Friday, September 12, 2008

Cello and Piano

Last spring I met a piano teacher who specializes in teaching older adults. I was impressed. Some of her students had played when they were kids, but most of them had taken up the piano in retirement, had played for a year or two, or more, and sounded pretty good. I mentioned that I played the cello and had started as an older adult (though not quite in retirement). The teacher though it would be a great idea for some of the students to play duets with me at the next concert. I said sure, as I almost never turn down an invitation to play.

The concert is in two weeks, and we rehearsed today. The pieces are pretty easy for me (a "song" by Beethoven and "Amazing Grace") so I can concentrate on tone and intonation and sounding good, but I can tell they are a little more complicated for the pianists. Most had not played with others (except some piano duets) and were struggling a little to keep the tempo constant. It was great fun to rehearse with them, though, and to listen to their other pieces. A lot of them were serene, contemplative pieces, very relaxing. Just what I needed today, after yet another busy week.

4 comments:

cellodonna said...

Great playing opportunity!

I admire adults who begin piano lessons. Piano players don't have to worry about intonation issues, but they have to deal with reading in two clefs at the same time, and mostly are reading and playing two to five notes together on a beat. Not easy.

cellodonna said...

PS - Thanks for the anniversary wishes!

Maricello said...

I took piano lessons when I was nine, and tried it again when I was 48--it's not easy at any age! But, after that rehearsal, I did contemplate giving it another try. Or, maybe playing cello with pianists will suffice for now.

gottagopractice said...

I think piano lessons are a great idea for adult musicians. They've been a great help to me for learning to see the "words" in music - recognizing that cellodonna's multiple notes are really one chord, which processes faster, and also learning much more about harmony. Piano students usually learn to play well with others much later than we do (if ever!)- it's great that yours are doing that already.