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He has been working on Czardas and is progressing rather nicely. But I am a monkies uncle because he memorized that song within the first month. To have memory like the youngins is only a dream, hahahaha. Anyway, as you can see, he is slowly getting every single note correctly while playing allegro vivace(as well as a few other hiccups) plus, even though he says t he artificial harmonics are easy for him he is still having issues with a secondary sound or note when he is playing that passage. Sometimes even another sound like the hair of his bow rubbing but for the life of me, cannot figure it out but continue working on it.
Jim(Thomases Dad)
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JimandThomas
Fantastic, you have a great sound there young man!
Sounds really good, keep on enjoying playing the fiddle you have a bright future ahead of you.
Mark
Master the Frog and you have mastered the bow.
Albert Sammons
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Excellent - really well done!
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Excellent progress, he's getting the hang of it. And will still get better of course, but it's already quite pleasant to listen to. Looking relaxed through it all… Well done Thomas!
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@JimandThomas -
ABSOLUTELY DREAMY!
LOVE how much you've improved, Thomas - but the BEST part is seeing how much you enjoy playing!
It's really fabulous you've got this memorized! I believe it helps you feel the whole piece. Keep listening to the pros who play this - the more you listen, the more you will notice little things that you can emphasize. You still have plenty of time to slow down & focus on the troublesome areas. I have no doubt you'll be a sensation at the competition!
Isn't it wonderful to play beautiful music while the weather is nasty outside?
Don't stop!
- Emily
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@ELCBK and everyone, thank you again for the kind words. He needs to speed it up just a hair though and although his favorite violinist is his great grandfather....even above me, hahahahaha. He is constantly listening to his tape made so many decades ago and specifically is trying to emulate this song from it. He is also working ever so slowly on Scene de Ballet and Variations in D minor, also by de Beriot. This kid is a machine and just doesnt let up when it comes to practice. a rarity now a days.
Jim(Thomases Dad)
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@jimandthomas Thomas.. its impressive how fast youre progressing and how great your playing sounds!
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@JimandThomas -
He needs to speed it up just a hair though and although his favorite violinist is his great grandfather....even above me, hahahahaha.
Did you mean in specific areas? How strict are competition guidelines?
...I was under the assumption that expression was most important and some freedom with this, but don't you need to perform with piano accompaniment?
Do you practice with piano accompaniment?
Does it help to watch/listen to someone who has won a competition performing Czardas? Funny, I found it easy to find some videos of individuals playing Czardas for competitions, but hard to find one that said they actually won something! This video shows Nichapa Thawatphongsri performing - she was "awarded 2nd prize String Class A at Mahidol University Young Artist Music Contest Competition 2019".
Czardas - Nichapa Thawatphongsri
Found a wonderful set of 2 videos with great tips on playing Czardas from Roy Sonne - have you seen them?
Btw, this is just a suggestion... I LOVE watching progress videos (pretty sure we ALL do), and I don't mind looking back through older posts, but it is so much easier to see/follow progress on a topic if it's continued in one thread or one blog.
If you have trouble finding where you started a topic, you can find it by clicking on your 'profile' button at the top of the page - there's a list of topics you started and a list of topics you've posted in. You can also start a blog on a specific or generalized topic - great for keeping even a daily log of progress. You could ask Mouse to help you consolidate threads if you'd like.
I'd LOVE to see more, but if any of this is too much bother, that's okay too.
For anyone else reading, here are related threads:
Found it!! Thread - Recording of Thomas's Great grandfather playing Czardas, a Lawrence Welk audition.
Czardas Thread - just beginning.
Czardas Again Thread - 5 days into it.
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Bravooo👏👏👏👏
Good job !
🎻since08.2019🎶
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@ELCBK yes in certain spots, but as you mentioned, slower in certain spots. We are beginning to work on expression this week. (He is robotic most of the time and as I have mentioned...just try to get an 11 year old boy to "dance to the music", hahahaha. It ain't easy. As for the thread thing, I am lucky to understand where and how to post things on here to begin with, let alone the thread thing. Roy is a great teacher I might add as well. I think Thomas is trying super hard to emulate his late great grandfathers(Samuel Bailey) rendition of Czardas, which we only have the audio of it, since it was made back in 1965-ish and it means a lot to him. Samuel played the allegro vivace section with a lot of speed and Thomas is trying to reach that speed. He is slowly getting there and am glad we have 3 months left. We can't find a pianist to accompany him yet, which is a shame but at least we have a cello accompanist for Bach's Arioso.
Jim(Thomases Dad)
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JimandThomas said
He has been working on Czardas and is progressing rather nicely. But I am a monkies uncle because he memorized that song within the first month. To have memory like the youngins is only a dream, hahahaha. Anyway, as you can see, he is slowly getting every single note correctly while playing allegro vivace(as well as a few other hiccups) plus, even though he says t he artificial harmonics are easy for him he is still having issues with a secondary sound or note when he is playing that passage. Sometimes even another sound like the hair of his bow rubbing but for the life of me, cannot figure it out but continue working on it.
I would want Thomas to listen to as many versions of Czardas as possible and to revisit his performance. Take special care with timing, and holding on to notes that should be held on to. Timing is crucial if his playing will be appreciated.
Also, would be cool if Thomas did the intros, sorry dad.... 🤣 I have nothing at all against how you are doing it, just that he will grow even more if he incorporates speech into his performances. 😁
Thanks for sharing his progress.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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Awesome! He’s progressing so much!
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World's Okayest Fiddler
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@Fiddlerman thank you and I can't believe I am saying this(because chefs have a reputation of not handling criticism well, hahaha)but your suggestions about Thomas is gladly received. The first thing Thomas said when I read him your response was "well, he knows what he's talking about". It is with great gratitude on both of our parts that you take the time to respond and we truly appreciate that. I noticed upon playback today that his timing does need work and i am glad we still have 3 months before the competitions.
@damfino thank you, that was very kind.
Jim(Thomases Dad)
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JimandThomas said
@Fiddlerman thank you and I can't believe I am saying this(because chefs have a reputation of not handling criticism well, hahaha)but your suggestions about Thomas is gladly received. The first thing Thomas said when I read him your response was "well, he knows what he's talking about". It is with great gratitude on both of our parts that you take the time to respond and we truly appreciate that. I noticed upon playback today that his timing does need work and i am glad we still have 3 months before the competitions.
Glad to hear it.
We (as performers) don't always listen to ourselves the way others do. When we perform, we focus on playing much more than listening to ourselves. If we (as an audience) are honest about what we experience, the smart performer will learn to take the "criticism" the right way, adjust and make it more likable/enjoyable.
What I'm really saying is, Thomas is smart. 😁
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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ELCBK
