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Progress thread
A slightly off key musical journey
Topic Rating: 4 Topic Rating: 4 Topic Rating: 4 Topic Rating: 4 Topic Rating: 4 Topic Rating: 4 (1 votes) 
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mischa91
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May 5, 2015 - 6:18 pm
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My practice has been a bit on and off lately, I've hd that would flu that's been going around, my hearing has been messed up and still isn't right.  I have a lesson tomorrow and decided to record a practice piece tonight, I started working on it 2 weeks ago so it's a bit not good, I played it a little faster than I intended because I can't not cough for long and didn't want to cough on video.

 

http://youtu.be/LPBqzk1pcVA

 

We we also started vibrato work in lessons, just exercises to get a feel for it which is great, she's not just assuming I know what I'm doing anymore and is actually taking it one step at a time.  I also think my third position is getting better, I'm reading the notes better and starting to figure it out.

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Fiddlerman
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May 6, 2015 - 7:17 am
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Sounds like you have made some nice progress since last I heard you even if you haven't had time to practice. It's apparent that you don't look at the tapes on your instrument. I recommend that you take them off now. :)
Enjoy your lesson!

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

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mischa91
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May 6, 2015 - 8:30 am
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Fiddlerman said
Sounds like you have made some nice progress since last I heard you even if you haven't had time to practice. It's apparent that you don't look at the tapes on your instrument. I recommend that you take them off now. :)
Enjoy your lesson!

Thanks,  I've been working on using my fourth finger more and sometimes intonation is a bit off, it's a long stretch when you've got small hands.

 

I need to take them off, i might keep the third one on to help with finding third position for a while.

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coolpinkone
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May 6, 2015 - 12:35 pm
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Sounds good.. Good progress.

I am envious of that fourth finger.   :)

Glad you are feeling better and nice work for having sparse time for practicing. 

Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato

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mischa91
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May 6, 2015 - 1:26 pm
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coolpinkone said
Sounds good.. Good progress.

I am envious of that fourth finger.   :)

Glad you are feeling better and nice work for having sparse time for practicing. 

Thanks.

That fourth finger needs works, it's a lot weaker than my other fingers.

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mischa91
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May 7, 2015 - 11:03 am
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I don't know what it is about my lessons, i enjoy them but for some reason i seem to fall apart in a lesson environment.  I feel like they're helping a lot and i'm making progress but when i go to play the pieces i've been working on something always goes wrong.  Like last night, i played the piece from the above video, the first section went well and i was pleased with it but the faster section went downhill very quickly, i missed notes, played notes in the wrong order, you name it and it happened :/

Maybe i need to play in front of more real live people so it's not so much of an off putting experience having someone breathing down my neck while i play.

On the plus side we did some starter vibrato exercises so that was good, although my hand/wrist is far too tense to really get a good movement going right now so it'll take work.  I also started on a new song which is a bit more complicated than the previous one, plus i'm still working on the latest gavotte piece.  

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ElisaDalViolin

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May 7, 2015 - 12:45 pm
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It's sounds great! You are doing a lot of progress! 

With the thought of giving our best, we tense up without realizing and it messes with our playing. It happens to me all the time.  Swing and shake your arms and hands a bit if you need to relieve some tension. Then when you're in position, take a deep breath before you start the piece. See if that helps.

Keep up the good work :)

 
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mischa91
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May 7, 2015 - 3:22 pm
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ElisaDalViolin said
It's sounds great! You are doing a lot of progress! 

With the thought of giving our best, we tense up without realizing and it messes with our playing. It happens to me all the time.  Swing and shake your arms and hands a bit if you need to relieve some tension. Then when you're in position, take a deep breath before you start the piece. See if that helps.

Keep up the good work :)

Thank you!

Yes, i do tense up going into lessons, just wanting to get it right and not look like i haven't practiced even though i know i have puts extra pressure on me, funny how i didn't feel like this at all when i was a kid doing music lessons, i could care less if i had practiced or not back then.  I'll try taking a few deep breaths and shaking out my hands before i play in my next lesson. 

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Fiddlerman
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May 8, 2015 - 6:56 am
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mischa91 said
I don't know what it is about my lessons, i enjoy them but for some reason i seem to fall apart in a lesson environment.  I feel like they're helping a lot and i'm making progress but when i go to play the pieces i've been working on something always goes wrong.  Like last night, i played the piece from the above video, the first section went well and i was pleased with it but the faster section went downhill very quickly, i missed notes, played notes in the wrong order, you name it and it happened :/

It's completely normal. Your teacher probably realizes it too.

Maybe i need to play in front of more real live people so it's not so much of an off putting experience having someone breathing down my neck while i play.

Yes, playing live in front of as many people as possible will make it way easier to do so naturally in the future. However, every new situation will be unique and the special ones can get you nervous.

On the plus side we did some starter vibrato exercises so that was good, although my hand/wrist is far too tense to really get a good movement going right now so it'll take work.  I also started on a new song which is a bit more complicated than the previous one, plus i'm still working on the latest gavotte piece.  

Good for you. Vibrato is fun. :)  

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

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mischa91
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June 24, 2015 - 8:54 pm
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I've had 2 weeks of exams for school so the violin stayed tucked up in his case, I missed it but now I'm done with school for the summer so I'll have loads of time to play.  I had a lesson tonight and shockingly it wasn't as terrible as I thought it would be.  My left hand stayed relaxed, my thumb wasn't tense :)

i started the last song in suzuki book 2 and my teacher was impressed with my playing it through with very few mistakes and with good timing, she actually said "that was good, bring book 3 next lesson."  So yay, it looks like after next lesson I'll be moving onto book 3.  

The thing that suffered most from not playing was my work on third position, I was getting somewhere with it but tonight my brain kept blanking on the notes.  I practiced when I got home and felt it was better. 

We skipped vibrato work today, it would probably have been okay but I felt a bit stiff in my wrist by the end of the lesson so said I would practice it and loosen it up a bit.  It's geting better.  In third and fourth position I can get an okay movement going but when I start moving my hand back along the neck my hand gets wobbly and looses rhythm.  It'll get better the stronger my wrist and arm gets.  I'm going to practice it while doing scales.  

 

If i I can get a good video of the last song from suzuki book 2 I'll upload it in the next few days, it's a fun one.  

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Fiddlerman
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June 25, 2015 - 9:34 am
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Look forward to listening to the video Mischa.

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

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coolpinkone
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June 25, 2015 - 12:59 pm
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Congrats to you on your graduating to book 3!!!

I am so jealous .. in a good way... woo hoo!!!  Super happy for you.. glad you have more time to play.

Hope to see your vids soon!!

Bravo and Congrats again.1st-placethumbs-up1st-placethumbs-up1st-place1st-placebananabananabananabananabanana

Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato

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mischa91
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June 30, 2015 - 9:29 pm
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coolpinkone said
Congrats to you on your graduating to book 3!!!

I am so jealous .. in a good way... woo hoo!!!  Super happy for you.. glad you have more time to play.

Hope to see your vids soon!!

Bravo and Congrats again.1st-placethumbs-up1st-placethumbs-up1st-place1st-placebananabananabananabananabanana

Thanks!  

 

I'm having a bit of an off day violin wise, I can really see how adult learners get discouraged and give up.  My left shoulder is sore, my left hand is cramping and I'm being way to critical of myself.  With that being said I'm putting up this video, it's not perfect, there are mistakes; at one point I looked away from the music and lost my place so the tempo is off.  My bow hand went all to crap for some reason so ive got shakey parts with the bowing,

The last piece in suzuki book 2, minuet by Boccherini.

http://youtu.be/Q0_DCstdJDY

 

I had a slightly better take but stupidly leaned down to turn off the camera and managed to flash the camera, stupid low cut top.  I'm not to happy with it, but then again I wasn't to happy with practice either.  

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coolpinkone
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July 1, 2015 - 1:14 pm
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Oh.. at first I thought I wasn't familiar.. but I have heard that song ... 

Good job.. 1st-placethumbs-up1st-placethumbs-upits a "real" piece.. you know.. nice and long and lots of "stuff" going on.  I really liked it and enjoy seeing how you are learning the finer/ harder stuff.  Good job with your keeping time and following the sheet.

Yes, I am in your wake of success and still jealous.   :)  (in a good way)  I like seeing all your steady progress.  

I like it....I like the nuances and some of the skills needed to play it.  I can't wait to join you on this one in the future as well.   

I don't do suzuki as I don't have a clue ... I bought the Suzuki book one in the beginning and I was like "" what the heck.."  LOL.. now I get the meaning and reasoning behind it all.

Maybe I will break down and get the 2nd book w/CD... 

Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato

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mischa91
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July 1, 2015 - 1:30 pm
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Thanks @coolpinkone !  I went through and played all the repeats and it did end up quite long, i also like how it changes throughout, there's a key change half way through which i think could be challenging.

I have the issue of looking away from the sheet music and then looking back up and not being able to find my place, i find it hard to memorize music. I guess its a good thing as it means i can't look at my hands so i have to be better with intonation.  So much going on all at once to play this instrument.

I'm glad you're enjoying my progress, i finally feel like i'm making some; before i got a teacher again i felt like i wasn't going anywhere, it was tough to move forward.  I'm glad it looks like i'm making some progress, however slow and steady.

I'm not following the suzuki "method" i don't think, more just playing the pieces in the book.  We don't do any of the exercises between the pieces of music, maybe once i move on a bit further and stuff crops up that i'm unfamiliar with we might do those exercises.  You should maybe get book 2, even if you're not familiar with the tunes there's a tonne of videos on youtube, some taking you through each piece bit by bit and others just playing through so you can get an idea of the general tune and pacing.  

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Uzi
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I think it's coming along fine.  I liked it. 

A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. ~Herm Albright

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mischa91
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July 2, 2015 - 1:05 pm
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Thanks!  Videoing myself is always a challenge.

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Fiddlerman
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July 2, 2015 - 5:37 pm
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Filming ones self is always challenging but I agree that it is coming along nicely. :)
Keep up the great work and try to spend some time evaluating how much tension vs what is really necessary for playing to avoid the pains that you have been having. The pain is a warning to be taken seriously.
Thanks for the post. :)

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

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Schaick
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Nice!!  The trills sound very pretty.  

I am still nervous about videoing myself.  A short term goal is to be in a video with the Traveler!!

More nervous then jam.  I think it is because video is permanent, jamming I am hoping they only remember the good stuff!!!

Violinist start date -  May 2013  

Fiddler start date - May 2014

FIDDLE- Gift from a dear friend. A 1930-40 german copy, of a french copy of a Stradivarius.  BOW - $50 carbon fiber. Strings - Dominants with E Pirastro Gold string.

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Fiddlerman
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July 5, 2015 - 4:19 pm
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We are content with anything but I understand your anxiety. Looking forward to the video. :)

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

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