The Chopin Diaries

[Aje]

05.20.08 (8:30 p.m.): So, I'm sitting here watching this phucking Yankee game. The Yankees are getting their asses handed to them. This is just pathetic. The way the Yankees have been playing lately basically mirrors my self worth. (No, the Yanks don't affect me that extremely...it's just a comparison) I feel weak and fatigued. There is nothing physically wrong with me...I am just emotionally drained. I've been in an awful mood since leaving work. I can't remember the last time I was free of this awful feeling. This cloud of despair, this feeling of perpetual doubt. Perhaps when I was a boy of 4 or 5. Before I started to realize how it goes down on this rock. Since then, all happiness seems temporary and fleeting...almost like a high. Coming back to reality is sobering, indeed. Trying to fine value in my life, at this point, is an arduous task that I'm too tired to tackle at this point. Suicide is NOT an option however. Not because I haven't thought about it...because I have. It's because I'm just too much of a pu$$y to do it. Years of Christianity conditioning have made me fear the repercussions of taking my own life so coping with my reality is the only choice I have.

(Don't worry, this is not a suicide letter or anything...I'm just trying to paint the mood)

That being said...I'm aware that the current mood I'm in isn't healthy. Yet I'm too stubborn to do something about it. Almost like I want to cut off my nose to spite my face…but in this case I want to, I suppose, show The Lord that I’m upset with my current situation. Almost like saying, “See look what You’ve done! This phucking sucks and it’s Your fault.” I want to sit in my shyt (figuratively) and mope. Hopelessness personified is what I’ve become. I’m too proud and angry to cry and too tired to yell in frustration. This is basically an emotional coma that I’ve succumbed to.

But then, suddenly, something happens. I'm not exactly sure where the thought came from. I'm not certain if it was from an awful car commercial that's run every break between innings, I'm not sure if it's from the classical station (96.3 fm) that I wake up to on my alarm clock radio, or if this idea was conjured up from me listening to my iPod on my commute home. I don't know where it came from, this thought, this epiphany; almost literally a light bulb appeared in my head…

“I need to learn how to play a song on the piano. Not just any song…a song by Chopin.”

This thought reverberated throughout my seemingly empty skull. I need to do this. I knew, in my head, that this isn’t necessarily the “answer” to my problems but I didn’t care. The idea was brilliant. I almost became, in a way, sexually excited about this plan in a non-sexual way.

So I hop on my computer and see if I can find sheet music from Chopin online. I found it quite apropos that the first work I stumble over was his 24 Preludes, Op. 28: No. 15 in D-flat Major…but it’s referred to as “Raindrop”. I feel like it’s been raining raindrops in my life for a long ass time. Bet, I’m going with this. So I download the PDF and the fun begins…

EDIT: HERE (http://www.mfiles.co.uk/scores/prelude15.pdf) is a link to the PDF of the Prelude of which I speak...

[DJ TEKNIK]

05.20.08 (8:30 p.m.): So, I'm sitting here watching this phucking Yankee game. The Yankees are getting their asses handed to them. This is just pathetic.


so what else is new?

For you Aje :whistle:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTK2GKGNhCo&feature=related














BTW: I'm diggin this thread.

[Aje]

05.20.08 (10:15 p.m.): Now, mind you, I don’t really know how to play the piano. I’ve owned a Korg Triton since November of 2000 but I basically use that for hip-hop production. The original works that I’ve composed on that thing are far from anything a pianist would consider adequate. I know the keys on the keyboard and their corresponding notes. I can read notes on sheet music, too, but as I gaze upon the sheet music I notice that they have a Bass Clef as well. Oh crap, maybe I’m in over my head. I don’t know the notes for the Bass Clef. I remember seeing this particular Clef in one of my music theory books but I didn’t wanna go and scour through the damn thing when I knew I could find it on the web (God Bless Google). Ok, so now that I have a reference for the bottom notes. Now, this sumum’a bytch is in D-flat so there’s a ton of notes on here that look like regular notes but they got the accidentals at the beginning of the work that makes them flat…like Db, and Eb, and Gb, Ab, and Bb…NIGHTMARE. Ok, naw, I got this. This will just take a lot more time than I expected. I’m not sure what I expected but whatever it was it’s going to be longer now.

It takes me about 5 minutes to understand what was going on in the first measure. I knew that I wasn’t that good at reading the tempo aspect of the song. So to solve that issue I went on iTunes and copped the song and basically just started listening to it and getting an idea of how it sounds. Ok, it sounds like a ¾ (or some variation of that) in the beginning. I start playing around…it takes me about a half hour but I think I got the first measure down. What a **** tease however. It’s like imagine only being able to hear the first bar of a Timbaland beat and then it stops. This actually makes me more focused on going forward. It’s also like a puzzle. I found one corner piece and I’m going to start from there.

[Choc City]

I skipped learning classical piano and just went and processed my brain through this signal chain

celexa>lexipro>Zoloft>Effexor XR

I occasionally chase it with some unprescribed unwarranted Vicodin.

Or I hang out with one of my buddies, MR. Jose Quervo and/or Mr. Smirrnoff. If they arent available I'll go to the captain (morgan... not crunch).

[waiting4theIC]

lmao at me when I clicked on this thread thinking it was sh!T about one of my favorite European composers. I guess Aje kinda falls in that category too. lol

[Aje]

05.20.08 (10:45 p.m.): Ok, so now that Simply Sleep Tylenol pill that I took an hour ago starts kicking in. FUUUUCCCKKK, I’m drowsy. But before I ass out I want to, nay, NEED TO learn the second measure of this joint. The problem that seems to get me most is finger placement. At the beginning of the song (excuse me for calling it a song…I think it’s technically a sonata or something – I’m calling it a song for now) I’m at Db under Middle C and two F’s past Middle C then it basically comes together. I’m not gonna lie y’all, I got me some short fingers (no homo) so this is a *****…but I’m going to make this work. Another 15 minutes and I think I got it. Ok, dope…I am officially two measures into this joint. I play what I know for about 15 minutes more. Now that’s a while considering all I know is basically 6 seconds worth of song time.

I’m amped as I take my ass to sleep. I’m honest to God excited. I feel accomplished despite learning only two bars. I’ve never played a piano before tonight with two hands doing the chord thing, reading the notes off the sheet. (I’ve played the trumpet before but…there are no chords because it’s a TRUMPET!) My goal, obviously, is to learn this song through and through but what’s also important is that I literally made a 180 considering the mood I was in before all of this stuff. 8:00 p.m. didn’t seem like it was 3 hours ago…it seemed like a week.

[bleekbeats]

Thats cool bro, Thats how I feel like tackling this classical trumpet class I have in grad school but it is making me a better trumpet player.

05.20.08 (10:45 p.m.): (I’ve played the trumpet before but…there are no chords because it’s a TRUMPET!)

Unless you play jazz like I do, you see chords 24/7

I want to know how today is going to go and how many measure is the song?

Bleek Beats

[Drumkitz]

man.. aje u need a phukkin vacation.. ASAP!! and i aint talkin like a month or 2 from now i mean like call off of work and go down south or west where the girl are plentyful and the weather is warm... ASAP bro..

[Drumkitz]

Asap...

[Aje]

05.21.08 (6:15 a.m.): So I have to wake my ass up and do laundry…before work. I ain’t got no boxers left, man, so it’s a must. And I live in a spot where the laundry is in the basement of the apartment complex so I gotta go outside and around the building and throw it in the washer and come back in a half hour. After I put my stuff in the wash I’m pondering if I should go back to bed, because I’ve got a mean sleeping pill hangover. I’m laying on my bed and looking at the clock and I’m like, “Phuck it.”. I head over to the Triton and fire that joint up.

Now, I failed to mention an important aspect of this learning process. I got me some crappy vision. I had cataracts when I was a kid and now I’m “far sited” as a result. Whatever it’s called I need some thick ass glasses to read shyt. What does this mean? Well, I am going to have to memorize this entire song. I won’t be able to read it as I play. Sucks right? Yeah, well, life sucks…what are you going to do? I actually, in this case, look on the bright side. Memorizing it will mean that I’ll know it really well and don’t have to bring the notes with me. So without even opening up the PDF sheet music I tried to remember playing the 2 measures that I learned the night before…I REMEMBER THEM! This is wassup! I’m amped again. I start playing the 2 measures over and over for another 25 minutes until it’s time for me to put my laundry in the dryer.

After coming back from the dryer I sit back down and keep playing. Man, it’s a sunny morning in Jersey (FINALLY) and I’m up early playing music. This isn’t so damn bad. I play the 2 measures for another 20 minutes and then figured that I should start getting ready for work. Man, I feel accomplished over knowing how to play like 12 notes…funny.

[DJ TEKNIK]

Asap...
:laugh::laugh::laugh:

[bleekbeats]

man.. aje u need a phukkin vacation.. ASAP!! and i aint talkin like a month or 2 from now i mean like call off of work and go down south or west where the girl are plentyful and the weather is warm... ASAP bro..

Go to Cali for a minute for sure. I was out there and like whoa:ohmy:
We need to plan a trip and go see Mike at Siege studio. ha ha:yes:

[DJ TEKNIK]

Go to Cali for a minute for sure. I was out there and like whoa:ohmy:
We need to plan a trip and go see Mike at Siege studio. ha ha:yes:

Never been to cali but I can tell ya I love Orlando..

[Aje]

05.21.08 (7:30 p.m.): All day I was playing this “Raindrop” joint in my iPod. At work, on the train, on the walk home from the train. I get home and I eat some dinner and I hit the keyboard again. On to measure 3! Now measure 3 starts off with these two, well, they’re not chords…they’re only 2 notes each but it’s difficult coming from the previous chord. I mean, I could play it slow but that would sound retarded. But I guess that’s how you learn. So this combo of Ab and F and then Bb and Gb kinda had me stuck but after some persistence I think I had it. But now I got to try to play it straight through. Measure 1 through 3. I try this for like 10 minutes and I think I got the hang of it. Wait, actually I don’t know. I keep on hitting the E when I’m trying to hit the F. Phuck, this is pissing me off. I need to step away for a bit.

[Drumkitz]

Go to Cali for a minute for sure. I was out there and like whoa:ohmy:
We need to plan a trip and go see Mike at Siege studio. ha ha:yes:


yeah that might make him happy.. lol.. cuz mike will definitely give yall n!ggaz the face ya dig..

yeah aje come out of it man.. this is really depressing.. sometimes i hate hearin cats in that zone cuz its like man.. were healthy, were livin, and its like what should we complain about.. or be depressed about??.. pick ya head up homie... im not out there and i may not kno exactly whats goin on.. but i kno if its not anything serious as a close death in the family or a stab wound we should be proud to be in this crazy ass world.. the way u been lately man we need to start a sub forum and call it "The D Zone"... sargent seige mode: "pick it up man!!! pick it the fukk up".. make happy music for a week

[Aje]

05.21.08 (11:00 p.m.): Ok, so I had to take a couple hours and step away. I get frustrated easily. I know it sounds stupid considering I just started this shyt but I have high expectations of myself and when they don’t get fulfilled I get heated. Back to the Triton. Okay, for some reason the 3rd measure has escaped me at this point. I guess I didn’t learn it enough to memorize it. Crap, so I open up the sheet music again and take a look at it. Ok, there it is. So I start playing measures one through three over and over again. For some reason it’s not as fluid as it felt before. Perhaps I’m just tired or whatever but I continue playing. For about another 15 minutes I’m practicing this. I realized that there’s no way in hell I’m going to bed without learning the 4th measure so I start analyzing the fourth measure and then trying to apply it. Going over the fourth measure wasn’t as hard as the 3rd EXCEPT this last part where it’s kind of like a roll. The other thing about this “roll” is that some of the note's flats are negated so it’s tough to put all together. I leave the roll be for now and just mess with everything up to that point.

One thing I noticed about playing is that I mess up once I start “thinking” about what I’m doing. It’s almost counterintuitive…like, you’d think you’d play better if you actually were cognizant of what keys you were hitting. Every time I “thought” about it I phucked up. I’m not sure if other people who play have that same issue. Maybe it’s just the way my brain works.

I’m almost done with 4 bars. I’m not as happy as I was the night before because after hearing the entire song over and over I remember hearing some quite difficult parts. Also, the song is over 5 minutes long. I’m starting to get discouraged by all of this. It’s almost like climbing a mountain. And I’m standing on the foot hills and can’t even see the top. Hopefully I can use my stubbornness for good this time and fight through it. Stop acting like a bytch Age and fight through this.

[NippleTits]

yea dont worry yo


just have fun with it..sit back and remember why you wanted to do this..


http://youtube.com/watch?v=ylnZERRhbjY


:laugh:

[bleekbeats]

TO tell you the truth it sounds like you need to chill and Have a Smoke Bro.:smoker:

[Drumkitz]

TO tell you the truth it sounds like you need to chill and Have a Smoke Bro.:smoker:

or a straight jacket!!!

[Drumkitz]

naw man but fareal.. the best advice i can have for you bro and this is the realest quote i ever wrote!.. PRAY!!!! thats what works for me everytime i get into a funk.. cant lose wit that one famo...

[Propaganda]

did y'all know there is a group of people that still believe the world is flat and the Earth rests on the back of four elephants and a turtle?

[Aje]

06.17.08 (10:30 p.m.): Well, I finished this so far!

Aje - Chopin it Up (http://www.zshare.net/audio/13787146980a6f79/)

[Aje]

06.19.08 (1:30 a.m.): So for a couple of weeks I wasn't really concentrating on the Chopin stuff. Focusing more on the production...remixes and the like. I believe the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend I was hanging out with my homey and he has a piano and I showed him what I knew. Played it a couple times and that was it. He actually had a Chopin book there that had a bunch of different preludes.

Anyway, my boy Paco came through on Monday to drop off Logic 8 (it didn't work :( ) but while he was there we chopped it up about songs with dope piano loops and he was talking about how this one Zelda game has an ill piano on the trailer. So I got into the whole story about how I started practicing etc. Then the fire grew in me again to want to get back at it. The next night (Tuesday) I got home and started playing right after dinner. That's when I ended up recording what I knew and posting up in here. At that point all I knew was the first 4 measures...minus the roll at the end of the fourth measure.

Wednesday night I get home. Have dinner and hit the Triton...HARD! I started playing around 8:15 or somin...I was on that thing until, no lie, 1:30 this morning. So check this shyt out...not only do I have the entire first four measures on lock (INCLUDING THE ROLL - which was a b!tch to learn) but I got the next four measures down also. Now, I'll be fair and say that measures 5 through 8 are very similar to the first four with minor changes. I also learned measures 9 and 10.

Measures 9 and 10 are :ohmy: . After I figured out what I had to do I literally just started cracking up. I was like, "Yeah, aight, whatever you say Frederick." But then I thought..."Man, phuck that...I can do this shyt. Just gotta keep at it." I was going over these two measures for over an hour and a half. The crazy thing is that time flew. When I play time flies...it's nuts.

This friend I know..it's her damn birthday tonight and she wants to go out for happy hour in the city...MAAAAN....I just wanna go home and phuck with the keys, yo. If I miss this shyt, you know how girls be, I'll never hear the end of it. She still gives me shyt for missing her party (On a Monday Night a couple years back)...phuck all that.