Online Video Links by Harry's students and more

Online Video Links

Peter Sullivan

“tallpeteplayspiano” page: https://soundcloud.com/tallpeteplayspiano

l Mendelssohn - Rondo Capriccioso, Op.14

l Beethoven - Sonata No.17 in Dm, Op. 31, #2, 1^st Mov.

l Chopin - Sonata No. 2, Op. 35, 1^st Mov.

l Ravel - Toccata from “Le Tombeau de Couperin”

l Bartók - Sonata, 1^st Mov

l Rachmaninoff - Sonata No. 2, Op. 36, 1^st Mov.

l Liszt - La Campanella from “Grandes études de Paganini”, S. 141

l Ravel - Sonatine

l Scriabin - Sonata, Op. 53, No. 5

YouTube Links:

l Chopin - Ballade No. 1 in Gm, Op 23: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZgx_PPFqpg

l Debussy - Lisle Joyeuse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhDivE13oIw

l Rachmaninoff - Lilacs, Op. 21, No. 5: youtube.com/watch?v=9LeV8QL5HDc

 

Yu-Yun Su

l Granados - Escenas Románticas Suite: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5D65ild0q4

Yu-Yun Su and Sylvia Gray (Duet)

l Dvorak - Slavic Dance Op. 46 Book 1 No. 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZne7YAFx3M

l Dvorak - Slavic Dance Op. 46 Book 1 No. 4: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9F3AJjpBnc

l Dvorak - Slavic Dance Op. 46, Book 2, No. 6: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KX0swffuU4

 

*Yu-Yun’s videos (plus Sylvia’s solo) can be accessed through the following address, too.

 House Recital August 25, 2018 Yu-Yun Su and Sylvia Gray: 
  http://houseconcertspdx.org/houserecital20180825/index.html

  

Oregonian Article on Harry (April 21st, 2020)

Q&A on Oregon’s faulty employment claims system:
What’s a laid-off worker to do?

By Mike Rogoway | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Harry Viar has been teaching piano for three decades. It’s a job he loves – he’s taught Grammy winners and many others who have gone on to professional careers. https://www.oregonlive.com/business/2020/04/oregons-jobless-crisis-leav

Key-System Patterns

Key-System Patterns

I invite you to take the initiative in studying the three basic key–system patterns as exercises:

1.    Scales

2.    Chords

3.    Arpeggios (Broken chords)

Fluency in playing these patterns can give you the coordination and therefore the freedom to focus more on musicianship. You are often busy practicing for an up-coming performance so I neglect working on technic and instead we work on polishing your pieces. Of course you can build technic by making exercises out of the difficult spots in pieces but the ability to play the three patterns is equally important.

I recommend the following exercises in all keys which should be played hands together up and down the keyboard:

1.    All major and minor scales (in 3 forms) 4 octaves. The chromatic scale 4 octaves.

2.    Triads, octave chords and diminished seventh chords and their inversions one octave. Triads on scale degrees one octave. All chord exercises are played with pedal.

3.    Octave chord and diminished seventh chord arpeggios and their inversions 4 octaves with and without pedal.

Of course the standard fingering of the exercises can be changed as needed in your pieces. There are many variations of the patterns that can be studied.
To name a few for example:

1.     Varied rhythmic patterns

2.     Contrary motion

3.     Various touches

4.     Dynamic differences

Many problems in performing, sight-reading and memorizing can be caused by a lack of ability in recognizing and playing the 3 basic patterns. So you can choose to study any or all or none of the exercises. The exercises should be done at the beginning of your lessons.

By Harry Viar