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Ed Balls took grade 1 piano today. It's true! He has said it went OK, but the sight-reading was in F major.

Come back Dave, all is forgiven

Really???? I always thought he had the most apt name for a politician...but I hope he passes his exam...

Well, you remember Dave Brum talking about making a "testicle bags in the air" of some piece or some s***t-r*****g. Do you suppose Ed thought "Oh, I''ve made a me-up"?

No, he's far too cocky. So to speak...

DIdn`t Lenny Henry do well - grade 4 merit! awesome!

It wasn't the piano that made Dave ill, it was his attitude towards/relationship with it.
I didn't realise LH was doing exams - well done that man!!

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gizzy wrote:Ed Balls took grade 1 piano today. It's true! He has said it went OK, but the sight-reading was in F major.

Come back Dave, all is forgiven

Actually, William Hague (Foreign Secretary and former Conservative leader) is a grade 4 pianist. He started learning around the same time as he married Ffion Jenkins, or as George W.Bush once called her; 'Effion'.

Blimey, I never knew Hague played the piano!
See my reply about learning in a different less structured way in the other thread, Dave; I think it might be a way forward. An exam should be a byproduct of learning, not an end in itself...Removing the exam aspect can remove the source of anxiety (although I still dislike performing in public so I can't talk!)

Gill the Piano wrote: (although I still dislike performing in public so I can't talk!)

Does playing the organ in chapel not count as a sort of public performance then??

Well not really because unless you make a real howling mess of it, people don't seem to notice you!

Well there is less chance of making booboos on an organ than a piano! To always get a round of applause after the final piece of grace music, when the congregation were already far advanced in getting their coats on and pondering that nice cup of tea and morning coffee finger in the draughty old church hall.... Hope you get that token.

Gill the Piano wrote:Blimey, I never knew Hague played the piano!

Surprised Grant Shapps (current Party Chairman) hasn't got him to play Land of Hope and Glory to the party faithful at the end of Conference. Denis Healey did likewise at the Labour conference with The Red Flag one year I seem to remember (I can also remember seeing him on Nationwide as a small boy playing piano at their Christmas panto.

Maybe 'Edward Testicles' will take on The Red Flag next year after grade 2!

dave brum wrote: she's always get a round of applause after the final piece of grace music, when the congregation were already far advanced in getting their coats on and pondering that nice cup of tea and morning coffee finger in the draughty old church hall! Hope you get that token.

I would be MORTIFIED - I always hope nobody's noticed me...

You'll have to turn the organ down to its lowest setting, then no-one WILL notice you... Or maybe put some hashish in the organ grinder's Fanta.

Organ grinder? All courtesy of Southern Electric (greedy grasping gits) these days!

Gill the Piano wrote:Organ grinder? All courtesy of Southern Electric (greedy grasping gits) these days!

I was assuming some of the chapels still had some manual organs, I know of one in Llanrug, north Wales at an independent evangelical chapel. But as you point out, with soaring electricity prices, manual organs may be in line for some sort of revival!

Any good God's Greatest Hits, or the Top of God's Pops this morning, or are you saving all your belters for remembrance Sunday in a couple of weeks? I

We had a few ripsnorters, yes; Hydrofoil (twice - once in each church) and I lost a skirmish over playing Rhuddlan for one hymn (boo!), Love Divine (Stainer's choon)and TOMS, you'll be pleased to note.

TOMS, tgotl. For one strange moment there I thought you were referring to other types of toms, which I'm sure they don't have in Buckinghamshire. But it's good to know even after all this time, god is still walking his porpoise out (with credit to gizzy for that one)

Would be interested in hearing Hydrofoil, it sounds very futuristic and Doctor Who-ish.

Hyfrydol, actually. But I've always called it Hydrofoil since before I could understand Welsh! What's tgotl? Is it Welsh...

Gill the Piano wrote:Hyfrydol, actually. But I've always called it Hydrofoil since before I could understand Welsh! What's tgotl? Is it Welsh...

Toms, tgotl. Tell out my soul, the greatness of the Lord. Looks more Magyar than Cymraeg.

True. So do you know Hyfrydol? I spec you do - most churches sing it.

Gill the Piano wrote:True. So do you know Hyfrydol? I spec you do - most churches sing it.

I don't go to church any more Gill. I rather suspect there are many closet agnostic church organists, such is the shortage of pianists and organists the established, roman catholic and other protestant churches/chapels can draw upon.

I shall however google Hyfrydol, probably come across some amateur scholar playing it on YT.

And I have done, and there were. It's Love Divine. That's the second thing I've learned today, besides the first two notes of 'My Bonnie Lies Over The Ocean' are a major sixth.

...and Love Story (Where Do I Begin) is a diminished sixth if memory serves. Or is it a minor 6th? So long since i had to do intervals properly!

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Oh, most people who do grade 1 don't know diddly squat about theory. But one really useful thing to latch on to is inversion of intervals - I don't mean that a third below G (E) becomes a third above (B), I mean that if you take a third, G over E, and stick the lower note up an octave, or alternatively the higher note down an octave, you get E over G, and there's a simple formula: 2nds become 7ths, (and v-versa) 3rds become 6ths, and 4ths become 5ths. Then major inverts to minor (and v-v) and diminished to augmented, and perfect to perfect.

So if you have the start of Love story and you know it's C over E, invert it to E over C, major 3rd, invert back, minor 6th, sorted. Augmented is one semitone bigger than major or perfect, and diminished is one smaller.

Someone seems to be very very angry at piano teachers!!! I have never seen so much negativity and long term moaning towards them, that poor piano4 solihull teacher to get a post like that, i will google them and inform them that you replied a year later (still) whinging that everyone is doing bad things in your lessons. I too like you are difficult but i learnt to listen to my teacher and now orogressing , done grade 5 thanks to my ability to shut up complaining and getting on

I like this forum but not if one person keeps replying "i have been badly treated" so why do you do it dave brum? Then u private messaged me and i dont know you! A bit too creepy.....

I started lessons aged 40 something and love it

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Has she sent you public humiliations? I found her twitter feed, really positive and funny, and her youtube page for pupils packed with beginners etc playing and clearly enjoying themselves...... Bless u dave and i hope the welsh teacher finds your posts so she can help u xxxx must be a burden for you xxxx god bless
MG