Recognizing chords

I was with my violin teacher doing ear training and I realized I cannot recognize chords when there is not enough length.

0.3 second chord for example is much harder to recognize. What she test me on was play 3 chords consecutively in different register and tell all chords. I could only get half of them right.. pretty hard. but it is necessary to keep music that I hear for the first time in my head. Very important skill when you are trying to transcribe something into a sheet music/score.

This lets you train on that if you'd to try for free check www.majorthird.com

i did 147 bpm and 32, with sound effects (sound for correct and wrong) off pretty easy.
You can see list of short cuts by going to Help > ___Phobia Help and clicking "Keyboard Shortcuts" on the first page.

Overtone Series

I'm learning theory with a very good teacher right now (privately) and I feel always so inspired. Right now I'm learning chord substitution. Very elementary stuff. People try to find great chord against melody on the piano. But when you present a sheet music of a melody and tell them to harmonize. Often times they realize, It's not easy to harmonize without piano (or any other instrument) But this can be done.

We've started with doing every thing with I, IV, V. yes three chords to harmonize everything.
V-I progression usually is call perfect or authentic cadence. IV - I = Plagal Cad. ends on V = Half Cad. those are choices when you do this.

Next time we talked about substitutions. I had more choice to work with so it became easier but feel of this I, IV, V had to stay there. (again all in your head)

I = iii, iv
IV = ii
V = vii dim but you have to be careful. (so forget about it for now.. almost)

other than that.
you can suspend V with approaching I 64 or I with 5th on the bass. if the melody allows.

very simple but chords starts to flow really well this way. At least in the classical/pop manner.
i believe if you don't understand this very very very very well you can't play jazz or other things.

And of course later on you verify your answer on the keyboard.
When you do this I always DON'T voice lead. I play everything in root position unless it's specified. (like that 5th on the bass chord)

4 part - why you don't double third? not very many book explain that.. they all stop there?
but If you look at overtone series. Overtone series created by the root will clash with those created by the 3rd.
Although 3rd is the character, root defines the fundamental or the bass and that is the one you'd want to emphasize. not the clash created by 3rd. (like people only used parallel 5th motion in polyphonic music)

and.. if the 3rd was the Leading tone - if you double, you'll create parallel octaves. two notes that needs to resolve up a half step.

Etc. there are more but i'll stop for now..

http://hucbald.blogspot.com/2006/10/musical-implications-of-harmonic.html


Physics of music is another interesting topic. Overtone series and their connection with chords and music of course. There are so many other thing you can come up with or try to apply when you think about BEST sounding BEST AMAZING music. You can just feel them if you are genius or if you want to be genius of one particular thing or genre..

Metronome - Electronic? Wood? Plastic?

I've been buying alot of different kinds of metronome but wooden one seems to be the best.

It just the acoustic warmth that is there seems to be very musical.

Beep that those electric one produce seems too rigid or cold for me. Especially if you are playing classical or any acoustic instrument you would want to invest in plastice one or wooden one. (one with blade that is)

Unless of course you need the resolution of 1 bpm or less but for practice purpose that shouldn't really matter. 2-4 bpm per notch is enough.

Because unless you are playing with a computer there is virtually no way you will be playing at the same tempo throughout the song. Music is much more than that.
Push and pull that drummer creates.. or pianist does feel that too.

Music is not math. It's continuous flow. There should be some degree of order but absolute spacing between notes but you don't play music as written on the sheet music.

each 8th note, quarter note, 16th note, dotted, triplets has their meaning and appropriate timings. (i don't mean you should play 16th notes as dotted 8th notes of course)

Your interpretation or composers intention is much more important that keeping a solid mechanical tempo. Dynamics, expressions they all depend on how they are put together.

People who can purposefully decide which speed they should go or they want to make it go and put them all together are the one who play amazing music.

Try to keep those two different things in mind.
When you practice you can aim for rhythmical accuracy so you will be executing all action you need to do when you play. It's very hard to be able to do what you really want to do. Solid technique will give that freedom everyone wants.

Getting better at piano (or any other instrument)

I often think of what it means to be better at piano.

You practice to get better but what kind of practice really determine your progress. If you've played bunch of notes and if you are sounding like you can play in tempo then you've been wasting time.

Practice and getting better at musical instrument really requires you to be analytical about yourself. You are the one practicing so YOU have to know that you need to practice better.

Often times teacher neglect this simple fact or they are usually afraid that you are going to lose interest in learning or continuing lessons with them. Because it is a tough process. Judging yourself is some

It's psychological issue that always exist with lessons. I'm sure teachers are aware of it but this stuff needs to be taught differently for everyone.

Ability to pick those up and correct them yourself is really critical. Yet it's true that if you don't know music enough it's hard to tell.. and Teachers are there but it's also hard for them. They can't be overly analytical. Because that may impede your progress.

Very hard...

Yet you HAVE to do it. Somehow. I wish I could tell you.

If you are reading this and you're student, you should mention that you want to know HOW and WHAT to practice and in details. Learn the very basic of producing a tone.

Do one finger at a time. Slowly until you get used to it. try doing more things at once. That initial aha is important. but you have to remind yourself of other stuff too. So You will have to be going back and forth between what's relatively hard for you and what' seemingly way too easy (playing a single note)

But if you can play a single note like no other player can you've got your self a serious talent. Just know that. That's what you should look for when you play an instrument. Your individuality. and How you can get that individuality into all notes and all interpretation.


I think all these legends have that in common. They know how to play a note like no other. So don't underestimate the power of practicing to play a single note. Very important. Could be more important that learning a song.

If you are serious about music just ask yourself what's there that only you can do. And develop and hone your talent. Be critical and motivate others (especially your teacher) to critique more. Willing to take them into account. Try recording youself and analyze what can be done or try to ask more question so you will know why who ever made that particular advice thought that way.

Turn everything into a positive energy. Take everything in.

Piano Warm up materials

Thought I should compile a list of things you can get for warm ups.

for piano.


Classical/General stuff:
Beyer - for beginners.

Hannon - very famous but pitfall is you don't really listen to your playing or left hand or doesn't really build much. Easy to start so

Czerny - numbers of technique practices, etc like hannon is there from this guy as well. Beside his 100, 120, 160 or something etudes books.

little pischna - find this a little more effective than hannon actually as left hand and right hand is doing something a little different and does require coordination. Contains excersizes that lets you switch hands keeping the material the same.


Bach - Invention
Highly recommended. It may be too difficult for beginners but you can just start doing this really slow. Even left, right separately without putting them together. If you can play, most of the scales, little pischna pretty easily you should have no problem playing these. Doing hannon in all 12 keys is another way to get your hand to do interesting things but I would say Bach inventions are a lot more musical and you can really start to incorporate your musical ideas into playing. Your scale practices will feel so different after playing these.

what you need to do is get a teacher to tell you how you should read trills, 8th notes, 16th notes so you will actually be doing baroque harpsichord style playing rather than Youtube.com fake versions - you don't want to show everyone that you don't know music so pay for one or two lesson and let them cover how to play them. If you want to go back to that person or not is up to you.

Musical Instrument Warm ups and Practicing piano, guitar, violin, scales, etc.

I'm curious as to what people do when you do warm up.

Piano playing is not a simple task. It's composed of collection of complex muscular activities. Almost in a martial arts teaches. Difference is the purpose. Martial Arts whatever you want to say about it, it's the art of killing. I'm from Japan so I know about spirits, samurai, philosophy but it is the killing you do with it. Music on the other hand is to express ideas. Enrich people's life. Maybe it's yourself and your greatness you want to express.. but generally Composition has emotional or intellectual, philosophical meaning to be expressed.

Going back to practice so how can you find that in scale, hannon, stuff like that? That's the kind of the thing you want to be thinking when you play these things.

You can learn all the notes in scales. but You have to realize you don't need piano or any instrument to learn them and note names. They have to sound certain way. or many different ways to be exact. Where you accent, how soft you want to play. How long to keep notes or spaces. Those are the point you need to focus on when you practice.

Guitarists!! Playing fast seems cool at first but if you are only playing bunch of notes without any dynamics you are just showing off. All fast playing and all the things people just start dreaming needs purpose. (Hopefully other than amazing others with how fast YOU can play.. and not for your own ego boost)

For your good, think of how to play scales
Not just fingering, not just notes. learning them and moving in the way that book tells you to do is the part. ANYONE can do. Think of WHY you need to play them on that instrument. and why you want to play them with the instrument you picked or you play. Musical instruments all have different sounds and you want to get to know them in depth. Scale practices are very important because of that. You can keep all notes the same and basic theory of it is universal but you can just keep playing them and you'll never run out of things you can do with them. This scale practice is that deep.

The expression or your unique idea is YOUR part and you should practice that. You should concentrate on making them come forward. and You should really be listening and asking yourself if this is really what you want.


There are other issues in this regards.. (like how you should move or use your body to get those qualities you are looking for when you play scales, or anything..)
but that's what you should be practicing. I don't want to hear 32nd note scales at tempo 300. Meaningless. You just wow and you'll be forgotten the next moment.


books:
the craft of piano playing - alan fraser
art of violin playing - carl flesch
effortless mastery - kenny werner

Music Theory 101

For many years I've been trying to learn Music Theory and no one could ever explain stuff I needed to know to compose the good stuff. How to listen to exact harmony you need and create them...

That's a big topic. You can't really tell what's good using books. You have to hear them. Yet way too many people try to learn it through books. Or EXPENSIVE teachers or schools.

And still get .. VERY formal instruction on how not to do things.. rather done how to DO things. That's gotta be a very depressing thing to find out. You've paid all that money so you can actually start learning how to make and play good music. Somethings' wrong with that. You need to be learning that from beginning.

What I can tell you today is that there is no rule. That's something people have put together after trial and error.

or worse some texts are based on those idea by people who wanted to teach and make money or present to the world they are intelligent and great.. These people made everything too difficult for beginners to grasp.

Correct appproach I believe is to if you can enjoy music, then you can enjoy theory as well. Just so you will be enjoying music a little more than you could before the first class on music theory.


- feel free to dive in to this as i'm curious how music beginners think and perceive theory.

Bach Chorale downloads..

I just bought a book of bach chorale collection and today I found this site that had all those available for free...

http://www.jsbchorales.net/sets.shtml

I guess I will just use the copy I bought for playing purpose and these for analyzing purpose. So I can justify my action.

Well I bought it.. someone is gonna be happy right? not bach but whoever are keeping this alive and making available to public.