I just experienced an experience..

First let me say I am so glad my Prelude sale fell thru.
I played it today and it fulfilled exactly what I wanted.

Let me explain..

I used one of my favorite sounds on the Prelude.. A split of left hand bass,
called "Thumb Up!" and right hand "SC Pure EP".

No arranger, no drums, no vocal.. nothing, just bass and EP.

I "sat" (usually stand) down and played for myself..

Random selection of tunes, some songs that I always liked, some I never played
or very few times. Mostly great songs from the 40's and 50's..

I purposely wanted to try something played in a different manner.

I played every song slower than I would normally, used as many extended chords as
possible, experimenting with basslines that flowed with what I was chording.
Playing very rubato allowing my brain and hands to react what I was hearing.

Before I knew it more than 2 hours had passed..

I probably played more than 60 off the wall songs... like Pat Boone,
"friendly persuasion" and "April Love".
Great tunes like" Stairway to the stars", "I'll string along", Imagination"

I think you get the idea..

I played for my enjoyment, not a practice or preparation to perform.

Freedom to play a chord that made me say "yes" or that perfect bass leading me somewhere.

For you guys that can turn off the arranger play, and try what I have mentioned.. try it!!

The key I think for me.. Slow the tunes down with a rubato feel , that allows you to incorporate
"new" chords... also the key for me is manual bass.

Just wanted to share, my isolation time.

How about sharing the song with us as well?

Gary

Sorry it didn't sell on Ebay....it is still on Facebook marketplace?
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/2734031223492899/
That's great Fran sounds like your all set with both
the G70 & Prelude to cover whatever is needed.
Enjoy your playing sessions,...all we have now is time.
Mixing things up always is exciting.

have fun

Fran. Nice article I enjoyed reading.

Interesting with more time we learn to slow a little and as you say it can take us in a different direction.

Best wishes from UK.

Gary it is hard to capture a past moment , but I'll record something to show what I am talking about.. I will try to go out of my way to make changes I would not normally play... letting emotion direct me..

Fran pretty tune the EP sound great too
thanx for sharing.. I don't blame you for keeping the Prelude.

Pretty
It reminds me that,many times,less is more.

weird , i just went down to one keyboard after obsessing about my setup of 2 keyboards, or this organ prototype stand of a controller under the korg pa600. nothing seems to please me. today i let it go and put away the yamaha 463 ,the yamaha np 11, all thats in my little studio is my korg pa600 a small mixer, and a small 6 track recorder. i'm was spending too much time trying to configure my equipment and no time making music. your playing and the song put everything in perpective. nice keyboard and nice sound. thanks , i needed to hear that today.

Wrinkles good thinking

Very nice, thank you for sharing!

Really laid back, Fran. I enjoyed it.

Gary

I do the same thing on my Roladn DP FP90 and just enjoy the fabulous piano sound. Sometimes I add a layer to it but alone it just pulls you in to play more, and dare I say thru its onboard speakers. Spent a lot of time with it alone and wish for that magical place where I could do just that and sing a bit.

Seems like most here on an arranger kb forum rather shut off strip down many parts and just play piano...
A bit confusing?

What is confusing about it? Still playing arranger keyboard... only difference there is an added quality... emotion.. you won't get that with arranger styles.

What happened to" using all the tools", and "better in so many ways"


Maybe you should start a thread about singing with commercial karaoke tracks

Not me. Not a piano player, I'm just an arranger player. But enjoy making music however you want.

I’m with Don

Not really. I think we all enjoy a bit of variety. Just a part of the "mix it up" mantra.

I just checked Ebay and someone in Texas purchased the Prelude..

Ready to ship when the Post office opens..

Thank you to my buyer..

Must be something in the water in that part of the country ...

Fran, I can feel your emotion as you played. And that’s what it is all about. No rules here.

Nice job, John C.

so now it's sold
that's great news...
so what's next...?

I live in TX, but I wasn't the one who bought Fran's Prelude. Hopefully this buyer's not a deadbeat, and it went to a good home.

I actually play rubato like this the majority of the time. I'm definitely not a pianist. Because I don't play full-fingered chords with my LH, I rely on at least one accompaniment track to provide a "pad" sound, or some kind of chordal accompaniment (i.e., instead of the Lower voice.) If the song doesn't require Bass Inversion (i.e., no slash chords), then I can't really use the Manual Bass feature either. So in such cases I rely on a modified accompaniment bass track to go with the chords. No drums, and no really rhythmic beat.

I find playing this way to be very "freeing" and authentic. It's very forgiving with a singer, too. It's great for practicing, because there's not a harsh penalty for late notes/chords. If the sound doesn't sustain long between chords, it encourages development of quick, smooth chord changes. Of course this is easier to do when you can play full major chords with one finger! ;-P

An arranger is the only type of keyboard I know of that can do this sort of thing. Ok, maybe a chord organ too. [When you're bored someday, google the Hammond S-6, and tell me that it's not an arranger!] But the best of those were made over 50 years ago. I'm not a pro and I have nothing to prove; I make music because it makes me happy, and I'm very content with an arranger as my primary tool.

Ted... I would love to hear a sample of your Rubato style playing..

Ted a young lady bought the Prelude, and not a dead beat

She paid for it 12 hours before I realized it was sold..

It turned out the Prelude was the best selling keyboard I had for sale..

Nearly 300 views the first time with an early bid (the deadbeat's bid).

The second time, my asking price less than 8 hours, purchased and paid.

Almost 100 views.

I really like the Prelude, and know I will never find another.. But She gave me the offer I couldn't refuse, and restored my faith in Ebay buyers.

I've foiund that when I shop on eBay I go straight for the "Buy it now" ... I'm not haggling, or waiting for "the deal". If it's a price I like - I hit the "BUY" button. Maybe that's why it sold so fast - more buyers like me.

I usually contact the seller and ask if they would accept my offer?? and close the auction.. Even if they didn't advertise "make offer".

It worked for me several times.