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Crazy Fast Piece by Turkish Composer
Blog, Classical Music, Music Theory, Piano, Videos

Crazy Fast Piece by Turkish Composer

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I’m going to be visiting Turkey soon to visit my youngest son, which inspired me to look up some Turkish piano music.

This piece was written by Turkish composer Ahmed Adnan Saygun (1907-1991) using aksak, which means “limping” or “stumbling.”  It’s very fast with irregular rhythms.  (Strictly speaking, in Turkish music theory the term refers only to the grouping of nine pulses into a pattern of 2 + 2 + 2 + 3.)  For you math and computer experts, check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aksak

If you want to see a close-up of a pianist’s hands, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=wi0vF7HG7gU  This video is a bit wavy and slightly blurry, but you can see more of the fast repeated notes, the glissandi, and the fast octaves in both hands.

Believe it or not, after all the dissonance, this piece has a C major chord in it towards the end.  See if you can hear it.  Then match the last note of the piece to the piano and see what it is.

Beatboxing Cellist
Blog, Videos

Beatboxing Cellist

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Here’s a fun video of a cellist who accompanies himself with drumbeat sounds he makes with his mouth.

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Studio Video

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Hello and welcome to Thomasson Piano Studio! I’ve had the wonderful privilege of spending the past 30 years sharing music with others, teaching piano lessons, and accompanying. You can learn more about my teaching approach and philosophy in the above video. Please call or email if you have questions or to arrange a trial lesson in my Albuquerque studio. I look forward to making music with you!