tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post6690926980343468167..comments2024-03-22T06:38:04.697-04:00Comments on Beyond the Notes: Addicted to practicingErica Ann Sipeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13526622607656348353noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-87909967881099725682014-06-12T17:01:46.681-04:002014-06-12T17:01:46.681-04:00You're very welcome - thank you for reading!!
...You're very welcome - thank you for reading!!<br /><br />EricaErica Ann Sipeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526622607656348353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-29340169588091548512014-06-12T16:51:33.856-04:002014-06-12T16:51:33.856-04:00Thanks so much for this helpful article! You read ...Thanks so much for this helpful article! You read my mind in saying "too little time for practice and too many pieces".Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12061573572053370214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-80499589875588816622012-08-11T09:41:26.727-04:002012-08-11T09:41:26.727-04:00Yay, Jessica! It's great to find another prac...Yay, Jessica! It's great to find another practice addict :-) <br /><br />Thank you for reading and for joining the club!<br /><br />Happy practicing, <br />EricaErica Ann Sipeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526622607656348353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-74200162431800085232012-08-11T09:20:33.329-04:002012-08-11T09:20:33.329-04:00This is the kind of practising I love. It happens ...This is the kind of practising I love. It happens very, very often for me, in fact. I'm so glad that I'm not alone.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05075292153806720848noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-287052552568843352012-06-13T09:38:13.592-04:002012-06-13T09:38:13.592-04:00Thank you, Patrick. It's always so wonderful ...Thank you, Patrick. It's always so wonderful to hear from you! I'm glad you found some inspiration in this post. And thank you as well for sharing your own blog post - I've been in that same place so many times but I often end up just walking away from the situation. Your words encourage me to stay put but to simply try a different path. <br /><br />All the best,<br />EricaErica Ann Sipeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526622607656348353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-54349277480165140342012-06-12T22:39:07.964-04:002012-06-12T22:39:07.964-04:00Many thanks Erica, The post is informative and in...Many thanks Erica, The post is informative and inspiring. And this quote in the comment "Art matters, even if it doesn't pay well," was just reinforced in my practice this evening. A blog post - The Switch - details my transition from today's negative thinking to a much better place due to practicing guitar (http://ajourneymanswayhome.blogspot.com/2012/06/switch.html). Keep making art Erica, both in music and words.Patrick Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11932466748852157863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-62165760575695250292011-06-29T23:04:11.159-04:002011-06-29T23:04:11.159-04:00Dear Anonymous,
Thank you so much for your comment...Dear Anonymous,<br />Thank you so much for your comment and especially for that quote of Robert Weirich's - I can relate so much, as I imagine so many of us can. When playing an instrument is practically a love affair it can truly be a wonderful thing. <br /><br />It's also wonderful to meet another pianist that is braving book 2 of the WTC. We'll have to keep each other posted about where we are and keep each other honest. In answer to your question, no, I've never played the Toccatas. Perhaps when I'm "done" with the WTC! Ask me in, say, 20 years. :-)<br /><br />I'm so glad that you've discovered this blog - please do keep reading and commenting. It is so very helpful to hear from those that are reading. I get a lot of inspiration from all of you.<br /><br />Happy practicing!<br /><br />-EricaErica Ann Sipeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526622607656348353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-14166154445200827802011-06-29T10:45:32.730-04:002011-06-29T10:45:32.730-04:00Robert Weirich wrote in a Clavier magazine: "...Robert Weirich wrote in a Clavier magazine: " I am seldom happier than when sitting at the piano, my hands on the keys, my ears completely absorbed in the sounds emanating from the instrument." And he ends the paragraph with: "Art matters, even if it doesn't pay well."<br />I began piano lesson at the age of 4, which means I have been playing for over 60 years, almost daily. I am also working through Bk 2 of Bach's Preludes and Fugues, currently on E +, although with all the other pieces currently on the go, I won't get through them as quickly as you. Thank you for recording them....it helps me to listen to another interpretation.<br />Do you play any of the Toccata's as well?<br />I am new to the computer (6 mts.), new to "blogs" ( 1 mt.) piano teacher since my teens, church musician, pop band in the 70"s , mostly classical now. Married to a guitarist. I am working through all your blogs, your site is by far the most interesting site I have found. Great writing!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-29693083132716767692011-04-14T13:52:04.191-04:002011-04-14T13:52:04.191-04:00Dear anonymous reader who's having difficulty ...Dear anonymous reader who's having difficulty with the Pastoral sonata...I would love to be able to help you if I can but I need to know of a way to contact you. Could you possibly provide me with your e-mail address so that I can get in touch with you?<br /><br />Thank you and I'm so glad that you found this post inspiring! I love to be able to help :-)<br /><br />EricaErica Ann Sipeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526622607656348353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-52138302634516775562011-04-14T08:22:10.275-04:002011-04-14T08:22:10.275-04:00Hi
I'm currently doing 8th grade ameb piano. ...Hi <br />I'm currently doing 8th grade ameb piano. There is this passage of Beethoven Pastoral sonata bar 197-208 Allegro. Well, I ve been practising hard on it for the past 5 days. I'm kind of addicted to getting it right, but I'm never so happy with it that I let it go. Every time I tell myself to practise something else, I end up going back to it to try and perfect it<br /><br />By the way, you article was inspiring. <br /><br />Please helpAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-30851834222884827532011-03-07T14:52:46.778-05:002011-03-07T14:52:46.778-05:00A belated thank you for that wonderful post
-My H...A belated thank you for that wonderful post<br /><br />-My Harshest CriticAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-21214993925658206312011-03-02T20:43:37.477-05:002011-03-02T20:43:37.477-05:00David,
Thank you, as always, for your comments, th...David,<br />Thank you, as always, for your comments, thoughts, and questions. So much to respond to, I'm not quite sure where to begin. <br /><br />I'll start with something easy...<br /><br />You asked if I have a favorite instrument and if there's one instrument I practice more than the other. I think I like both piano and cello pretty equally but for different reasons. Physically, I'm much more comfortable and at home with the piano. I look at a piano, and can't help but feel like I'm home, with a friend. But with the cello, well, it's an instrument that you can literally hug and that makes it so much like a person. It's a very intimate instrument, really, and it's unique in that when you play it, you can feel the vibrations going from the instrument into your body which is pretty extraordinary. <br /><br />I am primarily a pianist now, and have been since college for the simple reason that I felt that piano was more practical in terms of making a living. So I mostly practice piano and on occasion, cello too. But I play chamber music on the cello all the time and I also play in the community/college orchestra in town. Fortunately for me, I don't have to practice cello much to be able to do that so I'm grateful. I don't think I'd have the time. <br /><br />I am very curious to check out the article you cited about Beethoven. I'm an avid reader and am also insatiably curious so thank you for passing that on. <br /><br />I am truly honored to be a musician and to also be meeting so many wonderful people here on the blog and on twitter. Like Beethoven said, I feel that I cannot fully comprehend how deeply music has impacted my life. It is a gift. A mysterious gift. <br /><br />Thank you again, David. <br /><br />-EricaErica Ann Sipeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526622607656348353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-32511795323801028462011-02-28T15:21:32.237-05:002011-02-28T15:21:32.237-05:00There is something to be said of who we are when w...There is something to be said of who we are when we are alone, far from the maddening crowds, far from our beloved fans, and far from our annoying critics. There is also something to be said about free will practice, no matter what we practice. Long ago the required curriculum and homework schedules of high school, never asked us to be creative, but only to answer specific questions in black or white. Now as a professional, the possibilities are limitless.<br /><br />While reading your post today, I could not help but reflect on Ludwig van Beethoven and some of the paragraphs I’ve read in, the series Cambridge Studies in Performance Practice (No. 4) Performing Beethoven Edited by: Robin Stowell, University of Wales College of Cardiff, Paperback (ISBN-13: 9780521023740), I can imagine how intense life-long learning and practices for both composer and musician must be. How many schools of thought are there in Classical Music?<br /><br />Since you are a Cellist and a Pianist, I can't imagine all the challenges and rewards you have experienced. What are your personal thoughts about your education, and now that you are a professional musician, how might you have enhance those years today?<br /><br />Who wouldn’t enjoy sitting by the hearth and listening to everything you've learned about the attributes of music, as well as the variations of emotional techniques stressed in your experience.<br /><br />Strings and Keys - you have to be a genius! I enjoy hearing both instruments - do you have a favorite and do you practice with one more than the other?<br /><br />I love Romantic Poetry, and Ludwig van Beethoven playing in the background, while I read poetry is a peaceful evening indeed.<br /><br />Do Columns like this interest you? I'm guessing you already knew these historical facts.<br />Emotion in Beethoven and his music - psychiatry in music<br />http://bjp.rcpsych.org/cgi/content/full/193/3/209<br /><br />****<br />"Music is the one incorporeal entrance into the higher world of knowledge which comprehends mankind but which mankind cannot comprehend."<br />-Ludwig van BeethovenAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-14160492542381304222011-02-22T21:33:01.688-05:002011-02-22T21:33:01.688-05:00Hello, T.K. It's great to hear from you on th...Hello, T.K. It's great to hear from you on the blog and to learn a bit more about you. I've been perusing your blog as well and am eager to check out your un-music blogs, especially your gardening one :-)<br /><br />So you're another pianist/cellist combo? That's so interesting to me. Seems like there are many of us out there and I can't help but wonder if there's a reason for that. But one thing I have to tell you...you say you are a "former" cellist? Hogwash! Once a cellist, always a cellist. That's what I love about the cello world!<br /><br />Thank you again for your comment and your greeting! Happy teaching, blogging, playing, gardening...phew! You do a lot of things :-)<br /><br />-EricaErica Ann Sipeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526622607656348353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-38431839312577033102011-02-22T21:11:20.072-05:002011-02-22T21:11:20.072-05:00Hello, Erica Ann! I found your blog via twitter an...Hello, Erica Ann! I found your blog via twitter and Miss Leslie... I LOVE your entry on practice -- it can get addictive, huh? I am a piano teacher and also a former cellist and I ONLY wish that I had continued cello into high school and beyond. I will live vicariously through you, I guess, if you don't mind! Haha! I hope ONE DAY I will take it up again. It is the most beautiful instrument. God bless you! <br /><br />http://www.chickyrama.comChick of All Tradeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11504997137351246340noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-60948537460254670622011-02-21T11:44:19.984-05:002011-02-21T11:44:19.984-05:00And Yiyi, I forgot to add that I'm excited to ...And Yiyi, I forgot to add that I'm excited to take a good look at your blog as well and learning about your studio. Thanks!<br /><br />EricaErica Ann Sipeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526622607656348353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-54368674194014256072011-02-21T11:42:07.306-05:002011-02-21T11:42:07.306-05:00Thank you, Yiyi, for the feedback! I always appre...Thank you, Yiyi, for the feedback! I always appreciate hearing back from folks that read my posts - keeps me thinking and writing which is always a good thing!<br /><br />I look forward to hearing more from you :-)<br /><br />EricaErica Ann Sipeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526622607656348353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7048025771349159983.post-67088980076006530812011-02-21T03:54:02.554-05:002011-02-21T03:54:02.554-05:00I just want to say that I enjoy reading your posts...I just want to say that I enjoy reading your posts! Thanks for sharing your insightful thoughts!Yiyi Kuhttp://www.yiyiku.comnoreply@blogger.com