Another introductory post

[espresso_addict]

Hello, everyone! I stumbled across this comm at random and was surprised to find it's so new. Looking forward to interesting discussions, but meanwhile... My three favourite composers are JS Bach, Stravinsky & Steve Reich, and I also listen to a lot of contemporary classical, 20th century eg Bartok & a handful of earlier composers. I love contemporary opera, choral music, string quartets, cello, &c&c.

I've very recently started to play the piano again after a 30-year hiatus, but am finding it hard work on my own. I was also hoping to take up choral singing again, but find my voice -- always problematically placed between soprano & alto -- has shrunk to nearly nonexistence.

Comments

[lilacsigil]

I'm also returning to piano after a very long break (20 years for me) and it's difficult! My hands no longer remember exactly what goes where - my brain says "octave!" and my hand perfectly places itself in a seventh.

[espresso_addict]

When the digital piano was delivered I was having extreme trouble playing anything because I was off in the same direction as you -- to the point I thought my childhood piano must have had smaller than average keys! (It was an 85-key piano, so it wasn't as off the wall a thought as it might seem.) I did some hand stretching exercises and now find the opposite problem: I call 'octave!' and my hand gives me octave plus one.

[lilacsigil]

I never made it past an octave before, so I'm probably not going to have that problem, fortunately! A small hands victory for once!

[espresso_addict]

I have pretty small hands, and particularly short little fingers, so was quite pleased.