So today, I took a few hours off to practice on the piano. It's been a while since that last happened. Maybe it's because there's a grand piano downstairs at my house just sitting there, and that to let it sit there and collect dust felt like a terrible waste. Or maybe because my hands just kind of itched. But I played anyway, and it had been very relaxing. Piano feels like one of the few things right now that makes me feel genuinely relaxed nowadays.

A few years back, I practised just about everyday. At least three hours per day, usually four, sometimes five. I was 15 when I passed my Grade 8 examinations (which is the highest you can get here in Oceania) and back then I was ambitious enough to have entered competitions. I had a few teachers. I was more technically competent than any of them. But after coming fourth in both competitions I entered within the space of one month, all the steam ran out. The last teacher I had wanted to train me into a professional. I didn't want to be a professional. 

So it's not really surprising that right now, I'm quite rusty. Maybe it's because my technique wasn't particularly good to begin with. Maybe it's because I get tired easily. But it makes me sad that my fingers don't work on the keys like they used to. When the music does turn out fine, though, it really sounds quite beautiful. So I think I'm going to play tomorrow as well.

The pieces I'm currently working on are all the ones I've played before. So basically I'm trying to repair things to how they used to be. There's the Piano Sonata No. 13, by Mozart, which like every Mozart Sonata is deceptively 'simple' but very hard to play properly. I really like that piece, actually it's a personal favourite. Then there's two pieces by Chopin, Etude No. 12 (Ocean) and Scherzo No. 2. The Etude is there to improve my arpeggios, which has always been my weak point. And the Scherzo is a very thematic piece that's designed to lead your fingers in a ten minute obstacle course. Like every Chopin piece, getting the notes right is never enough. The hard part is playing the piece with emotion and at the same time be technically competent. 

When everything is done, maybe I should do recordings of them. I don't think I'm good enough, though. I read somewhere that you need to practice at least 3 hours a day for 5 days per week, if you want to make any progress. And at 21, I'm definitely not learning as fast as I would've when I was a teenager. It's times like this when I regret giving up music so early. Because music, it turns out, is worth a lot more than a lot of other things I got into afterwards.

So this is Pollini's interpretation of the Chopin Etude, which I rather like because it's a sensible interpretation, not too stylized, not too over-the-top.

What's particularly impressive is that despite the pedals, he keeps his arpeggios very clean, ensuring that the important accents at the beginning of each bar actually pops out. 

That's very important, because when I play this piece I tend to muddy it up too much.