Episode 89 - Practise Together

G'day everyone! I'm David Reidy, and welcome to show number 89 of Piano, finally. This week, I'm exploring the reliability of practising with others, reviewing a YouTube progress video, and diving into some fascinating AI vocal software.

Recording Under the Storm

This episode comes to you amidst some local connectivity challenges. A large electrical storm recently knocked out both my landline and 5G internet, which might delay the posting of this show until I can reach a stable connection.

Community and Music Lessons

Despite a busy week adjudicating the Year 7 public speaking semi-finals, I managed to attend my regular singing and piano lessons. Working with Sussane, my voice teacher, I’ve successfully moved up another full tone—eyeing a specific E in an upcoming piece. I’ve found that having others involved, like my teachers Devi and Sussane, makes me much more likely to block out practice time and follow through on my plans.

YouTube Review: Matthew Cawood

I took a look at a video by Matthew Cawood where he reacts to a beginner pianist named Dinky. Dinky documented her seven-month journey from zero, and while her playing is technically entertaining, Matthew suggests she may be learning by rote rather than building a long-term foundation.

• Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZxQY4uskVc

Software Review: Synthesiser V Studio 2 Pro

I’ve been having a lot of fun with Synthesiser V Studio 2 Pro from Dreamtonics. This AI voice tool uses machine learning and properly licensed samples of real people to generate vocal tracks from music scores. I’ve been using it to create practice audio for my community choir, specifically generating choir voices for Stevie Nicks' "Edge of Seventeen".

• Explore Synthesiser V: https://dreamtonics.com/

Progress Report

It was another difficult week to fit in as much practice as I wanted. I am still working on chord progressions, now playing octaves in the left hand with chords higher up in the right. The Fmaj7 chord remains a particular hurdle. I’m also trying an idea from Tom Donald:

• Tom Donald Video: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbL IFFNWHO](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbL IFFNWHO) 

The Blue Mountains Music Festival is coming up next weekend, and I hope to share some reviews from the event soon!

The contents of this podcast were entirely generated by David Reidy, but these show notes were created by me, Gemini.

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