Schubert - Impromptu Op.90 No.4 in A Major - (Kawai K200)
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- Опубликовано: 7 апр 2021
- To me, Schubert really was one of the greatest composers of all time. He lived a very short life during the classical period but was able to compose many masterpieces for the piano. I believe the set of four impromptus in Op.90 is among those masterpieces. I’ve been wanting to play these pieces since the first time I heard them, and now I think I got to the level where I can at least try to play them half-convincingly.
The No.4 is my least favorite impromptu, but nevertheless, a very beautiful piece with two very distinct contrasting sections that showcase Schubert’s style. The first section is characterized by the light, fast, watery-like, fallen arpeggios in the right hand, with a dance-like accompaniment in the left hand for most of it. It is extremely challenging not because of the speed, but because of the dynamic markings of pianissimo and the repeated notes that connect each small group of arpeggios. Playing this on an upright piano is especially challenging due to those fast repeated notes and the necessary dynamic control. The second part, the trio, has a beautiful mourning cantabile melody that has to be played with the 4th and 5th fingers of the right hand, along with a constant flow of very soft and fast repeated chords as an accompaniment being done in both hands. It has a dark, solemn character, and it is my favorite part of the piece. Again, it is necessary to have a masterful dynamic control and the ability to highlight the melody during the whole section. Keeping the hands very relaxed is also very important, as the repeated chords and the stretches in the right hand can easily lead to tension and injure.
This piece was very challenging to me and I’ve been playing it every day for several months now. It wasn’t hard to learn, as it is very repetitive, and the harmonies are very straightforward. But the refinement of this piece would take a lifetime. I was never particularly happy about my interpretation and sometimes I would blame the limitations of my small upright piano. I tried to record it several times, but I was never happy with the result. I notice that the weather affected my performance, as changes in the air humidity caused a slight change in the piano action, and with heavier keys, the fast repeated notes in the first part would fail more often. For that reason, I waited until the rainy season was over to commit to the “final” recording. Now my piano is a bit out of tune and with some regulation issues as well. But facing the worst stage of the pandemic here in Brazil, and with no expectation of it getting any better (ever… F!!!!! genocidal insane president), I won’t call the technician anytime soon. So, this is the best I can do for now. I will continue to work on this piece, and on the other 3 impromptus of the set. I hope I can play the entire Op.90 by the end of the year. Then, I might do a live concert on youtube to face my performance fear.
Let me know in the comments your thoughts regarding my performance. I am just a “beginnerish” amateur pianist, but I am trying really hard to get better :)
As with most of my uploads, this recording was made using a pair of condenser microphones, AKG P170, placed above the top lid of my upright piano, a Kawai K200. 
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That was really, really good. Very impressive stuff, enjoyed listening to your performance a lot!
Thank you very much, Tim! I appreciate your feedback and I am glad to hear that you enjoyed :)
You did a beautiful job! Thank you so much for sharing this with us. It is also my favorite of the Impromptus Op. 90.
Thank you! I really like Schubert's impromptus and it was really fun learning this one :)
I love the precision of the repetition. Outstanding.
Thank you! I waited for the dry season to record this piece, because the piano action is a bit more responsive and accurate when the air humidity is lower. During the rainy season, I couldn't play those repeated notes so well.
Muito bom! vejo que está cada dia melhor. A música nos emociona e nos alimenta nesses tempos tão difíceis de isolamento e vivendo em um país governado por quem não presa a vida e as emoções genuínas.
I just buy a kawai k 200 it so good love your style tank you for musik in thist time we are in
Thank you very much! I hope you are enjoying your Kawai, it's a great piano :)
Well done! I enjoyed this very much. You have also written the most interesting introduction/comment i have ever read on youtube. I was really amazed at what your ''little'' kawai piano can do. Looking forward to your other pieces.
Oh, thank you! I really appreciate your kind words. I always try to write some informative description about the pieces that I record, usually describing my thoughts on learning it and the difficulties that I faced. I am glad that you enjoyed it :)
Hi Christina, thank you for the hint on this. When I read, that Felipe ist talking about a „beginish“ amateur level, I‘m wondering where this should end. I‘m also fascinated what this „little“ piano sounds like. But I think that Felipe has found a very good place for the microphones and practiced a lot to level them out. The Recording quality is very good to almost pro level.
@Felipe it‘s fascinating to me that I become more and more familiar to the piece, which I already knew. I had to listen to your interpretation several times to read and anticipate your comments .. which was very pleasant by the time. We talked about room for improvement, but I have to say, that I‘m very impressed what you achieved in a relatively short time. I‘m awaiting the other pieces as well. And I‘m really curious about your goal to give a RUclips concert end of the year. Please keep going, stay healthy and keep playing, having joy and appreciating music.
@@thorstenmatadoerle8546 thank you so much! I am really enjoying reading your comments. I say I am a "beginerish" amateur exactly because to my view the learning and improving never ends, and I think I am closer to a beginner level than to a virtuoso level. It is crazy, but I wish to play at a virtuoso level some day. It may take decades, but that is ok. I just hope I can keep practicing and improving.
About doing a live recital, I am terrified about that idea, but also, I think it would be a great oportunity to face my performance fear. We will see how that goes, I am learning some pieces that I think would fit nicely to a recital and I still have 7 months to prepare.
Obviously you spent a long time making this so amazing...good job! This is stunning!!
Thank you! I am keeping this piece in my repertoire and I hope to record it again in the future. Hopefully in a nice grand piano :)
@@FelipeCostaPiano if you are in Ottawa you can use use mine 🥳😂
@@Bigblackpiano Hahaha, thanks! I am not planning on visiting Canada anytime soon, but it is good to know that when I do I will have a nice piano to play :)
Bravissimo!
Excellent. The kawai k200 still sounds incredible regardless of issues
Thank you so much!
Amazing! Congratulations! :D
Thank you!
SO WONDERFUL!!!!! Thank you for my favourite Schubert's masterpiece and for an excellent performance, I discovered your channel on the channel of Lauren, a talented pianist from Canada, and I've noticed your interesting comment, my best regards from Poland, have a nice weekend. Joanna
Thank you! I am really glad you enjoyed my performance :)
Lauren is a great pianist. I am also following her development.
I wish you a great weekend as well.
@@FelipeCostaPiano Already I've added this great video to my public playlist called "My Favourite Classical Music" and I've subscribed to your great channel (I'm your new subscriber No.200), again my best wishes from Poland! Joanna
@@joannawronska4100 Thank you so much! I really appreciate your support.
Hi Felipe, thanks again for that wonderful piece and great sound. As always, just every day now, I appreciate you playing and sharing your interpretations. In this case, I think you should work again at that piece and give us another take somewhat in the future. It‘s not that I think you‘d played it not well, it is because I think you can take a lot of improvement to this. It is a very hard and deep piece, and I think there is always a musical development with a person, which I am curious to see. Thank you again for all that playing and sharing, you are a great inspiration to me and I love your sound. Thorsten from Germany
Thank you so much! I know what you mean. After listening to my interpretation a few times I started to notice some aspects that I should work on. This is a piece I am trying to keep in my repertoire and I will keep trying to refine my interpretation. I would like to have all 4 impromptus ready for an "imaginary recital" by the end of the year, so I will definitely record this again, hopefully in a well-tuned piano :)
Que lindo! :´
Valeu mano! :)
Nicely played :-) I remember playing this piece many years ago and always had trouble with getting the repeated notes to sound properly on those fast downward arpeggios. You play them very clearly ! Just curiosity : are you studying with a teacher or learning on your own ?
Thank you! I worked really hard on those repeated notes and my teacher helped me with that :)
@@FelipeCostaPiano Well, your hard work paid off :-) Good job !
Really nice. I am practicing Clementi's Op 36 No 1. Working to practice to be as musical as you
Thanks, Taylor! Clementi's sonatinas are great for building a solid technical foundation. I am sure that if you dedicate yourself you can be a great pianist, much better than me 😅
Really well played! You've come a really long way in the last year. Currently learning a Schubert Moments Musicaux and he is a tricky fellow indeed.
Also any tips you have on getting quick and smooth arpeggios like that? Always interested to hear how other pianists deal with them.
Thank you very much! Schubert is awesome, I hope to play a few of his Moments Musicaux someday.
About the arpeggios, I am still struggling to do it lightly. But, the drill my teacher gave me that I think was helpful was to use a lot of finger action, playing it slowly but with mindful attention to the finger action movement. While doing that it is important to make sure the other fingers are relaxed after each attack. It is just an exercise, when playing it there is a bit of wrist rotation involved, so not only finger action, but that helps to develop the necessary touch. Also, rhythmic variations is really helpful to get it up to speed. I did it in groups of five, stopping at the note repetition after each semiquaver grouping.
@@FelipeCostaPiano Thanks for the tips :) looking forward to seeing what you record next !
Beautiful playing! I just recently began taking lessons and am currently learning on a Kawai ES110. I was thinking about purchasing a K200 in the future, but given the difference between upright and grand action, perhaps it would be better to save a bit longer to get the GL-10? Are techniques like quickly repeated notes significantly more difficult to achieve on an upright vs grand? You seem to play them really well!
Thank you very much!
It is good that you are thinking about getting an acoustic piano. The digital pianos have improved a lot, but none of them can really reproduce the experience of playing a real acoustic piano. I had the chance to test most of Kawai's acoustic pianos, from the K, GL, GX and SK series, and for me, in particular, since the GX line is so much better than the GL I wouldn't invest in a piano from that series. This might be an unpopular opinion, but I think getting a K300 (it is a bit bigger and more expensive than the K200, but I think it is the best in terms of cost/benefit) is better than a GL10. With the baby grand you have a slightly more precise action and it really is easier to do repeated notes. But in terms of sound projection, that dictates the amount of "colours"/dyncamic levels that you can do, the GL10 is not any better than the K300, or even the K200. It is a nice baby grand for sure and much better than Yamaha's GB10, but I feel there isn't really much gain in comparison to a nice upright. To really get the benefits of a grand piano I think it is best to save more money and get a GL30, or save even more and get a GX2, GX3, or GX5 (my favorite non-concert grand). You may be able to find a used RX model (previous version of GX line) in good condition for about the same price as a new GL10.
The thing about the action in grand being better is true, but when you compare it to a very nice upright, such as the ones in Kawai's K-series, the gain in accuracy is not that big. Some people say it is impossible to play really fast repeated notes in uprights, but I think it totally depends on the quality and regulation of the upright action. In general, I feel that the precision of the Kawai action is really good, both in the uprights and the grand pianos. The issue with buying an upright is that eventually you may want to upgrade to a grand piano. But if you buy a baby grand, eventually you will want to upgrade to a bigger grand piano.
But in any case, that is just my opinion. I think you should go to the stores and test as many pianos as you can. I did that before when I was thinking about upgrading my K200 to an afordable grand, and I ended up deciding that it was not worth changing it. The grand pianos that I really liked were way too expensive for my budget and the ones I could afford would not give me much gain in comparison to the K200 I have.
@@FelipeCostaPiano Thank you very much for the response! I appreciate you sharing your experience and opinions. I definitely plan to try these pianos out in person as soon as I can. Cheers!
Thank you for this! As a lover of Schubert's music who is contemplating going back to learning the piano as an adult, it was super helpful abd beautiful to watch.
I was thinking of getting the Kawai K15 until I watched this. As someone who can play this repertoire, do you think it is better to wait to afford the K200? (I'm low intermediate).
Thanks, I am glad you enjoyed my recording :)
About the piano, well... I really liked the K200 and I think it is an amazing entry-level instrument. But the truth is a larger instrument, assuming a good quality, gives you more dynamic range, and hence, the possibility to have more musical nuances in your playing. For this reason, I started to look into replacing the K200 with a grand piano. A few months ago I upgraded to a Kawai RX-2, as you can see in my recent videos.
If I didn't have the space or the condition to have a larger instrument I would still be happy with a K200. It has a really consistent action, a pleasant tone, and for its size, a pretty good dynamic range. But the quality among K200 models can vary, so I recommend that you play the instrument that you are buying (as opposed to playing in the one in a showroom and then ordering a new one from the factory). I played a few different K200 and there is a noticeable difference in the sound. I never tried a K15, but if it is similar to the other K-series in quality and tone I can recommend it.
Anyway, whatever you decide, if you can, play on these instruments, and on other models as well. Getting an acoustic piano is never an easy decision, but if you have more experience playing different pianos it is easier to make a good decision.
@@FelipeCostaPiano Thanks! I checked out your other videos and really like your choice of repertoire--subscribed.
Congrats on your new grand! I actually ended up getting a K200-atx4. I am about intermediate and want to continue getting better, but I live in an apartment and a silent system is a must (if I want to stay with acoustic, which I definitely do). So, the K200-ATX4 was the best option available for me at my budget. Thank you for your thoughtful answer, and happy playing!
P.S.--I'd love to start posting my progress too, once my piano arrives. It's fun to see other playing other folks what I'm also working on :)
@@waitingforapril Congrats on your new piano! The K200 with Kawai's newest silent system sounds like an awesome instrument. I hope you enjoy it and have fun on your piano journey. And thanks for the sub!☺
Belo vídeo Felipe! O qie achou do K200? Recomenda? Acha muita diferença para o K300? Abraço
Obrigado!
Eu gosto muito do K200 e do K300. Acho que nesta faixa de preço estes são os melhores pianos verticais que eu já toquei. O Yamaha U1 também é muito bom, mas é mais caro que o K300 e na minha opinião o som mais brilhante não é tão apropriado para o repertório clássico em geral. Hoje, se eu fosse comprar um piano vertical eu investiria um pouco mais no K300, pois ele tem mais amplitude sonora e é possível criar mais "contraste dinâmico" e tocar "mais cores". Ainda sim, o K200 é muito bom, mas como um piano pequeno ele é bem limitado neste aspecto. Neste sentido, um piano de cauda de pelo menos 1.80 m é bem melhor, mas custam mais que o dobro do preço do K300. A ação destes pianos da Kawai é muito precisa e eu diria que está no espectro de mecanismos mais leves, o que facilita para tocar rápido mas pode levar a estranhamento quando tocando em ações mais pesadas de pianos europeus, por exemplo. É uma questão bem pessoal e é claro que se você estiver interessado neste piano você deveria testar o máximo de opções possível antes de decidir. Mas eu, particularmente, recomendo, tanto o K200 quanto o K300.
@@FelipeCostaPiano Obrigado! Tentarei juntar dinheiro para o K300! Mas vou testar todos como vc falou. Abração!
I think I'm also with you that this is my least favourite out of the four (but only because the others are even better). However, I love that left hand melody around 01:02 and you played it very well. Great job
Thank you very much! I always appreciate your feedback.
Yeah, and that is how I feel as well. The No.4 is great, but the others are better! I also love that melodic line.
It is good to hear from you. Last I've seen from your progress you had just upgraded to a CA-79, but then there weren't many new videos. I hope you are doing fine and still playing. I am looking forward to your new recordings/videos :)
@@FelipeCostaPiano Yes, it's been a bit of a slowdown for me in the last couple months as a lot of work was put into my work and doing some side projects too. I plan on changing jobs and locations and there's a lot of preparation for that as interviewing will be a long process. However, I did develop a web application to predict how long it will take to learn a piece based on length, difficulty, experience, etc which is now live but needs a bit more work on the dashboard side (previous 3 years of my practice habits were tracked). I think you might be interested in it once it's fully live, maybe 1 week or so and would love to hear your feedback!
@@PeterHontaru I totally understand. I guess I've been in a similar situation, with a lot of work, the expectation of moving abroad (halted due to the covid traveling restrictions), and a new job that is taking most of my time.
That web app seems really interesting. I will be happy to take a look at it! I am not a developer, but I had some experience with web apps, and I also do some coding side projects frequently. So I guess I could give feedback as a user, and as someone that has some technical knowledge in the field.
@@FelipeCostaPiano oh, awesome! Would love some feedback, particularly given that you have both technical and piano experience. There’s currently around 6-7 different views that Im considering adding but it would be awesome to hear what you think of the overall concept and if there’s any questions you might have that it doesn’t answer already.
I recommend you view it off a laptop/pc for better experience than phone
peterhontaru.shinyapps.io/piano-practice-prediction/
@@PeterHontaru You made a ML model to predict how long you will take to learn new pieces based on your progress so far. That is really cool! Overall, the aesthetics of the web app is pleasant and the interface is intuitive. I can see that you are probably still refining some details, but congratulations on that project!
I am going to need to take some time to really think about your app, and then I will write you an e-mail with my impressions :)
Hey what you think about kawai k200. Shall I go for k200 or k300 ? How do you compare both?
Hey Nilim, I think the K200 is unbeatable in in the entry level upright piano category. The K300 is nice upgrade, having a bit more dynamic range and well balanced sound, with the nice accurate action that is used in the entire series. The action is a bit more on the light side, but is highly controllable and it feels kind of effortless to play. I switched to an older grand piano that has a heavier action and I still miss that aspect from the K200.
I think both K200 and K300 are excellent instruments, but each piano is unique, as there is some variability in the materials and production. So you really have to test them out for yourself. Also, if you can, try various samples from the same model and pick the one that you like more that is even better.
In my opinion, the K300 is worth the extra money, but the K200 has great value and the perfect option if you have a tighter budget. I would not go for a bigger upright, such as the K500, 600, etc. In that price range I think it makes more sense to go for a small grand instead. I personally didn't like the sound in those larger models. It felt like too much volume trapped in a box. Sounded dampen and dark, with unbalanced bass. Not like a grand piano that projects the sound outwards, instead of trapping it in a box. In that sense, the K300 had in my opinion the best sound in that series.
But of course, you have to test them all and pick the instrument that you like the most and that fits your budget. Yamaha also has nice options in that price range, but I personally prefer Kawai (or Bechstein if I could afford it haha).
@@FelipeCostaPiano Thank you sir for a precise and clear point of view. Definitely I would love to go for k300 🙂
Very good performance! You must Check right hand 3rd beat in bars 2, 4, 8 and 10, its B flat with G, but you are playing B flat with A flat.
Thank you! The notes in the right hand are correct, but I was playing a D flat instead of E flat in the left hand. So, thanks for spotting that mistake, I would never catch it!
Hola Felipe! I have some questions regarding your K200, because I´m looking for an upright. Is it possible to contact you in another way than writing here to ask? This considering you have the time and willing of course. Thanks!
Hi Nicolás. Sure, you can contact me on Reddit: u/facdo, or by e-mail: facdo@hotmail.com
Can I have your advice?
I want to buy that piano, my only concern is that it will be too loud, I live in a small apartment where building are close to eachother and stuff.. Do you think it's suitable from your experience with this beauty
oh and I love your playing man keep it up would love to hear nocturne in c minor from you
Well, I guess it depends on the acoustic isolation in your building. It is loud, but when I play with the doors closed it doesn't bother the people in my house. But I do live in a house, so the neighbors are not a concern at all. A digital piano would definitely offer more flexibility for your practice, but it is not as satisfying to play. If you have a very loud sound system you can do a test, leaving it on maximum for a couple of hours playing piano music and check with your neighbors if that was bothering them. If it didn't bother there is a good chance you will be ok with this piano. In any case, you can muffle the sound by placing a thick blanket on the back. My previous piano teacher lived in a small apartment and used that trick to avoid disturbing the neighborhood. Another option would be getting the version with the silent system, the ATX3. But notice that the action can be a bit different with that system, because the escapement needs to have a different regulation to enable the metal bar that physically stops the hammers from hitting the strings, in the silent mode. It is a good idea to test and see if you can perceive the difference.
@@artisticnature5491 Thank you very much! That nocturne is on my wishlist, but I need to finish the pieces I am currently working on first. I think I might learn it right after the Chopin etude that I am studying (Op.10 No.3), but that can take a while as I started it last week :)
@@FelipeCostaPiano Yea I was going for the silent one. I wanted first to buy kawai cs11 but then I thought to myself if I spend so much money on a digital piano why wouldn't I just buy a real piano that's a dream of mine for 3 years. I had the thought of playing mostly with the middle pedal and closing the window in my room. The neighbors are not so problematic it's just that I hate people hearing me mistake and play the same parts over and over again and when I'm good with the piece then they can hear it also ^^
The action is different when it's silent or all the time?
@@FelipeCostaPiano Good luck with that piece it looks fun to play and keep it up man you are a great inspiration with your consistency
Chopin op. 9 no.1?
I love that nocturne! It is on my list to learn in the future :)
It's good but it's A flat, not A.
Thanks! Yeah, I noticed I was playing some wrong notes after this recording.
Sympa, mais trop technique.. Le 2 eme mouvement meriterait plus de 'passion'..bonne continuation
Thanks for the feedback!