Category Archives: Chopin Waltzes

Tempo Rubato and Chopin Waltz in A minor No. 19, Op. Posthumous

Posted on January 30, 2015 by

Tempo Rubato as defined in Wikipedia: “Tempo rubato (free in the presentation, Italian for: stolen time) is a musical term referring to expressive and rhythmic freedom by a slight speeding up and then slowing down of the tempo of a … Continue reading →

Posted in adult piano instruction, Chopin, Chopin Waltz in A minor, Chopin Waltzes, Frederic Chopin, piano, piano blog, piano blogging, piano instruction, piano teaching, Romantic era, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, tempo rubato, word press, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, youtube.com | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dedicating my birthday to Chopin!

Posted on April 7, 2014 by

I’m often asked to name my favorite composer, and nearly always, it’s the one whose music I’m currently studying and teaching. In this case, Chopin’s posthumous Waltz in A minor, discovered by musicologists in the 1950s, is the CHOSEN. Not … Continue reading →

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Harmonic Rhythm, melodic twists, and emotional shifts in Chopin’s B Minor Waltz, Op. 69, No. 2 (Video)

Posted on July 15, 2012 by

The harmonic flow of a piece is one ingredient of phrase shaping, along with melodic contouring that springs from the human voice and its natural breath. All have emotional consequence as music pours out of the heart and soul of … Continue reading →

Posted in Chopin B minor Waltz, Chopin B minor Waltz op. 69 No. 2, Chopin Waltzes, Frederic Chopin, Interpreting Chopin's music, pianist, piano, piano instruction, piano lessons, playing piano, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Skype, video exchanges with skype piano students, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube.com, yout tube, youtube.com | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

SKYPING Chopin: sculpting phrases with relaxed arms and supple wrists in the Waltz no. 19 in A minor, Op. Posthum. (Videos)

Posted on November 5, 2011 by

Aside from the prelude to this transmission having been launched by Aiden Cat, most of yesterday’s lesson was noteworthy for its focus on phrasing the Chopin Waltz No. 19 in A minor, Op. Posthumous. Between California and Australia A new … Continue reading →

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Claudia’s piano lesson in progress: Preparing the Chopin A minor Waltz no. 19, Op. posthumous and Beethoven’s “Fur Elise” for the MTAC Fall Festival

Posted on October 12, 2011 by

I returned to the iMac21 for this videotaping in the company of my nifty Yeti mic. (I’m waiting for Y to speak in Star Wars lingo, or double as a cleaning robot) Everything was definitely effortless this time because I … Continue reading →

Posted in Chopin Waltz in A minor no. 10 Op. posthumous, Chopin Waltzes, classissima, classissima.com, Frederic Chopin, MTAC, music and heart, music teachers association of california, piano addict, piano instructor, piano lesson, piano playing and breathing, piano playing and phrasing, piano teacher, piano teaching, piano teaching repertoire, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, slow piano practicing, Steinway M grand piano, Steinway studio upright, Teach Street, teaching piano, teaching piano to children, The art of phrasing at the piano, the art of piano playing, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Rolling arm movements and videotaped slow motion replay of Chopin’s Waltz in C# minor, piu mosso section

Posted on August 31, 2011 by

I demonstrate a swing or roll of the arms to realize the circular flow of the piu mosso section of Chopin’s Waltz in C# minor, Op. 64, no 2. At the end, I add slow motion frames. Needless to say … Continue reading →

Posted in Chopin Waltz in c# minor Op. 64 no.2, Chopin Waltzes, classissima, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, El Cerrito piano studio, mind body connection, mindful piano practicing, mindful practicing, muscular memory, musical phrasing, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano instruction, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano playing and relaxation, piano practicing, piano teacher, piano teaching, piano technique, Piano World, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, Romantic era music, Romantic music, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, slow mindful practicing, slow piano practicing, talkclassical.com, Teach Street, uk-piano-forums, whole body listening, whole body music listening, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Comparing performances of Chopin’s Waltz in C# minor, Op. 64, No. 2 (VIDEOS)

Posted on August 20, 2011 by

Last night I sat down at my Steinway M grand and quickly shuffled over to my Haddorff (known as “Haddy”) fully intending to record some comments on the lovely C# minor Waltz. As I looked at the dotted-eighth/sixteenth figure that … Continue reading →

Posted in Chopin Waltz, Chopin Waltz in c# minor Op. 64 no.2, Chopin Waltzes, Frederic Chopin, piano teaching repertoire, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Uncategorized, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment