Reflection/Conclusion

I am very happy about the decision to take piano this semester, It had been a while since I practiced piano and I'm very glad to have had the opportunity to continue a useful skill.  I learned about the all-emcopassing skill of reading sheet music (something that I had put off) which will will (and has) serve me later in life both in piano and any other music I aspire towards.
Something else that I did not consider initially, but actually turned into a huge help was the public performance, and interestingly enough I was far less nervous during the final performance in front of everyone than I was during the midterm in front of maybe a dozen people. If I ever have to perform either musically or in any other sense, I think I will be very thankful having taken this class.
Taking this class made me remember how much I love music, and I'm very happy to be playing piano again, and at the prospect of being able to read sheet music.  I learned coordination, dedication, memorization, interpretation, and new methods and critiques such as using the pedal, which is something I had never done before. I'm definitely planning on continuing piano, both privately and at Marist.

Reflection

I definitely enjoyed taking piano this semester. I was enrolled in the Beginner Piano I class and I had never played piano before in my life. Piano was difficult for me the first time playing.  It took a while to memorize all the notes and be able to read and play at the same time. This class taught me the basics on how to play piano. What makes for great improvement is practicing a lot. After playing for a while the notes get easier to memorize and you are able to play faster. A major advantage of this class was the small class sizes. I think grouping individuals by skill helped with the learning process. A negative of the class was the short class periods. Practicing at home helps but having others there to  point out what you need to work on helps. I enjoyed both the midterm and final recital. I never played in front of an audience before and it was great to experience that. I definitely want to learn a lot more when it comes to playing. There are a lot of different symbols and terms that I don't know of when reading music. I would also like to learn how to incorporate the foot pedal when playing. I look forward to playing more and taking the next level of this class. Overall, I enjoyed taking this class and believe I learned a lot.

Final Reflection

Learning to play piano for the first time, overall was a really amazing experience. I am planning to take beg. piano II next semester and I'm really looking forward to that. One of the fundamental lessons that this class taught me is that practice really makes perfect, this was always visible, when we had the practice mid-term or final, because I would make sure I practice my piece several times before playing it in front of the class. The other two useful things that playing the piano taught me was to strengthen my memorization skills, just being able to remember by memory what sound and note to play. And lastly it is being very patient, especially when I feel like I am always messing up towards the end, when I walked away from the piece for a couple days, and would come back to it, it was always easier to play it. So in conclusion, I learned a great amount about a new instrument, and about myself, looking forward to learning more next semester.

Conclusion

This class has really helped me gain the ability to play piano. I am very happy with my progress this year and I intend on playing in the future. I would very much like to learn some pieces such a Claire de Lune and moonlight sonata, and I will continue to look for new pieces to learn. This class definitely taught me how to play piano and made it fun by allowing me to choose my own pieces. Overall, this class was very effective and I look forward to improving my piano skills in the future.

Here is the second video as referred to in my previous post. this is from a few minutes before the recital.

Here is one of the videos from my first practice, as referred to in my previous post.

My Reflections on BG Piano I & II

Hello all,

I wanted to thank Professor L. Natalie for all of her help in these two course. I have had a great time and learned more piano than I could have ever imagined. It was very nice having the professor keep me on track and remind me to be playing from the sheet music and not from how I think the song should sound. It was difficult for me to keep up with the required song amount, which is pretty silly. The professor only requires two songs for the semester, one for the midterm and one for the final. She did keep me on track through and allowed me to submit my song title late (Thanks!)... For my final post I would like to share two videos of me playing the piece. I played this piece much better in the videos than at the recital. Enjoy!! And thanks all!

The End

Overall this piano class was helpful in connecting more with music more so than playing the trumpet has done.  I learned the where each note was on the piano as well as how to read sheet music in Bass cleft.  I want to learn the Circle of Fifths and how to incorporate it.  Just found out about it yesterday and I began to see the patterns in the music and it made sense why certain intervals worked and why songs can be played in different partials.  My continuation on the piano will first start at home cause now since my sister and I both play, it has convinced my parents to go get us a piano, yah!

Class Structure
Pros: - Allowed the students to go at their own pace
         -Informative for student specific questions
         -Class and teacher were helpful in responding to blog posts

Cons: -None

It's been a blast!

Reflection

I really enjoyed my time in Beginner Piano 2 this semester. After taking lessons when I was younger, I took beginner piano 1 in the fall semester and think I picked up where I left off pretty quickly. I am taking advanced piano in the fall and I definitely have a lot of work to do so I can be prepared for the challenge. I'm planning on practicing a lot over the summer to try and improve my skills, because I know that I am behind where most of the other advanced piano students are. Thanks Professor DeNitto for all your support and help this semester!

Closing Statement

While I really enjoyed Beginning Piano 1, I certainly regret taking it this semester due to fact that most of my courses were quite rigorous and demanded significant amounts of time. Also, there were a few outside issues that I had to deal with from time to time. As a result, I was unable to spend as much time as I would like practicing the piano and learning the musical notations. However, this is not the end of my journey. If anything, it is only the beginning. I plan to take Beginning Piano 2 next semester - this time with a stronger mindset, unwavering commitment, and pure determination. Shout out to Laura Denitto for being an awesome instructor. Though I feel like I have a lot to prove, I genuinely appreciate the fact that you were very understanding and tried to connect with each and every one of your students. Good luck to everyone with final exams and I hope you all have a great summer. :)

Closing Statements

https://youtu.be/8pajTsQmULQ

Above is a link to me playing on April 26th as oppose to me playing at the performance. A lot of improvement was made, making me proud of my performance even if some notes were missed. Piano was both fun and frustrating this semester, giving me new challenges and improving my skills. I hope to continue to impress my grandparents with simple piano tunes and maybe even learn some more Disney songs. I learned that Piano has always been about practice, practice, practice, leading me to the conclusion I will only improve through consistent practice. I hope everyone else enjoys their Summer and continues to play and challenge themselves.

I really enjoyed the piano course this year! I've always wanted to learn how to play, and I'm glad this course gave me the opportunity to do so. This course taught me how to read notes and gave me a good starting point to advance in piano. I want to become more advanced with the piano, I have a keyboard at home and plan on continuing to learn. I definitely want to do piano 2 next year also. I think the class was structured well, but it did take a while for the blog to start up and to be a consistent thing for the class. I do think that the blog is a good thing for us to do to get feedback and should be used in the future. I enjoyed working with all of you this semester, and hope to see some of you in piano 2!

Last Post

You know, I just noticed how much I didn't keep up with these posts this semester. Unfortunately, this class was on my back burner. This class is what you make of it. Many of us walk in with no background knowledge, just a passion for music. Some of us progress faster than others and walk out of here with so much experience and passion for the piano. I wish that I could have had that same experience. Trust me, I love this, I love what I have learned and the talented people I have met. This whole year of playing has taken me through a wonderful journey. I just personally wished I could have put my whole heart and soul into this class. Unfortunately, I am dragged in many directions here, with many responsibilities, and I did not progress at the rate I imagined. I am proud of where I have gotten though. I am proud to look down at keys and tell you what they are, to read music, plunk notes. I can't play Beethoven's 5th but I am one step closer than I was before. Still have stage fright, still don't have the rhythm down, and still have claw hands on the piano, but I definitely want to keep improving. One of the things I liked about Laura's class was the freedom to move at your own pace, to chose music you liked and learn that way. But unfortunately I am the type of person that learns best under a structured and rigorous environment. Maybe as I progress, I will be faced with that environment. I hope you all enjoyed yourselves. Keep playing, keep improving, and keep trying new things.

Best,
Hayley Critchfield '18

I've really enjoyed the experience of taking beginner piano 1! This was my first time attempting anything musical related and I am happy I did so. Learning to read music was definitely a challenge but I saw myself understanding it more and more each week which was cool. The performance was somewhat frustrating because I pretty much had the song down when I was practicing the few days leading up to it. I think it was just my nerves, which I can work on. Overall, I loved this whole experience and will definitely practice this summer and take another class next year.

I just want to share a quote I learnt from Arte, the music director of the Marist orchestra, he said; "YOU LEARN BY DOING IT, SO KEEP DOING IT." We can only be better at what we do, if we continue practicing. Amazing class overall.

Overall, I had a great experience with beginner piano 2. I took lessons when i was younger so it was nice to be able to play the piano again. I hope to continue playing even when i am not in a course because this course really sparked my interest in the piano again! Overall i enjoyed the class structure. It was nice to come in every week and not only get feedback on the piece i was working on, but to hear what everyone else was working on. I hope to take another piano in the future!

Good morning pianists!

Congratulations to you all on your performances last night! For many of you, this was your first time performing in front of a (large) audience, and you should be very proud of this accomplishment. We had 126 performers and audience members at last night's recital!

I hope you will all continue to play the piano, and take additional classes and lessons as your schedules allow. Please let me know if you have any questions about the opportunities available to you at Marist. Another person who is an amazing resource is Michael Napolitano- his office is in the music building, 4th floor. He knows the course catalog inside and out, and will be able to guide you to courses that you will enjoy.

Ok, here's your last assignment: please post one last time on the blog, and respond to at least three of your classmates' posts. This last post should sum up your experience, what you learned, what you would like to continue to learn, how you will continue on the piano, any pros or cons you see with the class structure, etc. It can be a written dialogue, a "vlog", or any combination of writing and video. Your post is due by Friday, 5/6 at midnight, to allow you to respond to each other's posts by Monday, 5/9 at midnight. I'll post grades ASAP.

Grades: please recall that your grade is not comprised of me counting how many mistakes you  made at the final and taking that off your final average. Your grade is comprised of your attendance at lessons, your work and progress from day one to the final, and your participation in the blog. The recital is a culminating event that showcases all your work throughout the semester.

Good luck with the rest of your finals!

Laura Natalie

Amazing Class. Thank you Aunty Laura for pressuring me to read the music sheet!! I can boldly say I got something out of this class!!

I am so nervous for this final. I suck playing in front of an audience.

Letting go of 123, and using abc instead

I can honestly say one the most challenging things in this course, was resisting the urge of just writing the numbers on top of the music signs in the book. Having no prior knowledge of music before the course, I did not know how to read music, and found it hard to really remember all the notes. So at the beginning of the textbook, it had the numbers that I could just count off and play, but as i progressed further into the book, I felt like taking my pen and just marking those numbers for safety, in case I forgot. But I think not writing them, help me in biggest way so far.

Final Piece

For my final piece, I chose Brother John, I think during the final practice, I did pretty well, but I noticed I switched up the last two notes. It is very distracting when that happens, and I find it hard to just pick up and go about the rest of he song, but I think what is essential is to always remember the rhythm so you don't lose focus.

progress after my mid-term

For my midterm I performed the Mexican hat dance. Which i thought was at the perfect level for me, in the sense that it was just challenging enough, but not too challenging to the point where I would be anxious when it was time to play it. I also noticed that I always need a couple of seconds before I really start to play, as I get really nervous. So as I am practicing more, I hope to be less anxious, and be more confident.

Final Thoughts

I think I'm pretty much prepared for the recital.  Never actually performed in a formal setting without a conductor, should be interesting to experience the differences!

I'm looking forward to hearing you all play tomorrow at the recital! If you'd like any last minute feedback, you can post here or email/text it to me individually.

See you at 6pm tomorrow in Fusco!

Laura

Final Piece

For my final piece I am playing Across the Universe by the Beatles. I tried to post a video but it wouldn't work on my phone.. I was struggling with the rhythms at first but it is getting much better now!

I am playing Yankee Doodle for my final piece. I am struggling putting it together but it's getting there!

When The Saints Practice 1

P

This is going to be my final piece. I am still a little slow with the right hand because I'm still trying to read and know the notes. I hope to start using my left hand later this week!

Final Piece with Sustain Pedal

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nue7-3ZzRjo&feature=youtu.be

I started incorporating sustain pedal into my piece and it definitely sounds more fluid.  I am also trying to not "bend" my fingers backwards.  The tradeoff is that I'm not 100% comfortable yet with these adjustments.  I noticed some dragging in tempo and near missed notes, but I have faith I can clean that up in one weeks time.  Enjoy!

Please remember to continue posting on the blog. Some of you have been great about posting and others... not so much. You're required to post at least once a week (or multiple times if you have forgotten other weeks) and to respond to other's posts. I'm sometimes the only one responding to your posts- let's support your peers!

Most of you have selected your final piece; if you have not already done so, please be sure to have your piece selected by Thursday so we can go over together. You must be using sheet music; learning music by ear is an amazing skill, but for the purposes of this course you must be learning from the sheet music. It cannot be the same piece you played for the midterm. Touch base with me if you have any questions about repertoire for the final between now and Thursday.

Remaining schedule:

4/19- assessment day- no lessons, all lessons on 4/21 (let me know if you'd prefer a different time slot

7:45 (right after singers)- Divine, Hayley

8:00- Rachel W, Bill, Joe, Matt

8:15- Michael, Rachel G, Ty, Daniel L, Kerry

8:30- Dan K, Luca, Nenagh, Frank, Emilie

4/26- practice final, 8:00pm in Fusco (possibly piano lab, but hopefully Fusco)

5/3- Final- beginning piano recital in Fusco at 6:00pm. ALL STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO ATTEND THE FINAL TO PASS THIS CLASS. PLEASE NOTE THAT IT STARTS AT 6PM!!!

Progression with Final Piece

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS_QV7iCWVg

It's all starting to come together.   After I felt comfortable with the original, I made some modifications to the piece like turning the melody from separated notes and into a cord sometimes with triplets.  I converted the harmony into cords as well. Part of the reason for these chords was that in the original it was tough to stretch my hand across the keyboard so a quarter note into a chord is just simple as well as beautiful.  I also added in some new transitions and mixed with some octaves.

There are other things but overall I am proud with the flavor I have given this piece and hopefully, you all enjoy it.

Hey guys!
This week i have just been playing around with a few songs. I have started to learn Amazing Grace which i am thinking about playing for the final. However i have not made a final decision.
See you guys thursday

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mj3gVW7_SJo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQPlnDnXIfI

https://youtu.be/BSmQPwrtqsM

Hey everyone! This is my progress on "Let it Go"  from Disney's Frozen. Still working on pace and have pieces of the song finished. Hopefully i'll pull it all together this week.

Final Exam Piece

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6DRoqU1Yvo
Finally decided on a final piece.  It's still very raw but at least I can play the notes.

First Week Back!

Hey guys,

Sorry I am always late on these, I always forget. So I think my Midterm went really well, and so I am still working on bringing that left hand up to par. I played "When The Saints Go Marching In" with Laura last week and I think that's a good piece to keep tempo as well as get that left hand comfortable. Hopefully I can get into the practice room this week, and find my final piece soon because its going to need a whole bunch of snipping and cutting. Happy Music Making ;)
-Hayley

Hey guys! This is the right hand to a Sonatina I have been working on. I have started the left hand, but do not feel confident with it yet so chose to upload a video of the right hand only.

Three Phases of Piano thus far

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EH_n9R30p8&feature=youtu.be

http://youtu.be/kMiumFUJmzw

I'm terrible at playing in front of crowds. But here's me playing by myself(: 

This week I have been practicing "Jingle Bells" for the midterm. It sounds a lot better than last week. I have also been practicing on the pianos in the music room instead of on the mini keyboard.

This week...

I've been brushing up "Beauty and the Beat" this week while I also have gotten through the first page of "Let it Go" from Frozen. Let it Go is very fast paced but has a clear pattern I've started following. The measures are in 2/2 which is new to me so I've had to adjust.

http://youtu.be/ytic2RTKZ_0

I've been working on Jingle Bells for the midterm, still a little shaky but it's getting there. 

New pieces-Midterm

Same as always, the main problem I've been having in readying my songs revolves around getting my hands to coordinate.  I've been working on three separate songs, Divenire, Nuvole Bianche, and "Sad," and I feel progress being made.

Additionally, relying solely on sheet music continues to be a large problem, as I usually rely on ear to decipher songs.  Working backwards has proven slightly more beneficial, though in the long run working from the beginning would make far more sense.

The time spent in the piano lab has proven to be a god send, the extra time really helps me to coordinate my hands, where as deciphering sheet music can potentially be done elsewhere, though it is obviously a big help.

"Jingle Bells" Practice

Here is a link of what I've been working on!  https://youtu.be/ZLWIJ1PRgbg  

I am still trying to work on doing the bass and treble clefs at the same time. I am able to do it at the beginning of the piece but not throughout the rest of it which is something I'm going to keep practicing for the midterm.

Another work by Divine!!

Good morning pianists! :)

As a reminder, the practice midterm is next Tuesday, March 8 at 8pm in Fusco Hall. The purpose of the practice performance is to give yourself an idea of what will happen if you get nervous on stage. Use the rest of the week to clean up your piece so you feel comfortable and collected for the actual midterm. You can choose any piece you'd like, either in the book or from outside sheet music. The only requirement is that it can't be the same piece you perform for your final.

The midterm will be on Tuesday, March 15 at 8pm in Fusco hall. This is an informal performance; there is no need to dress up unless you want to!

If you anticipate a conflict with either of these dates, please let me know ASAP. Due to the spring break schedule, the 15th will be the only day available to take the midterm.

Let me know if you have any questions, and please continue to post on the blog!
Laura

Rachel Glaser

I am still trying to figure out the whole video thing! But I have been practicing hand placements and note reading by playing short songs in the front of the book. I plan on choosing a midterm piece tonight and focusing on that until the midterm!

Possible midterm piece

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGbmnuSCbvY&feature=youtu.be  Been trying out "Kraids Lair" for midterm.  May have to delay for final exam due to difficulty with 16th notes with one hand whilst playing 8th notes with the other.  Anyways here is part of it.

Here is the song i have been working on this week for the midterm coming up. It is River Flows In You. This is the first page of two. Some parts are slow but i feel like i have this half pretty well.

Nenagh Goerg

Hi everyone- I have attached a clip of me working on Jingle Bells. I'm still not sure which piece I would like to perform because I have just been following along with the book, but once I figure that out this week I will let you know! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ik5a_Zox2Ic

2/25/16

Hey all,

I have had such a busy week/weekend that I was not able to post on time, but here I am! So I have my midterm piece chosen and I am making some progress on my timing. Now its time to focus on some more technical things, like finger bending on the keys, because I am guilty of not putting my hand on a piano correctly. I also think I have been doing a solid job of reading the notes, but I could use some more work, and that all ties into my timing. Hopefully I can get some more practice in because that midterm is sneaking up on us!!!

While i'm finding it difficult to read the music sheet, i still try to play some songs by hearing lol!!!

Video (2/22)

Hi everyone! The piece I am working on is called "La candeur" by Burgmüller. Here is a clip of the beginning of the song.

Hey guys!
Here's my video for the week. Clearly i have the first part down pretty well but i am still working on the second part. Its a little slow but i have all the notes correct and the rhythm, so now i just need to work on getting it to full pace.

Hey guys! I finally got swipe access to the piano labs (yay!) so I practiced more than last week. I've been trying to get jingle bells down for the past few days, which was difficult at first. I struggled with getting my hands to both be playing at the same time, but I've definitely seen improvements this week. There's a mistake or two, but here's the link to my video for this week!

2/18 and Video

Hey guys,

So today I worked on Star Wars and I think that is going to be my midterm piece, but I also worked on Somewhere Over the Rainbow today, and this video is of the very first time I played it right out of the book no practice, so notes are wrong, timing is off, its a mess, not to mention my voice.... anyway I am sharing this as a way to show my progress with this song through the semester. Good luck to you all, see you/meet you at the midterm!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OnzgKmVDUkQ

Beauty and the Beast

https://drive.google.com/file/d/11_eHalve5XWKGwXPGy82tSap5m-QNOAaKw/view

Thank you for all your posts!

Please post at least one video this week. Let me know if you have any issues with this.

Thank you for all your hard work!

Laura

Tempo and New Piece

This week I have been working on maintaining a better tempo with "Beauty and the Beast." I am still looking for another piece to begin preparing for the recital but I keep finding pieces too difficult with convoluted chords and fast beats that I can't keep up with. I tried "What's This?" from The Nighmare Before Christmas and "Be Our Guest" from Beauty and the Beast, but their too difficulty. Anyone know any good places to find more beginner friendly music? Thanks!

This week I've been practice Aura Lee on page 17 of the book. I've been practicing win my left hand which I'm not too good at yet.

2/16/16

I started working on Divenire by Ludovico Einaudi and the intro is going pretty well but I'm having some trouble trying to get my hands to coordinate during the more complex parts. I've gone to the piano labs a few times and I've noticed that the keyboards are much easier to play this particular song on due to the length I've had to stretch my fingers for the chorus. Lastly I've finally figure out the most effective way to use the foot petals when playing, which is something I've had some trouble deciphering.

Me playing page 77 in book 1

https://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=syqOua0JTjc

Hi everyone!
this week i have been playing the beginnings to a few songs trying to decide one i like for the midterm. I went on the website music notes which Bill recommended to me last class. I like the arrangements on there for a lot of modern songs, which sometimes can be hard to find. It's also pretty cheap, so its a good website everyone should check out!

2/11/16

So today I was mainly focusing on my music for the show this past weekend, so plunking some notes got me up to speed on my reading, but I also did a warm up of 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow' and recorded it on the first try. I will post later, but its pretty bad! haha not horrible for my first run of it and having to read it on the spot. Still working on my timing for Star Wars and looking for that perfect midterm piece.

Hi everyone!

I'm enjoying reading about your experiences so far.

This week, try to post a short video of your playing. Remember, this does not have to be a full piece, just something that represents where you are in your piano journey.

Touch base with me if you're having trouble with videos- most people choose to upload them to youtube, then they'll be accessible to you by clicking the video icon and choosing "my videos."

Keep practicing!
Laura

First Hour of Practice Ever!

I have a huge appreciation for professional pianists.  The level of dexterity is insane and I have a long way to go.  On the upside, I was finally able to jingle bells (or at least the version without A and B).  If someone knows how to upload videos let me know!

Hey Everyone! I was practicing a beginner's version of "Beauty and the Beast" and almost have the whole song down (timing still needs work). I was wondering if anyone knew how I would play the measure with the flats and the sharps that I pasted above. Thanks!

Hey guys sorry I am late on the scene. I have access to way to many gmail accounts....anyway!! Hope everybody is enjoying their semester and piano playing. When I got the chance to meet a couple of you I heard you were beginners, and I know there are some veterans around. No matter your level keep doing your best you're going to have so much fun!!! Anyway, enough about you lets hear about me. Today I had my first meeting with Laura since last semester. Of course, gotta work on my timing and reading what the instructions surrounding the notes are. I realized that my ability to sight read has not left me, but can definitely be improved. I am playing "Star Wars" which is the main title. Its a great way to start my semester. Can't wait to get it down.

First Practice

My name is Kerry Podest and I'm a sophomore business major with no musical background or experience at all. I practiced today in the keyboard room because I still don't have access to the piano labs. I read through the first few pages of the book and did the hand warms up they mentioned. I'm doing better than I thought with playing without the letters written in the notes, but I'm having trouble figuring out the beats and count stuff. I hope that more practice this week will help me figure it out!

Welcome to your beginning piano class! In addition to piano lessons, you will be documenting your progress in the class by posting descriptions of your practice as well as short video clips of your playing. Every week, respond to at least three of your peers' writing or playing.

I'm looking forward to a wonderful semester!
Laura