1st page of Fuga learned. At least all the individual measures.

I seem to have gotten over the recording mind-blanking-thing that was happening with Siciliano. Either that, or it's so hot I'm delirious.

While singing/humming/la-ing Rigaudon in my head today, I realized I would like it just as well if I got rid of the 4-3-2-1 trill and substituted a grace note. So another change to cement into my hands.

Tambourin is actually at speed.  I surprised myself. I'll need to listen to a recording to see if the trills actually come out. Correction: I'll first need to record it, then listen to it.

Trills in 3rd line of Tambourin. Actually, the grace notes. I have to slow them way down and place faster. They sounded much better today.  My thumb muscles were fatigued, though, bordering on tendon-hurting fatigue, and I had to take a break.

Giga - tried to get the key change measures after the repeat smoother. They just got worse.  I'll see if they magically straighten out after a few days.

Worked on a little bit of Impromptu Caprice. I do not understand how it could possible be ♩ .=100. I don't think I've ever heard anyone play it that fast.

I'm not sure what to do about Fuga. I really don't like it and every time I look at it to learn more my brain says, "Isn't there ANYTHING else we could play?"

I know I played Thursday. I may have played Wednesday? I can't remember what I did. Probably a little more work with Tambourin.

Oh! and I worked a little on the spots I had trouble with in Siciliano and Gavotte to keep it recording-ready. Or to get them to recording-ready.

Worked a little on Giga. Ran through Tambourin as a workout. Started working on Siciliano again.

Darn, an order I placed for Nicolas Flagello's Two Pieces for Harp Solo was cancelled. :( Not back ordered, but completely cancelled.

Warmed up with a measure from Impromptu-Caprice. It is ridiculously fast. More broken chord than arpeggio.

Started going through charts in order:

Rigaudon - first section ok at 80. Hands try to play out of sync, though, so need to pay attention to that.

Tambourin - first run through trill were ok and clearly defined. 2nd run through not so much. I guess that means I'm getting my muscles conditioned.

Giga needs polishing again.

Detail work on Giga.

Tried to record Siciliano on my own and once again, it was like I'd never seen the music. Plus crows cawing and people slamming doors didn't help the quality of the recording.  Good thing is the decorations I put in sound good.

Tambourin trills still need work. They do not come out clearly in recording.

Gavotte went better. Sarabande was almost flawless.

More working out with Tambourin. I can't tell if it's getting better, but my hands and arms are sure feeling it.

I'm naturally playing Giga faster than the slower-than-indicated tempo I picked. Now I just need to clean it up and add the frills!

Just ran through some stuff in 15 minutes.

Eye appointment no harping, can't see a THING.

It's one of those days where hands and arms are surprised I play the harp and my brain says, "What are all these STRINGS doing here?!?" Those days are better for learning, and learning slowly by creeping up on the goal speed instead of chaining. 

Three more measures learned in Fuga.

Also, when you get coconut splinters under your fingernail, it really hurts to do the "falling rain" effect with the backs of your fingernails.

Kung Fu Theater took precedence.

More stamina work on Tambourin.  One more measure learned on Fuga.

Slammed my thumb at work today, and I'm using that as an excuse why I couldn't play trills in Rigaudon.

I also realized maybe part of the reason I can't focus is because I'm not writing a summary at the end of each practice sesh.

I am working towards polishing Tambourin and Rigaudon. I am doing that by playing each one until I make a mistake, working on the mistake, starting over from the beginning and hopefully going further the next time. Basically plowing through it.

I'm still working on Automne as a fun thing. It's almost done.

Sarabande, Giga, and Siciliano still need to be recorded.

I started Fuga and I think I'm going to hate it. I have to figure out how to play it so I like it.

Starting exercise regimen again for Tambourin. I can only do the trills for about 10 min.

Still trying to record.

No recording today.

As expected, the pieces I want to record tomorrow that were in good shape, are not in good shape.  I hope the detail work I did sinks into my brain overnight!

Recording every practice session is maybe helping?  Different parts fall apart differently at different times. It's impossible to know what to work on.

Every time I turn on the recorder. EVERY. TIME.

Possessed metronome

Today I found my metronome on - just the light blinking - with the switch in the off position. It continued to blink even after I removed the battery! I'm assuming that's some sort of capacitance malfunction as opposed to an on/off switch malfunction. It eventually stopped. Will this drain the battery?

Change the 2nd page trills in Giga. Sounds fine. Add glisses?

Corelli's Giga

I'm starting Giga and love this version. It sounds a little like the violin is teasing us.

Need to do pressure testing on Gavotta, Siciliano, and Sarabande for recording next weekend?

I dropped a knife on my finger last night - not sure how that happened - and it's still gushing. I wasn't able to practice, really, but got my fingers warmed up enough to where they felt ok.

Siciliano REALLY needs the melody line brought out, and the mid-range quietened.

Gavotte - need to learn the additions I made.

Tambourin - continue work on trills.

This is what happens when you have pedal changes and wobbly ankles.

Test record Siciliano and Gavotte tomorrow.

I think Gavotte and Siciliano might be close to being ready to record.

I've almost (re)learned Sarabande in under a week. It helps I learned it before and it's slow.  But I need to not let that keep me from putting as much dynamic work into this as the other pieces.

I finally figured out where this particular Gavotte by Corelli is from: it's from Concerti da camera Op. 6 No. 9, and is usually titled "Gavotta: Allegro." It's a really sweet little piece.

Forgot to post yesterday - I need to listen to my recorded Gavotte variations today. And apparently this Gavotte is not the most popular Gavotte he wrote so I can't find any versions by other people to compare.  I'm flying blind here, people!

A lot more progress on Siciliano and Rigaudon. Still need to practice variations of Gavotte in prep for recording.

Recorded Gavotte - need to listen tomorrow.

Need to clean up trills in Tambourin.

Listen to Tambourin tomorrow.

I forgot what I was going to write...

Oh yeah, I need to learn Siciliano with the chords broken and record that and compare it to unbroken.

I finally figured out the reason I couldn't play some things in Chaconne: my harp bounces around when I play loudly, which is why I would miss notes and why I can play it just fine quietly. 

I need to really wedge it between my shoulder and jaw, right up against my neck. Of course, this completely changes my perspective of the strings and I was missing notes because of that.

J. S. Bach - Sonata for Flute and Harpsichord in E-Flat Major BWV 1031 ...

This is the version I like of Siciliano. And here's the link because blogger sucks. http://youtu.be/rvbKD_iA5-I

It's amazing how amnesia strikes as soon as I turn the recorder on and I have no recollection how to play something I've been playing just fine for weeks.

Need to go measure by measure in Siciliano to get dynamics and working on bringing out melody. And apparently, relearn it.

Shaky arm has calmed down. Still not sure what was going on.

Finished initial learning of Gavotte.  Rewrote some fingering.

Siciliano needs more melody work. 

Tambourin - working on difficult chord progression.

I think I have a mental block against Rigaudon.

Thumb was KILLING me where skin is thinner.

Weird shakiness in my left hand prevented me from learning anything new today, so just ran through all the things I've learned from Solos. My left 4th finger was missing everything. I think I'll go have a bit of a lie-down. Too bad I don't have an appropriate Victorian fainting couch, sheesh.

I *have* been practicing, just not noting it. Today I split up Tambourin into phrases and moved the metronome up 2 clicks on two of the phrases.  This seems to work better for getting rid of buzzing. Or I could need to record again as I might be ignoring things as usual.

The melody line is coming out slightly better in Siciliano.

Gavotte is almost all done, and Rigaudon is barely started, and I'm too tired to do more.

My thumb is still peeling.

Listened through Tambourin today.  Lots of buzzy fingers.  Slowing it down and picking it apart is showing lots of sloppy playing. Also, it's easier to be less buzzy when playing less loudly. 

Listened to a recording of Siciliano to find out exactly where the melody line is. Not where I expected, and I may need to change fingerings in order to bring out the melody properly.

Gavotte seems to be coming back to my fingers quickly.  Rigaudon is more challenging.

All need muscle-building work.

And I'm hoping my thumb is finally done peeling. It's like a notepad - ripping off a fresh sheet every day.

Started Rigaudon (Rameau) and Gavotte (Corelli) today. Made worksheets for both. Rigaudon is going to be challenging, Gavotte is both shorter and easier. And slower.

Siciliano and Tambourin both got the "record 3x in order to put colored dots on a copy" treatment to see where the problem points are.  There are... quite a few.  I hesitate in Siciliano and need to clean up the buzzing.  Tambourin is maybe not as far along as I'd like.

Worked on Siciliano. Small bits need chaining.  Then played though all the things I've learned out of Solos for the Harp Player in order to keep them in my hands.  Not too bad, I think.

Siciliano and Tambourin now learned. In order to polish, taking one line at a time in case of Tambourin, and half pages for Siciliano.

Ugh, fingers still peeling.  Played a few things from the back catalog. Worked half-heartedly on the last line of Siciliano.

Tambourin is done, just needs polishing.  Pretty good for having started 2/1/14.  Less than two months to get to the point I'm usually at at six months.

Also, trying the chaining technique with Srebotnjak Prelude III and it seems to be working well, too.  Wish I had known that earlier. But glad I know it now.

My thumbs - now plural - have not healed enough yet for me to play as much as I want.  But I did manage to get most of Tambourin knocked out.  I have a feeling it's going to give me more problems than Siciliano.

Waiting for skin to grow back.

Callus peeled off thumb. Again. But manage to get first page of Siciliano completely done before it got too painful.

One more measure of Tambourin. Sort of. I seem to be taking more care with Siciliano.

Too wrecked to make any headway on either, though.

Siciliano - need to chain from mid page to end of page on each page.

Tambourin - need to drill trills.

LGR is still shaky. Not sure I"ll be able to record it tomorrow.

Siciliano is learned! Now "just" have to polish it.

Tambourin has weird mental blocks in it for me.

LGR for endurance in prep for recording.

Almost done with Siciliano - 2 more measures.

Tambourin - I realized the version I posted last time has an Inspector Gadget flavor to it. It's fun to play that way.  The pedal changes are going to require a lot of work.

I'm not having any luck making music.

This is a fun interpretation of Tambourin:
Tomorrow I need to chain left hand trills on LGR. Significant chunks done on Siciliano.

I think I'm on the 7 year Ira Glass plan as far as writing music is concerned.

Got a lot done on Siciliano.  Dewy Owens really knows how to arrange for harp.

Need to strengthen rt thumb for Tambourin trills (and Arabesque 2 still).

Got 1st page Siciliano done.

Took a fantastically long time tracking down a menu in FL Studio and didn't really get any song-making done.

Remarked more fingerings in Tambourin.  I've pretty much changed every single trill in it now.

Worked on one problem spot in LGR.

One of the things I like about learning a piece at speed is that I can figure out appropriate finger markings right away - fingerings for playing something slowly doesn't always translate into ease in playing faster.

Exercises, sort of.

Plotted out plan for JS Bach's Siciliano and JP Rameau's Tambourin.  Trill will START on the beat.

trill exercises and LGR.

Got Arvo Pärt's Fur Alina from library. Unfortunately, my harp doesn't have the necessary bottom string. But the upper notes are still beautiful.

St. Vincent : Digital Witness - I still have varied responses to her work, but I really like this one.



Holly Herndon : Chorus - She somehow tracks her youtube/websurfing and combines it into song form. Wow.

 

John Lurie Orchestra : Men with Sticks (Album : The Invention of Animals) - He got Lyme disease and had to stop playing the sax? Ulp. This is early, pre-Lounge Lizards stuff. From what I've heard, I love it just as much as anything he's ever done.  Unfortunately, the title track, which clocks in at 17:40, is only available on vinyl.  Yet another reason to take apart and clean the potentiometers on my record player.

Recording today.  Still don't know yet if noise is still an issue, but much more confident today.

Chaconne took six takes, and I'm moderately sure I got a good one.  Zarabanda only took two takes and I KNOW I got a good take.  It was a great feeling.  Recording is much easier when you can play flawlessly.

I'm also figuring out how to relax while playing while recording. It's a matter of awareness and forcefulness.

Day off for blister repair worked.

Detail work on Chaconne in prep for recording tomorrow, I hope.

Tried to work more on trills in Arabesque 2. Elbow hurting.

Blister better at beginning of practice, but then had to stop after 1.5 hours.

Worked on muscle strength for Chaconne and 2nd Arabsque with both of those and (Flight) and (Inquietude).

Blister still kind of there.

Figured out another weirdly arranged note cluster in Arabesque 2 and got frustrated at having to retrain my muscles. But the new way makes a lot more sense.  I have a feeling this is not going to be done by the end of the month, but I'm ok with that.

Blister.

Switched to working on website.

2 hours on the dot. Muscle endurance seems to be key as opposed to learning the notes.

(Inquietude) for trills, then 2nd Arabesque. Crappy.

(Flight) for scales, then Chaconne.  I was able to play this surprisingly fast after warming up with conditioning exercises.

Zarabanda went well, too. Just need to pay attention to ... it... while I'm playing it.  Dynamics are probably as good as they are going to get.

Tired, but not as tired as yesterday.

Tried to do the Raymond Chandler way of practicing which is you don't hav to play, you just can't do anything else. It almost worked. I was completely beat just 10 minutes shy of the 2 hour mark, so I stopped. And of course, considered doing other harp-related things as fulfilling that goal anyway. But it's not.

I played a lot of different things, because of lack of concentration, however I feel I gained muscle.

And now, holy crap, must nap.

May have blisters, so only played an hour in order to save fingers for recording tomorrow. Hopefully I stopped in time.

Drilled Chaconne in prep for tomorrow.

Warmed up with (Inquietude).

Things that delayed my practice:
One light bulb in ceiling fixture burned out.  Got chair. Stood on chair to remove light covering. Went to wash dead bugs out of covering and get light bulb. Sighed at full sink of dishes. Did dishes before washing cover. Cover washed. Removed old light bulb, installed new light bulb.  Discarded empty light bulb packaging, put chair away.  Walked back into room, which was decidedly too bright.  Went and got chair, discarded packaging, and lesser wattage light bulb.  Removed cover, installed new bulb, replaced cover. Put away chair, discarded new packaging.  Walked back into room, other light bulb burned out.  Went and got chair and original bulb.  Removed light cover, removed old bulb, installed original higher wattage new bulb, replaced cover.  Put chair away and practiced in a too-bright room.  This is why I have trouble getting things done.

Warm up with (Inquietude).

Detail work on LGR.

Detail work on Arabesque 2.

Did Fraîcheur and details of (Inquietude) to warm up.

Worked more spots in Chaconne.

Arabesque 2 - working on chaining trills.

Played for 2 hours.

Practiced trouble spots on 1st two pages Chaconne. Need to do two more tomorrow.  Need to do at least 2 hours to reacquire endurance lost on vacation.

Went through Arabesque.

Third rt finger still hurts.

Figuring out sampling in audacity vs. fl studio.

Random pain in 3rd finger cut practice short.  Would like to list what I need to work on in detail.

I found the "new age" setting in audacity!

I didn't realize making new age music was so easy.

Let's see if blogger allows an embed:
It does! Sweet.  If not, here's the link: https://soundcloud.com/motorharp/this-will-cure-your-insomnia

It is very relaxing.  Some might say almost too relaxing.

Recordus interruptus.

Warmed up with Lariviere, might be good for recording.

Worked on Siciliano even though I have no plans drawn up as of yet.

The recordings from Sat still sound better after getting them home and listening on a different set-up. Using two regular mics and the rear channel from a 3rd sounds good and retro (Zabaleta from the 60s). Hopefully, this will be a long term availability.

Need to listen to Zarabanda variations (Painting A Scene) I recorded today, which I promptly forgot about, and see which I like.

New recording space is much more promising.  Recordings sound so much better, despite me still playing like crap. Will practice more this week and play with recordings in audacity in prep for recording next week, as well.  I think I'll try Berceuse and have Chaconne as backup.

Nervously testing out a potential recording space tomorrow. Still have tender fingers from latest bout of not-playing.

Played Zarabanda a few different ways to see if it made more sense. It was fun and did make a difference, but I'd need to record it to hear it. And I'm so leery of recording right now.

Got another piece of equipment for field recording, namely latex foam to wrap around the mic holder to minimize the noise of my creaky finger joints. For a buck fifty, too.

Played with FL10 and followed a tutorial that went way too fast for me, but I was actually able to make the same sounds.

Today was the first session of field recording/writing/playing with Audacity that I set up for myself.  Here's how it went:
- Turned on recorder yesterday to find batteries dead.
- Tried to record around the house with power plug.
- Spent 1 hour of part of hour set aside for both field recording and writing going to store for batteries.
- Sat down to write and spent most of time organizing all the little bits of paper I've written stuff on into one space.
- Downloaded sounds off my microphone.

My hand was doing much better until I started knitting. :/

I did practice, can't remember what I did. Oh, right. Tried to record Chaconne again.  Was disappointed again. Need to find someplace free and quiet.

Tried to record again today and was successful in not having background laundry/construction noise, but my fingers hurt so much I couldn't do very much. And whatever I did to my tendon by sleeping on it however is still hurting. Very disappointed.

However, was wondering about recording on four tracks with microphone and turning up back mics to get more room sound.

Didn't get to record today because massive amounts of road construction going on right outside my building. However, that gave me time to figure out maybe why I haven't been able to play one particular part of Chaconne is because I needed to change the fingering.  It works better now, but now I have to get it in muscle memory.

Tried to record today, but a combination of cold weather, someone running water the entire time, and me not setting up the microphone properly conspired against me.  Maybe tomorrow.

Also got suggestion from friend to try local community college for rentable recording spaces. Or free.

Chaconne - played through a few times and marked dynamics. Some trouble spots disappeared on their own.  Need to, tomorrow, do dress rehearsal.

Arabesque - tried to cement what I recently learned.

Imp Cap - one more line.

If I play Chaconne slowly, I think I'll be able to record this week after I work out more problem spots that showed up in this round of test recordings.  My scales sound incredibly even on the recording and incredibly uneven in my ear when playing.  Weird.

Tomorrow need to sit down and listen to the three take and mark another copy of the music, work through them, then pressure test.

Another good practice session, I think. 

Chaconne - another area chained. Need to see tomorrow if it held, and record again tomorrow to see where I am for recording for real next week.  My tendons are starting to hurt faintly and I realized while playing this it's because of the harmonics.  Need to find some sort of exercise to prevent tendons from hurting when my thumbs twist, or prevent my thumbs from twisting altogether.

Arabesque 2 - Drilling trills slow to fast seems to finally have paid off.  Now just need to speed up placing and I think I'll have this. 

Really good practice today - was able to concentrate on chaining needed part of Chaconne and have success. Need to chain more tomorrow - section marked.  Stopped early because my fingers are STILL tender and I want to sew.  My fingers appear to be getting tougher, but not quickly.

Also started the process of getting permission to record copyrighted pieces for an album.  First step appears to be getting a mechanical license.  Actually, first step is finding out who owns the copyright, or where pieces are registered. It's confusing.

Chaconne - passage marked for chaining.

Chaconne - worked on buzzes.

Arabesque - one more measure sped up. PLaying at speed is hit or miss.

How to get my hands to do the same thing every time.

Tomorrow work on blue - buzzes.

In prep for recording again, going through Chaconne and concentrating on a different color for each work session. Green for tempo.Need to work on scales.

Ok, so maybe I have blisters on all my fingers.

I think I gave myself 3 blisters today. One for sure because it's visible, and possibly two more that are hidden deep under the skin.

Yesterday, I made a practice schedule out through the end of September 2014. Then I read that your learning time either expands or contracts to fill the time you've allotted yourself to learn  said thing. Based on that, I'm going to revise the schedule as I go along to try to push myself to get things done more quickly.

However, like today, when pushing myself I quickly see what my limits are. And they are short. Very, very short.

I need to work on trills with rt hand 1&2 exercises for Chaconne.

Chaconne - exercises have helped, still need to do them over and over for... another week?

Arabesque - exercises have helped, still need to do them over and over. Got to check off two more measures.

ImpCap - more lines learned

Arabesque - still need to work on second trill

Chaconne - Almost. Done.  I still need to convince myself I already know line 1 on 3rd page and then learn next line and I'm done except for polishing.

I've been listening to Zarabanda and I don't like the way it came out. :(

Chaconne - chained again.

So, I wasn't going to play for very long today, because of blisters, but I completely lost track of time and 1.5 hours later had another blister.

ImpCap - pg 8 line 1 needs going over again.

Arabesque 2 - need single work on 2nd 16th notes 2nd measure

Chaconne - laughable

Arabesque 2 - The 16th note exercises are working. So well that I have a blister on my thumb. I also have one on my 3rd finger of same hand, but don't know what that's from.

Chaconne - One more stubborn measure.  Chaining helped a little bit, need to do it again.

ImpCap - more random lines.  Seems to be going quickly, but I set myself low goals.

Arabesque - Played through as fast as I could. Gaps between each eighth note pair needs to go away.

ImpCap- One more line

Chaconne - one phrase worked a little faster. Need to go over it again.