WOWWW double post today!! Actually this is a super belated post, though- I got this take on July 31 and waffled for weeks since I wasn’t super happy with it. But, it’s not too bad now that I watch it a few weeks later, and I definitely no longer can play this piece as well as I did when I recorded this, so I’ll call it done and move on! This is another track from “Genshin Impact” featuring yet another very bittersweet melody (there’s definitely a pattern in the stuff I learn, whoops).

Detailed Analysis

Opening phrase is probably the most delicate part of the arrangement. It’s difficult to play the big chords quietly and evenly; I missed the mark at 0:10 and also at 0:17. Not too much to say about this opening phrase otherwise.

The piece really picks up at 0:23 with the RH octaves repeating the melody and the descending LH. I love the effect of the hands moving in opposite directions like this since it brings out a wider range of registers at once. I had to be deliberate about playing quieter at 0:25 for the middle filler part. The top RH chord at 0:34 is one of the hardest spots in the piece and was very hit or miss no matter how much I practiced, but it turned out okay in this take.

Man, this piece moves along so quickly it’s hard to find spots to break down lol. Just lots of chords… and more chords… and jumping around… it looks pretty cool as a finished product, though. Some RH chords didn’t sound super even, but it took everything I had to even play those as written with minimal sacrifices so I have no heartburn over any roughness. I had a slight blanking out moment at 0:52 for my LH; I’m gonna live with the brief pause over a worse take. I had tried recording several times by this take and in that moment of silence I was debating whether to let my hand go to where it may (likely the wrong notes) or to just accept the blip for a potentially decent take. I have no regrets about my decision.

I actually practiced the end section from 0:54 first when learning- more on that later. Everyone knows I’m no good at arpeggios by now so I wanted to make sure that those wouldn’t trip me up at the end (if I learned the piece in order). Luckily the tempo is very forgiving and there’s nothing too crazy, so they were manageable. The most challenging one was the arpeggio at 1:03 which has a couple of octaves embedded for the melody. It… ended up looking and sounding better than it feels lol. I specifically toned down the RH trill at 1:13 based on feedback from my mom (I mean, SHE WAS RIGHT it was too loud at first for no reason), and I’m happy with how quiet the final chord turned out!

Thoughts on the Learning Process

I first started this piece back in April (right when I changed jobs) and then promptly gave up because it just felt so impossible. Like I could certainly learn the notes eventually, probably, but I felt like there were too many jumps and octaves and big chords that I wouldn’t actually make any tangible progress even with effort. It ended up looking way easier than it feels on video somehow, but trust me, soooo many of the chords in the RH especially are actually uncomfortable and I had to exclude a few notes from the trickier ones. So ergonomics was another reason that I had given up initially (and also why I chose to just go with this take instead of spending more time practicing this… since it really does strain my hands pretty hard).

I almost always practice pieces in order from start to finish, but this time I did start learning from 0:54’s arpeggios since I didn’t want those to be a roadblock. I’m fairly confident that I can learn chords and jumps with enough practice, but I can’t brute force arpeggios quite the same way. I ended up putting in a LOT of time for this section, but I’m glad I did- as always, practice pays off and it was the section that I was able to play most comfortably overall. That, and the arpeggios are single notes for the most part so ergonomically it’s also easier on me.

There are a lot of things I wish I could play better, but hand size was truly a big obstacle for this particular arrangement. Given the physical challenges, I’m pretty content with how far I got.

Conclusion & Final Thoughts

I’m glad I stuck through with this piece- there was definitely a moment in the learning process where things clicked and I realized I can properly learn the arrangement, which was a great feeling. Up until then, I legit felt like I was just throwing spaghetti at a wall and praying for it to stick in my brain somewhere.

Something about this melody is so bittersweet and also feels somehow nostalgic and romantic yet also like a farewell… I have 0 context about where this plays in the source material so this is all just what’s in my head based on the music lol. Yu-peng Chen just has the musical Midas touch for me, I guess- this marks the third (!!) arrangement I’ve learned from “Genshin Impact” already. Wild. And I’ve learned all three pieces for exactly the same reason (I’m sure this surprises no one).

I am a bit sad that despite all the challenges I faced with this arrangement, it ended up being only like 90 seconds long LOL but that’s okay… I guess it’s just a testament to how dense the arrangement is.