How long does it take...

... until you've gone complete nuts from playing the same song over and over and over and over and over and over and over again cause you just cant get the hang of it?? Or how long does it take until you start hating a song you really really liked before and really wanted to learn so badly, after playing it for the onemillionth time?

I didnt really think it would take thaaaaaaat long to get the FIRST TWO pages from a seven page tune to sound good (and that without even being able to concentrate on any type of dynamics!!!)

So how long does it take for a song to finally sound good?

Well, that depends a little. It depends on how hard it is and how much you like it I actually tend to get bored of to easy pieces faster. Its the simplicity that makes it boring to play Hehe...

But yeah. Like the Nocturne Op9 No2, I used about 20-30hours to get it pretty good! I still play it, and its been over 7months since I learned it And I still love to play it I dont play it everyday of course, but a couple of times a week.

I also played Camptine dun atre, that piece from Yann Tirsen and I got pretty bored of it fast!! I was so bored of it when I recorded it, I actually felt I couldnt manage to bring As much life into it as I might have wanted to. And that piece took me only a couple of hours to master pretty good..

So what Im really saying, its a more complex question I guess
For me I think I can look at it this way:

If I REALLY like or love the piece, It can go maaaaaaany many hours before I start disliking playing it, if ever!!

If its HARD i will also stay a Loong time on it!

If its easy, it must be Very, very nice for me to stick with it over time even though I might still like it after I stop playing it!

And it varies as well hehe..

Yeah, that was a long answer to say; Im not reeally sure

hehe thts was funny at the end thomas lol ..but gd post aendym your asking a question we all must be thinking when learning a song ' i personally memorise a whole song so i dont use the sheet while rehearsing it ..then learn another piece to break up the insanity of going over and over the first one ..and doing exercises in between ...but no more than 2 pieces and the one i hate the most after lol i forget hehehe ..but i would have gained experience from it in other ways ..but everyone must have different ways to deal with this .. i think about other performers tht have to play their songs over and over twice a day ,and end up not liking the song but cos we like them they have to play them...anyway like thomas lol another long answer to say .."im not really sure "

hahaha! thanks guys... Its like everytime I start hearing the first couple of tones Im like "Yeah, I love this piece" and then I started messing things up and try it again and again and again... and then I think "Geez, I really hate this piece!" hahaha...
but the next day I love it again!

I guess Im just impatient! I watch all of your videos and think "I really wish I can get that far someday!!" But at the very beginning everything feels so difficult and sometimes frustrating. But on the other hand after one week of playing Im able to play the first page of this piece relativly fluent which I couldnt one week ago and I guess thats the way one has to see it. Perhaps a week from now I can play the first two pages fluently and might still be frustrated and hate the piece even more but on the other side love it because I have gotten a bit further...


HAHAHA... well to make things short: "Im not really sure" myself.

First you gotta learn some easy pieces, no need to pick the most difficult pieces in the start. This so you can have something to play perfect while you're practicing a harder one. And you'll feel good about it.

The most important thing is to pick a piece you like, no need to pick a piece you dont like. You dont listen to music you dont like, why play music you dont like. And easy pieces are nice as warmup, I usually play through the Final Fantasy 1 pieces I've learned, so far I got 6. They're short, I like em, and I can keep playing them over and over again.

Right now i'm keeping myself on a grade 4 difficultnes. For me it's less about how difficult it is, and more about how it sounds. I'm not gonna play some uber grade 10 stuff anytime soon anyway. I will be happy when my average is about grade 6-7, but I dont really think about grades when I pick a piece, I pick them becasue I like em.

I've got one piece that has annoyed me, and it still does sometimes, and that's Elfen Lied - Lilium. I've been practicing it, but everytime I do I tend to get stuck, ust play it over and over again instead of adding more bars. I've been stuck for 4-5 months. Still i'm not tired of it, because I love it, and I will probably play it for many years to come.

aendym wrote:
So how long does it take for a song to finally sound good?

I'm going to have to break from the consensus here and say that the amount of time required to make a song sound good is: ---> I'm not really sure.

Sound good is personal preference so how we supposed to tell you how many practice sessions its going to be until your own ears are happy with what they are hearing?

In my mind you really need to be happy with the piece you've chosen in order to stay alert, interested and dedicated in practicing it. And there is no need to be impatient Aendym, all the work getting to someplace makes getting there the greatest feeling in the world!

Be proud when you complete your trouble spot, bar, or page - after all, they are mini-pieces of music in themselves. Its not always about the big picture, sometimes the little ones are just as fulfilling if you'll give them their own identity! ^_^

hear hear! nicely spoken klavier!!!
How is your own playing coming along??

Great thank you, I'm progressing at a nice little pace, I can nearly do this Ode To Joy except from my book, it does alternating hands so they aren't together yet but I'm using both in one piece! I also know this piece as well so I know how it should sound and I was so happy when I managed to get the 8th notes sounding right! ^_^

I can't play it perfectly every single time I try it but I'll keep practicing it because its nice and I think it has more to teach my fingers than its letting on!

sounds fantastic! Are you gonna post it when you have it down perfectly? Would really like to hear it! Im really fascinated that youve already done all the theory, just got your piano yesterday and are already playing Ode to joy!!!