I've just sat down by the piano for the first time since i began with arrangers.(a few months) It's terrible! I can barely play with my left hand. First of all the feel is totalllly different. Secondly, I'm used to just playing the 3 note chord on my keyboard, and this sounds terrbile on piano!
I want my piano back!

wait a second...! You mean my piano doesnt havent any of those?! Wow. Thanx for enlightening me in the world of arrangers!

Grubb99: Though pianos, synthesizers, arrangers, and even accordions, all share having black & white keys, they're actually all actually very different instruments, requiring uniquely different playing skills, including chord playing styles. If you want to keep up your piano chops, you're just gonna need to devote as much practice time to solo acoustic piano playing as to the arranger. Acoustic piano playing technique involves not just the fingers & hands, but your arms, and on occasion, possibly even your entire upper body, while non-weighted synth playing technique remains more focussed in the fingers & hands. Once you learn to approach playing each keyboard instrument differently, you'll begin to feel comfortable playing & switching back & forth between them. I guarantee that in time, and with persistance & practice, you'll be able to easily adjust back and forth between playing the acoustic piano and your non -weighted arranger keyboard. - Scott

If you have a piano and a keyboard at home I strongly suggest you play both! You'll notice that you will also lose the strenght and quickness in your fingers if you don't. If you're used to playing an acoustic piano, and used to a weighted keyboard, stepping away from this and entering the world of arrangers can really put a damper on your piano playing (acoustic that is)... You need to keep your fingers in shape with the weighted keys, and of course using the arranger function a lot will lessen your ability with your left hand if you don't keep practicing with it on a regular basis on an acoustic..

Squeak

I agree whole heartedly with Scottyee.

Get a Weighted arranger like I did (Roland Piano KR577)88 keys but very heavy though. Or maybe a more portable offering in the Roland KF90 - which has a fully weighted action. I too have an acoustic Piano (Brand new 6 foot Grand Piano - just 2 months old), and stepping off the Roland doesn't require much adjustment to my technique - if at all. I also brought a Triton Studio last month, and whilst not weighted, are very good keys for a synth. However, *NEVER* practice scales/Piano solo's on an arranger (non-weighted)if you are to play it as a finished product on a piano proper.

Also, I may add, don't let the arranger function determine your style, its all ok pressing panel A, section B, and have Glen Miller & co' invade your life for 3 minutes - with little help from yourself.

Tony

I've got to sympathize with Grubba99. I've had a piano for many years and I've just started keyboarding a few months ago and my piano technique has gone to pot. Especially my left hand. But you know what...I don't care. I never had much "fun" playing the piano anyway. I enjoyed it but it lacked the extra stuff that keyboards give you. I'm actually having fun playing music again after many years and I don't care if I ever go back to the piano. In fact, I'm getting rid of my piano and I'm not looking back. I know this is a sacrilege to lots of you but the piano is stale, plain, bare instrument to me now. The wife is even happy to get some extra space in the house. What she plans to do with it I have no idea.

Hi,
what about creating backing sequences on your keyboard to accompany you on your piano.

Years back , I used to buy song books with midifiles ie the midifile played the drums, bass strings etc , I played the piano part using the score from the song book.

Then I started creating my own when the arranger keyboards hit the market place.

Unfortunately the arrangers took over and I stopped playing piano.

best wishes
Rikki


[QUOTE]Originally posted by Grubba99:

Since I started to play arrangers I can't play the violin.....No big deal, I couldn't play the violin in the begining..

QUOTE]Originally posted by Fran Carango:
Since I started to play arrangers I can't play the violin.....No big deal, I couldn't play the violin in the begining..[/QUOTE]

Try Midi patch 41


-Tony