Piano Performance Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

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- Music, Musicology, Piano, Bach
- by Jordan Alexander Key
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- Music, Musical Composition, Piano, Strings, Harp, And Guitar

Overview of the history of extended piano techniques. [Dutch article]

- by Luk Vaes
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- Piano, Pianists and Piano Literature, Piano Pedagogy, Piano performance and repertoire

"Piano Teaching Methodology" is a textbook for students - future piano pedagogues. For this purpose, the themes for the specifics of the initial training, for the stages of studying a piano work have been extensively developed, with particular attention being paid to the preparation of the piece for its stage performance. Several approaches have been described for working on different types of piano technique, on a polyphonic work, the application of the different clavier means of expression is considered depending on the stylistic features of the studied play. The rubrics "Teachers' Mistakes" and "Student Mistakes" have been developed for each subject. In those rubrics are discussed frequently made inaccuracies, incompleteness, misconceptions about the specific problem. Each theme is illustrated with a rich note of material, selected not only to highlight the discussed problem most clearly, but also to enable the comparison of individual examples. After each subject are suggested questions and tasks that help the practical use of the information taught. There is also a possibility to use this book as a reference book for the piano teacher - there are lists in which frequently used etudes as well as commonly studied polyphonic clavier works are arranged by difficulty.

- by Krasimira Fileva-Ruseva
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- Music, Music Education, Music Technology, Piano Music
- by Prof. Kosmas Lapatas
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- Piano, Piano Music, Pianists and Piano Literature, Piano Pedagogy

The keyboard toccatas of J. S. Bach, BWV 910-916, present a formidable challenge of interpretation to the modern-day performer. These works contain some of the most unusual compositional techniques to be found in Bach’s output due to their use of an improvisatory, virtuosic style inherited from the seventeenth century. While pianists of today are trained to perform with perfect fidelity to the score, the treatises from the time of Bach point to a rhythmically free approach to the improvisatory features of these toccatas. The goal of this treatise is to explore how the historical tradition from which Bach’s toccatas emerged influenced their stylistic characteristics with the purpose of applying this information to create an informed performance by today’s interpreters. In this effort, this treatise focuses on several broad categories in the process of understanding the inspiration and, therefore, the interpretation of these works. These categories include the genesis of the toccata as a genre, the compositional techniques associated with the toccata, Bach's personal contribution to the genre, and the interpretation of Bach's toccatas specifically.

- by Abigail Mace
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- Organ And Historical Keyboards (E.G., Harpsichord), Piano, J S Bach, Piano Music

The process of fingering a piece, for a pianist, is a highly personal one. It depends on a number of factors: the configuration of the keyboard, the physiology of the pianist’s hands, the specific demands of the work in question. It serves several purposes, of which dexterity and expressiveness have often been acknowledged in literature.
In this presentation, I claim that the fingering process bears an important cognitive role and may prove to be a valuable analytical resource for the interpreter, as it promotes the understanding of musical processes at work, both before and during the performance, specifically in the contemporary repertoire. Complementarily, I advocate that a more comprehensive and all-encompassing approach to fingering, freed from the constraints of standard practices, may significantly contribute to the realization of the full expressive potential of a number of works. Examples will be drawn from specific composers, such as João Pedro Oliveira, Christopher Bochmann, Jean-Sébastien Béreau, Paul Méfano, João Madureira and Emmanuel Nunes.

- by Ana Telles
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- Musical Expression, Contemporary Music, Piano Music, Musical Analysis
- by Erwin Clauws
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- Music, Music Education, Music Theory Pedagogy, Music Theory

This dissertation introduces the ‘Edna Iles’s Medtner Collection’ (EIMC), held by the
British Library in London, and provides a detailed analysis of her ‘Notes on the
Interpretation of Medtner’s Works’. Nikolay Medtner (1880–1951) was one of Russia’s
leading, early-20th-century composers, who spent the latter part of his life in the UK.
He wrote mainly for the piano, composing 14 piano sonatas, three piano concertos, 108
songs, three violin sonatas, a piano quintet and more than 90 pieces for solo piano.
Although he performed and recorded, and was considered a prominent composer while
he was resident in the UK, his wider renown in the West was limited.
Edna Iles (1905–2003) was an English pianist and Medtner’s last pupil. She took
numerous notes during and immediately following her lessons and, in 1997, donated all
of her Medtner-related materials to the British Library. I am the fourth person to
consult it. The scope of the EIMC is impressive: Medtner manuscripts, newspaper
cuttings, photographs and letters, all of which she carefully organized before donating.
Importantly, her ‘Notes on the Interpretation of Medtner’s Works’ contain unique
information about how he taught and thought his music should be interpreted. She was,
in fact, the only Medtner student to leave systematic written evidence of his pedagogy;
the recordings she made of his music further demonstrate her mastery of his principles.
She became, in effect, his disciple. This dissertation assesses the new light her ‘Notes’
shed on our knowledge of his methods and pianism.
The Introduction provides details of Medtner reception history and introduces all
available sources on Medtner performance practice. Chapter 1 summarizes the lives of
Medtner and Iles, and elucidates the nature of their relationship. Chapters 2 through to
4 discuss the disciplines of Medtner’s approach to playing – basic piano technique,
articulation, practicing, pedaling and memorization – corroborated elsewhere. Chapters
5 and 6 unravel the more intellectual concepts of fil rouge, tempo, phrasing, voicing and
his distinction between energetic and rounded music that form the core of Iles’s ‘Notes’
and represent the EIMC’s most original contribution to Medtner performance practice.
Chapter 7 provides the opportunity to observe and apply Medtner’s interpretive
philosophy to a single work (Sonate-Idylle, Op. 56) by blending the advice conveyed in
his printed scores with the methodology and insights he communicated to Iles. The
Conclusions affirm the importance of the EIMC as a uniquely detailed primary source
on Medtnerian performance practice.
An inventory of the Edna Iles Medtner Collection and transcript of her ‘Notes on
Interpretation of Medtner’s Works’ can be found in Appendices One and Two.
Appendix Three offers a facsimile of exercises Medtner gave to Iles, preserved in her
own handwriting. Appendices Four and Five provide a discography of Medtner piano
works and pertinent contextual photographic evidence.

- by Alexander Karpeyev
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- Piano, Russian, Performance Practice, Piano Music

The popularity of Beethoven's Sonata Quasi una Fantasia, Op. 27 no. 2, commonly known as the " Moonlight Sonata, " traces back to Beethoven's day. In the roughly 200 years since its composition, the culture of piano performance has changed dramatically. The sonata, for example, was an exclusively domestic genre in Beethoven's day and is now a cornerstone of the public recital. Due to its unwavering popularity, the performance history of the Moonlight Sonata is remarkably rich and well documented. Through an analysis of written documents, editions, and audio recordings, this study examines the evolution of piano performance as focused through the lens of this perennial favorite. This analysis reveals the development of what we may call a textual approach to performance and concomitant narrowing of the parameters of interpretation. While this textual approach has resulted in some phenomenal artistry, the authority with which it is presented has discouraged many performers from exploring new ways of engaging with canonic repertoire. Performance practices are dependent on aesthetic and social values and are thus always mutable. The author hopes that the results of this study will bolster the efforts of artists and scholars who are interested in exploring new ways of presenting and performing canonic repertoire such as the Moonlight Sonata.

- by Jacqueline Siapno
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- Piano Performance

Yuja Wang is an exceptional virtuoso pianist who has been nominated "Artist of the Year 2017" at the age of 30 by the magazine Musical America. Yuja Wang wears high-heel shoes on stage and this peculiarity has been repeatedly commented upon and criticized as inducing heavy pedaling. A careful anatomical analysis of renowned pianists' videos has revealed two different techniques of pedaling, corresponding to low and high positions of the heel, and therefore to either a dorsiflexion or a plantar flexion of the foot at rest. None of the two techniques appears superior to the other for the control of the leg muscles and pedal. The heights of the shoe-heels and bench are used to adapt the pianist's morphology to the fixed dimensions of the piano and result in compromises between different components of the pianistic technique. This analysis could be useful to pianists of different ages and morphologies and for the pedagogy of piano playing. Download at URL: http://hugues.bedouelle.free.fr/music.html

- by Hugues Bedouelle
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- Piano Music, Piano Pedagogy, Piano Technique, Piano Performance

Easy Method For Teaching Piano, Learn To Play Famous & Fun Easy Piano Pieces. You can Colored Piano Keys Up On The all pages With RainbowTonic Method. This Book with Online Video & Audio was designed to help the beginning student learn... more

- by Saeed Yahyazadeh
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- Music, Music Education, Music Theory, Musicology

Reflexiones sobre el pianismo actual y su cuestionable fidelidad al repertorio clásico-romántico

- by Luis Ángel de Benito
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- Piano, Piano Music, Piano Pedagogy, Piano performance and repertoire

The book presents the history of the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition narrated from the anthropological-cultural perspective and based on extensive source material, which enabled the authors to explore the less known... more

- by Ada Arendt
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- Cultural Policy, Performance Studies, National Cultural Policy, Frederic Chopin

This volume brings together scholars and artist-researchers to explore the nature and function of musical instruments in creative practices, and their role in musical culture. Through historical, theoretical, critical, practical-artistic perspectives and case studies, the contributors here examine identities and affordances of acoustical, electronic and digital musical instruments, the kinds of relationships that composers and performers establish with them, and the crucial role they play in the emergence of musical experiences and meanings.

Esta tesis sienta las bases de la etapa cultural que rodeó al piano en el Madrid del primer tercio del siglo XIX. Hemos tenido en cuenta que esta ciudad fue entonces centro administrativo y político del país y núcleo importante en la construcción de pianos.
Las mejoras incorporadas a la mecánica del instrumento, y la fabricación de modelos más pequeños y económicos en Europa a partir de 1770, propiciaron que en 1796 aparecieran las primeras obras didácticas específicas para un piano ya segregado de los otros instrumentos de tecla.
Partiendo de estos métodos, y del repertorio para piano difundido en Madrid durante las tres primeras décadas del siglo, estudiamos la consolidación de un lenguaje idiomático específico del instrumento y la definición de una técnica interpretativa propia.
Otro aspecto original de este trabajo es el estudio de la evolución de los géneros pianísticos en relación con los hábitos sociales y con los avatares políticos que sobrevinieron al país durante el sexenio napoleónico.
Finalmente, se proporcionan datos inéditos sobre la industria editorial de música en España, que a partir de 1817, con el establecimiento del taller de estampación musical de Bartolomé Wirmbs, experimentó un fuerte y definitivo impulso.

- by Laura Cuervo
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- Piano Music, Piano Pedagogy, Piano performance and repertoire, Piano Technique

Since its inception, the piano recital has remained the principal—if not exclusive—model for
presenting solo piano repertoire. It is a format that, as this essay will examine, has evolved
throughout its history in response to artistic, social, and technological changes. Therefore, to
advocate for modifications in the piano recital is simply to continue the rich tradition of a format
that has not been rigid, but responsive to its environment. One way to suggest an alternative is by
rethinking the recital in an audiovisual way. Correspondences between acoustical and visual
elements abound, both in theory and materialized in instruments to “perform” colors.
Furthermore, the development of abstract animation allowed fundamental aspects of music to be
effectively visualized: time, gesture, and form, to name a few. The moving image solidified the
relationship between both modes and began our current multimedia era. Many genres of music
have demonstrated the value of a visual component as a complement to a performance,
something which has been increasingly capturing the attention of classical musicians. By
analyzing the aesthetic implications of a multimedia recital and evaluating projects that explore
the addition of a visual element, we can suggest an alternative format that preserves the
traditional piano repertoire and re-contextualizes it in a way that might better resonate with
modern audiences.

Although 19th-c. sources imply the existence of Chopin's concert works in chamber versions, modern scholarship has never fully addressed their whereabouts, the nature of ensembles involved, and the circumstances of those performances. References to performances of orchestral works 'in quartets' found in Chopin's letters have traditionally been understood as designating performances either by the string section of a symphonic orchestra or by an actual string quartet. However, accounts by Chopin's contemporaries show that the term 'quartet' was used to denote not just an ensemble of four string instruments, but also chamber music in general and orchestral music performed by a variety of salon-size groups, including chamber orchestras. Evidence from Chopin's manuscripts and early editions, as well as references in other 19th-c. sources (press, correspondence, etc.) are presented to explore the make-up of the various ensembles and to interpret the existing musical texts for such performances. The same historical and musical data determines that chamber renditions required the pianist's participation in the tuttis, in the vein of the 18th c. continuo. Acknowledging these traditions places Chopin's concert works in a new performance-practice context and sheds light on Chopin's scoring choices. Moreover, it alters our perception of 19th c. audiences having learned orchestral music almost exclusively through the limited medium of piano transcriptions.

- by Halina Goldberg
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- Music History, Musicology, Piano, Performance Studies (Music)

Pilar Bayona, one of the foremost Spanish pianists of the
twentieth century, has been the baseline of this study as her fi gure
has hitherto not been studied from the technical and interpretive
perspective. Their interpretations of Spanish music were particularly
interesting.
The aim of this work is to analyse some of recorded fragments
from this musical style she has left. To undertake this task I use my
own work methodology that allows to make objective assessments of
her individual performance using sound spectrograms, pictures and
other graphs derived from them.

- by Ruben Lorenzo
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- Spanish Music, Spectrogram, Piano Performance, Musical Performance
- by Jacqueline Siapno
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- Piano Performance, Southeast Asian Music

Lola Astanova is a professional Uzbek-American pianist who resorts to controversial performance practices in line with neo-globalist trends. Thus, her extravagant musico-visual “spectacles” are recognisable by an excessive emphasis on female sexuality and the absence of a highly aestheticised, contemplative piano sound. This paper aims to explore how the ideological and interpretive strategies of this unconventional artist are imbued with the erotic capital and patriarchal power relations of the modern consumer society. A selection of publicly available performances by Astanova has been made, most of which are presented to the audience in the form of video clips. The focus is understandably on Astanova’s interpretations of classical music, whose prosaic elements of eroticism and overdramatising musical narration are primarily, but not exclusively, intended for the ear of a patriarchally interpellated listener.

- by Rastko Buljančević
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- Musicology, Piano, Performance Studies, Capitalism

This article contains personal remarks of one's experiences and reflections during his undergraduate studies. It encompasses several piano techniques such as the uninterrupted gliding movement of the arms, the circular motions of the arms, the undulatory wrist movement, the vertical recoil of the arms, and the tremolo or rotation technique. Personal accounts are coupled with research and analysis from academic literature.

- by Johanes Timothy
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- Piano Music, Classical Music, Piano Technique, Piano Performance

Frederick Chopin wrote that the correct employment of the pedal was a study for life. Gyorgy Sandor said that pedalling could be magical or ghastly, depending on the performer. Arthur Rubinstein called the pedal, the soul of the piano, while Vladimir Horowitz called it, the heart of the piano. Yet, teachers tend to neglect this important feature of the piano. This paper describes the use of the damper pedal referencing four articles taken from the magazine, Clavier Companion – Pedal Basics and Stylistic Uses of the Pedal, November/December 2009, and Pedalling – Responsible and Educated Interpretation and The Heart of the Piano, March/April 2013 . It covers the basics of pedalling, advanced techniques and stylistic uses of the pedal.

- by Michelle Rudder
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- Piano, Piano Music, Pianists and Piano Literature, Piano Pedagogy

Este artigo propõe expor uma visão global do planejamento do estudo para a performance, através do levantamento de etapas que podem ser consideradas na estruturação deste planejamento e de estratégias de estudo com foco no piano, com base em sugestões da literatura (considerando o que foi escrito sobre este tema em publicações brasileiras dos últimos dez anos) e na experiência de um profissional que atua como pianista e docente na área de práticas interpretativas. Entendemos que a articulação entre a literatura e a vivência do profissional lançaram luz sobre a importância do conhecimento das várias etapas e estratégias de estudo no momento de estruturar o planejamento do estudo para a performance, bem como na compreensão de que devem ser consideradas as características individuais para garantir a eficiência deste planejamento.

- by Adriana Calzavara
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- Piano Performance

To re-create the music that we perform as truly as possible without fear of being individual and original on the stage – accomplishing the balance between these two, sometimes conflicting interpretative "aspirations", we would have attained the mastery, the essence of the performing art. How the music performer wants to sound the work, what is his own ideal for the piece that he re-creates – this is a strictly personal decision and is usually the result of a prolonged process, representing the individual interaction of thoughts, feelings, states, perceptions, imagination, musical abilities, erudition, artist's life experience, all of which influence what he/she is able to detect in the work.
The exciting process of building the performer’s concept for the musical work, the own interpretation of the piece, as well as many and various methods for enlarging the interpreter's horizon and enriching the concept for the particular work are examined and supported by examples in this book. Many of these approaches can be used by all performers, others are specifically applicable by pianists.
After the introduction and formulation of the research aims, the third section of the book examines and comments on the research of various authors on the neurophysiological and psychological foundations of the process of formation of the performer's concept. The selection and the ordering of these studies throws light on the very essence of the creative process.
In the fourth section are concerned the problems of the responsibility of the interpreter for the means of expression that are at his disposal. Grounded is the need of considering these means not in isolation but in their combinations, as from the vast amount of possible combinations of means are choosed the optimally suitable for re-creating the author's and performer's idea. Suggested there are also ideas for accumulating style culture and performer's erudition.
The fifth section is the most extensive and versatile. In it are described a large number of unconventional methods for enriching the pianist-performer's concept. Some of these methods, such as performing of the piece in another musical instrument, typing of a fragment from the work or of the whole work in a computer program for note writing, have not been used so far. They are introduced for the first time in this research. Therefore, these methods are discussed in more detail in the book. Others, such as the arrangement of a clavier piece for a suitable ensemble of performers, the visualization of a musical image and the dramatization of a clavier work, are used in the methodology of piano sketchily, usually on a separate music theme or small fragment, and especially in the form of imagery comparisons offered by the educator (for example, in Etude op. 25 No. 7 of Fr. Chopin the notion of imitation the thimbre of the cello, is used to improve the cantilene legato of the pianist). In the present work they are deployed as independent methods for enriching and deepening the performer's perusal of a musical piece. Method of using a school video, I tested in the general school for the purpose of explaining a musical form, musical means of expression and insight into the character of a tone work. After developing it as a method for enriching the performer's concept and after conducting an experimental lesson with a student, I described in the book. Well-known methods, such as listening to the performances of notable interpreters, are not considered in detail, but are cited as opportunities to work on the artistic concept.
In order to provide a clearer explanation of how to apply the specific methods and to present factual material to prove the effectiveness of the examined method, I have described lessons that I conducted with students in my class, the specific result on the student's conception of performance, and the reflection of the applied method in the long-term plan – on the development of the stylistic sense and the interpretive imagination of the learners. The description of the conducted lesson gives an opportunity to trace how the particular method is actually applied, how it works. Because these approaches are creative and provoke the students' imagination, work on them, and the results motivate students for additional search for options, for their own attempts. Their attempts are resourceful, interesting, sometimes even daring and lead to a new expansion of the performers' horizon of young interpreters, and when a try fails, it brings different types of benefits - such attempts contribute to sharpening the stylistic sensitivity and reactivity of the learning artists. The methods I use are applicable by instrumentalists with different levels of piano preparation, which is illustrated with relevant musical examples. When the experimental application of a method involves more than one lesson, I have tracked the work on the piece in a series of exercises and, where possible, consider the following experimental tasks that I set for the student. This approach casts even greater clarity on the development of interpreting skills in the students using the methods described in this book.
To each subsection relating to enrichment of the interpretatorial concept is set a rubric, which lists the advantages and disadvantages of suggested in the subsection method. This is done with the purpose for the reader to navigate as quickly as possible in the information and to choose exactly this method, which, under the specific conditions, is the most suitable to the interpreter's task that he or his alumnus fulfills. This is essential because on the choice of the optimally appropriate method depends to the large extent the success of its implementation. The pieces I work on with students in the experimental classes, have very different level of complexity, different style, different character. Many examples are of works by Bulgarian authors. Experiment participants have various specialties and various main musical instrument. What is common is that among students in my class, nobody has the main instrument piano. This again proves that examined methods are applicable by performers with less clavier experience. The specialties and the first instrument of the students are indicated in order to trace their relation to the particular method chosen for application.
Some sections start with motto - inspirational quotes from different creators who can encourage and support young performers in their search for their "I", their originality in interpretive art.

- by Krasimira Fileva-Ruseva
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- Music, Musical Composition, Music Education, Performing Arts
- by Erwin Clauws
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- Music, Music Education, Music Theory Pedagogy, Music Theory

Dado que el recital es el formato por excelencia para presentar música para piano, es importante analizar su origen, los cambios que fue desarrollando, y su validez en nuestra era. Tanto Franz Liszt con sus recitales virtuosos como Ignaz Moscheles con su ciclo de conciertos históricos, sientan las bases del formato así como también de ciertas convenciones, algunas de las cuales continúan vigentes al día de hoy. Sin embargo, desarrollos artísticos, sociales y tecnológicos fomentan cambios a través de la historia del recital. Uno de los más importantes es la transformación del recital de un evento comunal a uno de contemplación individual. En el marco de los cambios que ha experimentado el recital, es válido preguntarse en qué dirección se dirige. El interés por preservar la tradición del recital ignora el hecho de que nuestros conciertos actuales en poco se asemejan a los ofrecidos por quienes gestaron este formato. Al contextualizar el recital de piano resulta lógico pensar que proponer un formato alternativo que se adapte mejor a nuestro público es natural, posible, e incluso necesario.

- by Agustin Muriago
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- Piano Performance, Phenomenology of Piano Performance

Παρουσίαση των σημαντικότερων πιανιστών στο Βερολίνο του Μεσοπολέμου (Feruccio Busoni, Artur Schnabel, Claudio Arrau, Egon Petri, Eduard Steuermann, Philipp Jarnach, Leonid Kreutzer κ.ά), της αισθητικής της ερμηνείας της εποχής και των ιστορικών πιάνων Bechstein.
Presentation of the most important pianists in interwar Berlin (Feruccio Busoni, Artur Schnabel, Claudio Arrau, Egon Petri, Eduard Steuermann, Philipp Jarnach, Leonid Kreutzer a.o.), aesthetics of interpretation and historical Bechstein pianos.

- by Lorenda Ramou
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- Performance Practice (Music), Piano Performance, Artur Schnabel, Neue Musik

As performers and teachers we all know that some kind of pain and stress some of the inevitable facts of our routine. When we are in pain our first response is to somehow get rid of that pain. This is not always possible. Still, our minds tell us that the less pain we experience, the happier we are.Ilan Lev works many years with musicians and dancers and understands the body of the performing artist . Working with him changed many aspects in my practicing, performing and teaching. His holistic approach has wonderful results in my students' body language, reduced stress and pain and improved their sound production abilities. I consider his approach a breakthrough and would love to share some of his ideas, as they are applied in piano playing.

- by Michal Tal
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- Piano, Piano Pedagogy, Piano Technique, Piano Performance

Existen conciertos de compositores, existen conciertos de obras y existen también conciertos de intérpretes. El concierto de hoy es difícilmente clasificable por ser, de forma maravillosa, mágica, una mezcla de todos ellos. En primer plano, tenemos una intérprete de esas que, por sí misma, ya despierta una clase de interés claudicado bajo ideas del tipo “no quisiera perdérmelo por nada del mundo”. Además, los nombres que llenan el programa (Bach, Shostakovich, Schnittke, Brahms), llenan por la sinergia de su arte páginas y páginas de reflexión, a más de horas y horas de música y belleza. De las mejores flores de sus respectivos huertos creativos, brota todo eso que convierte a nuestro concierto, también, en un auténtico concierto de obras.
Compositores, obras e intérprete, pues, unidos por un ideal constructivo que vertebra cual hilo rojo todo el programa: la veneración de la forma como constituidora, no sólo portadora, de contenido. Así, Bach, así Brahms, pero así también, por supuesto, Shostakovich y Schnittke. A ello se le suma un respeto, no servil, en todos ellos por las respectivas tradiciones que, en el programa, abarcan desde el Barroco pletórico de Bach a la casi contemporaneidad de Schnittke. Es decir, una paleta amplia de gamas de color, ora solemne, ora sentimental, ora dramática, que vehicula lo que, a fin de cuentas, consciente o inconscientemente, uno siempre espera cuando asiste a una sala de conciertos: tener un encuentro –pues sólo del encuentro nace la experiencia– con el arte, con la trascendencia, con la música.

- by Arturo Tello Ruiz-Pérez
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- Cultural Studies, Music, Music History, Musicology

Рецензия на выступление 30 сентября 2017 г. в Концертном зале Мариинского театра. Дирижер Валерий Гергиев. Равель, Прокофьев.

This dissertation theorizes expressive sound in piano performance. It views the act of obtaining a desired sound as an act of subtly adjusting to continually changing conditions of sound production. It takes a performer's perspective, focusing on the personal experience of sound, as it is being created in performance. The sound of a piano performance is continually evolving, contingent on the acoustic environment, the characteristics of an instrument, and other circumstantial factors with which a pianist works in performance. Although the focus is on real-time performing experience, in the act of any particular performance, a pianist relies on robust previous experience. This dissertation particularly considers the dynamic, interactive loop of the conception, the making, and the hearing of sound in piano performance. The continued re-enaction of this loop is considered as grounding a specifically pianistic cognitive ability which draws on both the haptic and auditory experience of sound at the piano. My approach to piano playing is rooted in work in critical ethnography as well as theories of cognitive function. These two seemingly disparate areas of enquiry share important common ground in their treatment of conceptualization and experience as mutually definitive. An underlying theme throughout this research is the dynamic interplay between theoretical understanding and lived experience. The focus, however, is consistently on piano playing, seen as the act of engendering artistically charged sound through the interaction with a complex and versatile musical instrument, the acoustics of sound and space, and the expressive possibilities of personal experience.

- by Victoria Tzotzkova
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- Cognitive Psychology, Ethnography, Cognition, Autoethnography

Resumen Uno de los recursos pianísticos más olvidados dentro de la pedagogía pianística y que a la vez ocupa un papel muy importante dentro de la enseñanza y la interpretación del piano es el uso del pedal de resonancia. De hecho, de nuestra práctica docente en grado superior hemos podido comprobar que los alumnos, no sólo no logran obtener la autonomía necesaria, sino que lo utilizan de forma incorrecta. Ello es debido a que los profesores se encuentran con la ausencia de recursos didácticos impresos, tanto teóricos como prácticos, que dificultan muchísimo la labor del profesor a la hora de tratar este aspecto. El presente estudio trata de averiguar aspectos metodológicos del profesorado de conservatorios y escuelas de música de Canarias, así como los problemas más comunes que suele tener el alumnado de enseñanzas elementales, profesionales y superiores. Palabras clave: piano, pedal de resonancia, enseñanza, conservatorios, escuelas de música. Abstract One of the most neglected resources in piano pedagogy, and one that plays a very important role in piano teaching, is the use of the damper pedal. In fact, we have found that at higher levels of study students not only fail achieve the requisite autonomy, but also use it incorrectly. This happens due to a lack of printed resources, theoretical as well as practical, that greatly hinder teaching of this aspect. This study attempts to look into methodologies of teachers at conservatories and schools in the Canary Islands along with the common problems generally found among students in elementary education, high schools, and professional studies.

- by Oliver Curbelo
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- Piano, Piano Music, Pianists and Piano Literature, Piano Performance
- by Lorenda Ramou
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- Arnold Schoenberg, Greek Modernism, Piano Performance, Greek dance

This paper tells you about, the best Online Piano lessons available and the importance of learning Piano the right way. If you are a serious and passionate learner, why should you opt for free lessons when the value provide by them is good but not great and is limited. Paid lessons put much more effort and detail in your learning and they are the way to go if you want to go pro or at least sound like one.

- by Prateek Tripathi
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- Music Education, Music Theory, Piano, Piano Music

interview over uitvoering van Belgische of Vlaamse muziek in de carrière

- by Geert Callaert
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- Piano, Piano Music, Pianists and Piano Literature, Belgium
- by Magda Mayas
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- Psychology, Musical Composition, Improvisation, Choreography

Self-efficacy perception and exam anxiety which are evaluated within scope of affective dimensions of piano performance affect the quality of performance. It is expected for music teacher candidates to be raised as teachers having high level of self-efficacy perception and having control over their level of anxiety with respect to their piano performance successes. This study has aimed to determine piano performance self-efficacy perceptions and exam anxiety levels of music teacher candidates and the relationship between these two variables. Relational scanning model has been used in the research and the sampling was constituted of total number of 718 music teacher candidates. Data have been gathered with personal information form, piano performance self-efficacy scale, and exam anxiety inventory. The data being obtained have been analyzed with Pearson Correlation Coefficient, One Way Variance Analysis (ANOVA) Welch test, Scheffe test, and Games Howell test. Research results have shown that piano performance self-efficacy perceptions and exam anxieties of music teacher candidates were at medium level. It has been determined that there was a negative directional meaningful and medium level of relationship between piano performance self-efficacy perceptions and exam anxieties of music teacher candidates. Within context of research results, program development studies can be made to improve piano performance self-efficacy perception and to reduce exam anxiety level and with teacher assessments and peer evaluation studies, the impact of constructive criticisms can be examined.

- by Mehmet Durak
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- Music Education, Teacher Education, Self-Efficacy, Music Teacher Education

Piano for Beginners: Top 5 Tips for Learning to Play the Piano Have you always wanted to learn how to play the piano but have been unsure of where to start? Here are a few basics if you are somebody who would like to learn how to play.... more

- by Ashley Zemla
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- Music, Music Education, Piano, Popular Music

This dissertation takes as its subject the performing style of the great composer, conductor and pianist, Sergei Rachmaninov (1873–1943). More specifically, it analyses characteristics of temporal fluctuation in his recordings. By focusing on Rachmaninov’s four recorded performances of his Polka de W.R., written in 1911—one on piano roll and three on record, spanning nine years from the earliest (1919) to the latest (1928)—we are able to determine firstly how characteristics of his style are manifested in these performances, and secondly, the extent to which they differ. Brief analysis of other pieces Rachmaninov recorded more than once throughout the 1920s is then carried out to determine whether chronological patterns of interpretative change may be observed, taking any differences between Rachmaninov’s Polka recordings as a starting point.
The study begins with a section concerning approach and methodology when analysing temporal aspects of performance, and the analysis itself (in Sections 2 and 3) makes reference to graphic representation of the recordings through the use of the purpose-built computer software Sonic Visualiser (developed in conjunction with the research carried out in the first decade of this century by the Centre for the History and Analysis of Recorded Music).
By viewing Rachmaninov’s temporal fluctuation in this way, in relation to a specific piece, we are able to see clearly how this aspect of performance practice operates in the recorded style of possibly one of the foremost respected and successful pianists of all time.

- by Adam Davies
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- Music, Musicology, Piano, Performance Studies
- by Daniel Tarquinio
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- Piano Performance, Camargo Guarnieri, Teoria e Análise Musical