too fast

 

Dear friends of piano music,

“You're playing too FAST,” my husband always says. “It's a gondola song, you see, a gondola, not a speedboat. A sightseeing tour, not a motorway! "

I know, of course, that he is right. But as the child of two certified sports teachers, playing fast is in my blood, my athletic genes seem to determine me to do so. Fortunately, after decades of very sporadic encounters with my instrument, I am gradually rediscovering my touch technique. Hopefully I will gradually no longer sound like I'm on the run, but instead manage to capture light and shadow, nuances of color and tell stories. The journey to find one's true "I" is long and arduous, also in art, but there is always cause for hope.

This waltz by Grieg (see link below) has several ritardandi. I wonder, since I have no idea from dancing, whether this can be done with the waltz. With many couples, when dancing, it is not even clear who is leading, and then these tempo changes? Don't they all fall over, or at least step on their toes?

In my opinion, this waltz is ideally suited for “dancing in your thoughts”; you can do that anytime, anywhere, completely unnoticed.

Kind regards! Kerstin Grieg Lyric Pieces Book I, Op.12 - 2. Waltz https://youtu.be/zVoeV80kSQ8