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Ode to Joy Day 3: Patterns, Shapes, and Short Breaks

As I work through Rebecca Bogart's Learn New Repertoire Faster challenge, I'll be posting more extended updates here on my blog.

Days 1–3

Batch 1: Intro, A, A'

The intro isn't difficult, and it will likely be one of the two easiest sections in this piece. Still, the syncopation is a little tricky, so I took some extra time with it. I've already memorized it, as the chord progression is pretty straightforward and the melody is just a single line (no harmony notes). There is one big augmented chord at the end that required some focused work.

Sections A and A' are more demanding, though it helps that A' is almost identical to A until the final measures. I spent about 15 minutes on the intro and closer to 30 minutes on A/A'. The right hand follows a very steady, repetitive pattern, which makes things easier, even though it's switching chords every half measure, which adds some challenge. There are some unusual chords that took some extra time, and I wasn't quite able to memorize it in this sitting. (I probably have about 60% of it by memory, though.)

Meeting the Challenges

Here is how I met some of the challenges of this batch:
  • To get over the syncopation hurdle, I hummed and clapped the melody, listened to Jonny play it on YouTube, and did some deliberate counting while playing.
  • To get over the augmented-chord hurdle, I memorized the hand shapes of both that chord and what comes before and after. I pictured these clearly in my brain, then played, and my hands knew just what to do. Mental practice is like magic.
  • I also incorporated mini-breaks: play a phrase few times, pause for 10-15 seconds, then play it again. After each mini-break, the passage came back cleaner.
  • As part of the Day 3 Challenge assignment, I paid particular attention to patterns in the music. The A and A' sections are very pattern-based, both rhythmically and in where the harmony notes appear (as opposed to just the single-line melody notes). It helped to see the logic of the patterns and how they relate to the melody, which is not yet recognizable at this slow tempo.
  • My hard work with theory and analysis is paying off. Even though After You've Gone, bless its heart, hasn't produced a performance-worthy result, it built a level of understanding that is really helping me here.
  • Prior experience has been a great boon as well. After months of stride tenths and complicated right-hand stylizations in After You've Gone, OTJ's simpler left hand and regular right-hand patterns are like a breath of fresh air. Even the new half-measure harmony changes feel manageable.

Where I Am Now

Overall, I'm satisfied with my progress on this so far. I may get back to it later today, but I have other projects to work on, at the piano and elsewhere. Either way, it's on the schedule again tomorrow, so I'll be able to make more time for it then.

Here is are video updates for the intro and A/A'. Both videos make some of the same points I make above, but I also play the sections as "$100 tempo" (i.e., how slow I would play it if someone offered me $100 to play it perfectly). Alas, I have a couple of stumbles, so no payout. Also, the second video cuts off when my "stop playing piano already and get your butt to work" alarm went off.

Intro:


A/A':

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