So I finally got of my arse to write about this after much productive time was spent on other things.
haha welp who am i kidding i was gaming it all awayLong one! ^^ Cuz you deserve it. <3
Generally, great job, as with your previous cover! ^^ Sensitive playing, passionate climax, the touch of an angel (which is um, frowned upon by pro pianists but bleh this is vgm and i dig it), and generally a good sense of tempo. Extra kudos for the latter, cuz that's a devil. I enjoyed your interpretation a lot, and felt like I was floating over the world! Which, hopefully, was what you were going for.
That being said, JDMEK made a great point and I'd like to add on to it. A lot. :p
You've chosen...a very tough piece to properly execute. I listened to the original, and once again Bespinben (and your solo-fies) has found a fantastic way to bring pianistic elements in to spice up what would sound terrible as a transcription. But long string chords are infinitely easier to write and execute for the purposes of transition when compared to moving bass lines in the piano. Yep, transitions - I think that's one of the main areas where your execution wasn't perfect.
To pinpoint the issue, your transitions tend to be "washy" due to the lack of contrast. And that's a very common intermediate-advanced level problem, no worries ^^
Very nice, my friend. Seriously. Though if I could give you a piece of technical advice:
Watching your left hand, it looks like you have a lot of tension going (especially when I see the thumb). Drop your arm weight more and roll your wrist around some to get around. The way I see it I wouldn't be surprised if you get sore in your fingers/wrist after a while.
This is where JDMEK5's comment comes in!
I mentioned the touch of an angel, and this is one of the reasons why you can create that tone. If all your pressure is on your wrist, then it's really hard to transfer your weight to your fingers. I'd really love to help you with this, but sadly correcting this involves a more
hands-on (bahaha) approach where I grab your hand and help transfer tension. So if you really wanna correct this finding a teacher or expert friend is the way to go ^^
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Technical issues aside, here's some musical considerations you can make
While I get good chills from hearing you pull off sensitive sections/pieces with your touch (see Canalave <3, your recent Kirby one), and this piece could really use some sensitivity, it also demands transitions to four subtly contrasted sections in slightly over a minute. I'd argue that executing these transitions right is the most important part of this piece, and that's where your cover slips up a little
In a good score, the contrasts you need to make should be quite clear with some close reading, and since you "solo-fied" it, you're probably very sure of how the music moves and where you need to add in some extra kick. For the purpose of the review I won't check out the score - from your playing alone I've got a pretty good idea of where the sections are and how they work.
Here's some ideas on how the transitions work and how they can be executed better:
The first section is rhythmically floaty and generally gentle - you did this well and it immediately captured me. The section after that though has a left-hand arpeggio pattern that finally solidifies the rhythm. To very clearly mark the incoming section, you could gradually add more definition to the bass notes until you sink in with a firmer touch on the new section.
From that to the opening "recap" we've got a major toning down of energy, and that's what you need to bring out. More pedal smearing, right hand "fade-out", and a small break before the return (which you kinda did, so nice!).
Finally, the final part with that Irish-esque jig melody shouldn't float in out of nowhere, even though the bassline is the same. To bring in the jig melody, gradually ease up the pedalling, then add extra emphases to each strong beat once the melody comes in, especially on the first one. Because, um, Irish people do that. Or something.
(side note: zelda games tend to use this style of BGM for their castle fairs and forest minigames. basically, the peaceful places link wakes up in before shit happens and everything goes dark)
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All that said, you can't talk transitions without talking technique. (alliteration yeaaahhh) To properly gradate little elements you need to have control of your fingers and all the other physical stuff. It's one of the toughest parts of learning performance, ahaha.
But as I mentioned, it's not nice to give you a course on technique in a forum post, because it doesn't work. I just thought it'd be opportune to talk about the road ahead for a pianist at your level, hehe. Cuz you're awesome like that.
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To round this up, you've got a great interpretation of a tough track, and your touch is really sweet and feel-good-y. If you wanna make greater musical expressions though, it's on technique and maybe a little bit of score analysis skills. You're one of the more pleasant pianists to listen to on Youtube, so yeah! ^^ Do consider~
Whew! That was long and entertaining. Hope it makes sense, PM me if anything, and much cheers buddy
