Out of (brain) practice

So … it’s wonderful to be able to play the piano again but I have to confess something. I did not have a grand “oh-wow-this-sounds-amazing-again” moment the first time I played it, after my piano tuner left. Rather, I had a “woah-has-this-piano-been-tuned-at-all” moment. Before I could question the work of my very talented tuner much further though, I remembered that my brain is out of practice.

Clearly it’s what happens after a five-month break from playing. The piano sounded somewhat … er … terrible. Not as bad as after my CIs were switched on, thank goodness, but definitely muddled. Pachelbel’s Canon made me shudder, as did Mozart’s Turkish March. Debussy’s Clair de Lune, my favourite, sounded a little sweeter to the ears. Perhaps more familiar to the brain.

After 30 minutes or so, the piano sounded much better. But I am going to have to find the time to sit at it regularly to stop that from happening again!

Tuning time

I’m very excited about my piano being tuned next week. It started going out of tune last December and got progressively worse with all the humidity over summer. Having finished my concert and lessons in time, I never bothered getting it tuned. Figured it could wait until its regular annual tune in May.

I’ve been deliberately avoiding it while it sounds so bad, for fear I will accidentally retrain my brain the incorrect tones and pitches for everything. Is that even possible? Not sure. But I dare not risk it after all my hard work.

People ask me if I can perceive that it’s out of tune. Yes! Notes that don’t belong in certain scales. An annoying twang that not only resonates after pressing a key, but changes the tone. Bars of music that sound like they’re being played in entirely different keys. Reminds me what it was like playing the piano with my distorted natural hearing in the months leading toward total deafness.

Can’t wait to get back into playing – I really miss it!

The calm before the storm

Tap tap tap. Tuh-tuh-tuh-tap. Tuh-tuh-tuh-tap. Tuh-tuh-tuh-tap.

Ignore that, if you can. Or give me A Look, whatever. That’s what Jase does. It’s the sound of me tapping my fingers on the table and I’m told it’s Annoying. Why am I tapping? Because I’m waiting.

Inspired by David Helfgott!

When it comes to playing the piano, no living person inspires me more than David Helfgott. So what a treat to see and hear him perform live in a solo piano recital at the Melbourne Recital Centre on Friday night.

I’d never been to this venue before – it opened while I was deaf. I used to walk past it a bit sadly, wishing it had opened during the years I had normal hearing. I never thought I’d be lucky enough to be able to attend and hear a performance there. (Insert spontaneous applause for the miracle of cochlear implants!)

Inspired!

I’ve been haunted by Rachmaninoff’s third concerto over the past few days, since discovering it for the first time while watching Shine on Saturday night. This piece has me completely captivated, from start to finish. I’ve never heard anything like it. How I didn’t know about it in my days of natural hearing is beyond me, but, never mind, I know it now. And I can’t let it rest.

I’ve been listening to it over and over again on the iPod. The more I hear it, the more I want to play it.

Piano video, as requested ;-)

(Note: Flash player required)

Have been asked by a couple of my CI buddies to post a video of myself playing the piano, so here I am, playing Debussy's Clair de Lune. This was my concert piece last year, but there are still parts I hope to improve. Hope you enjoy it.

PS: I don't know much about video. Apologies for the poor resolution. And if you hear a hissing sound in the background, it is not your sound processor it's the cheap microphone in our (clearly overpriced) camera. :-D

PPS: This is Clair de Lune. Yes. Debussy. It is not: 'The Twilight Song'. (!)

Piano score

One of my favourite all-time quotes is by Victor Hugo. He said:
"Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent."


I've been very silent on this blog about what music actually means to me. And should I tell you my complete musical 'story', you'd be reading for days. ;-)


Let me just say that there are some childhood dreams we leave behind, and others we are tied to for some inexplicable reason. For me, one of the dreams I couldn't leave behind was my desire to pursue the piano.

Day 3 post-activation

Some random audio observations and milestones from me, at the three-day mark.

The cuckoo clock

I can now decipher the two melodies well enough to recognise which one is playing! I can hear the cuckoo clock from any room in the house, even when there is background noise (eg a television) turned on!