Improv Jazz Piano! (Or, Ode to Chopin)

Well, it looks like I'm going to be taking improv jazz piano lessons, believe it or not! Today, several people who are interested in piano lessons met with the piano teacher, and it went pretty well. He said that to improvise, it's best to have a solid classical background, which is what I'd like to think I have. So... there's some hope here.

The teacher... let's call him Fernando ... seems like a pretty laid-back and decent Kerl. When he first played a few improv pieces, I honestly wasn't that impressed, probably because I'm used to Syd's chaotically beautiful compositions. We'll give Fernando the benefit of the doubt, though.

But I was definitely impressed with some of his classical playing... his runs are very professional... one particular classical piece was primarily comprised of complicated runs and he played it extremely smoothly and gracefully (think: no pauses, unecessary volume changes, skipped notes, weird intonations, etc), which can be quite difficult.

And then... he said that his favourite composer is... Chopin!

*jumps up and down*

I remember sitting in my bedroom as a little girl, listening to a cassette of his preludes and just crying and crying... first, because it was so beautiful and second, because I thought I'd never in my life be able to play a Chopin piece.

Anyway.

He played a bit of a Nocturne, which was a lovely piece. Though I was hoping for one of the wild etudes or preludes. Eh, maybe next time.

Lessons are going to start this coming week, and I'm curious and excited to see how things turn out. This could open up an entirely new door in Pallas Athena's Blissful World of Music.

Ah, my man Freddie. If he were alive and touring, I'd be a totally pathetic groupie.


Ode to Chopin

There was once a composer named Freddie
With music romantic and lovely
He composed and he wrote
The most gorgeous of notes
But alas, I will ne'er be a groupie.