The Days of ‘98 Show
Of course, the highlight of my schedule is my continuing work with “The Days of ‘98 Show with Soapy Smith.” This contract in Skagway has been going since late April and I’m enjoying the summer. The consistent schedule is hard to beat. One challenge is the repeating of the show. As of this week we have performed 200 times and I personally have been in more than 100 of them.
Piano Skills
I’m trying to stay on top of my piano skills and continue to work on new ones. Here’s the highlights of my current to-do list.
Scales and Arpeggios
I’m trying to keep a few semi “mindless” tasks on my to-do list because sometimes I need something to just get me going when I start practicing piano.
Right now I’m focusing on playing scales in octaves (both hands together). I’m playing major and minor scales with a metronome, gradually increasing the speed.
For arpeggios, I have expanded my list to include all of the following:
Major triad
Minor triad
Augmented triad
Major seventh chord
Dominant seventh chord
Minor seventh chord
Half diminished seventh chord
Fully diminished seventh chord
I’m working through at least 6 a day, trying to get through all 12 as often as possible. I’ve been doing these for a week or so and I’m already noticing improvement. My current goal is to play sixteenth notes and get up to around 100 BPM.
Pop Chord Theory
The Pop Piano Book. Click to buy from the author’s website.
I’m working through a couple of different pop resources, depending on my mood and what skill I want to focus on. My main written resource is Mark Harrison’s Pop Piano Book, which I bought awhile back and scanned onto my iPad.
Harrison’s book starts with about 10 chapters of theory and basic concepts before presenting specific characteristics to allow pianists to perform in a few different specific pop styles.
For now, I’m working on the general concepts. Specifically, stacking triads over single notes in the bass. It’s allowing me to start to think of chords and notice patterns.
Piano with Jonny home page. Click to visit.
In addition, I have a subscription to Piano With Jonny, a piano lesson library taught by Jonny May. His ability to isolate and break down styles into specific kinds of gestures and emphasizing some theory concepts has helped me to grasp things already. In particular, I’ve been using the concept of guide tones in my lead sheet playing (see below) and have started to practice some of the blues riffs and rhythms in exercises he has reated.
Realizing Lead Sheets
If I’m going to work on this pop style playing, I need to be applying it. I needed an accessible collection of lead sheets, and a copy of The Real Book provided by Scribd was just the ticket. I actually have a physical copy of The Real Book at home, but it was easier to do this than to have it mailed to me.
Today I played through “All The Things You Are” trying to apply the guide tones concept to the piece. This meant playing the root of the chord in my left hand while my right added the third and seventh.
Repertoire
I want to continue to explore the music I’ve downloaded from IMSLP on my iPad. I spent a lot of time earlier this summer making sure things are cataloged and easy to access. That task is ongoing, but progressing bit by bit.
In the meantime, I’m continuing to explore music from both the classical repertoire and musical theatre songs. I’ve been picking things mostly at random for now.
Well, that’s it for this post. I’ll post again next week with what’s new!