Tag Archives: Ludwig

Czerny

Czerny, Carl (Proper Noun): Austrian composer, especially of exercises in piano technique.

Although it is insistently repeated, I question the premise.

Is there anyone who is honored just to be nominated?

It is a gracious way of losing–and every human being should have that speech—a humble reaction ready to go for those occasions when it’s applicable.

But I am not so sure Mr. Czerny envisioned himself being the well-known composer of piano exercises for students grumbling their way through the keyboard.

Didn’t he listen to the music of Johann, Amadeus and Ludwig and think “I can do that?”

And then, perched at his piano, in the throes of a creative tornado, he writes a musical composition–and those who are deemed learned and astute decide it is worthy of being dexterity studies for tiny, childish fingers.

What does that feel like?

We all know the situation—let’s not be insincere.

No one who ended up getting fifth place in the “Homemade Apple Butter Contest” cleared a spaced on their wall for the lavender ribbon. No—it was prepared for the blue.

None of us sign up for a race, train for it, stretch, exercise and eat good food just to end up clumped in a pack of seven or eight people at the end, who are just grateful to have crossed the line.

Aspiration is a good thing.

But we must realize that inspiration is needed as much on the ground floor as it is in the penthouse.

funny wisdom on words that begin with a C

Andante

dictionary with letter A

Andante: (adj) used as a direction in music to mean a moderately slow tempo.

I have found that a little bit of knowledge gives you just enough confidence that you can stumble into creative ways to make a fool of yourself.

It’s much that way with me and music.

I had three years of what you might call “formal training” in playing the piano, and then lots of extemporaneous encounters which have afforded me a scholastic understanding of the craft, similar to storing old papers, discarded clothing and unused appliances in a utility closet. There is no plan for organization–just a bunch of stuff.

So when I saw today’s word, andante, what popped into my mind was what I believe to be a title to a small composition I played when I was a child, pursuing the eighty-eight keys set before me.

It was called Andante Favori. Now let me explain–I do not know if this music actually exists, or if it was a cute title that my piano teacher applied to a piece she wanted me to attempt, and decided to try to make it more appealing.

But as it turns out, as I prepared for today’s essay, I looked it up on the Internet, and discovered that there actually is an Andante Favori. It was written by Beethoven, designated WOO57.

I’m not sure of the translation, but I’m pretty convinced that the title simply means, “A Favorite Andante.”

Not very clever, but in that day and age, composers had to make their living as teachers, and since there was not a lot of printed music available, they penned their own lesson tunes for the students who were given to nobility, but not necessarily talent.

So as I’m writing this today, I am literally punching in a You Tube of somebody playing the piece. I can tell you that it’s not stunning, it’s very simple, and is exactly what an andante should be: completed but not memorable.

So it is with a combination of rejoicing, awe and yet a bit of being unimpressed that I share this with you today.

It’s just nice to know that Ludwig actually wrote the song and it wasn’t an andante of my imagination.

 

 

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