chords, I did rather like one of the alternative pieces, (the name escapes me)

Wasnt there a piece called Song Without Words on the G6 list a couple of years ago? Having listened to the cd, I found it's not the same one. Did anyone else hear of this other song without words?

Seriously C1 page two? ahh i'm nearly on that i lernt RH+LH together all on one lesson last week . if that is true i really need to pratice.. ARRGH!

Hello Everyone!!!
I live in South Africa and have just started on the Gr. 6 pieces(A3; B3; C3). I am a hopeless sight reader and often play too fast, but I , like all of you, love music.

From Sam

has anyone had a go at A4 i think it is,

Solo per il Cembalo in E flat, by CPE Bach

i think its great!

QUOTE (clarinetlover @ Feb 26 2005, 11:26 AM)

has anyone had a go at A4 i think it is, Solo per il Cembalo in E flat, by CPE Bach i think its great!

A4? theres another number??