It's Day 8 of the Learn Repertoire Faster Challenge in the Piano with Rebecca B community, and I'm still plugging away at Jonny May's stride arrangement of Ode to Joy.
Day 8
Today's assignment focuses on two batches:
- Batch 1 (revisit; continue to solidify)
- Batch 3 (analyze, figure out the fingering, start learning)
Although I had limited time this morning, I was able to spend about 15 minutes on Batch 1 and about a half hour on Batch 3.
Batch 1: Transition Heck
I played through the three passages slowly. They’re mostly solid, except for the transitions, of which there are four:
- Intro → A
- A → A'
- A' → B
- A'' → solo A
I walk through these in the video, so just a few notes here:
- It really sucks when you realize you read the note values wrong the first time and have to relearn a measure. Alas, better late than never.
- Retroactive interference is real. Even though I worked on all four transitions today, I need to practice them separately (not all in the same session).
- I could have done a better job analyzing when I laid out my batches. I treated A'' as a repeat of A and A', but the ending transition is different. I knew that on some level, but didn't think it through, so I'm effectively learning that part now.
Here's the video if you'd like to hear the differences:
Batch 3: Weird Chords, Weird Fingerings, Weird Rhythms
I don’t have a video yet, but I may make one later tonight since I want to spend more time on Passage 3.
Passage 1 (third four measures of the solo A section)
The right hand starts with an Am7 chord, rolls down the arpeggio, then moves into an A#dim. Fingers 2 and 3 slide down a half step (to a second-inversion G6, I think), and the whole pattern repeats—starting on the 4th beat instead of first. All in one measure.
The rhythm threw me off, so I was back to humming, clapping, and counting aloud.
The most sensible fingering for the diminished chord is 2-3-4-5, with 2 and 3 sliding down into the G6. It feels awkward to play that shape with just the top part of my hand, so I’m getting used to it.
Meanwhile, the left hand is doing oom-pah in G7 while the right hand sits in primarily an Am7 chord. It's a suspension leading to the G6, I guess, but it still makes my brain hurt. I did a lot of slow work with this measure today, hands together.
After that, there are a couple of easier downward arpeggios—first in Am7, then in Cm6. What makes this trickier is the left hand shifts to a C major oom-pah under the Am7. The keys are close, but it still throws me off.
Passage 2 (fourth four measures of the solo A section)
This passage is easy! Yay! It's actually a quotation from Fats Waller's Handful of Keys. (Click the link and watch. You won't be disappointed!) The right hand flows, and the left hand chords make sense. Still, I spent time on it because it's too tempting to think, "This is genuinely easy, so I don't need to work on it."
Passage 3 (solo B section)
I reviewed the fingering and analysis this morning and played through it very slowly, but I didn’t have time for focused work. That will have to wait until tonight.
Where I Am Now
Progress feels glacial, but it’s only Day 8 and I’m already almost halfway through the piece, so I should take that for the win that it is. But I’m in the musical trenches right now. The Fats Waller quote is easy, but Passage 1 (red) and Passage 3 (yellow) will take time. And Batch 4 (starting Thursday) is mostly red, so it’s going to be a grind this week.
I’m enjoying the process immensely—maybe too much. I have to use a timer so I don’t get lost in it and look up ninety minutes later.
Tonight I’ll dive into Passage 3 (B solo section) and will post an update at some point!
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