Helsinki Times features "Clair de lune from Scratch" as a YouTube hit
Thursday, 15 October 2009 07:17 | 
Written by Hugh Sung | 
If you happen to live in Finland, be sure to pick up a copy of today's "Helsinki Times" and jump to the "Lifestyle and entertainment" section - you'll find an article featuring Hugh Sung's innovative "Clair de lune from Scratch" YouTube piano lesson series, which teaches absolute beginners how to play Debussy's masterpiece a small portion at a time, combining old-fashioned pedagogy with cutting-edge technologies.
To view the online article, you will need to register and purchase a subscription plan:
Helsinki Times: Music pioneer Hugh Sung a hit on YouTube
To experience "Clair de lune from Scratch", please visit www.PianofromScratch.com
Clair de lune from Scratch #52, Measure 37 Pt. 2Tuesday, 13 October 2009 12:51 | Written by Hugh Sung |
The traditional fingerings rely on octaves in both hands to help find the notes easily. The problem is that the way the notes are positioned in the left hand makes things very difficult for the 4th and 5th fingers, particularly for smaller hands and those with less flexibility in those normally weaker fingers. As an alternative, I offer a creative fingering that uses the right hand to once again "come to the rescue" by sharing some of the left hand notes, leaving the left hand with a smaller, more comfortable note grouping. Try both of these fingerings and be sure to let me know which one you prefer. Everyone will have different preferences depending on their hand size/shape, so don't feel obligated to follow someone else's personal preference! Last Updated (Tuesday, 29 December 2009 22:37) Clair de lune from Scratch #51, Measure 37 Pt. 1Tuesday, 13 October 2009 10:30 | Written by Hugh Sung |
We start off going more in depth about how to read sharps, and in particular how to interpret the new key signature coming up that is made up of sharps. I then talk about the "traditional" fingering for this measure, and why it might be a problem for those with smaller or less flexible hands. Feel free to use this fingering if you feel comfortable with it (I actually use it myself), but in the next lesson I will show a special fingering designed for smaller hands (this is in response to a blogger who complained about difficulties with this and the following measures due to the small size of her own hands). Hope these next few lessons help! Last Updated (Tuesday, 29 December 2009 22:36) Clair de lune from Scratch #50, Measures 35 & 36Monday, 12 October 2009 14:05 | Written by Hugh Sung |
Last Updated (Tuesday, 29 December 2009 22:36) Clair de lune from Scratch #49, Measure 34Thursday, 08 October 2009 17:29 | Written by Hugh Sung |
We start off by connecting the second half of measure 33 into measure 34. As we normally do, we carefully map out the notes in both hands and add in suggested fingerings. Watch out for the repeated notes shared by the thumbs in both hands - the left hand will need to get out of the way quickly. I also show how to keep a melody note connected even when it's repeated as an accompaniment note. Last Updated (Tuesday, 29 December 2009 22:36) |
