Piano Pieces
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #6 - For those looking to be armchair travelers, let Albert William Ketèlbey take you on a journey "In a Persian Market" and "In a Chinese Temple".
I remember playing the latter many years ago and still recall the enchanting tunes that Ketèlbey created to make you believe you were in a faraway place. The orchestral version features all kinds of exotic sounds - from oriental themes to mystical gongs and chanting "monks".
Listen to them and then grab... See More
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #6 - For those looking to be armchair travelers, let Albert William Ketèlbey take you on a journey "In a Persian Market" and "In a Chinese Temple".
I remember playing the latter many years ago and still recall the enchanting tunes that Ketèlbey created to make you believe you were in a faraway place. The orchestral version features all kinds of exotic sounds - from oriental themes to mystical gongs and chanting "monks".
Listen to them and then grab the scores to practice on the piano below.
Chinese Temple: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXXozkxE40M
Persian Market: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ede2QMi5JM
Scores: http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Ket%C3%A8lbey,_Albert_William
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #4 - For those who love ice skating, Les Patineurs Valse, or more popularly known as The Skaters' Waltz, Op. 183, is a waltz by Émile Waldteufel that is sure to please; this is possibly his best known composition.
The Waltz sets out to capture the atmosphere of skaters on the surface of the frozen River Seine, and it achieves this admirably through an introduction, four brilliantly enchanting waltz themes and a coda section that captures that wintry spirit... See More
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #4 - For those who love ice skating, Les Patineurs Valse, or more popularly known as The Skaters' Waltz, Op. 183, is a waltz by Émile Waldteufel that is sure to please; this is possibly his best known composition.
The Waltz sets out to capture the atmosphere of skaters on the surface of the frozen River Seine, and it achieves this admirably through an introduction, four brilliantly enchanting waltz themes and a coda section that captures that wintry spirit.
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This is one of my favorites - though I personally like his Estudiantina Waltz better. |
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Yes, that one is as popular, but I guess I am a teensy bit biased towards music that have appeared in video games. I always associate The Skater's Waltz with a cute little animated penguin skating... See More Yes, that one is as popular, but I guess I am a teensy bit biased towards music that have appeared in video games. I always associate The Skater's Waltz with a cute little animated penguin skating whenever I hear it. |
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #5 - Mention Alfred Hitchcock and you might remember the diversity of dramas, thrillers, and mysteries from "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", a TV series that was produced back in the mid-60s.
Indelibly linked to the TV series is Charles Gounod's Funeral March of a Marionette. Originally planned as part of a suite dedicated to a music critic, only this piece was released after the critic's untimely death. Listen to the familiar strains of Gounod's music in the... See More
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #5 - Mention Alfred Hitchcock and you might remember the diversity of dramas, thrillers, and mysteries from "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", a TV series that was produced back in the mid-60s.
Indelibly linked to the TV series is Charles Gounod's Funeral March of a Marionette. Originally planned as part of a suite dedicated to a music critic, only this piece was released after the critic's untimely death. Listen to the familiar strains of Gounod's music in the video below.
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #1 - Was playing this piece earlier today at URA Centre, when I thought, why not introduce it here for Pianovers to play.
Granados' well known piece from the Goyescas suite called "Quejas, o La Maja y el ruiseñor" or aka "The Maiden and the Nightingale". This piece is actually what the famous song "Bésame Mucho" (composed by Consuelo Velázquez) was based off.
Listen to a performance of the piece below:
... See More
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #1 - Was playing this piece earlier today at URA Centre, when I thought, why not introduce it here for Pianovers to play.
Granados' well known piece from the Goyescas suite called "Quejas, o La Maja y el ruiseñor" or aka "The Maiden and the Nightingale". This piece is actually what the famous song "Bésame Mucho" (composed by Consuelo Velázquez) was based off.
Listen to a performance of the piece below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7naaVPKatOo
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #3 - It seems that today's recommendation has something in common from yesterday's writeup - the year 1944.
From a romance movie known as Love Story comes this exquisite piece of film music that feels like a mini piano concerto - the Cornish Rhapsody by British film composer, Hubert Bath.
Often showcased as a companion to the Warsaw Concerto by Addinsell, it was made popular by Richard Clayderman when he did a cover of both pieces in 1985.
... See More
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #3 - It seems that today's recommendation has something in common from yesterday's writeup - the year 1944.
From a romance movie known as Love Story comes this exquisite piece of film music that feels like a mini piano concerto - the Cornish Rhapsody by British film composer, Hubert Bath.
Often showcased as a companion to the Warsaw Concerto by Addinsell, it was made popular by Richard Clayderman when he did a cover of both pieces in 1985.
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #2 - Tchaikovsky wrote all kinds of music in his time. But, one of his most melanchology songs would have to be "None, But the Lonely Heart".
Coming from his set of Six Romances (Op 6), the last piece wraps around your heart and embraces you in sadness. There is even a movie of the same name that came out in 1944, staring Cary Grant and Ethel Barrymore. A sad movie of the time, it featured Tchaikovsky's song as the background music.
Listen to this... See More
Piano Piece Pick of the Day #2 - Tchaikovsky wrote all kinds of music in his time. But, one of his most melanchology songs would have to be "None, But the Lonely Heart".
Coming from his set of Six Romances (Op 6), the last piece wraps around your heart and embraces you in sadness. There is even a movie of the same name that came out in 1944, staring Cary Grant and Ethel Barrymore. A sad movie of the time, it featured Tchaikovsky's song as the background music.
Listen to this piece below and follow the link to the voice/piano score.
Video: https://www.youtube.com.sg/watch?v=uE6kbNuSOEY
Score: https://imslp.org/wiki/Special:ImagefromIndex/03988/ft01
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I haven't watched "The Bear" (L'Ours in French) before - will grab it from The Esplanade library this weekend. You see, I love playing June; it's one of the earliest works from Tchaikovsky I... See More I haven't watched "The Bear" (L'Ours in French) before - will grab it from The Esplanade library this weekend. You see, I love playing June; it's one of the earliest works from Tchaikovsky I learnt. Can't wait to hear the soundtrack in its entirety. |
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Not surprisingly, I found the full movie of The Bear on Youtube. Interesting to hear the familiar strains of June throughout. |
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I"m very glad you've managed to watch The Bear and finding its orchestral soundtrack superb! |
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Hey Yong Meng, there's no thumbs up in your forums. Guess I got to give this thread a Heart! |
Time to share another useful nugget of knowledge. Third off my list:
Need to refresh yourself on a musical concept (eg. recalling the Circle of Fifths) or are you starting out in learning a musical piece and need some basic lessons?
Well, try this free online course that already has 300+ videos: http://www.daveconservatoire.org/
Time to share another useful nugget of knowledge. Third off my list:
Need to refresh yourself on a musical concept (eg. recalling the Circle of Fifths) or are you starting out in learning a musical piece and need some basic lessons?
Well, try this free online course that already has 300+ videos: http://www.daveconservatoire.org/
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Yes. Glad you found that useful! For those who are interested, I can share with you a MuseScore of what I played in Meetup Session #57. That would be the Theme from Cocoon by James Horner. |
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Never heard of this piece before. Gonna check it out now. |
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After James Horner died in an aeroplane crash in 2015, his death evoked memories of the many pieces he composed. The Soundtrack for Cocoon is one of my all-time favorites. You can watch the... See More After James Horner died in an aeroplane crash in 2015, his death evoked memories of the many pieces he composed. The Soundtrack for Cocoon is one of my all-time favorites. You can watch the orchestral version here: |
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omg.. I just wiki James Horner, and read about the plane crash.. so sad. Listening to the Soundtrack for Cocoon while reading is a bad combo.. ? On a side note, he's so charming!! ? |
Unique Piano Pieces Thread #1 - For those looking to play a piece that allows you to perform a glissando on black keys only, here's one really cool piece: Cyril Scott's Lotus Land. You get to do it 3 times, on bars 35, 36, and 62.
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoqDR5Zvu_M
Score: http://... See More
Unique Piano Pieces Thread #1 - For those looking to play a piece that allows you to perform a glissando on black keys only, here's one really cool piece: Cyril Scott's Lotus Land. You get to do it 3 times, on bars 35, 36, and 62.
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoqDR5Zvu_M
Score: http://petruccilibrary.us/scores/Scott_Cyril_1970/Scott_-_LotusLand_Op.4...
Funny video about the crew behind the scene.
Time to share more nuggets of usefulness. Second off my list: Now, where do I get free classical piano scores?
That's easy: http://imslp.org/wiki/Main_Page
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Haha! I love IMSLP too!! |
Time to share some nuggets of usefulness. First off my list: Where do I get a list of piano music listed by difficulty?
Well, here's a handy reference: http://www.classicalmusicdb.com/levels
Richard Clayderman's Coup de Coeur.
Feeling nostalgic indeed.
Saw a discussion among some Pianovers about Richard Clayderman, and suddenly thought of this piece - one of my all-time favourites.
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Lovely piece! |
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The first time i hear this song i dont think much about it. The 2nd time i hear it, got some feelings, after 3rd hearing the tune keep lingering in my minds and now i am hooked. |
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Wow! Didn't know abt this piece. Nice to know!! |
Haha. Hence, the need to promote Ketèlbey to a new generation.
Lyrics to Sanctuary of the Heart? That's really nice. Would love to hear it one day. Live performance, perhaps?
Oh my gosh... In a Persian Market is one of the songs that motivated me to ask my parents for piano lessons. Saw one of my schoolmates performing the song at school and I was immediately blown... See More
Oh my gosh... In a Persian Market is one of the songs that motivated me to ask my parents for piano lessons. Saw one of my schoolmates performing the song at school and I was immediately blown away. Thanks Gavin for sharing and reminding me of the song. It really brought back fond memories.
No problem! Ketèlbey's music seems to have that surprising charm to nab avid afficionados. It's no surprise he became a millionaire selling these two pieces and "In the Mystic Land of Egypt."
Ketelbet's Bells Across the Meadows is another soul-touching piece whereby I used to get my students to write lyrics to it too!