Hey, im currently Grade 8 on the piano, and im stuck between choosing two pieces to learn.....

(i) Debussy - 1st Arabesque
OR
(ii) Chopin - Polonaise in C minor

I like lots of chopin, but my teachers pushing for debussy, i dont know what to do... They both sound equally nice...

HELp!

Play them both, it'll be good for you
You can choose nearer the exam which one you think will give a better performance.

That's a good idea.
And I'd recommend starting with the less familiar composer, ie if you've played lots of Chopin before and little or no Debussy, I'd start with the Debussy.

It's always good to push out your boundaries a bit!

Hope they go well
M

I agree with SuzyMac; do them both for now and enjoy the experience.

I have a practical suggestion, though, when it comes to decide which one to polish for the exam. Your teacher knows your playing and understands the different demands of both pieces. The Chopin demands some raw power in places whilst the Debussy is much more delicate. Perhaps your teacher feels that you 'do delicate' more successfully than you 'do power'. It might be worth asking.

Enjoy them. Wonderful pieces, both of them.

well, unfortuantely my teacher is going for the debussy, mainly because she loves the piece to death, not really basing it on my playing ability... however, i do play a lot of chopin....

Also, i intend to sit the exam ASAP, as am i currently studying for my GCSE's and I wouldnt want the two to clash.. So the sooner i can "get rid" of Grade 8, the more I can concentrate on GCSE's and my diploma afterwards...

Thanx for all your help guys, and sorry to sound shallow, but which piece is easier?

That's not shallow, tris54, that's sensible.

Which one is easier depends on your technique. Chopin if you are good at chords and can differentiate well between melody and accompaniment in the same hand (Db section). Debussy if you are good at delicate, speedy fingerwork.

On reflection, power is not such an issue here. Even Chopin's most dramatic writing does not call for huge fortissimo such as you would need for Brahms and Rachmaninov. Even the Ballades are best not played by the thrash-and-crash brigade.

One more thought. You say you play lots of Chopin. That means you have lots of experience of playing Chopin. That sounds like a good reason for choosing Chopin for your grade 8, to me. You can gain more experience of Debussy later.

Steve

Neither of them, If I would you, I 'll go for the A1, it's much nicer!

Except that this is the C list.....

Why not learn both and do grade 8 later, after your GCSEs? You've surely got your whole life to do your diploma and the experience of the piece you don't turn out to be as good at will probably be more valuable to your playing than the one that you are good at as you'll learn more from it, even if you don't do it for the exam. Unless you're really finding grade 8 very easy and getting a high distinction then you'll have a long time between grade 8 and diploma level anyway (see diplomas forum for the 50% failure rate amongst people who have passed grade 8 ).

Well, i've managed to alreayd play beethovens sonata pathetique, ive spent the past 8 months perfecting it, so i was intending on playing that for my diploma, even though i havnt a clue about the performers section of the syllabus...

But i cannot delay my exams! If i loosen up on Grade 8, my playing will surely deteriate, trust me....

And after GCSE's i have to sit my AS and A2 levels.... even harder

When are your GCSEs? If next year you can either enter in November or March and still get G8 out of the way before the main exams.
If you've mastered Beethoven sonatas in 8 months it should be a doddle if the rest of the requirements are up to scratch.

Well, i intend to take grade 8 in november, however i dont know whether I'll be able to do it, I've only just started learning my pieces now... What do all of you people think? should i do it?

Bear in mind I havnt mastered beethovens pathetique yet, im just getting better at it, definitely still not excellent at it...