Jeremy Taylor

Final Recording of Grade 5 Exam Pieces | Piano Progress Week 103

All my Grade 5 pieces recorded at Blackheath Conservatoire. 00:00 Bach - Invention No. 8 in F 01:05 Mompou - La Barca 03:05 Denes Agay - Blue Waltz ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Denes Agay - Blue Waltz (ABRSM Grade 5 2023-2024 C4) | Adult Piano Progress

This is my C list piece for my upcoming Grade 5 exam with ABRSM. I find Blue Waltz sounds and feels very different when played on an acoustic rather than on my digital - which I've recorded this on - so my plan is to hire an acoustic for a few hours over the next couple of weeks before the exam to practice on! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bach - Invention No. 8 (ABRSM Grade 5 2023-2024 A4) | Piano Progress Week 100

Not a perfect recording by any means, but the best I can do for now. Lots still to work on in the run up to the exam! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Come and join our Piano Learners DISCORD!

Discord Invite link: https://discord.gg/mbsgpzye ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Piece choices for Grade 5 ABRSM exam | Piano Progress Week 98

This video details the pieces I have chosen for my ABRSM Grade 5 exam, which is coming up soon at the end of June. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Are ABRSM sight reading exams getting easier?

I answer, with examples, whether ABRSM Piano sight reading requirements have got easier since the 1980s. 00:00 Introduction 00:33 Hypothesis! 02:19 Example 1 05:49 Example 2 09:59 Example 3 12:41 Example 4 15:41 Conclusion ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Part 3: Supporting TOM JONES & THE MOODY BLUES (Interviewing my Dad!)

00:00 Joining "The Junco Partners" 01:12 Which famous acts did you support? 02:11 What was it like being in the band? 04:36 Was there any bad behaviour in the band? 06:44 Did you make any records? 07:35 Final thoughts on Piano 09:03 Some more boogie woogie! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

practicing.. my first Beethoven Sonata!

First live piano practice session!

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Bach - Prelude in C (BWV 846) | Piano Progress Week 93

This piece, Bach's Prelude in C from the Well Tempered Clavier, has been the most significant progress marker for me so far. This was one of the first pieces I attempted to play when I was just starting out (......!) and it took me AGES to piece it together, of course. Coming back to it after nearly two years, I was amazed to find I was able to sight read it to 90-95% accuracy. After an hour of playing it through (and negotiating the page turn) I made this recording. Progress on this instrument feels like it happens on a geological time scale - making those occasional moments when you can notice the progression extremely satisfying. I hope you enjoy listening to this piece as much as I enjoy playing it! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

How is Grade 5 piano prep going?

Part 2: JAZZ BAND (Interviewing my Dad!)

00:00 Discovering Jazz 01:25 "The Dryades Street Jazz Men 03:59 Playing at a London Jazz club 05:49 The end of Trad Jazz 06:08 Dad plays more blues/boogie woogie...! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Part 1: ABRSM LESSONS & EXAMS (Interviewing my Dad!)

00:00 Intro 00:35 Lessons: First Teacher 02:14 ABRSM Exams 07:15 Recitals & Competitions 08:55 Lessons: Second Teacher 12:29 Dad plays the blues/boogie-woogie! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Field - Nocturne No.5 (ABRSM Grade 5 1971-1972) | Piano Progress Week 90

I'm extremely pleased to be able to upload this video of me playing John Field's Nocturne No. 5 in Bb major... pleased because I can say with absolute certainty that, to date, this is the most difficult piece I have played! With constantly changing left hand arpeggio patterns, and a melodic right hand that appears with more and more decoration as the piece progresses, it has been a challenge. There's also a 4:3 polyrhythm in there for good measure. The left hand arpeggios are so consistent (and persistent!) throughout, that my left hand/arm ached as I practiced this... from sheer muscle use alone. I had to remind myself this was once a Grade 5 piece, not a Grade 6/7. Despite these hurdles, it has been super exciting to be able to tackle a Nocturne after listening to so many of Chopin's great ones. I look forward to doing many more in the future. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scriabin - Prelude in Db, Op.11 No.15 (ABRSM Grade 5 1999-2000) | Piano Progress Week 90

A recent recording I made of Scriabin's Prelude in Db major, Opus 11 No. 15. This is a piece of many firsts: my first Scriabin piece, and also the first piece I've looked at in Db major... I think anyway! It's a beautiful piece - blissful and melancholic in equal measures. Phrasing came quite naturally when practicing this piece, but technically it was a challenge. I'm still struggling to get all notes of a chord to come down at exactly the same time (I can hear a few duff ones in this recording...) but it's something that will hopefully improve with time. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

practicing.. Scriabin’s Op. 11 No. 15

Bach - Invention No. 4 (ABRSM Grade 5 1995-1996) | Piano Progress Week 88

It felt like the right time to work through another Bach Invention - the previous one being No. 1 in C last year: https://youtu.be/XJFNb9hHrNA. I have enjoyed this one in D minor much more. There seems to be much more drama here because of the minor key, the ominous left hand trill and the low C# that the scale pattern hits each time. Enjoy! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

practicing.. my first Nocturne

Sight Reading update + examples | Piano Progress Week 86

Another semi-disastrous practice session for my ABRSM Grade 5 exam coming up this Summer! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

practicing.. Bach Invention 4 in Dm

Full piece https://youtu.be/zHznrCNC31A ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gillock - New Orleans Nightfall (ABRSM Grade 5 2019-2020 C4) | Piano Progress Week 84

New Orleans Nightfall by William Gillock, an ABRSM Grade 5 piece from a few years ago. I luckily spent some time in New Orleans in 2016 so had a mental image in mind when i was practicing/playing… though I will say the French Quarter Is more like the fast bit of the piece not the slow! Not much more to say about this piece... it's an easy piece to love! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mompou - La Barca (ABRSM Grade 5 2023-2024 B8) | Piano Progress Week 84

La Barca by Federico Mompou, from his collection "Impresiones íntimas". This piece immediately jumped out at me when listening to all the exam pieces for Grade 5, so I added it to my list. This is technically a lot harder than it sounds... lots of held notes, melody and accompaniment in the right hand, with a bass and tenor part in the left hand. There is also some pretty big chords - one in particular where I had to stretch both hands to reach a tenth in each... just at the limit of my hand span. I imagine I will either play this or Schumann's "Von fremden Ländern und Menschen" as my List B piece, but will decide much nearer the exam. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sibelius - Joueur de Harpe (ABRSM Grade 5 2019-2020 B3) | Piano Progress Week 82

I have finally got round to recording Sibelius' lovely piece Joueur de Harpe from the ABRSM Grade 5 syllabus for 2019/20. After having a lesson on this piece with my teacher, I worked on it for a while, but then put it away for a bit whilst I worked on the Beethoven Bagatelle and the Chopin Prelude. There has been the odd piece over the last year that I haven't recorded, and I didn't want this one to become one of those - as it always sounds really beautiful, even when not played perfectly. Objectively, I'm not sure all notes rang out as clear as I intended them to - but as always, this is the best I can get this piece.. for now! I look forward to returning to some of these lovely pieces in a few years time when, hopefully, my technique and musicality has improved. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chopin - Prelude in E minor, Op.28 No.4 (250 SUB SPECIAL) | Piano Progress Week 81

A recent recording I did of Chopin's E minor Prelude (Op. 28 No. 4). These subscriber special videos are three things, a) a thanks to those who have subscribed, obviously, b) an opportunity to challenge myself with a "stretch" piece, and c) a bit of fun. I'm usually quite strict with myself and only do pieces that are of the Grade I currently am working towards, but every now and again I like to challenge myself with something from the Grade above. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scales + Arpeggios (ABRSM Grade 5 2023-2024) | Piano Progress Week 80

A gentle look at the ABRSM Grade 5 technical requirements for 2021-2022. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Beethoven - Bagatelle in Gm (ABRSM Grade 5 2023-24 A5) | Piano Progress Week 80

My recording (for now!) of this Bagatelle in G minor by Beethoven (Op. 119, No. 1). This is probably the most challenging piece I've played so far. As always it is a work in progress, but this is as good as I can get it for now. I will revisit this piece later in the year when it is time to start choosing exam pieces for Grade 5! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Grade 5 practice... Sibelius, Gillock, Beethoven! | Piano Progress Week 80

Some candid, sweary, practice on some Grade 5 pieces I'm currently working on! 00:00 Sibelius - Joueur de Harpe 00:30 Gillock - New Orleans Nightfall 01:55 Beethoven - Bagatelle in G minor (Op. 119, No. 1) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1.5 Year Piano Progress Q&A!

a Q&A session where I answer some of your questions since I first started playing piano! 00:00 Introduction 00:29 Welcome 00:45 A Covid Christmas 01:24 How much do you practice per day? 02:35 Are theory exams worth it? 04:37 Why did you choose ABRSM? 06:26 Do you recommend the piano? 07:05 Are you learning with the Taubman technique? 08:17 How many pieces do you usually work on at once? 08:58 Is there a list that you look at to find songs at your level? 11:12 How long have you been doing sight reading practice? 13:47 Do you listen to the pieces you're practicing being played by other pianists? 15:00 How does studying the piano dovetail into your career on stage? 17:37 Have you started thinking about your selections yet? (re Grade 5) 19:49 Grade 5 discussion 23:04 What's next? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Beethoven Op. 119, No. 1 (slow play through!) | Piano Progress Week 78

This Bagatelle in G minor by Beethoven (Op. 119, No. 1) is slowly starting to come together now after about 4 or 5 hours of practice. The second half of this piece is a real mind f*ck!... the hands are doing completely different things at the same time, and the things that they are doing are unusual and difficult, so the hand independence required for it (especially at the correct tempo eventually) needs to be well developed. Many more hours needed on this! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

practicing.. Chopin Prelude in E Minor (Op. 28 No. 4) #shorts

Link to my full version: https://youtu.be/wfgMdCEnyug ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Beethoven Op. 119, No. 1 (two hours in) | Piano Progress Week 77

A recent practice session on Beethoven's Bagatelle in G minor (Op. 119, No. 1). This is after about two hours of practice. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Einaudi - Elegy for the Arctic (ABRSM Grade 5 2023-2024 C8) | Piano Progress Week 76

A recording I made of Einaudi's "Elegy for the Arctic" after about 5 or 6 hours of practice. I will certainly come back to it, but I've done all I can with it for now. It is quite a simply constructed piece, yet no less difficult because of it. It feels quite improvisatory in tone, so whilst I have paid attention to Einaudi's articulation markings, I haven't been too strict with the dynamic instructions... and have put my own stamp on bits of it instead. It's actually quite a nice piece if you want to familiarise yourself with the F minor key! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sibelius - Joueur de Harpe (5 hours in) | Piano Progress Week 76

Slowly getting to grips with this Grade 5 piece, "Joueur de Harpe" by Sibelius! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Einaudi - Atoms (Improv) | Piano Progress Week 75

My version of Einaudi's "Atoms". It took me about half an hour to work out the chords - and in light of the sheet music not being available yet, this improvisation is as close an approximation of Einaudi's new piece as I could get after half an hour. Einaudi's style seems to be basically improv anyway, and he sometimes plays his published pieces very different live. The chords are variations of F# minor, to E major, then to a B major 7 of some sort... I think. There is a B section with a base D, E, D, C# pattern that is quite nice, with about the same right hand chords on top. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sight Reading Grade 5 (First Attempt!) | Piano Progress Week 74

My first attempt at sight reading some Grade 5 examples in the ABRSM book. It didn't go well! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ABRSM Grade 4 RESULTS | Piano Progress

I finally got my results through for my recent ABRSM Grade 4 exam. Thanks to those who have subscribed for all your support along the way. 00:00 Welcome to new subscribers! 00:14 Channel description & my goals 01:23 The plan going forward 02:10 Exam discussion & result 04:55 Examiner's comments ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ludovico Einaudi - Elegy for the Arctic (First look) | Piano Progress Week 73

Whilst waiting for my exam results, I thought I'd pass the time by getting on with this Ludovico Einaudi piece "Elegy for the Arctic". Perfect for this time of year! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Final Recording of Grade 4 Exam Pieces | Piano Progress Week 72

Before going in for the exam, I did one last play through of all my pieces. Having worked on them for a good month with my teacher, they are as good as they are ever going to be at this point. It will be great perhaps to re-visit them in a few years when I have more experience at the piano, and perhaps I will find new things in them... but I, like a lot of people, am happy to see the back of them for now! There is always a bit of fatigue that sets in when you play the same pieces over and over again in the run up to an exam, and I am definitely feeling it with these. Roll on Grade 5!... 00:00 Buxtehude - Sarabande (List A Piece) 01:02 CPE Bach - Andante (List B Piece) 02:30 Martha Mier - Worrisome Blues (List C Piece) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sibelius - Joueur de Harpe (First look) | Piano Progress Week 71

The first 5/10 minutes of looking at Joueur de Harpe by Jean Sibelius, an ABRSM Grade 5 piece. My teacher has said not to overplay my Grade 4 exam pieces in the run up to the exam, so I have been trying some new pieces out on the side to vary up my practice. I fell in love with this piece as soon as I heard it. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Grade 4 Exam Piece practice | Piano Progress Week 70

Another trip to Jaques Samuel Pianos to play on a real piano and do some detailed practice on my Grade 4 exam pieces. I also take 10/15 minutes at the end to play through some of my favourite Schumann pieces for a bit of fun, as practicing the same three pieces again and again can get… a bit dull. 00:00 Intro 00:35 Buxtehude’s Sarabande 01:19 CPE Bach’s Andante 02:41 Mier’s Worrisome Blues 03:27 (for fun…) Schumann’s Op. 15 #1 and #13 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I finally chose my exam pieces | Piano Progress Week 69

I made a trip to Jaques Samuel Pianos on the Edgware Road this week, 1) so I could start getting used to an acoustic piano again, and 2) to actually choose some exam pieces - with 3 weeks to go until the exam! Enjoy. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First public performance | Piano Progress Week 68

Sometimes the world just isn’t ready to hear you play ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Grade 4 practice session | Piano Progress Week 68

Snippets from today's practice for my ABRSM Grade 4 exam coming up soon. The usual rotation of scales/arpeggios, sight-reading, and piece practice. I should really do some aural stuff at some point! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Schumann - Of Foreign Lands.. (ABRSM Grade 5 2023-2024 B10) | Piano Progress Week 67

Schumann's "Of Foreign Lands & People" from Kinderszenen, Op. 15. Since I began on this piano progress journey, I have always wanted to play this piece that is packed full of reminiscence and memory. One day I hope to be able to play some more from Op. 15! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ABRSM Grade 2 RESULTS | Piano Progress

A look back to my ABRSM Grade 2 results from about this time last year. My third piece "Ja-Da" really let me down - I restarted it four times if I remember correctly (I actually talk about it a bit more in detail in this video https://youtu.be/0Gm0nb_0Zz4) but it was a learning experience at the very least. If you're interested in seeing my marks and comments for Grade 3, I have recently added them as a pinned comment on my Grade 3 results video https://youtu.be/0Gm0nb_0Zz4 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Grade 4 Exam Piece playthrough | Piano Progress Week 66

I have a casual play through all the ABRSM Grade 4 exam pieces that I've looked at these last 6 months. I will decide on 3 pieces out of these next weekend. Why I've left it this late I don't know - my teacher clearly has more faith in me than I do. In some ways it may be a better approach; I risked overplaying the pieces for the last two exams. There is also a section at 00:35 explaining a bit more about how I practice polyrhythms in my scale practice - hope it's clear! 00:00 - Intro… 00:35 - a short response to a question I had on Polyrhythms 04:05 - Grade 4 pieces ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Schumann - Of Foreign Lands.. (A few hours in) | Piano Progress Week 66

The challenges of Grieg's Arietta encouraged me to find another piece with a similar structure... and as usual, Robert Schumann provided the goods. In this video I go about solving a small(ish) problem involving the different rhythms between the top and middle voices - which required my first attempt at decoding a polyrhythm. I practice polyrhythms fairly regularly in my scales routine. There aren't many polyrhythms at my current level - this was actually the first time I'd encountered any in a piece - but because I'd done them in scale practice, I was able to implement the idea relatively quickly to solve this issue. Another reason why scale practice of all types is important! As most piano wisdom suggests, practicing doesn't just mean playing the whole piece over and over again - been there, done that, and got the useless t-shirt that comes with it. Identifying weaknesses and errors, and honing in on them, seems to be a better use of time. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Grieg - Arietta (ABRSM Grade 4 2019-2020 B2) | Piano Progress Week 66

This is a tricky piece (that feels more Grade 5 than 4!) and there is lots to learn from it. It has three lines... a melody at the top, an arpeggio/broken chord pattern in the middle, and a bass line at the bottom. One of the challenges is keeping them all separate and distinct. The next challenge is bringing out the melody, and the bass line to some extent, and keeping the arpeggio lighter and less prominent whilst also solid and secure. Not easy. Anyway, it's a great, short piece that should be on every Grade 4'ers rep list I feel! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

More Sight Reading Grade 4 | Piano Progress Week 65

I sight read some more Grade 4 ABRSM examples, this time from Paul Harris’ “Improve Your Sight-Reading” book. 00:00 - Intro… 01:00 - Exercise 1 02:55 - Exercise 2 05:00 - Exercise 3 08:03 - Exercise 4 10:04 - Exercise 5 12:33 - Exercise 6 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scales + Arpeggios (ABRSM Grade 4 2023-2024) | Piano Progress Week 64

After recently booking my Grade 4 exam, I thought I'd do a run through of the required scales. For me it's probably the easiest part of the exam, but that doesn't mean I don't practice them - it's usually the first thing I do on the piano each day,. It goes beyond the exams - it's about ingraining them in the psyche to help with sight-reading and all other aspects of piano playing. 00:00 - Intro… 00:26 - Daily Practice 01:36 - Scales 05:01 - Contrary motion scales 05:38 - Chromatic scales 05:56 - Arpeggios 07:54 - Quick discussion about the ABRSM syllabus ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------