@@evilbabaroga well, I'm partly troling, but hey if you're hypermiling the hell out of your car you can throw the car in neutral and keep away from the brakes. I've not tried this in real life by virtue of it being seemingly dangerous (well, how dangerous is this actually though? The car is still on, so you still have power breaking and power steering, but no engine breaking). The point is to reduce rolling resistance on the downhills by physically disconnecting the engine from the wheels, the extra speed you get out can be used to overcome the uphills and save fuel in general. I don't know by how much, but it'd have to surely be measurable. Surely it would have to save whole cents per 100km! edit: I did some more reading and the savings are certainly dubious, dangerous and also probably illegal, *but* on an old crappy car, *maybe*?
These instructions from Seymour to Ben are some of the greatest moments in video history, imo. The knowledge, the passion, the articulate poetry of his directions are almost transcendent, demonstrating the delicate complexity of a few notes of music at the hands of an artist/performer. And the love, humor, and respect between these two humans is an added bonus. That this American Musical Treasure is preserved on film for future generations is a great gift. Thanks to all who make these possible.
I'm a professional musician and music teacher. When I first saw this channel I thought it was another SimplyPiano-type thing, but the videos y'all have been putting out with Bernstein and Hamelin are really quite special. A document of the teaching style or even just the musical thought processes of someone who has done music professionally for over seven decades is something musicologists would kill for!
@@ManWithoutThePants First of all, the entire spectacle is pretentious. Both parties involved. SB makes up everything as he goes along while BL simply complies. The garbage about anatomy is of zero significance. Either we play the piano or we don't. "You know why?"......"Why?".....utterly nauseating. 'Soft' music is 'harder' than 'loud' music? Ridiculous. "The preliminary stroke is the sound itself." Hogwash. Just PLAY the damn piano and LISTEN. "Could I try again?" "No." Absurd. This is a complete FRAUD.
@@organman52 I was wondering the word "butcher", but thanks for clearing out your opinion although I don't agree with all. For example the points about arm and hand movement has a point in general and preparing to next chord etc. Although I would find this kind of teaching irritating where the teacher is stopping you all the time for a smallest mistakes instead of letting the student play or try to soak in the information and play few times. About playing softly is harder I do agree somewhat. For example at least I find it harder to do fast scale or arpeggio runs softly rather than more loudly is harder. But I do agree some of your points though.
If I only had a teacher like Seymour when I was younger - I think I would have never given up on the piano - I wouldn't have cared if he interrupted me 10,000 times - because once you see the wisdom and purpose behind it all, how can you not fall in love with the teaching ?
Seymour somehow consistently condenses a lifetime of knowledge into 40 mins of pure gold. What a legend… Ben brings it out of him. I takes two to tango. Their tacit affection for each other is palpable and moving…
Ben Laude, you do an amazing job being a student. Often times someone being instructed can make things very awkward or not know how to react to criticism, especially with someone as straight shooting and, let's be frank, controversial, as Mr Berstein, but you handle it all wonderfully and put into action his suggestions beautifully.
Seymour seems to have that perfect modus for being a mentor. He keeps you on your toes enough without being so overbearing it erases/hampers progress. This was great! Just don't get him started on Gould haaha!
Hello Seymour, you mentioned escapement making it possible to play very quietly using only half the key's height. I'm a piano tuner-technician with 50 years experience. I initially worked for Steinway, NYC before going it alone in Australia. I've had a great career (I'm part time now with no view to ever retire) and have met (and played duets with) some world-class pianists. I vividly remember explaining the double repetition system to a famous Australian concert pianist. His takeaway was very positive indeed. He said that by having a now full working knowledge of the action and all its modern enhancements, his playing can only improve. Having watched many of your videos, I know that you have an excellent knowledge of the workings of grand piano action. Having said that, and to elaborate on your comment about the escapement. Yes, escapement plays the 1st little trick - it's what follows very shortly after that became a game changer - the speed of a repeated note can be extremely fast. But, what's often missed is the fact that a pianist can play a note at minimal volume using the same lever that was designed for fast repetition of a single note. That game changer is called the repetition lever. Grand actions utilise what's called "double repetition. This spring-loaded lever takes over the job of lifting the hammer, rather than the jack that just escaped. The jack is what initially lifts the hammer; after it does so, its job is done until the key involved is raised past that ~halfway point. Now - pushing the key down very slowly, you can feel the escapement of the jack from under the knuckle (AKA Roller). Keep pushing the key to its limit, then slowly lift until you reach about half height - do not let the key go fully up - then play that note, repeatedly using only the spring-loaded repetition lever with the key never being allowed to be raised past its halfway point. Note that every grand piano's key height - whilst ready to be played by the repetition lever - will vary slightly. To my knowledge, there still doesn't exist an upright piano action capable of double repetition Thank you for your always intriguing video content!
That was very interesting. I have an upright. When you look at what happens when you press a key it’s darn impressive. How they came up with it all is amazing. 🌈🦘
When in doubt, listen to Seymour. This man is such a treasure. I hang on every word he says. I like most Tonebase videos, but Seymour features are some the very best content online. Seymour, tell us everything you think a pianist should know.
@@frazerwatson3965 My tone base video? Why on earth would I have one of those? May I add - Mr. Bernstein has the ultimate solution to EVERY single pianistic problem. Every pianist on earth should be flocking to his studio to become enriched and enlightened.
Its just so amazing how many mistake you can possibly make at the first measure and even a professional pianist. It’s very nice to see and learn about my most favorite sonata ever ❤
Mr Bernstein’s way of correcting his student reminds me of my grandfather’s way of coaching my aunt on the piano. He heard tones and nuances so sensitively as though he felt each key stroke with his body. As such, he interrupted my aunt with every error because he didn’t want her to develop bad habits. Every vibration of each key strike was considered. Every pause, every breath. He was a concert violinist, but he only coached my aunt on the piano - the rest of his students were for violin. My aunt would often cry because he would have her repeat parts over and over again. Sometimes he would yell at her… out of love, of course, but this is why he was such a great teacher. He hears music with his soul. I love it when teachers are strict. The end result was my aunt received a standing ovation for her performance by List.. so when my aunt started coaching me on the piano, she didn’t hesitate to coach me in the same way.
This is timeless and very special - The master recounts then shares with his student. My ownly student went on to compose a Bach like counter music. I feel very accomplished to have taught him.
Despite playing piano for over 15 years, it's videos like this that make me realize I've barely scratched the surface of even the basics. This video is such a gift!
These two are always such a joy to watch working together. Thank you for this. I played the first few bars, learned before I could read music, on my introductory first piano lesson when I was 5. Almost 35 now, played the movement a million times, recorded it for a friend, never been happy with it. This was so deeply informative and wonderfully satisfying. More than anything else it's convinced me of the importance of a good teacher (a lesson which I keep learning - a good teacher is worth their weight in gold - and Seymour is 24 karat gold).
I am not even close to a musician, but I was enthralled by this. Hearing someone teach something that they know and love so well in this manner is captivating.
Master Bernstein is THE instructor we ought to be paying close attention to, hang on every word. Non of the click bait crap. This is for real, for serious students of the piano. Thank you so much for your videos! (•ө•)♡
Coming from a classical music background, it is so normal to see people respecting and enjoying the knowledge and expertise of others. So many people who haven't have the joy of experiencing this kind of relationship are too quick to scream 'arrogant!'
This is next level. As a singer and voice teacher, I dip into these videos of Seymour for musical and artistic sustenance. MY what a gift to humanity and art he is.
Ben, I really liked when you switched the "mystical Moonlight". It would be great to hear this continued forward into the 1st mvt. I wonder if you could take all these profound instructions, prepare some and then give us a video of putting it all together in a performance of the 1st mvt. It would be a study of listening & watching for us to pick up on all that Seymour taught you (us). Thanks to both you & Seymour.
This video came just in time, I am performing this song next week. Seymour's masterful teaching already has me sounding better and playing more comfortably. Thank you so much for making these available.
Seymour's way to teach is meditative, so calm and quiet that you can only be relaxed while playing. I love his teachings! Thank you for sharing these precious moments ❤
Thank you so so much it was so informative so important knowledge dear Seymour taught us so helpful thank you🙏🙏🙏💖🌺Please more Seymour videos thank you!!!!
I cant express in words the gratitute and appreciation I feel for these kind of teachers. He reminds me of my teacher in contemporary dance and she talked, laughed and cared her words with wisdom just like Seymour. Thanks alot tonebase piano for making this available to us and thank you Seymour for sharing all this wisdom 🙏
I enjoy the masterclasses with Seymour Bernstein. They are priceless. I studied the Moonlight Sonata about 60 years ago and wish I had a piano in my living room so I could practice again.
God Bless You Seymour for your lifetime devoted to music, and sharing your pedagogy with us here... I've played organs on and off for years but only just had my first Feurich concert upright for a year, and chose to learn Moonlight Sonata first movement for my first piano piece... Once I had learned the notes, I found this tutorial of yours... I'm an emotional musician, but you've really, really helped me to understand better everything that bit only goes into playing skilfully, but moreso, how to play more emotionally... my version of moonlight a few months after studying from your tutorial now regularly brings tears to my eyes... (So does your version you have on you tube) So thank you again Seymour for so kindly sharing... thank you for your music... Music is Life embodied... Frequencies, Harmonies and resonance throughout the universe made beautiful by humans ❤ 🎼🎵🎶🎵
Seymour spoke the truth when he said the strongest part of the body is from the pelvic girdle, and the second strongest is the shoulder girdle. I worked as a Chiropractor but had to rehabilitate and learn a whole new method of working due to a shoulder injury. In fact I live with a FURS Syndrome. But I learned how to treat the shoulder, and found that in Europe it's one of the most mis-diagnosed and mat-treated articulations in the body. I have a video about my exercises for stabilizing and strengthening the low back as well as treatments for the upper body and arms. Oh My Aching Bach.
I can’t stop laughing with pure joy witnessing this beautiful interchange between two souls and the piano being the bridge. Love you both. Thank you for sharing your light. ❤
I learned yesterday that Yuja Wang returns to neutral between every note, which is supposed to be the explanation why she is able to play with high precision in a high tempo. That's what I began thinking of during this lesson. I usually call it The importance of being relaxed in the right moment.
I am a self-trained guitarist. The left hand never leaves the fret board. I am not a pianist but Seymour is very helpful. Playing Chopin on guitar is the most frustrating thing in my life. Seymour gives me a new perspective.
A lot of guitarists think guitars come with a certain level of fretboard noise but good left-hand economy can make chord transitions practically silent, the callouses actually make it a little harder to mute chords and crawl along the strings on finger pads without going kccxzzzwwww. Speaking as someone still learning, not pretending to be a Seymour.
Seymour Bernstein is awesome. Where did he learn this stuff? I'm watching him teach all of us how to play two chords and some other notes, and it's so tiring to concentrate; but it's got to be right. I was teaching this afternoon, and the student played it 6 times incorrectly, then one time right. I said, "OK, let's hear it right one more time." You'd have thought I was asking for a grave to be dug. But I said, "You want to reinforce the right way, so the wrong way doesn't even enter your mind."
This is why I subscribe to tonebase. I love this kind of deep dive into technique. Now, what about tempo? I wonder if Seymour is aware of Ben Zander's thoughts about this piece, and other Beethoven tempos.
You are amazing. Camera angles are great. Passion, belief and knowledge are finely tuned. I never had tears of joy before, thank you for existing and for doing this! May the life be with you!
It is said that one evening, while Beethoven was performing the first movement of the Moonlight Sonata for a small gathering of friends and patrons, a distinguished lady present in the audience became so moved by the music that she exclaimed, "I'll give ten ducats if only I could learn that one!" Amused by her enthusiastic offer, Beethoven supposedly replied, "I shall be glad to earn ten ducats. I will make the sonata over for you!" Of course, Beethoven was known for his wry sense of humour, and he often interacted with his audience in playful ways. What a boss!!! This is my first ever piano piece ever by the way!
I've been subscribing to the channel for a while, and I was hesitant to sign up for tonebase. This video sold me on it. I've been using tonebase Piano for about a week, and I love it so much. What they're doing is amazing.
This was just wonderful -- the universe in a grain of sand. I'm reminded of Italo Calvino's Invisible Cities, the interstitial "story" that frames it all, as Kublai Khan plays Marco Polo at chess and worries about the loss of his empire. At the moment Khan is sure his "king" is dead on the board, and all is lost, Marco Polo reveals how that chess piece was made of a certain wood that came from such-and-such land which required certain waters and sun, and little by little, he evokes (resurrects) all the lost land and time. One measure of Beethoven's "Moonlight" contains multitudes -- of course! -- but we all so often just course on by without thinking of the universe embedded within. Thank you, Seymour and Ben, for this delicate, exquisite, and life-affirming little match of chess!
I’ve been understanding music more and more because of you, best teachers ever, I would love to play for you and work with you, With All Respect For your Souls and Beethoven’s 🤍♻️
Brilliant information. This is very difficult for me to control the preliminary note. I studied with a graduate of the St Peterburg Conservatory and the intricate analysis of the music was wonderful. My proudest moment was performing the Schumann Piano Quartet 1st Movement at an amateur chamber music and having another St. Peterburg graduate say he didn't know that I was a pianist. 😅 BTW, anyone who thinks the production of music isn't an athletic endeavor needs to watch this.
So interesting about the upper arm engagement in dynamics, really amazing. I love ballet and the arm movement actually comes from the back muscles, ive played lazily on piano forever, not knowing.
I've just started relearning in my 40's after decades of not playing and I'm sad that I wasted so much time. Hopefully it's not too late, and I can reach almost-good levels one day.
So excited to see this! :) Seymour's lessons are always wonderful. And 40 minutes, that's great. It's a beautiful piece, also I've recently started playing the first movement (on classical guitar), so that's another plus 😊.
Here’s the thing: just because the time signature is properly in cut time (2/2) doesn’t mean we get to double how slow the TEMPO is from the indicated Adagio Sostenuto to something like Larghissimo! It is the duple time that is indicated as Adagio Sostenuto. Observing this means that the triplets diminish in their (IMO) overblown importance to the advantage of the bass line, melody and larger structures of the movement. Just saying that if we want to be literal to the score, we need to refocus on more important features than the granularity of the 8th notes. There are Schirmer scores that erroneously have it in 4/4 time, but for most pianists it seems to make no difference as to how what speed they play it. Of course, your mileage may vary.
Can achieve both, with attention to granularity, but yes, agreed that the overarching structure is even more important. The first bar sets the mood and tone tho.. i guess there are more lessons on their web platform for paid subscribers to get into the other stuff
The Moonlight Sonata is only a feeling at the moments... It is a feeling of life, love and sorrow. It's more than you can descripe in this video. You have to feel it, the emotions, in this moment and give the feeling to the spirit that seems to be in a lonely place and is brought to life to love. That is what it's mean for me.. That is what you feel to start playing.
I am on Turn to neutral. I have to leave for a few hours. But I will come back a little later. Thank you so much for your teaching Mr. Seymour Berstein.
Yoda and Luke right here
Kind of :)
I mean, honestly.
"Leverage, you need" 😂
NO WAY😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
This had better directing
“Turn to neutral at every moment you can, or you will get injured.” This is sage advice and applies not just to piano, but all of life.
except for driving
@@evilbabaroga saves fuel!
@@minerscale i got triggered for a sec but ur trolling, right? sneaky yt commenters
@@evilbabaroga well, I'm partly troling, but hey if you're hypermiling the hell out of your car you can throw the car in neutral and keep away from the brakes. I've not tried this in real life by virtue of it being seemingly dangerous (well, how dangerous is this actually though? The car is still on, so you still have power breaking and power steering, but no engine breaking).
The point is to reduce rolling resistance on the downhills by physically disconnecting the engine from the wheels, the extra speed you get out can be used to overcome the uphills and save fuel in general. I don't know by how much, but it'd have to surely be measurable. Surely it would have to save whole cents per 100km!
edit: I did some more reading and the savings are certainly dubious, dangerous and also probably illegal, *but* on an old crappy car, *maybe*?
These instructions from Seymour to Ben are some of the greatest moments in video history, imo. The knowledge, the passion, the articulate poetry of his directions are almost transcendent, demonstrating the delicate complexity of a few notes of music at the hands of an artist/performer.
And the love, humor, and respect between these two humans is an added bonus. That this American Musical Treasure is preserved on film for future generations is a great gift. Thanks to all who make these possible.
I'm a professional musician and music teacher. When I first saw this channel I thought it was another SimplyPiano-type thing, but the videos y'all have been putting out with Bernstein and Hamelin are really quite special. A document of the teaching style or even just the musical thought processes of someone who has done music professionally for over seven decades is something musicologists would kill for!
A 54 year old beginner and I find this mentorship priceless.
Seymour Bernstein is such a gift to humanity - I wish more people were like him
Mr Bernstein ability to dissect music is amazing.
yeah right. Oh and - 'dissect' is not the right word. The word you are looking for is 'butcher.'
@@organman52 Care to elaborate?
@@ManWithoutThePants First of all, the entire spectacle is pretentious. Both parties involved. SB makes up everything as he goes along while BL simply complies. The garbage about anatomy is of zero significance. Either we play the piano or we don't. "You know why?"......"Why?".....utterly nauseating. 'Soft' music is 'harder' than 'loud' music? Ridiculous. "The preliminary stroke is the sound itself." Hogwash. Just PLAY the damn piano and LISTEN. "Could I try again?" "No." Absurd. This is a complete FRAUD.
@@organman52 I was wondering the word "butcher", but thanks for clearing out your opinion although I don't agree with all. For example the points about arm and hand movement has a point in general and preparing to next chord etc. Although I would find this kind of teaching irritating where the teacher is stopping you all the time for a smallest mistakes instead of letting the student play or try to soak in the information and play few times. About playing softly is harder I do agree somewhat. For example at least I find it harder to do fast scale or arpeggio runs softly rather than more loudly is harder. But I do agree some of your points though.
@@organman52playing soft is way harder what
If I only had a teacher like Seymour when I was younger - I think I would have never given up on the piano - I wouldn't have cared if he interrupted me 10,000 times - because once you see the wisdom and purpose behind it all, how can you not fall in love with the teaching ?
I was thinking the same. Although I would have probably frustrated him. 😅
Watching a pianist playing Moonlight will never be the same.
Seymour somehow consistently condenses a lifetime of knowledge into 40 mins of pure gold. What a legend… Ben brings it out of him. I takes two to tango. Their tacit affection for each other is palpable and moving…
I so appreciate Seymour's interpretive insights
laughable
YESS! more Seymour content... I just finished rewatching the older videos of him from you guys!
Ben Laude, you do an amazing job being a student. Often times someone being instructed can make things very awkward or not know how to react to criticism, especially with someone as straight shooting and, let's be frank, controversial, as Mr Berstein, but you handle it all wonderfully and put into action his suggestions beautifully.
Yep, kudos!
I get total zen watching this. Even the lesson is a beautiful performance unto itself.
I was entranced. At 3am I might add.
❤
Seymour seems to have that perfect modus for being a mentor. He keeps you on your toes enough without being so overbearing it erases/hampers progress. This was great! Just don't get him started on Gould haaha!
Such a treasure to spend a few minutes with Seymour today. We need more content just like this! :)
Hello Seymour, you mentioned escapement making it possible to play very quietly using only half the key's height. I'm a piano tuner-technician with 50 years experience. I initially worked for Steinway, NYC before going it alone in Australia. I've had a great career (I'm part time now with no view to ever retire) and have met (and played duets with) some world-class pianists. I vividly remember explaining the double repetition system to a famous Australian concert pianist. His takeaway was very positive indeed. He said that by having a now full working knowledge of the action and all its modern enhancements, his playing can only improve.
Having watched many of your videos, I know that you have an excellent knowledge of the workings of grand piano action.
Having said that, and to elaborate on your comment about the escapement. Yes, escapement plays the 1st little trick - it's what follows very shortly after that became a game changer - the speed of a repeated note can be extremely fast. But, what's often missed is the fact that a pianist can play a note at minimal volume using the same lever that was designed for fast repetition of a single note. That game changer is called the repetition lever. Grand actions utilise what's called "double repetition. This spring-loaded lever takes over the job of lifting the hammer, rather than the jack that just escaped. The jack is what initially lifts the hammer; after it does so, its job is done until the key involved is raised past that ~halfway point.
Now - pushing the key down very slowly, you can feel the escapement of the jack from under the knuckle (AKA Roller). Keep pushing the key to its limit, then slowly lift until you reach about half height - do not let the key go fully up - then play that note, repeatedly using only the spring-loaded repetition lever with the key never being allowed to be raised past its halfway point. Note that every grand piano's key height - whilst ready to be played by the repetition lever - will vary slightly.
To my knowledge, there still doesn't exist an upright piano action capable of double repetition
Thank you for your always intriguing video content!
This seems very important but I didn’t quite fully understand. I will have to revisit this comment after my food is digested 😂
That was very interesting. I have an upright. When you look at what happens when you press a key it’s darn impressive. How they came up with it all is amazing. 🌈🦘
When in doubt, listen to Seymour. This man is such a treasure. I hang on every word he says. I like most Tonebase videos, but Seymour features are some the very best content online. Seymour, tell us everything you think a pianist should know.
You poor, poor soul.
link me to your tone base video and ill compare @@organman52
@@frazerwatson3965 My tone base video? Why on earth would I have one of those? May I add - Mr. Bernstein has the ultimate solution to EVERY single pianistic problem. Every pianist on earth should be flocking to his studio to become enriched and enlightened.
Zen and the Art of the first 3 notes of Moonlight Sonata. Wonderful master class - thank you!
the amount of information and pedagogy that he effortlessly pulls from a few measures is stunning, what a treasure, THANK YOU for sharing with us
Wow what a genius....can I adopt Seymour as my teacher AND as my gradfather? He is just incredible.
Its just so amazing how many mistake you can possibly make at the first measure and even a professional pianist. It’s very nice to see and learn about my most favorite sonata ever ❤
Mr Bernstein’s way of correcting his student reminds me of my grandfather’s way of coaching my aunt on the piano. He heard tones and nuances so sensitively as though he felt each key stroke with his body. As such, he interrupted my aunt with every error because he didn’t want her to develop bad habits. Every vibration of each key strike was considered. Every pause, every breath. He was a concert violinist, but he only coached my aunt on the piano - the rest of his students were for violin. My aunt would often cry because he would have her repeat parts over and over again. Sometimes he would yell at her… out of love, of course, but this is why he was such a great teacher. He hears music with his soul. I love it when teachers are strict. The end result was my aunt received a standing ovation for her performance by List.. so when my aunt started coaching me on the piano, she didn’t hesitate to coach me in the same way.
This is timeless and very special - The master recounts then shares with his student. My ownly student went on to compose a Bach like counter music.
I feel very accomplished to have taught him.
@@CensureAsylum That’s is excellent!!
@@Joyfullybusy I have the Greatest respect for those who came before ourselfs!
I've never learned so much in one video. Absolutely incredible.
You are so privileged to have Maestro Bernstein's tutelage!
"If you're doing the other we're going to get seasick" really gave me a good smile.
Despite playing piano for over 15 years, it's videos like this that make me realize I've barely scratched the surface of even the basics. This video is such a gift!
These sessions with Seymour and Ben are truly priceless.
What a brilliant video… as a self taught pianist, this was a extremely valuable video on technique.
These two are always such a joy to watch working together. Thank you for this. I played the first few bars, learned before I could read music, on my introductory first piano lesson when I was 5. Almost 35 now, played the movement a million times, recorded it for a friend, never been happy with it. This was so deeply informative and wonderfully satisfying. More than anything else it's convinced me of the importance of a good teacher (a lesson which I keep learning - a good teacher is worth their weight in gold - and Seymour is 24 karat gold).
I am not even close to a musician, but I was enthralled by this. Hearing someone teach something that they know and love so well in this manner is captivating.
This video alone is enough to convince me to sign up to tonebase premium! What a wonderful episode and reminds me of my youth!
Master Bernstein is THE instructor we ought to be paying close attention to, hang on every word. Non of the click bait crap. This is for real, for serious students of the piano. Thank you so much for your videos! (•ө•)♡
This made my day ❤ I love the humor and respect shared between Seymour and Ben.
Coming from a classical music background, it is so normal to see people respecting and enjoying the knowledge and expertise of others. So many people who haven't have the joy of experiencing this kind of relationship are too quick to scream 'arrogant!'
This is next level. As a singer and voice teacher, I dip into these videos of Seymour for musical and artistic sustenance. MY what a gift to humanity and art he is.
Ben, I really liked when you switched the "mystical Moonlight". It would be great to hear this continued forward into the 1st mvt. I wonder if you could take all these profound instructions, prepare some and then give us a video of putting it all together in a performance of the 1st mvt. It would be a study of listening & watching for us to pick up on all that Seymour taught you (us). Thanks to both you & Seymour.
This video came just in time, I am performing this song next week. Seymour's masterful teaching already has me sounding better and playing more comfortably. Thank you so much for making these available.
The granularity of his analysis is amazing. May however take a hundred years or so to master the sonata.
Seymour's way to teach is meditative, so calm and quiet that you can only be relaxed while playing. I love his teachings! Thank you for sharing these precious moments ❤
Thank you so so much it was so informative so important knowledge dear Seymour taught us so helpful thank you🙏🙏🙏💖🌺Please more Seymour videos thank you!!!!
He's such a wonderful, amazing teacher. I love to sit down with him for an hour or two.
Seymour it's amazing
I cant express in words the gratitute and appreciation I feel for these kind of teachers. He reminds me of my teacher in contemporary dance and she talked, laughed and cared her words with wisdom just like Seymour.
Thanks alot tonebase piano for making this available to us and thank you Seymour for sharing all this wisdom 🙏
To be able to watch Mr. Bernstein teach is priceless. Simply WOW
I hope to be like maestro Bernstein one day, what incredible wisdom.
I enjoy the masterclasses with Seymour Bernstein. They are priceless. I studied the Moonlight Sonata about 60 years ago and wish I had a piano in my living room so I could practice again.
Dropping wisdom. I'm grateful Sir.
God Bless You Seymour for your lifetime devoted to music, and sharing your pedagogy with us here... I've played organs on and off for years but only just had my first Feurich concert upright for a year, and chose to learn Moonlight Sonata first movement for my first piano piece... Once I had learned the notes, I found this tutorial of yours... I'm an emotional musician, but you've really, really helped me to understand better everything that bit only goes into playing skilfully, but moreso, how to play more emotionally... my version of moonlight a few months after studying from your tutorial now regularly brings tears to my eyes... (So does your version you have on you tube) So thank you again Seymour for so kindly sharing... thank you for your music... Music is Life embodied... Frequencies, Harmonies and resonance throughout the universe made beautiful by humans ❤ 🎼🎵🎶🎵
Seymour spoke the truth when he said the strongest part of the body is from the pelvic girdle, and the second strongest is the shoulder girdle. I worked as a Chiropractor but had to rehabilitate and learn a whole new method of working due to a shoulder injury. In fact I live with a FURS Syndrome. But I learned how to treat the shoulder, and found that in Europe it's one of the most mis-diagnosed and mat-treated articulations in the body.
I have a video about my exercises for stabilizing and strengthening the low back as well as treatments for the upper body and arms.
Oh My Aching Bach.
I can’t stop laughing with pure joy witnessing this beautiful interchange between two souls and the piano being the bridge. Love you both. Thank you for sharing your light. ❤
He is the best teacher because he always want to “seymour” to the students
Another stellar lesson from Seymour!
He brings mechanisms and emotions, not boring...superb sound
I learned yesterday that Yuja Wang returns to neutral between every note, which is supposed to be the explanation why she is able to play with high precision in a high tempo. That's what I began thinking of during this lesson. I usually call it The importance of being relaxed in the right moment.
Seymour Bernstein rules! I love his personality and sense of humor in addition to his amazing skill and wisdom.
I am a self-trained guitarist. The left hand never leaves the fret board. I am not a pianist but Seymour is very helpful. Playing Chopin on guitar is the most frustrating thing in my life. Seymour gives me a new perspective.
A lot of guitarists think guitars come with a certain level of fretboard noise but good left-hand economy can make chord transitions practically silent, the callouses actually make it a little harder to mute chords and crawl along the strings on finger pads without going kccxzzzwwww. Speaking as someone still learning, not pretending to be a Seymour.
Seymour Bernstein is awesome. Where did he learn this stuff? I'm watching him teach all of us how to play two chords and some other notes, and it's so tiring to concentrate; but it's got to be right. I was teaching this afternoon, and the student played it 6 times incorrectly, then one time right. I said, "OK, let's hear it right one more time." You'd have thought I was asking for a grave to be dug. But I said, "You want to reinforce the right way, so the wrong way doesn't even enter your mind."
Seymour is such a gem. Wow
This is why I subscribe to tonebase. I love this kind of deep dive into technique. Now, what about tempo? I wonder if Seymour is aware of Ben Zander's thoughts about this piece, and other Beethoven tempos.
Yes. The ‘una quasi fantasia’.
You are amazing. Camera angles are great. Passion, belief and knowledge are finely tuned. I never had tears of joy before, thank you for existing and for doing this!
May the life be with you!
It is said that one evening, while Beethoven was performing the first movement of the Moonlight Sonata for a small gathering of friends and patrons, a distinguished lady present in the audience became so moved by the music that she exclaimed, "I'll give ten ducats if only I could learn that one!"
Amused by her enthusiastic offer, Beethoven supposedly replied, "I shall be glad to earn ten ducats. I will make the sonata over for you!" Of course, Beethoven was known for his wry sense of humour, and he often interacted with his audience in playful ways. What a boss!!! This is my first ever piano piece ever by the way!
So amazing video. Thank you very very much for sharing it!
I will try to remember all I can. I had no idea that it could be that difficult. Exercising with the bridge on my piano. Thank you.
Feel it 😂
Wow. What an honor it must have been to have had a master class from Mr Bernstein. Amazing.
Now that’s a piano lesson!
I feel like a better player after just watching it - and i haven’t even tried them on the piano yet.
I love him
these videos are invaluable resources. i just wanted to say thank you.
I wish i could find such a good teacher
I could Watch those guys all day every day ❤
I've been subscribing to the channel for a while, and I was hesitant to sign up for tonebase. This video sold me on it. I've been using tonebase Piano for about a week, and I love it so much. What they're doing is amazing.
Thank God we have this technology nowadays. Got to learn from this master ❤
Utterly incredible musician, his insights are wonderful, what compelling and inspiring stuff!
This was just wonderful -- the universe in a grain of sand. I'm reminded of Italo Calvino's Invisible Cities, the interstitial "story" that frames it all, as Kublai Khan plays Marco Polo at chess and worries about the loss of his empire. At the moment Khan is sure his "king" is dead on the board, and all is lost, Marco Polo reveals how that chess piece was made of a certain wood that came from such-and-such land which required certain waters and sun, and little by little, he evokes (resurrects) all the lost land and time. One measure of Beethoven's "Moonlight" contains multitudes -- of course! -- but we all so often just course on by without thinking of the universe embedded within. Thank you, Seymour and Ben, for this delicate, exquisite, and life-affirming little match of chess!
Can't believe this is free. Thank you all!!
Monsieur Bernstein est un fabuleux professeur, sa pédagogie, son humour et son talent de pianiste rend cet homme merveilleux. ❤❤❤
The greatest piece of music to Er fall in human ears
Every comment by maestro Bernstein is right on. all of it on just 3 notes.
the perception of teacher is amazing
I'm NOT a piano player, but I love watching these - I admit I have to watch in "sections" :)
I’ve been understanding music more and more because of you, best teachers ever, I would love to play for you and work with you, With All Respect For your Souls and Beethoven’s 🤍♻️
Brilliant information. This is very difficult for me to control the preliminary note. I studied with a graduate of the St Peterburg Conservatory and the intricate analysis of the music was wonderful. My proudest moment was performing the Schumann Piano Quartet 1st Movement at an amateur chamber music and having another St. Peterburg graduate say he didn't know that I was a pianist. 😅 BTW, anyone who thinks the production of music isn't an athletic endeavor needs to watch this.
seymour bernstein the GOAT 💪💪
What a legend. Unmatched insight.
Thank you dear Seymour, thank you Tonebase, for this wonderful insight and journey into music and piano playing
So interesting about the upper arm engagement in dynamics, really amazing. I love ballet and the arm movement actually comes from the back muscles, ive played lazily on piano forever, not knowing.
I've just started relearning in my 40's after decades of not playing and I'm sad that I wasted so much time. Hopefully it's not too late, and I can reach almost-good levels one day.
So excited to see this! :) Seymour's lessons are always wonderful. And 40 minutes, that's great. It's a beautiful piece, also I've recently started playing the first movement (on classical guitar), so that's another plus 😊.
"Guitar"... you're doing it wrong 😂
@@ROBERT-ml7ml ?
@@ROBERT-ml7mlI mean like, arrangements are a pretty common thing...
Wow! This is excellent! Thank you for sharing your knowledge!!!
Don’t give up just yet, Ben. One day, you will be a great pianist. I’m sure you will be able to play Rachmaninoff second piano concerto.
Here’s the thing: just because the time signature is properly in cut time (2/2) doesn’t mean we get to double how slow the TEMPO is from the indicated Adagio Sostenuto to something like Larghissimo! It is the duple time that is indicated as Adagio Sostenuto. Observing this means that the triplets diminish in their (IMO) overblown importance to the advantage of the bass line, melody and larger structures of the movement. Just saying that if we want to be literal to the score, we need to refocus on more important features than the granularity of the 8th notes. There are Schirmer scores that erroneously have it in 4/4 time, but for most pianists it seems to make no difference as to how what speed they play it.
Of course, your mileage may vary.
Can achieve both, with attention to granularity, but yes, agreed that the overarching structure is even more important. The first bar sets the mood and tone tho.. i guess there are more lessons on their web platform for paid subscribers to get into the other stuff
The Moonlight Sonata is only a feeling at the moments... It is a feeling of life, love and sorrow. It's more than you can descripe in this video. You have to feel it, the emotions, in this moment and give the feeling to the spirit that seems to be in a lonely place and is brought to life to love. That is what it's mean for me.. That is what you feel to start playing.
Podría estar todo el día repitiendo este video....
Thank you, Seymour! 💜
He is such a wise man.
This is pure gold and I am not even a pianist
I love this man for real.
I am on Turn to neutral. I have to leave for a few hours. But I will come back a little later. Thank you so much for your teaching Mr. Seymour Berstein.
I love this video ❤❤🎉
I feel like I'm not ready for this knowledge. Generally, I'm happy just to hit the correct note.