Don't Stop Believin' in the Bare Necessities of a Journey

Thanks for reading, and if you want to know more about the stuff I've played, check out my other posts, or follow me @MPounceMusic on Twitter.

Every Friday, www.MPounce.co.uk will have 2 new Piano videos for you to enjoy!

All things considered the next two tracks are a combination of paradoxes, on the one hand learning the new, and on the other hand recovering the old so it still looks new, but only to those on the outside. I still think the one I've known for ages still doesn't sound any different to 10 years ago when I first learnt it. I'll let you figure out which one is which. Comment below!

The key to learning a track that's been done before is not to make it sound exactly like the original, otherwise why would people want to listen to it? The llama would not have any reason to listen to my cover of Don't stop believing, if all I did was to copy a track from iTunes and rename it! (If you haven't read my previous entry, Shame on you! Go read it and you'll see what I mean.)

The other side of the spectrum is not making it too obscure what it is you're playing, i.e. on the piano, always include the melody as much as you can, as that is usually the most memorable part of the song. It is also the only bit of the song you sing in the bathroom. Have you ever heard anyone singing chords in a bathroom before? That would be ace! Chuck a bit of vocoder in there and it would sound crazy! Unfortunately for us mad techies that would most likely not be possible. Ignoring the massive health and safety issues of bringing a computer big enough into a room full of water appliances, you would also need to have a house which would put up with such a noise... maybe a flat? Possible, especially a techy, with no friends. (sad face).

Judging by the masses of people who have viewed my blog so far, and my videos, there must be some  people who have an interest in piano solo music, which encourages me. The aim of these pieces is for you guys to have something to listen to whilst you study/work/play/blog etc. and for me to build my skills as a pianist. Anything you can do as a musician which puts you in a different position, outside your comfort zone, will really build your skills and flexibility to perform. Also the ability to improvise is very useful, as it avoids what I mentioned earlier about making it sound exactly the same as the original, and extends the piece longer than the usual 2-3 minutes.

Moving on, the place where I have learnt how to do many of these things was at Barnsley College, where I spent 7 months playing to the students at lunch times to lighten the mood. Trifle, you might say, but it was the regularity of these performances which gave me the skills I now have and will likely not lose in my lifetime. These daily performances could have been in the baking sun, or (more likely) the pouring rain, many students or few, with a plan or no plan at all, but always fruitful. It is an experience I will want to draw on as I continue this blog, and the pieces I record.

So here are the tracks, hope you enjoy them, and Don't Stop Believing in the Bare Necessities of a Journey!

'Bare Necessities' - The Jungle Book

'Don't Stop Believing' - Journey

Please comment below, follow my twitter account at @mpouncemusic and visit my professional website if you have an interest in me or just want to know who on earth I am. I have many, many, many more tracks lined up over the coming weeks, so if you want to listen to more tracks then don't hesitate to visit www.MPounce.co.uk for more piano music on Friday. 2 new tracks will be available on the friday of every week, but for up to date updates, check out @mpouncemusic!

Thanks for reading!

Mike