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Finding work in Philly:
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Jobs in church music: Steady Sunday |
Jobs as ballet accompanist |
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Steady Sunday brings steady pay, and is the best to pay your bills.
For this type of job, you may have to start at a small church that doesn't require you to have a degree in music performance, don't require to play the pipe organ, or having to direct a choir. Starting simple will get you the experience to move up into better paying jobs.
I was not able to find one in Philly without a college degree requirement. This one below doesn't requirer a degree but requires experience and to know how to play the organ. Principal organist at Holy Family Church. Philadelphia. Requires experience https://npm.org/job/holy-family-church-philadelphia-pennsylvania-principal-organist/ Jobs in church music: playing for weddings and funeralsThese jobs are not steady but they don't require a degree. You need contacts or a talent agent.
You also need a solid repertory of music that is played on weddings and funerals and know it perfectly. No mistakes are allowed on a wedding performance. I can provide you with all this, but you will need to learn it almost by memory because a lot of things happen while you are playing and you have to adjust to circumstances. Jobs in music production
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Here we could use your previous experience as a ballet dancer. You already know how rehearsals work and that experience would be in your favor.
Action: Contact a local ballet school in your area and ask an instructor what repertory you should learn if you want to prepare to work as a ballet-school accompanist.
Jobs in background musicYou will need contacts, or a talent agency to represent you and bring you gigs.
You will need a demo, a website, business cards, and ways to be easily found on the web. You will need to have repertory, songs you can play to cover about 2 hours of music. Teaching jobsHere is one in Chevy Chase, MD. Perhaps there are similar ones in Philadelphia. Notice that it does NOT require a college degree but to be enrolled as a student towards a degree.
https://www.ziprecruiter.com/jobs/chevy-chase-arts-academy-d908bd31/music-teacher-6d76f823?enc_campaign_id=e5c5742c&tsid=122004412&utm_source=channel-st&utm_campaign=id-644%7Csearch-Education+ |
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Prepare the melody.
Inner notes not essential until you learn it well. Base your playing on structural chords Arrange: 1- LH chords, RH melody 2- LH bass, RH mel + chord 3- Chord symbols |
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Vertical playing versus more flowing accompaniment (LH = 1-5-8). More gentle than vertical
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You can swing the 8th notes
Reducing chords to essential motions Gospel-style movement of chords using the notes of the scale. Crawling chords LH can use a more rhythmic bass when chords and melodies are on the RH |
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Draft program of study in chronological order:
Bach: C minor prelude and fugue (new) Beethoven: 2nd movement from the Pathetique Sonata Nr. 8 in C minor Op. 13 Chopin: Etude Op. 25 nr. 1 in A-flat Major (Aeolian Harp) (add-on: Chopin revolutionary etude) (add-on: Chopin F#m Prelude) List: Consolation Nr. 3 Rachmaninoff: Prelude Op. 23 Nr. 5 in G minor (Add-on: Rachmaninoff Prelude in D minor) (new) Debussy: Rêverie Goussev: L'Ouragan |
Strategy goals:
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Scales. Levine Curriculum Level Seven |
Level 7
Level 8
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March-22
Level Seven For next lesson, scale: B Major The progression for 2c and 3a goes like this: I – i – bVI6 – vi6 – IV64 – iv64 – I C - Cm - Ab - Am - F - Fm - C |
To order the book of scales: |
CZERNY-Germer |
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SCHAFER Sight-Reading. Volume 1 |
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CHOPIN. Prelude F# minorJuly 19
Still working on 4 against 3 as the main issue. |
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CHOPIN. Etude Op25 Nr1 "Aeolian Harp"July 19
Excellent musicality Keep melody finger-legato as much as you can reach with your hand Think fo the sound before you play it Phrasing Mirror notes right before the final arpeggio Attention to inner notes not to be too heavy when you are playing in "f" dynamic range |
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RACHMANINOFF. Prelude Op23 Nr5 Gm |
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DEBUSSY. Reverie5/25
First page and a bit of the second page. Lots of light touch for the LH and very delicate phrasing for the RH. Here is some help for the 4 against 3: |
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SUGGESTED PIECES:
BACH Prelude and fugue Nr. 2 WTC 1 C minor (finished) MENDELSSOHN Songs without Words Op.30 Nr. 3 and Op.53 Nr.1 CHOPIN Prelude Op 28 in C minor CHOPIN Etude Op. 25 Nr. 1 "Aeolian Harp" (in progress) CHOPIN Etude Op. 10 Nr. 12 "Revolutionary" RACHMANINOFF Prelude Op23 Nr5 G minor (in progress) DEBUSSY Rêverie (on reserve) LISTZ Consolation Nr.3 (finished) Nikolai, if you already have your own scores, use your own instead of these ones. The scores I provide are just to save you time in case you don't have the scores yourself. |
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Diminished scales |
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November 2
Send me the improvisation you mentioned at the lesson and I will give you my impression on how it can sound better (unless it is so good that there is nothing I can add) The 5 will be the chord producing the real tension. For this one here is a great trick: Raise one whole step up the note of the V7 For example, if G7, take A Build a Major chord from this note Example: A Major (A - C# - E) Each of these resulting notes are the root of the chord we will be adding to the G7 Examples: LH plays G7 while RH plays A Major (9, #11, 13) LH plays G7 while RH plays C# Major (b9, #11) LH plays G7 while RH plays E Major (b9, 13) |
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3/16
Analyze your chord progression just like we did today with Bach. Then decide how the different sections affect the way this piece will be played. Dynamics, introverted playing versus extroverted, structural section versus transition, how a transition will be played, as a tension that resolves or no tension, just taking you from one place to the next... etc. Write as much as you can and send it to me as a way to hold you to a deadline. Also, watch the enharmonies that call A# minor to whet really is Bb minor chord/section. You may need to re-name some notes around measure 9. 2/23 Feel free to send me pictures of the scores with your scribbles before committing to transferring the dynamics and phrasings to the editor. It will save you a lot of time. I will gladly look at them and give you suggestions. 2/17 Add all dynamics to your piece and send me a PDF with them before our next lesson so we can discuss them. The sooner before the next lesson the better so it gives me a chance to study the piece before we meet. 2/10 Score received and attached to the side for our reference. We will update this version as other modifications may take place. Next action: While I go through the piece to see how it sounds, you can start adding all the necessary details to make sure your intentions are clearly stated in the score. The first one is to figure out how to indicate which notes form the melody. |
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PASSED: CLEMENTI Sonatinas Op. 36
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Video with articulation example
Video practicing slow motion and regular motion
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PASSED. LISTZ. Consolation No. 35/5
Start section: Beautiful melody. Accompaniment could be a bit lighter 14 beautiful 15 attention to the notes 21 don't strike to hard 22 lighter 25 no bass Db 31 too hard a strike 33-34 excellent crescendo-deccrescendo 38 remember "pp" 40 and 41 more effect if you started pp earlier 43-44 LH needs to go into pp so melody on 45 can sing easily 47 Attention to accent 48-49 context is "p" 53 16th notes are an extension of the D half note, not a actual melody 56 very good 59-60 evaporate |
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4/7
Still too focused on the individual notes. Let's try practicing phrase by phrase rather than the complete piece. One phrase: - Slowly, as slow as necessary - Bring out the leading notes (top and bass) - Think of the shape of the phrase (4 measures) - Record it as if it was going to be presented in public. Slow is ok but has to sound musical. - You are going to send me a recording of each phrase, but only send me your best. - For the purpose of learning the notes, practice from both ends. |
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