Piece boardStage 3 · UnderstandingExplore
#24Updated Nov 09, 2026

E minor · 4/4

Comptine d'un autre été, l'après-midi

Yann Tiersen

Core skills

Repeating left-hand ostinato, lyrical right-hand figures, coordination, long-form consistency.

E24
Left-hand ostinato with free right-hand rhythm
A repeating LH pattern while RH becomes rhythmically independent.
#piano#repertoire#stage-3#e24

Why this piece

Unlike earlier songs where the main repetition often occurs in the right hand, much of the continuity here comes from the left-hand accompaniment. The right hand has more freedom to become rhythmically active while the left continues. It is therefore a useful inversion of previous coordination problems.

Musical profile

  • Key / tonal centre: E minor
  • Meter: 4/4
  • Suggested version: Original solo-piano piece from Amélie.

Representative harmony

Repeated four-bar foundation: Em – G – Bm – D (i–III–v–VII in E natural minor).

Practice loop

i:4 | III:4 | v:4 | VII:4 X - X - X - X - | X - X - X - X - | X - X - X - X - | X - X - X - X -

What to listen for

The bass loop remains steady even as the right-hand material becomes more active. Label one chord per bar and memorize the sequence.

What to learn

Memorize the left-hand pattern well enough to play it while counting or speaking. Then practice the right-hand phrases independently, marking where their accents do not line up with the left-hand pattern. Combine in very short segments and extend them gradually. Keep the repeating accompaniment quiet enough for the melodic material to emerge.

Practice checkpoint

Play an entire section with a consistent left-hand pattern even when the right-hand rhythm changes or becomes more active.

Diagnostic drill · E24 — Left-hand ostinato with free right-hand rhythm

Target: A repeating LH pattern while RH becomes rhythmically independent.
Drill key / meter: E minor · 4/4

Use this only when it addresses the current bottleneck. Skip it when the skill is already ready.

Steps

  1. LH plays two eighth-note root–fifth pairs per bar, then repeats them: E3–B3, G3–D4, B2–F♯3, D3–A3 over Em | G | Bm | D.
  2. RH improvises only quarter notes from E minor for one loop. For the next, place one melody note on the & of 2 and one on beat 4.
  3. Keep the LH pattern unchanged even if you make a mistake in RH; recover on the next beat instead of restarting the phrase.

Ear task: Sing a rhythmic motif while the LH plays without looking.

Transfer: Keep Tiersen’s actual LH figuration constant while learning a two-bar RH figure.

Drill checkpoint: Four harmonic cycles with a steady LH and changing RH rhythm.