Prelude 4 in C-sharp Minor (The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I)
Last updated September 15, 2024
Before the semester gets too hectic, here is a slightly more refined version of Prelude 4 played with the normal CFX sound. Also, I love how relaxed my dog looks.
Trials and Tribulations Soundtrack Piano Arrangement (Mask☆DeMasque ~ Please Listen!)
Last updated August 27, 2024
This piece was a bit challenging to arrange, but I knew I had to try when I first heard it. Although the piece is written in a minor key, it somehow sounds quite cheery and I love how energetic it is. My version is missing the percussion elements of the original track, so I added more notes in the bass to emphasize the rhythm. I still think the synthesizer version is superior, but it was fun and informative to see how Noriyuki Iwadare approaches his music.
Justice for All Soundtrack Piano Arrangement (Berry Big Circus)
Last updated August 13, 2024
I finished another arrangement from the Ace Attorney series, “Berry Big Circus”. Although I had ambitions to arrange a number of pieces that I really like from various video games, I realized not all of them would add value, since the more modern games have better hardware to emulate a more sophisticated sound where a piano version would actually be a downgrade. The original Ace Attorney Trilogy had hardware limitations for its soundtrack, so piano arrangements make sense there. This piece also works particularly well with its clear melody and simple accompaniment.
Trials and Tribulations Soundtrack Piano Arrangement (Cross Examination ~ Moderato 2004)
Last updated August 10, 2024
I spent an afternoon arranging my favourite cross-examination music from the Ace Attorney series. I had to listen to the original track at half speed to figure out the rhythm and the last four bars gave me serious trouble. I am sure it is not completely accurate since the bass notes were very difficult to distinguish, but I think it turned out pretty well overall!
Prelude 4 in C-sharp Minor (The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I, Harpsichord Version)
Last updated August 9, 2024
I have been spending a lot of time practicing Moonlight Sonata, however I think I need to take a break from it to focus on bringing my scales up to speed. I feel like I am hitting a roadblock with my technique, so I need to work on my fundamentals before coming back to the piece. This does free up my practice time quite a bit, and so I was able to learn Prelude 4 from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I, one of the pieces I mentioned earlier that is also in C-sharp Minor. While practicing this piece I had an epiphany of sorts: for one passage I randomly decided to use a new fingering on-the-fly, and ended up in a state I was not familiar with and did not know what to do with the next passage. I think this must be the origin of a specific type of mistake, the type that is not a result of a lapse in memory or a slip of the fingers/hands. It seems that the way that practice minimizes these mistakes is by visiting these states so that in the unlikely event it happens in a performance, at least the brain knows what to do to recover. Weird ramblings aside, this is a beautiful prelude with a touch of melancholy that I really enjoyed learning.
Beethoven Moonlight Sonata First Movement
Last updated July 20, 2024
C-sharp Minor was my favourite key when I was a child. I think it still might be my favourite key, although now I also quite like several other sharp keys, both major and minor. Coincidentally, I have been playing several pieces in C-sharp Minor recently, including Bach’s Prelude 4 from WTC I, Chopin’s Etude No. 4, and of course Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata. I am mainly working on increasing my tempo for the Third Movement, this will probably take months before I can consider it a finished product. I realized that I needed to also learn more manageable pieces at the same time so that I do not lose motivation; the WTC Prelude is next on the list. For today, I sight-read the First Movement of Moonlight Sonata as it is not technically demanding, although musically it probably needs work especially in terms of dynamics. It is one of those pieces that still sound pretty nice even played imperfectly, so I am happy with it for now.
Bach Sinfonia in E Major
Last updated July 11, 2024
I thought I would have a chill summer, but sadly the weather and my work have not been cooperating. I have had to take a break from practicing again and finally got in some scales today. To keep my motivation up, here is a sightread version of Sinfonia in E Major.
Beethoven Moonlight Sonata Third Movement Practice (Full)
Last updated May 18, 2024
The Third Movement of Moonlight Sonata has been my long-term project this year. It does not always feel like I am making progress, but comparing my playing to previous practice videos, I can see a difference in the tempo and smoothness. I would like to increase the tempo to about 140 bpm (the current version is at about 110 bpm) and also work on my accuracy, but the piece is taking shape!
Also, I have been thinking of the Allemande from Bach’s Lute Suite in E Minor. I have a older video of this piece, but I think the new version is much more musical, which is something else I have been working on. Also check out the recording by Evangelina Mascardi, which is just heavenly. And for the Prelude from the same Suite, I simply love the playing of Pierre Hantaï, masterful technique and so full of emotion.
Chopin Raindrop Prelude
Last updated April 2, 2024
Winter semester was crazy busy, so I did not get much time to practice at all. Today was the first day in almost three months that I finally had enough free time to play a bit. I would like to get back to working on Moonlight Sonata, but since I had not uploaded in a while, I wanted to record something to keep my motivation up. I went with Chopin’s Prelude Op. 28 No. 15 in D-flat Major, nicknamed “Raindrop”, which was easy enough to sightread and also felt appropriate for today’s rainy weather.
More Beethoven Moonlight Sonata Practice
Last updated January 7, 2024
The Third Movement of Moonlight Sonata seemed insurmountable to a young me. As of yesterday, I managed to learn all the notes, so this feels pretty great. Of course, I still have a lot more work to do to polish the piece and bring it up to tempo. Here is another nice section I was working on today. I still need to practice my tremolos so I do not lose my left hand notes halfway through the passage.