Questions tagged [piano]
For questions about music written for piano, playing the piano, maintenance of a piano, or other general questions about pianos.
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What does this natural cancel?
What does the natural in the last C in the second line cancel?
This is from Schumann's Album für die Jugend.
Since the natural is immediately followed by a sharp, which is in the key, it does not ...
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Fingering first measure Funeral March
Is the 5 5 fingering for the left hand, first measure, correct?
I ask it because it is for me as a beginner difficult to reposition my left pink quickly on the right place. Is there a good alternative?...
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Does practicing set pieces on the piano lead to the ability to improvise or play accompaniment?
I am thinking of somebody whose entire musical training consists of playing from sheet music. He goes though all Bach, Beethoven, etc. and eventually becomes good enough for Carnegie Hall. He is ...
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Is Moonlight (first movement) suitable for grade 7?
Can I play Sonata No. 14 “Moonlight” (first movement) by L. Van Beethoven for ABRSM digital Performance Grade 7 for piano as my own choice?
As per Performance Grades - FAQs:
For the exam candidates ...
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In Chopin Marche funèbre, measure 19, on right hand, is the A flat played once or three times?
In Chopin Marche funèbre, measure 19, on right hand, is the "A bemol" played once or three times ?
Is the "C" played three times ?
Adding also Gymnopédie 1 from Satie :
It seems ...
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Chopin's Etude op. 10 No.1 - why the D sharp in bar 8?
In Chopin's Etude op. 10, No.1, bar 8,
why does Chopin choose to have D sharp (D♯) in the purple square quoted below? Why not choose the more natural D there? Is there logic, a good reason, and ...
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when you only sing in F#
Tim Minchin sang this song:
It is called "when you only sing in F#". Apparently the song is really funny. If you know music. I do not know music, hence I am ...
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How do we play a wiggling line with multiple notes on the piano? [duplicate]
I saw a wiggling line with three notes for a song for piano, and played it and recorded it on GarageBand and edited it on the picture on the right:
I waited about a quarter of a beat to play the ...
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What's the distance between black and white piano key balance rail pins?
Piano keyframe consists of these parts:
The balance rail is marked (6) in the image, but there are two balance rail pin rows - in the picture only the pin row for white keys is marked(7).
You can ...
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Left hand finger exercise giving massive tension
This is a piano question.
I’ve identified a left hand exercise that is very hard for me and I wanted to ask:
Whether it’s healthy to try doing it
Whether it’s useful to spend time on
The exercise is ...
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Why do these accidentals exist? [duplicate]
I just bought a piano music book to start playing and learning again.
It was my understanding that accidentals only affect notes of the bar that they exist in. And because of that this bass clef ...
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How do you play these parts?
I don't know much about music theory but this part seems to require you to improvise or something (1st & 2nd link) , if so how do you learn to improvise something like this, where to start and ...
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A big "1" in the middle of a piano grand staff
The image is from a Russian edition of Alexander Goedike's 20 Little Pieces for Beginners (20 маленьких пьес для начинающих), Op. 6, no. 11.
What do the big bold ones in the middle of the grand staff ...
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Trills in Clementi Op. 36 No. 1 2nd movement
This is related to this discussion: How to play these trills from Clementi's Sonatina in C Major on piano?
My question: is the FG at the end of AGAGFG part of the trill, or is it the one ...
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What is a half step down from a song in Gbm on piano?
When a singer asks to tune a song a half step down from Gbm would that be Fminor or Gb?
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Most readable way to write left hand flowing towards higher notes
I'm struggling to make a simple passage I've written look and feel 'comfortable'. The left hand is 'travelling' across the piano.
Which of these are more readable? My instinct says to stick with the ...
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Guidance on selecting an instrument meeting certain criteria
I want to preface this question by saying I'm a beginner to music.
I recently attempted to learn the piano. I was fine with one hand but encountered several difficulties as soon as I switched to two ...
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Music theory question about finding keys
If I have chords Dm, F Maj, Am and no other melodic context is provided, I just have these three chords as an information, how do I know what key is it?
From my understanding , it can be either Am or ...
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Piano piece requires playing the same note with both hands [duplicate]
When I am playing the piano and one of my hands is in the treble clef, and the other is in bass clef, I ran across a problem where I need to play B in with my left hand up in the treble clef, but I ...
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Are there different schools of piano pedagogy and if so, what are they called?
People talk about different kinds of schools of pedagogy that exists today but I don't know if I have ever heard about different schools of piano pedagogy.
Are there different schools of piano ...
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Ideal Wrist and Finger Technique for Large Interval Ostinatos
A lot of songs I play have ostinatos with riffs over large intervals and include a changing a middle note.
The treble clef in the image below is a good example.
I have been trying to play this with ...
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Granados' Goyescas finger wide chords
I'm learning the "el Fango del Candil" by E. Granados and I am struggling with the following two parts:
Measure 9
Measures 22-23
For the first one: how can I make the three chords so ...
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What differentiates Mozart from Clementi as composers for piano?
Mozart and Clementi were composing for piano in similar styles at the same time and both were considered greats of their day.
The contemporary view, broadly speaking, is that Mozart is the superior ...
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Noob Chord Progression Question
I make music in FL Studio and I have this chord progression which goes:
VI - i - VII - i - iv - i - VII - i
I guess my question is what is the decision behind putting the tonic (i) in the 2nd, 4th and ...
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how to play a bass note and chord in the left hand separately?
I am trying to play this on piano but it seems very hard for me and I may be doing it wrong. Can anyone give me some suggestions on how to play this with my left hand playing the chords and the right ...
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Yamaha CLP-295GP: adjust “program change” parameter
I have taken the position of Organist/Pianist at my church and have “inherited” the Yamaha Clavinova CLP-295GP.
I am in the process of hooking up the organ (1100+ pipe with MIDI) and Clavinova to PC ...
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How to open this hotel piano? [closed]
I am in a hotel in Turkey.
When I visit hotels I usually don't ask beforehand if I am allowed to play the piano because most of the time they say no. I found out that it's just better to sit and play ...
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Are ostinatos and motifs essentially the same thing?
I understand that there is a difference between the two, but I'm still confused. Are the terms "ostinato" and "motif" interchangeable?
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How are the Imperial March intro harmonies best interpreted on piano?
I'm wondering how the below is most effectively performed on piano. I've solved the 'rhythm problem' (i.e., the very rapid triplet repetitions) by using both hands via piano 'split' feature — each ...
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What is the difference between a mordent and turn?
I've tried Googling the difference between a turn and mordent, but all the answers are really vague. I also couldn't find any helpful images that explain to me. I'm really confused right now. Turns ...
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Notes underneath the bar line [duplicate]
I am new to sheet music and.I get the notes in the lines and on the lines. But when the notes go above or below the line I have a hard time with reading it and identify were the notes corresponded to ...
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Glissando vs Arpeggio
What is the difference between an arpeggio and glissando? Is a glissando just another form of an arpeggio? I still don't exactly understand.
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Arranging Pop and Jazz Songs into Piano
What is the first step in arranging a jazz or pop song into piano? I find composing classical is a little easier, but I would like to try jazz and pop. I'm a little bit confused because I don't know ...
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How do I notate alternating quickly between two notes an octave away from each other?
I'm vaguely sure that an ornament exists for this but I'm not sure which one it is. I'm a music theory beginner, so pardon me if there's a simple answer. Basically, I want to alternate quickly between ...
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Term meaning "unintended overlaps between notes" in piano playing
What is the proper or usual term that names the following problem in piano playing?
Problem: The finger, after striking a note, does not release the key on time but overstays (typically by about 50 ...
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Help with the rhythm of Chopin's C major prelude
The time signature is 2/8, and the piece is played with triplets but then at bar 17 the top triplet is replaced with a quintuplet with stretto marked above.
I am a bit confused how to play this.
What ...
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How to notate late attack/almost a grace note
I'm transcribing a piano piece. There is a short note that should be attacked slightly later than notated, but should not be played fully as a grace note—rather somewhere in between. (Even playing by ...
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Best way for random (cluster) chord notation
I'm working on a piano part where the player needs to slam their fingers on the keyboard in semi-specific regions to create random cluster-like chords. What do you think would be the best way to ...
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Notation for 8va on the repeat
In piano music sometimes there is a section that is repeated, and on the repeat one (or both) hands are to play an octave up (or down).
I've seen this notated in English in the following form:
2nd ...
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Why aren't octave clefs used in piano notation?
It's not uncommon to find piano music where the left hand plays primarily in octave 1, or the right hand in octave 6 (i.e. below the staff of a bass clef or above the staff of a treble clef). This ...
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Notation and use of cross-staff beaming
I have been transcribing a piece in 4/4 time for the piano. There is a portion of the piece where I am unsure if cross-staff beaming should be utilized or not. I have provided two examples below for ...
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Do I need to explicitly cancel the damper pedal when switching to sostenuto?
I'm writing a piece where the beginning and end use the damper pedal only, and the middle uses sostenuto only. Currently these are notated with con ped. and con sost., but I wonder if that might ...
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What are the piano notes of Hum Ko Tumse Ho Gaya hai pyaar kya kare? [closed]
What are the piano notes of Hum Ko Tumse Ho Gaya hai pyaar kya kare?
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Can anyone tell me how to play triplets in rhythm with eighth notes? [duplicate]
I'm having difficulty performing these series of triplets in tandem with my eighth notes? Does anyone know any cues or practice I can do to learn? I'm thinking I should try to just aim to aim to time ...
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Is a solo cello strong enough to make a piano ring?
I attended a concert once where a trombone soloist played his instrument pointing towards the strings of a grand piano (lid propped fully open, pianist depressing the pedal). The effect was amazing; ...
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Note placement for beat/rhythm clarity
I have been transcribing a piece in 4/4 time for the piano. I am not fully certain as to how I should format the notes on the upper staff – as they split every beat.
I have provided 3 options below ...
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What is the music theoretical basis for this chord transition?
I've got a song on the piano, which I've been learning for years now and for which I just recently decided to actually dive into a chord analysis.
Early on in the piece, there's this climactic build ...
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Correct arpeggio direction
Should the left hand arpeggio be played up or down when there's two half notes in the bottom and a quarter note above?
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Is the polyphony limit on a Digital piano tied to the sound engine?
I don't want to end up paying more for a digital piano for a higher polyphonic capability if I don't need it.
I was wondering if the polyphony limit on digital pianos is tied to the sound engines they ...
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Chopin Ballades' difficulty range
Welcome to my first post!
I recently discovered Chopin's four Ballades and I am particularly drawn to the first. I am currently not at the level to play it, but I would love to play it in the future. ...
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