Dodosolsollalasol

Have you watched any Korean romantic dramadies? I'm a fan. Some of my students are fans, some of my friends are fans. I use them to quiet my mind in the evenings, while knitting. They take my mind off of current events and I find them weirdly calming.

Are you wondering what this has to do with piano? Well. . . one I watched recently, Dodosolsollalasol, is about a young woman who took piano lessons from the age of 4 to 20. And, wait for it, she ends up opening a piano studio, and. . . she actually plays the piano! Go Ara, the actress spent months preparing to play for the role, which has her at the piano playing Chopin, Schumann, Satie, and other pieces that are recognizable to teachers. The wikipedia page lists the classical music used

The series came out in 2020, and you can watch it on Netflix.

But-it gets better, not only is she playing the piano, but the music is relevant and adds to the story line. And, since some of my students are also into Korean drama, they want to play the music as well.

Are you familiar with Plaisir, D'amour?

In the series, Primary Love Interest learns to play it for the Piano Teacher, RaRa. He wants to impress her, and didn't know the back story of the piece.

Here are the lyrics and translation from the French poem by Jean-Pierre Carlis de Florian

Plaisir d’Amour

Plaisir d’amour ne dure qu’un moment

Chagrin d’amour dure toute la vie

Tu m’as quittée pour la belle Sylvie

Elle te quitte pour un autre amant

Plaisir d’amour ne dure qu’un moment

Chagrin d’amour dure toute la vie

Tant que cette eau coulera doucement

Vers ce ruisseau qui borde la prairie

Je t’aimerai, te répétait SylvieL’eau coule encore,

elle a changé pourtant.

Plaisir d’amour ne dure qu’un moment

Chagrin d’amour dure toute la vie. 

The Pleasure of Love

The pleasure of love lasts only for a moment,

The pain of love lasts a lifetime.

You’ve left me for the beautiful Sylvia,

And she’s leaving you for another lover.

The pleasure of love lasts only for a moment,

The pain of love lasts a lifetime.

“As long as this water will run gently

Towards this brook which borders the meadow,I will love you”,

Sylvia told you repeatedly.

The water still runs, but she has changed.

The pleasure of love lasts only for a moment,

The pain of love lasts a lifetime.

Primary Love Interest immediately regretted his choice of music when he learned what the lyrics meant.

This ties into what my students are learning these days because, in this version the left hand patterns are all chords that they have become intimately familiar with. They include 4 note dominant 7th chords, (minus a note) and I-IV-V7 cadences.

Plaisir D'Amour for PKF.pdf

Download PDF • 82KB

Tying the history of the piece, the poem, and the Korean Dodosolsollalasol Love Dramadie, makes this piece really fun for students. I think I am going to pull other pieces that were quoted from the series with my teens and adults and make arrangements, or not, if they are standard classical pieces.

The feedback I am getting from adult students, has been "since we started playing chords progressions with transposing, playing pieces has become a lot easier. I am recognizing the patterns more, and my fingers know what I am about to play even before my brain registers what I am doing."

It's these kinds of connections that make teaching this way magical.

Happy Playing!

Sarah