[MusicTlk] General Discussion About Learning Music, with a Focus on Accuracy

[Ella Yu]

Hi Elizabeth, Thanks for your interesting comments. Just for your info,
this is mainly a discussion thread I started out of curiosity/interest to
give each other the opportunity to examine different perspectives, not for
seeking advice. I definitely feel your pain when it comes to advanced piano
music, it can really get quite tiring, with all those symbols, chords,
in-accords, multi-voice material, etc, and I think being able to listen to
recordings eases the pain somewhat in the learning process. I definitely
agree with your "do what's best/most effective for the job" attitude, I
feel the same way. As I said, I also play violin and viola, which are
single line instruments, which means the music is not as content heavy and
easier to get through from a braille music reading standpoint. Music for
string instruments does contain double stops and chords at more advanced
levels, but not nearly to the same degree as piano music of course. For
wind instruments and voice, chords are much less of a concern. With piano,
I can play with one hand and read with the other if I want to in order to
learn/internalize material, though when there's multiple voices, I still
need to do a lot of pre-reading before I play anything. On the other hand,
for violin/viola and most other instruments, I have to read before I play
anything, since both hands are absolutely vital for being able to play
anything at all. And also, thanks Linda and Brandon for your interesting
perspectives.

On Sun, Sep 8, 2024 at 10:31 PM Elizabeth Sprecher via MusicTlk <
musictlk at nfbnet.org> wrote:

> Hi ella,
>
> This was an interesting message to read, and I agree that we have
> individual differences, based on our own experiences. Here is my reply.
>
> You talked about time signatures and said that sometimes, some time
> signatures feel slightly off from what you thought they were. For me with
> braille music, I see changes in time signatures, if there are any, for
> example, I am currently working on the Chopin Prelude No. 17 in A Flat Op,
> 28, and the first Debussy Prelude. I feel that these are great examples of
> accuracy and looking out for accurate information in the braille music.
> For example, in the Chopin Prelude in a flat, there are a lot of repeated
> rhythms, which make reading easier in some ways, but you have to watch for
> dotted notes, constant interval changes, dynamic changes after an entire
> melody line, suttle articulations, and most importantly implied accidentals
> and key changes in the music. there are also sfortzandos in the last
> section of the piece in the left hand, but the music also shows that you
> play piano. So, with that information, and my listening to live recordings,
> I can understand what performers are doing, and seeing that in the music,
> makes me understand it on a deeper level. I used to have a teacher that
> told me to copy what I heard in recordings, and I think that is some what
> impossible to an extent, but she was trying to tell me that I could play
> while trying out their interpretations of the music. That was when I
> learned a lot more by ear, but in undergrad, I realized that every
> performer played or interpreted a piece in their own way, despite using
> dynamics, articulations, in the music..
>
> In the Debussy Prelude, I found the time signature changes. I've always
> wanted to play the Debussy Preludes, and found myself pulling it up on
> youtube, to distract my mind. So, I was verry familiar with it, and when I
> saw the music, it was like, seeing all the hidden details. As a pianist, I
> was told that I should play debussy. To summarize my experience so far with
> this kind of work, there are innacords practically in every measure, time
> signature changes from 3-4 to 4-4, and one hand was often reaching larger
> intervals. I had to not only memorize as I learned, but also had to figure
> out how to split harmonies or chords from one hand to the other, to make
> playing it feel more equal, and because my hand span is an octave. But,
> some recordings start the prelude quite forte, while I hear others start
> quite piano, the way it's shown in the music for me. Obviously I don't know
> how intentional transcribers are, but I hope they are accurate with the
> print score.
>
> That brings me to my thoughts about braille music and ear. Sometimes, I get
> exhausted with braille music, and have to ask for a recording from a
> professor, to help me speed up the process of learning. I know, as well as
> you do, that a sighted person doesn't have to memorize, let alone spend as
> much time reading, as we do. But, if I have a performance coming up, I will
> do whatever it takes to get the job done, to get me ready for that
> performance. It's what someone suggested to me, and I totally agree with
> that. I feel that as a pianist, I take advantage of what I have, since
> piano music is not just one line. I even have used electronic recordings to
> help me as well, and found others who do the same.
>
> I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any additional comments or
> questions.
>
> Thank you
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