The Mechanical Doll: Part 2

Hello and welcome back. I'm Joseph Hoffman, and in this lesson we're going to learn the B section of "The Mechanical Doll" by Dimitri Shostakovich. Let's come to the piano to get started. Now remember, I can't share the sheet music with you because it's under copyright, but you can purchase it by clicking on the link below. Let's start by learning the right hand part measures 18 through 21. I'd like you to pause the video and see if you can learn this on your own. Don't forget to watch out for any F's or C's, and make sure those are automatically sharp from the key signature. Press play and we'll check it out together. Okay, we start with: And then here it says in the sheet music a 5 2, 5 1, 4 1, but I find that kind of tedious. There are some reasons behind it, but I find it a lot easier to just come up and use a 5 1 because that's just comfortable in the hands. or if you want to do a 4 1, that works too especially as you get to these 16th notes you'll need to start on a 4 1 so your finger 5 can be ready on that E-flat. See those four 16th notes? So what I might do is 5 1 for one measure then switch to 4 1 in the next measure. See how I did that? But again you do what fingering works for you. These fingerings just came from the editor not from Shastakovich. And so you can find a fingering that works for you. Okay now I'd like you to pause the video and learn the left hand part measures 17 through 21 on your own. Be on the lookout for flats here in measure 20 and 21, and also natural symbols. Remember a natural cancels a sharp. Whether it happened earlier in the measure or from a key signature so like here in measure 20, we have G and then F would normally be sharp from the key signature but be F natural, then E-flat, then D. So watch out for all the accidentals in the music there, and then press play to go on. So hands together this section will sound like this: Now pause the video and try at least part of this hands together. You might want to save some of it for later in your practicing, but I'd like you to tackle at least a few measures of this section hands together, then press play to go on. Now in this next section Shostakovich is playing around with tonal centers again. We were in this kind of G tonal center in the previous section, and now what happens in measure 22? Now we're in a G-sharp minor kind of tonal center. Shostakovich is messing with us, huh. So pause the video and I'd like you to learn measures 22 and 23. Watch out for naturals, watch out for sharp symbols. Press pause to work on measures 22 and 23 right hand, left hand, and then try it hands together, then press play to go on. Now, what tonal center do we move to in measures 24 and 25? Shostakovich brings us back to this kind of G major-ish tonal center. Why I say ish is because he'll throw that E-flat in the very next measure so it's like G major, but with some altered notes to kind of keep things a little confusing. Okay, it's always keeping us on our toes. Pause and now try and learn the left hand part and the right hand part for measures 24 and 25, then press play and we'll check out the next section. In this next section the rhythms get a little interesting, so let's check it. We have 1-e-&-a 2-e-&-a, 1-e-&-a 2-e-&-a, 1-e-&-a 2-e-&-a, 1-e-&-a 2-e-&-a. Pause and practice clapping and counting that rhythm. Measures 26 through 29 right hand part, then press play to go on. Now in this section I want you to notice the dynamics carefully. We've crescendoed up to a forte. The crescendo begins in measure 24, and then forte. and then a decrescendo down to piano which happens very quickly. A very quick decrescendo to piano, and then suddenly we're back to forte. Part of shostakovich's way of composing involves a lot of surprises, and that applies to both shifting tonal centers and all these changes in dynamics suddenly. Forte. And then suddenly forte again after decrescendoing to piano, and then what happens in measure 30? Then suddenly it's piano again. That's part of what I love about this piece all these fun surprises. So on your own this week, practice right hand alone left hand alone and then put it together. You can use metronome. Remember, lots of slow practice at first. Practice in sections. Shostakovich has written this in two measure phrases. So taking little two measure chunks, making sure you can play it five times in a row no missed notes, that's a good standard because then you know you've mastered it. If you're making mistakes every time, your fingers haven't really learned it, so you need to slow it down. Put it hands alone. Get every note correct, five in a row, in little sections. And then put it all together and practice the entire section. Great work today learning the B section of "The Mechanical Doll" by Dimitri Shostakovich. Happy practicing, and see you next time! The Russian language sounds so cool. [Speaking Russian] Doesn't that make me sound like a dark and handsome spy or something? нет нет? What's that mean? It's Russian for no. Oh. Hey, you speak Russian? нет Hey, wait a minute teach me some Russian please! нет Come on, I'll let you wear my snorkel mask!