The Pianist's guide to Practical Technique: Sample Pages

     Amazon has had problems setting up the "Look Inside" feature for these titles, problems we're expecting to solve soon. In the meantime, as some readers have requested, here are some sample pages. Excerpts from the introduction can be found elsewhere in this blog. The levels of difficulty range from early intermediate to advanced and include left-hand studies along with scales, arpeggios, leaps and virtually all manner of technical necessities. The examples are from Bach, Haydn, Mozart, Chopin, etc. I've included one example of a practice guide, of which, along with practice hints, there are several throughout the volume. The Index is at the bottom of the page.

     Click on the example to enlarge.

Alberti............... 19, 31, 40, 42, 44, 55, 65, 124, 155, 172, 222

Arpeggios 23, 26, 40, 41, 99, 103, 109, 131, 143, 152, 156, 173, 193, 200, 213, 215

Art of Finger Dexterity, The................................................................ 7

Articulation............................................................................... 27, 106

Bach, J.S.

Invention in A minor.............................................................. 13

Invention in C Major............................................................... 12

Invention in F Major............................................................... 31

Well Tempered Clavier Bk. I

Prelude in D Major............................................................. 62

Beethoven, L.

Op. 10, No. 1

Allegro..................................................................................... 101

Finale........................................................................................ 107

Op. 10, No. 3.............................................................................. 119

Rondo...................................................................................... 125

Op. 110

Morsel...................................................................................... 241

Op. 13............................................................................................ 111

Op. 13, Pt. 2................................................................................ 113

Practice Guide..................................................................... 118

Op. 14, No. 1.............................................................................. 131

Op. 2, No. 1

Prestissimo............................................................................ 103

Op. 2, No. 3................................................................................ 158

Trio.............................................................................................. 99

Op. 22..................................................................................... 25, 156

Allegro........................................................................................ 89

Op. 26............................................................................................ 150

Rondo...................................................................................... 162

Op. 27, No. 1.............................................................................. 165

Rondo...................................................................................... 140

Op. 27, No. 2.............................................................................. 173

Op. 31, No 1............................................................................... 146

Op. 53

Allegro..................................................................................... 181

Op. 53............................................................................................ 152

Op. 54............................................................................................ 135

Op. 57............................................................................................ 176

Andante................................................................................... 170

Morsel............................................................................ 234, 239

Op. 76 "Ruins of Athens"

Variation 1.............................................................................. 124

Variation 5.............................................................................. 123

Op. 81a

Wiedersehen........................................................................ 143

Op. 81a Allegro

Morsel...................................................................................... 242

Op. 90............................................................................................ 222

Variations "Venni amore" 1790

Variation 1................................................................................ 22

WoO 80 C Minor Variations

Variation 22........................................................................... 134

Variation 26........................................................................... 129

Variation 27........................................................................... 129

Variation 28........................................................................... 149

Variation 4................................................................................ 78

Variation 5.............................................................................. 102

Variation 6................................................................................ 85

Variation 7................................................................................ 43

Variation 8.............................................................................. 122

Variation 9.............................................................................. 161

Variations 1-3........................................................................ 109

Variations 14, 16.................................................................. 130

Brahms

Letter................................................................................................... 8

broken arpeggios.......................................................................... 155

Broken Octaves.................................................. 98, 119, 143, 158

Broken Sixths.................................................................................. 119

cantabile style.................................................................................... 18

Chopin, F.

Ballade in F Minor

Practice Guide..................................................................... 206

Ballade in F Minor, Op. 52................................................ 200

Ballade in G Minor

Practice Guide..................................................................... 228

Ballade in G Minor Coda................................................... 229

Practice guide...................................................................... 233

Ballade in G Minor Op. 23...................................... 213, 224

Berceuse Op. 57............................................................ 194, 221

Leaps......................................................................................... 167

Etude Op. 10, No. 12

Morsel............................................................................ 234, 236

Etude Op. 10, No. 4

Morsel...................................................................................... 235

Etude Op. 10, No. 8

Morsel...................................................................................... 238

Nocturne

Op. 27, No. 1........................................................................ 193

Nocturne Op. 27, No. 2

Morsel............................................................................ 237, 238

Prelude Op. 28, No. 3

Left Hand............................................................................... 139

Scherzo in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 39............................... 215

Sonata in B-Flat Minor

Alternate.................................................................................. 198

Sonata in B-Flat Minor, Op. 35........................................ 196

Chords...................................................................................... 200, 221

Clementi, Muzio................................................................................ 7

Complex Rhythm......................................................................... 108

Coordination 55, 58, 78, 85, 123, 124, 125, 150, 188, 189, 215

Coordination).................................................................................... 71

Counterpoint.................................................................................. 134

Invention in A Minor.............................................................. 13

Invention in C Major............................................................... 12

Invention in F.............................................................................. 31

Czerny, Carl.......................................................................................... 7

Davidsbündlertänze.................................................................... 169

Dotted Rhythm.............................................................................. 101

Double Notes. 111, 122, 129, 135, 168, 194, 200, 211, 242

Fingering................................................................ 71, 110, 193, 237

Forearm rotation.............................................................. 9, 39, 111

fortepiano............................................................................................ 18

four-against-three.......................................................................... 108

Gradus ad Parnassum........................................................................... 7

Group.................................................................................................... 10

Grouping....................................................................... 139, 236, 238

Hand Division................................................................................ 198

hands separately............................................................................... 11

Haydn, Joseph

Hob. XVI/23................................................................................ 81

Hob. XVI/27................................................................. 17, 18, 19

Variation 1................................................................................ 20

Hob. XVI/28................................................................................ 23

Variation 4................................................................................ 34

Hob. XVI/30................................................................................ 48

Variation 3................................................................................ 35

Variation 5................................................................................ 36

Hob. XVI/31................................................................................ 95

Hob. XVI/39......................................................................... 16, 42

Hob. XVI/8................................................................................... 15

Sonata 1785

Variation I................................................................................. 30

hinge.................................................................................................... 108

in 110

In/Out................................................................................................ 139

independence of fingers.............................................................. 8

inventions............................................................................................ 39

Leaps................................................................................... 79, 129, 167

Left Hand 21, 25, 41, 43, 54, 71, 76, 79, 98, 103, 122, 139, 140, 142, 149, 156, 170, 181, 189, 193, 196, 222

Lhevinne, Rosina............................................................................... 7

Liszt, F.

Concerto in E-Flat

Morsel...................................................................................... 243

Loesser, Arthur................................................................................... 8

Morsel..................................... 234, 235, 236, 237, 238, 239, 243

Moszkowski.......................................................................................... 8

Mozart, W.A.

K. 208

Variation 1................................................................................ 53

K. 265

Variation 7................................................................................ 75

K. 265 "Ah, vous dirai-je"

Variation 1................................................................................ 33

Variation 2................................................................................ 54

Variation 3................................................................................ 27

Variation 4................................................................................ 41

Variation 6................................................................................ 21

K. 279................................................................................................ 37

K. 280................................................................................................ 44

K. 309................................................................................................ 58

K. 310........................................................................................ 73, 76

Allegro maestoso.................................................................. 71

Presto.......................................................................................... 79

K. 331........................................................................................ 55, 56

K. 332................................................................................................ 65

K. 333................................................................................................ 86

K. 455 "Unser dummer Poebel"

Variation 1................................................................................ 28

Variation 2................................................................................ 98

K. 500

Variation 1.............................................................................. 106

Variation 2.............................................................................. 142

Variation 3................................................................................ 24

K. 545................................................................................. 26, 29, 40

Octaves... 43, 55, 56, 102, 119, 130, 134, 135, 140, 143, 158

out……………………………………………...110

Paganini................................................................................................... 7

Parallel............................................................................. 125, 146, 165

Practice Guide....... 18, 39, 64, 118, 188, 206, 210, 228, 233

Practicing............................................................................................. 10

Repeated Notes............................................................ 86, 109, 110

rotate.................................................................................................... 118

Rotation................................................................................................... 9

Scales 19, 29, 31, 35, 42, 44, 58, 65, 73, 75, 81, 86, 95, 107, 143, 146

School of Velocity, The........................................................................... 7

Schumann, R.

Critic.................................................................................................... 8

Fantasy Op. 17........................................................................... 211

Kreisleriana Practice Guide.............................................. 210

Kreisleriana, Op. 16, Agitatissimo.................................. 208

Op. 6, No. 6................................................................................ 168

Shape............................................................................................ 10, 188

Staccato.................................................................................................. 85

strength training................................................................................. 8

Thirds.................................................................... 129, 130, 200, 242

Thumb on Black Keys................................................................. 56

tremolo............................................................................................... 108

Trills..................................................... 27, 106, 142, 150, 161, 181

Triplets................................................................................... 16, 17, 58

Two Against Three...................................................................... 142

Two-Note Slurs.............................................................. 30, 53, 106

Voicing........................................................................... 167, 170, 221

walking arm........................................................................................ 10

weight.................................................................................................. 172

working-in................................................................................................. 8

Tchaikovsky Concerto: Fingering or Grouping

P.I. Tchaikovsky

     A student came with the Tchaikovsky concerto, asking for help with fingering for the following passage, measures 17 and 18. I've written before about concepts that govern our fingering choices, pointing out that a lot can be discovered about a pianist's technical point of view from the fingering he chooses. In this passage, the first question to ask is what is the most convenient grouping? Is there a way to make the passage seem fluid, without awkward jumps? I'm happy to report that the answer is yes. Instead of following the metric grouping by locking into the beamed 16ths as groups, move the group over to the next eighth, so that the groups would be sung "and 3, and 4, and 1," etc. Oh well, I never could sing. Maybe you'd better look at the example:

Tchaikovsky Concerto, mm 17 and 18. Grouping vs fingering.
Click example to enlarge.

     So, this is really first about  how to group the chords conveniently, and only then about which fingers to use. There's a related passage in the opening cadenza of the Liszt E-Flat concerto, but that's another story.

Chopin Fantasy Impromptu: Four vs Three

A student asks about learning to play four against three in the Fantasy Impromptu. Here is a rhythm chart of four vs three:

Click to enlarge.

     Some pianists find it helpful to learn to tap out this pattern first, before adding pitches. Notice that the second triplet comes after the second sixteenth and the third triplet comes just before the fourth sixteenth. The chart shows where each note in one hand falls in relationship to the other. Most modern editions print the relationships correctly (though not always): 

Click to enlarge.

     What I find most helpful is teaching each hand where its own pulses are until they are very sure. Then, I put the hands together feeling the main pulses. The object, of course, is for each hand to learn to be independent in its own rhythm. At first, try practicing one beat only, stopping on the next strong beat. When that feels secure, try playing two beats.

Chopin Etude op. 10, No. 3: Stretching

     A student working on Chopin's etude Op. 10, No. 3, asks—more than once—about stretching the hand in order to accommodate the cadenza of slurred chords. 

Chopin Etude Op.10, No. 3.
Click on example to enlarge.

     "About stretching exercises: At the risk of belaboring the point, and one last time, what if you've done all you can to to optimize hand position and you still feel strained. Wouldn't it be, under those circumstances, beneficial to have a longer stretch ability?"

     Well, I hate to sound like a broken record, but the truth of the matter is, if your hand feels stretched—strained—then something is wrong, that is, you haven't yet found the right movements. To be clear, the hand can be open without feeling stretched to an extreme. It is very important, though, to avoid extremes of motion. It's always more efficient to move than to stretch, even though it may sometimes seem counter intuitive. Once you feel the difference, moving rather than stretching will become the intuition.

     Try this: Play each chord individually with the fingering you've decided on. How does that feel? If each chord feels fine, then the issue is not the chord itself, but how you are moving from one to the next. You should consider where you are on the keys, probably a little more out for white keys and, of course, in for black (thumb and fifth finger). Notice if when moving from one chord on white to the next you bump up against a black key, for example. Is your fifth finger too in among the black keys? The problem with this passage is that pianists keep the hand too open in order to accommodate a series of chords without moving appropriately. The moving is the crux of the issue.

     Having said all of that, I use the following fingering, which allows the hand to feel more closed:

Click on example to enlarge.