Month of Music, Day #26
Day 26. A song that you can play on an instrument - Étude in C# Minor, Op. 2, No. 1 (Alexander Scriabin)
Aside from a break of about a year, I took about a decade's worth of piano lessons throughout my childhood/teen years. While I loved the piano right away and enjoyed classical music, it was stuff from the Romantic period that really grabbed my interest. Haydn bored the shit out of me (I actually hated him after awhile, lmao); Bartók's stuff was fun to play but I didn't really miss it when I wasn't playing it; and Bach's affinity for math/patterns (e.g. the Fibonacci sequence, chess moves) impressed me on an academic level but most of the time left me cold emotionally. It was the Romantic stuff, with the rubato, the hemiolas (UNNNNNF I fucking love a good hemiola *_*), the chromatic scales, the weaving of "voices" from left hand to right, and the focus on expressive playing that really grabbed me. (Impressionist music also touched me in a similar way: I loved the watery, "blurred" sounds, the sensory, textural approach to melody/harmony, the seventh and ninth chords, the first hints of what was later to become jazz, etc.)
Here is Scriabin's unf-tastic Étude in C# Minor (played gorgeously by Horowitz), which I "mastered" back when I was fifteen or sixteen: My piano teacher at the time was impressed because I'd basically gotten it down in two weeks and she was expecting it to take me at least a month or more because her other top student, an older boy (he and I were her only ~advanced~ students), couldn't get his head around the chord changes and the expression/rubato at all. I'm proud of the fact that I found learning the piece to be super-easy at the time, but I can say without a shadow of the doubt that I play the piece now with a far better feel for the voice(s) and the phrasing of the music than I did at that young of an age.
P.S. I was originally tempted to post Chopin's Polonaise in A Major because it was my "go-to" performance piece before I learned this étude. I decided not to, because while it's technically much more impressive than the étude and took me much longer to learn, the étude means far more to me emotionally.
- - - - -
Day 01. Your favorite song - "Hejira" (Joni Mitchell)
Day 02. Your least favorite song - "Hollaback Girl" (Gwen Stefani)
Day 03. A song that makes you happy - "Il y A" (Faudel)
Day 04. A song that makes you sad - "your next bold move" (Ani DiFranco)
Day 05. A song that reminds you of someone - "blood in the boardroom" (Ani DiFranco)
Day 06. A song that reminds you of somewhere - "My Secret Place" (Joni Mitchell)
Day 07. A song that reminds you of a certain event - "アジアのこの街で" (上々颱風)
- ["In This Asian Town" (Shang Shang Typhoon)]
Day 08. A song that you know all the words to - "serpentine" (Ani DiFranco)
Day 09. A song that you can dance to - "Didi" (Khaled)
Day 10. A song that makes you fall asleep - "平和の琉歌" (ネーネーズ)
- ["Ryūkyūan Peace Song" (The Nenes)]
Day 11. A song from your favorite band - "Cherry-Coloured Funk" (Cocteau Twins)
Day 12. A song from a band you hate - "What Hurts the Most" (Rascal Flatts)
Day 13. A song that is a guilty pleasure - "La Neige au Sahara" (Anggun)
Day 14. A song that no one would expect you to love - "Leviticus: Faggot" (Me'Shell NdegéOcello)
Day 15. A song that describes you - "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter" (Joni Mitchell)
Day 16. A song that you used to love but now hate - "Khalouni" (Cheb Mami)
Day 17. A song that you hear often on the radio - "Need to Know" (Incognito)
Day 18. A song that you wish you heard on the radio - "International Blues Jam" (Brozman/Hirayasu/Diawara)
Day 19. A song from your favorite album - "Christmas in My Soul" (Laura Nyro)
Day 20. A song that you listen to when you’re angry - "Women's Care in E Flat Major" (Gavin Castleton)
Day 21. A song that you listen to when you’re happy - "Ave Maria" (Chanticleer)
Day 22. A song that you listen to when you’re sad - "2011"/"2007" (Gavin Castleton)
Day 23. A song that you want to play at your wedding - "Hibernatal" (Gavin Castleton)
Day 24. A song that you want to play at your funeral - "Palmyra" (Jolie Holland)
Day 25. A song that makes you laugh - "Eat Me Out" (Margaret Cho)
Day 26. A song that you can play on an instrument - Étude in C# Minor, Op. 2, No. 1 (Alexander Scriabin)
Day 27. A song that you wish you could play -
Day 28. A song that makes you feel guilty -
Day 29. A song from your childhood -
Day 30. Your favorite song at this time last year -
Aside from a break of about a year, I took about a decade's worth of piano lessons throughout my childhood/teen years. While I loved the piano right away and enjoyed classical music, it was stuff from the Romantic period that really grabbed my interest. Haydn bored the shit out of me (I actually hated him after awhile, lmao); Bartók's stuff was fun to play but I didn't really miss it when I wasn't playing it; and Bach's affinity for math/patterns (e.g. the Fibonacci sequence, chess moves) impressed me on an academic level but most of the time left me cold emotionally. It was the Romantic stuff, with the rubato, the hemiolas (UNNNNNF I fucking love a good hemiola *_*), the chromatic scales, the weaving of "voices" from left hand to right, and the focus on expressive playing that really grabbed me. (Impressionist music also touched me in a similar way: I loved the watery, "blurred" sounds, the sensory, textural approach to melody/harmony, the seventh and ninth chords, the first hints of what was later to become jazz, etc.)
Here is Scriabin's unf-tastic Étude in C# Minor (played gorgeously by Horowitz), which I "mastered" back when I was fifteen or sixteen: My piano teacher at the time was impressed because I'd basically gotten it down in two weeks and she was expecting it to take me at least a month or more because her other top student, an older boy (he and I were her only ~advanced~ students), couldn't get his head around the chord changes and the expression/rubato at all. I'm proud of the fact that I found learning the piece to be super-easy at the time, but I can say without a shadow of the doubt that I play the piece now with a far better feel for the voice(s) and the phrasing of the music than I did at that young of an age.
Click to viewP.S. I was originally tempted to post Chopin's Polonaise in A Major because it was my "go-to" performance piece before I learned this étude. I decided not to, because while it's technically much more impressive than the étude and took me much longer to learn, the étude means far more to me emotionally.
- - - - -
Day 01. Your favorite song - "Hejira" (Joni Mitchell)
Day 02. Your least favorite song - "Hollaback Girl" (Gwen Stefani)
Day 03. A song that makes you happy - "Il y A" (Faudel)
Day 04. A song that makes you sad - "your next bold move" (Ani DiFranco)
Day 05. A song that reminds you of someone - "blood in the boardroom" (Ani DiFranco)
Day 06. A song that reminds you of somewhere - "My Secret Place" (Joni Mitchell)
Day 07. A song that reminds you of a certain event - "アジアのこの街で" (上々颱風)
- ["In This Asian Town" (Shang Shang Typhoon)]
Day 08. A song that you know all the words to - "serpentine" (Ani DiFranco)
Day 09. A song that you can dance to - "Didi" (Khaled)
Day 10. A song that makes you fall asleep - "平和の琉歌" (ネーネーズ)
- ["Ryūkyūan Peace Song" (The Nenes)]
Day 11. A song from your favorite band - "Cherry-Coloured Funk" (Cocteau Twins)
Day 12. A song from a band you hate - "What Hurts the Most" (Rascal Flatts)
Day 13. A song that is a guilty pleasure - "La Neige au Sahara" (Anggun)
Day 14. A song that no one would expect you to love - "Leviticus: Faggot" (Me'Shell NdegéOcello)
Day 15. A song that describes you - "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter" (Joni Mitchell)
Day 16. A song that you used to love but now hate - "Khalouni" (Cheb Mami)
Day 17. A song that you hear often on the radio - "Need to Know" (Incognito)
Day 18. A song that you wish you heard on the radio - "International Blues Jam" (Brozman/Hirayasu/Diawara)
Day 19. A song from your favorite album - "Christmas in My Soul" (Laura Nyro)
Day 20. A song that you listen to when you’re angry - "Women's Care in E Flat Major" (Gavin Castleton)
Day 21. A song that you listen to when you’re happy - "Ave Maria" (Chanticleer)
Day 22. A song that you listen to when you’re sad - "2011"/"2007" (Gavin Castleton)
Day 23. A song that you want to play at your wedding - "Hibernatal" (Gavin Castleton)
Day 24. A song that you want to play at your funeral - "Palmyra" (Jolie Holland)
Day 25. A song that makes you laugh - "Eat Me Out" (Margaret Cho)
Day 26. A song that you can play on an instrument - Étude in C# Minor, Op. 2, No. 1 (Alexander Scriabin)
Day 27. A song that you wish you could play -
Day 28. A song that makes you feel guilty -
Day 29. A song from your childhood -
Day 30. Your favorite song at this time last year -