Okay, for this one I put the recorder inside my piano toward the back, not on the strings but on a flat part of the metal. Does it sound any better to you?
Also, I have a couple glaring slips in this recording, but I would like your opinions on my style/interpretation. I only heard this piece on a television show and also on an airplane, so I don't have much to refer to.

I did download a program called Wavepad onto my computer and can see how one can add reverb and all of that stuff. I used the program on this recording only to cut out the beginning and end. Since I have the recorder inside my piano, I had to crawl underneath and then squeeze into a tight corner to be able to hit the record button. (what a pain) There was 20 seconds of nothing at the start and end.

Pianolady, that sounds very good to me, especially expressive played!
Shame on me that the piece was unknown to me. This Intermezzo is also such beautiful music to me, I just printed the sheet out to have a closer look on that later on the piano...

If there was not the single severe thing in the repetition part where you lost the groove, it should go up the site in my opinion, even if there were some notes missing here and there according to the sheet. You play with really good keytouch. Maybe on some crossrhythm spots the right hand could be more evenly. I know that it is difficult to manage, but in doubt I would have the melody line evenly and if the left hand accompaignment is a bit unevenly nobody recognizes it much as the other way round (left hand evenly). But overall also that crossrhythm stuff you managed really well.

Regarding sound, it sounds good to me, so the recorder position seems to be a good one, even if there is the effort that you must squeeze yourself into or below the piano to position the Edirol.

There is one strange thing with the tuning left. Beside some treble notes I hear not much wobbling of single notes in itself . Nethertheless with other notes together it sounds a bit out of tune. Maybe that the strings of single notes are tuned in accordance itself, but that the steps between the notes are not "normal" - so that unusual wobblings occur for different chords? Can't explain it better, and I may be completely wrong - I am no tuning expert. I can only say, even although it was tuned recently, as you said, it sounds not really in tune to me. Maybe others have other opinion. And not really distracting!

I am looking forward to your rerecording, if you like to do so!

Don't worry, Mindenblues. I didn't know this piece either until just recently. Better late than never, right?

Anyway, thanks for your reply. I may re-record this. I'm going to borrow my son's microphone and plug it into the Edirol and see if the sound is better. Yes, the sound on this recording is okay, but it really was a pain in the *#@ crawling under the piano. I bumped my head twice.

A very nice performance, all but note perfect and very faithful to the score. I could not even spot any reading mistakes You start out a bit insecure, but get into the groove pretty quickly. Your touch and dynamics are good, as is your pedal usage. You are not afraid to use the pedal to produce a sonorous sound. The sound is much better than your first attempt, even if the piano seems to have a couple of notes that could do with being tuned. Not distracting though.

The slip in the middle can easily be remove I think, as you played the correct note right after. Give that a try - a shame if you'd want to re-record it just for that.

Some very minor niggles (aren't there always...) :

The arpeggios sound a bit uncomfortable. I guess your hand size is not in the Rach league so not sure if you can make them smoother. Try if you can. OTOH I think I heard some triad chords being rolled where not indicated.

The slow section within the trio seems too slow. I think that should go in the same tempos as the rest of the trio (which in itself can be a little slower, or even a little faster, than the main subject).

You seem to have a bit of a rhyhmic problem with the third beat of many bars. Of the two descending eight notes, you often rush the first and then elongate the second (as if to to make up for it). It is something I heard more people do around here. Not a big deal but it is important to keep your rhythm in check.

So, shall I put it up or do you want to wait ?

Thanks, Techneut, for the comments. It never ceases to amaze me how your ears pick up on things.
You're right about my hands. They're small, but I didn't think I had a problem with the arpeggios in this piece. I'm very interested to know which ones sounded uncomfortable to you. I think this is the greatest thing about this forum - one can learn so much from what the others are suggesting, and what the player isn't even aware of. I want to be able to play arpeggios smooth as silk and practice playing them as legato as possible, but maybe it's not coming off well. Are there specific measures or is just everywhere?
Second, I do sometimes semi-roll the triads for effect . I just like that sound.
Third, The third beat - I'm not sure I get what you're saying. If I am playing the two eighth notes unevenly, it must be because I'm thinking of the big stretch in the next measure. But I don't know. Is there any way you can play of few measures on your piano to demonstrate what I did wrong and how it should go?
Fourth - Trio - In the first part, I do very the tempo slightly. I tried to play it a tiny bit faster on the repeat to give it a little contrast. The next part, the slower part - my score marks it with piu lento.

I haven't had time to fix that mistake yet. I'll let you know if I'm successful or not. I re-recorded this using my son's microphone but the quality was worse. I guess I'll just keep crawling underneath my piano.
Thanks again for the comments.

About the apreggios - listening once more, it was only the ones in bars 35/36, and similar bars near the end, that caught my ear. Some some reason you play the LH e last of all, which sounds a bit clumsy. All the other ones are actually handled very well within the limitations of the small hand.

About the rhythm thing - the first typical example occurs in bar 8. In the below wave image you see that the first note is some 50% shorther than the second, in fact the first note is shorter and the second is longer than the adjacent notes, and this seems to be a pattern from here on. It is not a big deal but it just jars my poor little sensitive ears



Yes you're right about the piu lento, so you must take it a bit slower there. Could be personal that I find it just a bit too slow.

On second hearing I noticed a couple of hesitations in the Tempo I of the trio. On the debet side I can say that you are very good in bringing out the middle voice, always so important in Brahms.

I tried cutting out that flub at 3:03 but as often, it was easier said than done and would leave a nasty electronic scar whatever I tried. So we better forget about that.

My kids have been driving me crazy all weekend. They've kept me too busy and even today I have to go to one more family function. Can't they all see I have work to do?

I can't wait to get some time on my piano and try out those places you show on the web image. (don't laugh, but I just spent five minutes trying to get the image to play)

Thanks for trying to get rid of the flub. If it was hard for you, imagine the wreckage I'll leave behind. I still want to try, though. That's how I learn all this computer stuff. Hopefully, I'll have more time starting tomorrow.

Agaghagh.... this is good Been pressing all the buttons haven't you ? Don't worry, I do that regulary whenever I find a screenshot in a manual or email. I guess it's the conditioned robot in us, whenever we see a button we'll want to click on it whether it is real or not.

Okay, I finally got some time tonight, and this is all I can say.
I GIVE UP!

I tried that editing program. You're right. It's too hard. The only thing I got from trying to erase the mistake is that now I have that one measure playing in my head constantly. I'll probably hear it in my dreams. So now, I don't know. Maybe I'll have to record it again. As to the other things: I kind of get what you're saying about the uneven eighth notes. I never listened that carefully to a two-note phrase before, but I guess I should. Although, in my defense, I'm letting the mood of the music direct the way I play it. (how is that for an excuse.)
In measures 35 and 36, I'm unsure of which arpeggios you're talking about, but that's ok- I think that's the best I can do in that section.

Poor

They are the last chords in these bars, they're not written as arpeggios, but you have to roll them as the LH stretch is impossible - except when you're the Rach. You roll them so that the last note of the LH (the e I think) comes after the RH. Of course there is no law against that, but I think it sounds funny.