WEEK 1: 2 days
Wed 28 Jun 23
Ouch.
Ouch.
1 class, 45 minutes, stressful.
Tues 11 Jul 23
Wed 12 Jul 23
Fri 14 Jul 23
George helped me figure out the parking garage situation.
From Rob:
practice looking up at dancers for directions.
when in doubt, keep playing.
practice resolving any phrase any time.
not too loud - always be sure you can hear the teacher.
From me:
cut all scores that don't conform to 32 or 64 easily.
incorporate the easiest 32/64 lead sheets you can find.
get more tangos marked up.
find a bigger variety of pieces in 2 around 60 bpm.
focus on clear phrasing.
categorize: 2 and 3, fast or slow, staccato or legato, big or small.
to superimpose a tango or polonaise rhythm, find something with a slow harmonic rhythm.
sometimes the accents should be on upbeats and sometimes not.
don't freak out and rush.
Fri 30 Jun 23
3 classes, 195 mins, each worse than the previous. Awful.
Considering quitting already. But I can't.
From me:
more lead sheets.
maybe even just chord progressions.
more fast stuff, coda stuff.
listen carefully for 3 subdivisions!
emotionally exhausting; it's hard to fail at something for so long.
use a backpack, get some no-nonsense hair clips, and bring a hoodie.
WEEK 2: 4 days
Mon 03 Jul 23
2 classes, 120 mins. Not great, but less traumatic. Rob visited!
At times, had something close to a resting heart rate.
From Rob:
don't do that metronome step; just make a selection.
look up when you finish phrases, like checking a rear view mirror.
when dancers are holding a balance, can keep playing or holding a chord.
try to relax and enjoy playing.
dancers can feel what we're doing, and synergy can make class magical.
introduce yourself to the instructors.
From me:
even more lead sheets.
if you have an "ab" that's 32, instead of trying an "aaba" for 64, just do "abab."
your ear hears the b after the a, so it will lead you astray.
or if you can't deal, just cut it entirely.
cut more stuff that requires page turns; page turns are just awful.
cut anything that doesn't inspire movement very well.
mark up scores in a cleaner way.
try to be more involved with the class in general.
memorize teacher names and try to be friendly.
New score marking rules:
phrases in dark blue.
32's in red.
repeats in yellow.
key changes in pink.
starting key and form typed in indigo.
form in score uses boxes, but only when repeats are necessary.
all da capos have FIN in black with yellow.
all page turns require a turn back link.
any special score notes in black.
Wed 05 Jul 23
4 classes, 210 + 120 mins.
I was cool enough to actually smile at people for the first time.
Got my first few compliments - first one was for my boots, but I'll take it.
From me:
sometimes the teachers count in 16ths and want the "and a" beats!
so... make a new category for those.
get more waltzes around 56-60.
definitely get more Levy stuff!
also get some more classical stuff - maybe a few arias.
double check the relative tempos of your rep.
not really using the airturn - leave it at home.
doing okay with simple lead sheets, but lots of rep in C major :(
5 hours and 45 minutes is too long to be sitting at the piano bench.
Thurs 06 Jul 23
2 classes, 105 + 60 mins.
First day to drive and handle the parking garage on autopilot.
Even have a regular parking spot at G9; healthy habits are drinking water and taking the stairs.
First day hanging out in the faculty lounge on break.
I'm even making friends, a little.
From me:
while I still make errors constantly, I am now used to constantly making errors.
still lots to catch up on (waltzes, classical, Levy), but I've started.
am I ever going to scan any of the dance book rep?
switch to the black backpack - this is your new ballet bag.
2-3 hours is a good amount.
Fri 07 Jul 23
1 class, 60 mins.
Okay, 1 class was harder than I thought it would be.
I had to keep asking questions (but maybe it's a compliment that they were assuming I'd know).
Still play too long maybe half the time, but at least I don't end early anymore.
I try to vary things when I take repeats, but I'm not very creative and it sounds the same.
Stepping outside of the chord, even within the given key, feels brave right now.
Getting better and improvising during the balancé.
From me:
ALWAYS include rhythmic "ands" in the intro, even if going very very fast!
so much to scan, so much to play, so much to organize.
it's hard to keep track of what to do and in what order, but there's lots of work to do.
trying to not let this take over my life - just get a little work done each day.
play from lead sheets a little at home: not for rep, just for practice.
WEEK 3: 5 days
Mon 10 Jul 231 class, 105 mins.
Only 5 kids today - really low pressure and easier than usual!
Was a little more relaxed between playing.
It always sounds like the other pianists have a fuller and more fluent sound.
That's okay - just do what you can do; nobody can expect more than that.
From me:
start trying to end at the right time (instead of playing too long) a little more.
keep adding rep, and keep an eye out for faster pieces.
also start getting rid of rep you've scanned and don't want to use.
you're starting to avoid your lead sheets, don't.
don't be hard on yourself for playing in C; so many of them actually come that way!
Tues 11 Jul 23
2 classes, 105 + 90 mins.
Being there for over 4 hours is pretty tiring, even if some of it is break.
Not too excited about having more big days this week.
Was rather skeptical and reserved in playing today, which is not great.
In other news, I've started going through Rob's books, so that's a win.
Thought "basic ballet" might be a little easier and therefore more fun, but it wasn't really.
Met a new teacher and played in Kodosky for the first time.
From me:
did play from simple lead sheets today but it wasn't challenging.
definitely gravitating towards favorites and sounding like a broken record.
stop waiting so long for the "and" - I think instructors want you to just start more.
Wed 12 Jul 23
3 classes, 165 + 45 mins.
Played for 3 new teachers in a new space.
Positively awful, just failed and failed and failed today.
Ended too short on several occasions; not sure why I had a better handle on that last week.
Played for levels 7 & 8 for the first time, and I do NOT belong there.
At least I was friendly (and apologetic).
Mama said there'll be days like this, there'll be days like this Mama said.
From me:
just play too long all the time; this was unacceptable.
make more folders so you don't have to scroll so much.
you're not getting better at improvising; not sure what to do about that.
trying to play off the chords with no melody sounded pretty bad today :(
the action in Armstrong/Connelly is a bit stiffer.
Thurs 13 Jul 23 (Rob is back!)
2 classes, 150 mins.
I needed a day like this; I wasn't amazing, but things were just fine.
The lower level classes allow more time to make selections, and I need that.
I actually caught some weird timings successfully.
A few people might have even liked being around me today.
From me:
check relative tempi again and delete selections you aren't using.
read and scan more book selections.
bring some books back for Rob tomorrow.
Fri 14 Jul 23
3 classes, 195 mins.
Well, that went a little better than expected!
It felt more like yesterday, even though I thought it would be harder.
After my first day, I was thinking that some day, a 45 minute class would feel short.
Lo and behold, my 45 minute class felt short!
From me:
when trying to maintain a tempo, work in something technical to keep from rushing.
as you get more comfortable accompanying, start listening more to your sound.
keep working on Rob's books!!
WEEK 4: 3 days (my request; bake due on Friday)
Mon 17 Jul 23
3 classes, 210 + 60 mins.
Still doing okay, even after 4+ hours of playing.
Officially recovered from the trauma of last Wednesday.
Starting to have moments of connection with the class.
Enrolled my kids for the school year!
From me:
still not always ending at the right time, but it's happening more often.
had a slightly better sound but chose a lot of easy music.
Tue 18 Jul 23
3 classes, 150 + 90 mins.
I LEFT MY IPAD AT HOME.
I knew this day would come, but I didn't think it would be so soon.
The quality of music wasn't great.
Surprisingly, however, the day was a little less stressful than usual!
No thumbing through scores.
From me:
I was proud of myself for varying keys quite a bit.
I found out that my default progression is:
I I X X I I X X I I IV IV I64 V I I
where X is something else, like vi, iii, ii, bII, bVI, II, or bVII.
I also did a lot of aeolian iv v i i progressions and morphed that into VI VII i i as well.
Other groups of 4 repeated chords can work; Joshua Piper uses pop songs like:
IVM7 iii7 ii7 IM7 (Loving You)
I vi iii IV (Where Is My Mind?)
V ii7 IV I (Bittersweet Symphony)
I found that using i i V V, V V i i in a march was effective.
Wed 19 Jul 23
3 classes, 195 mins.
Last day of this diary!
I'm glad I forgot my ipad yesterday! ...and also glad I did not forget it today.
A teacher hated a piece I chose, which is a real compliment!
Teacher was comfortable telling me.
Teacher assumed I'd be able to bounce back!
Being treated as a professional is even better than "nice job."
Another teacher expressed disappointment that I couldn't come in later this week.
4 hours feels normal instead of long because today felt short!
I even feel a little weird about not coming in tomorrow.
I'm starting to feel settled, and more like I belong here.
The best part is that it feels great to be playing more piano ❤❤❤
