Category: Lisztian

1. My Road to Romanticism

   Posted on 12:00pm Thursday 21st May 2020

   I am happy to say that I am an old romantic. I am a confirmed Lisztian, having spent the last 8 years researching and writing a book on the pianist. I am also currently streaming myself on weekday evenings learning Chopin nocturnes on my Twitch channel as part of #the100dayproject.

   Surprisingly, my road to Romanticism didn’t start in my piano lessons. Nor did it involve any personal Damascene moments. Instead, it went the way by Proust’s Swann, the local library and a friend’s record collection. In this blog post I’ll map out my own personal path that led me to Liszt.

2. 20 Days of Practice: #the100daysproject Update 1

   Posted on 11:00am Wednesday 29th Apr 2020

   I recently decided to take part in #the100dayproject. My project: to learn a piano piece on camera. I would stream 30 minutes of piano practice at 6pm every evening on my Twitch channel for 100 consecutive days.

   I’m now 20 days in to that project, so it’s a great time to take stock of my progress so far, and reflect on what I'm learning from the experience. 

3. #the100dayproject: Learning Chopin live on Twitch

   Posted on 12:00pm Sunday 5th Apr 2020

   This Tuesday 7^th April 2020 marks the beginning of another season of #the100dayproject. If you don’t know what this is let me bring you up to speed. It’s an opportunity for people to explore their creative sides. Those taking part work on something every day for 100 consecutive days and post their results online. Set up by Lindsay Jean Thomson, it’s a great excuse to get stuck into something creative or to learn something new.

   I’ve decided that I’m going to get involved this year and would love for you to follow my progress.

    

   The Project:

   I’m going to teach myself to play Chopin’s Nocturne no. 8 in D flat Major on the piano. What’s more, I’m going to do this live on my Twitch channel.

   I love this piece of music and have wanted to learn it for some time. However, I’ve always lacked the impetus. It’s a little beyond my current ability level so will take dedicated practice – which means dedicated time – to master. What better motivation than The 100 Day Project? 

4. Obermann: A novel reading pick for your self-isolation

   Posted on 12:00pm Thursday 26th Mar 2020

   ‘In my snug little room I shall forget the world outside; I shall narrow down to my lot, and possibly come to believe that my valley is the hub of the universe.’

   The need to self-isolate has reportedly sent many people online to buy new books to help them through the weeks ahead. Others have surely returned to the pile of unread novels already sitting on their bedside tables. Now’s the perfect time to catch up with the reading we all feel we ‘should’ have done or have been putting off.

   One book that probably won’t be on anybody’s reading list in the coming weeks of quarantine is Étienne Pivert de Senancour’s Obermann. And yet this is in many ways the perfect self-isolation novel. It is, after all, a work that is largely about self-isolation, or at least the active pursuit of solitude. 

5. New Year, New Language Studies

   Posted on 12:00pm Saturday 18th Jan 2020

   I’ve never been one for New Year’s Eve celebrations. I’ve also never been one for New Year’s resolutions. However, this year I’ve decided to set my cynicism aside and actually make one. It’s a little late, I know, but here it is:

   I resolve to get better at French in 2020.

   Of course, I have no expectation that I’ll be speaking the language fluently any time soon, if ever.

   I can, though, look to improve my listening, reading and writing skills as well as my spoken French. I can take easy, practical steps over the coming months to get better. This blog post is my promise to myself that I will set out and complete this journey.