Hey guys.
As some of you will be aware, I am working hard on a ‘Pianist Portfolio’ at the moment.
In the not too distant future, I am hoping to find some work as a ‘function pianist’ playing instrumental arrangements of contemporary songs, jazz standards or sonatas. You know the kind of gigs I am talking about, right? Some dude in the corner twinkles away on a piano playing songs that the guests vaguely recognise while they sip on G&Ts and make small talk. Yeah, those kinds of gigs.
Weirdly, to get that kind of work one has to be pretty good at piano, so I have been practicing like a madman for the last six months or so since I graduated university. I plan to release plenty of these kinds of videos on a dedicated page right here on Substack pretty soon. From there, I can use that repertoire as a portfolio when applying for gigs, etc.
One problem I identified as an area in need of improvement was my lack of skill with my left hand. A year ago, I only played simple chords or octave root notes with it while my right handled the melody. I’ve still got a ways to go, but the left hand arpeggios I have been practicing are really starting to come together.
The 4x4 time arpeggio I utilise in this song in particular has revolutionised my playing as most pop music is in that signature. It is also endlessly adaptable.
Playing it allows me to stretch the notes of the chord out into two octaves, separating them more. This gives them space and stops them getting on top of each other and sounding muddy, as bass chords on piano easily can. The result is a fuller, richer and more professional sounding performance. And the better I get at it, the more I can improvise and play around with it.
There’s still a long way to go, but I am getting better every day.
There’s a few little mistakes in this performance but it's not a bad effort, I reckon. I’m proud of it, at least.
I took the advice of a few commenters on my last piano video in terms of camera and video choices. You still can’t see my face (‘but I love it’) or the sustain pedal in this shot, but at least the piano keyboard is the right way up this time. Baby steps, eh? Small, incremental improvements with each video. (‘Clean your bloody room, eh?’)
The song, (in the unlikely event that you didn’t know), is a cover of a collaboration from Canadian singer/songwriter The Weeknd and the legendary French electronic duo Daft Punk. It was featured on the former’s third studio album STARBOY (XO/Republic Records. 2016) which was released way back in 2016 and got to Number 4 when released as a single on the Billboard 200 in the USA.
I hope you enjoyed my arrangement and performance. See you next time.
Pete Brennan - Musician & Singer/Songwriter
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