Piano Progress #4

Published on by Yinglan

It’s been a long while since I have updated on my piano progress. Almost three months, wow?!

For new readers: I bought my former boss’s antique (1980’s) keyboard for 60-dollars in May and had been playing piano again. I took a year of piano when I was a Sophomore in high school (about 10 years ago) and that was it. No other courses. Since May, I have been refreshing myself on my piano playing with the help of my old piano book and YouTube. This is what these posts are all about – my progress.

If you want to catch up on my previous progress, the bullet list below contains the links:

So I stopped playing the keyboard a little after my last update because of my health. I was constantly weak and tired. At times, I was having trouble lifting my hands and I often can’t get through 30 minutes without yawning and falling asleep.

I didn’t resume playing until after the school semester had begun again in late August and it was then I promised myself to play at least an hour each day, no matter how tired I was. I cannot take so many naps. I was also adamant to re-learn The Entertainer. I’ve been promising myself to relearn that song ever since I got the keyboard. I knew the song inside and out 10 years ago. In fact, I used to stare at the wall when I played.

The re-learning process has proven difficult. I had to start from the first note, played it a dozen times until I could play it without looking at the key and then move on to the next. I did this for just about every note for that song and after 15 days, I finally mastered it. My playing is a little rough compared to professional but I’m not striving to be professional. I’m just striving for my best. Anyway, here it is:

I know I posted Amazing Grace in my last update but since then, I discovered I have been playing some parts wrong. After watching a few YouTube tutorial on how to play it, I corrected myself and re-posted this version.

Finally, I want to share this folk song, Raisins and Almonds. Personally, I have never heard it but after playing it, I have come to enjoy it. I learned this song in June. I should’ve recorded it then but I decided not to for some reason. Anyway, here it is:

I believe it will be a long while until I update on my piano progress again. I’m upgrading myself from level 1 to level 2. Yay! I’m currently waiting for the book to arrive and hopefully the next song I post on my SoundCloud will be Canon in D.

24 thoughts on “Piano Progress #4”

  3. By a curious coincidence I picked up my Tenor Sax today for probably the first time since Xmas. Boy do I need to get my chops back and I really need to learn how to breath again… that sounds weirder then it actually is

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  5. I’m impressed — especially since you’re playing unaccompanied, and after only a few months. Really good timing, too… you seem to have a good sense of rhythm. I’ll only play publicly along with others in a group. Tends to hide my mistakes and lack of finger-span on the guitar.

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    1. Thank you. I played along with a group when I was taking the class in school but the teacher always pointed out that I was half a beat faster than everyone else even though I couldn’t hear it.

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      1. I guess the hidden benefit of playing solo is that there’s no one else with whom to keep time. Regardless, it sounded good to me, and I’m still impressed at the accomplishment. d(^_^)

        As for keeping a rhythm in my own practice, I use a “looper” to record a phrase, then play to that. More fun than a metronome.

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  8. I really enjoyed listening to you play! You got a nice compliment, too. I was listening while my husband was in another room. He comes back in and says where’s that music coming from? I tell him it’s my blogging friend playing the piano. He said he thought it was on the TV, it was so good! 🙂

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