What Are You Practising / Composing Now?

[edashtav]

Elgar’s Piano Quintet - piano part. Elgar’s piano writing sometimes has “too many notes”, but the rewards are great. I’ve yet to play it with the string quartet.

John Bridcut has noted:
Elgar could indeed be rude about the piano, and pianists. His big solo piece, the Concert Allegro of 1901, was fatally bruised at the hands of the pianist Fanny Davies at its first performance, and he wrote little for solo piano thereafter.
A clever-dick comment by the pianist Clifford Curzon - that he detected "the rhetoric of the piano tuner" in Elgar's piano writing - chimed with the misconceived notion of a composer still shackled to the parochial musical trade of his father.

[BBMmk2]

I’ve just had the score of the Bach/Busoni Chaconne, which I will base my transcription of for band, whether it be for brass or concert, or both, I don’t know yet.

[peterthekeys]

After a conversation with my piano teacher, I've decided to learn Chopin's Berceuse - despite its popularity, I'd never even sight read it until last Friday!

Good luck! It's a challenging piece to bring off. I did it as part of my final exam at music college (a vast number of years ago) - I think the biggest problem is managing all the flourishes and cascades in the right hand whilst not disturbing the underlying rocking "cradle song" rhythm. And that extraordinary ending - like a pendulum gradually becoming still.

[peterthekeys]

Elgar’s Piano Quintet - piano part. Elgar’s piano writing sometimes has “too many notes”, but the rewards are great. I’ve yet to play it with the string quartet.

I often play through the violin sonata with a violinist friend - very fine work, and quintessential Elgar. I think the thing that impresses me about the piano part is that I have the sense that he wasn't a "natural" pianist, but had obviously studied piano technique very deeply, to the point that he knew exactly what worked (and some of the novel effects that he achieves probably wouldn't have occurred to a pianist/composer.) It fits well with the view of Elgar as a great craftsman.

[Joseph K]

Thank you Dave.

However, once again I have switched back to jazz guitar. I'm currently wrestling with a plectrum and teasing my mind with the metronome on 2 and 4 playing continuous arpeggio and scale exercises through different chord changes and melodic minor and octatonic scale exercises, not to mention a whole load of chord voicings - much of this is a case of relearning it. Yes, I know I said last time I went back to classical guitar that it was 'for good'... shows what I know. The better I got at fugues, the more I realised that that would not suffice. I prefer the whole improvisational concept, however difficult it is... and as for the plectrum, I've heard it said that playing an instrument using an implement is harder than one which doesn't use an implement; well, I am determined no matter how long it takes to get good with the plectrum... I suppose one thing I've learned is how to organise an effective practise schedule - and, what's more, I am able to play my archtop hollowbody electric guitar longer continuously than my classical guitar, since the former has a strap so I don't have to balance it on my leg, which would cause my leg to cramp if I practised for too long.

So yeah... and it's 'for good' this time, like, actually.

… and here I am messing around on a blues: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oULSP1gLWs

[Dave2002]

… and here I am messing around on a blues: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oULSP1gLWs

Is it really not possible to do both jazz guitar and classical? Are the techniques for each one antagonistic to the other?

Good luck and best wishes anyway. Do whatever floats your boat.

[Joseph K]

Is it really not possible to do both jazz guitar and classical? Are the techniques for each one antagonistic to the other?

Good luck and best wishes anyway. Do whatever floats your boat.

No, I've given up classical guitar. My playing in that video isn't very good, but I decided 'just to go for it'.

You mention technique. Well, jazz guitarist Joe Pass was excellent with a plectrum and finger-picking. There are other jazz guitarists who use their fingers rather than a plectrum - Lionel Loueke, Kevin Eubanks, George van Eps, Lenny Breau and Martin Taylor can use both a plectrum or his fingers.

Of course, they're not playing nylon-string classical instruments and no distinction is made between rest and free stroke etc. so it's not really 'classical technique'.

As for me, I am determined to master plectrum technique, (although I might use my fingers to 'grab' a chord) since my favourite guitarist always has been John McLaughlin...

[Richard Tarleton]

Is it really not possible to do both jazz guitar and classical? Are the techniques for each one antagonistic to the other?

Julian Bream used to do jazz gigs when he was doing National Service - our late friend Hornspieler who knew him then recalls the two of them propping eachother up on parade on Mondays after weekends gigging. Bream famously admired Django Reinhardt. He actually played electric guitar in a Royal Artillery dance band. So yes it can be done. Bream talks about those years in his DVD "My Life in Music", and in his book "My Life on the Road".

Good luck and best wishes anyway. Do whatever floats your boat.

Wise words! Good luck Joseph.

[Joseph K]

Julian Bream used to do jazz gigs when he was doing National Service - our late friend Hornspieler who knew him then recalls the two of them propping eachother up on parade on Mondays after weekends gigging. Bream famously admired Django Reinhardt. He actually played electric guitar in a Royal Artillery dance band. So yes it can be done. Bream talks about those years in his DVD "My Life in Music", and in his book "My Life on the Road".



Wise words! Good luck Joseph.

Thanks.

[BBMmk2]

Richard Tarleton, thank you for that tale

I’ve received the score of the Bach/Busoni transcription of the Chaconne in D minor, which I will loosely base my version on either for concert band or brass band. Not sure which yet. Or both!

[Bryn]

Getting prepared to Scratch around at the British Library tomorrow evening.

[Dave2002]

Getting prepared to Scratch around at the British Library tomorrow evening.

Are you going to record or video this?

[Bryn]

Are you going to record or video this?

I have no plans to do either. I will be there to participate. I would suspect that the BL or someone else concerned with organising the event will have sorted something out.

[Joseph K]

Blues in all (major) keys, Stella by Starlight, All the Things You Are, various other standards...

[Serial_Apologist]

Getting prepared to Scratch around at the British Library tomorrow evening.

In an odd aside, midway through, Clive Bell mentions you in an interview with the Bohman brothers in this month's edition of The Wire magazine, Bryn.