Learning a new piano piece quickly and thoroughly (Videos)

I challenged myself to quickly learn the shortest Scarlatti sonata on record (K. 431 in G) and share the principles of developing this piece to a level of fluidity with interested students. Perhaps it would help them navigate a new musical landscape. *** Looking over the two-page Scarlatti score, we notice a preponderance of broken-chord…

Piano Instruction: Domenico Scarlatti Minuetto in C, L. 217 (Videos)

Many of Scarlatti's compositions are not within easy reach of most piano students, but Margery Halford, editor, has compiled an Introductory album published by Alfred, with technically and musically attainable works. And it's a blessing that she's eliminated ones with crossed-hand acrobatics. Yet trills, so emblematic of the composer, are an ever-present challenge. Wrist Flexibility…

Piano Technique: Here come the crossed hands in Mozart Sonata in A Major, K. 331 (Variation 4) Videos

Breathe a sigh of relief if you've managed to brave the difficult parallel octaves in forte legato! (Variation 3) Mozart is not done. He challenges you in Variation 4 with left-hand-over-right maneuvers. So be ready to relax your wrists and arms. Otherwise, you're in for a bumpy ride. Count your blessings that Domenico Scarlatti had…

What “authentic” edition should a piano student use when learning repertoire of the Masters?

I'm thinking back to my ancient days studying with Lillian Freundlich in New York City. During this period, like any fledgling I relied on my teacher as an "authority" figure to recommend what Mozart Sonata edition, for example, I should buy down at Patelson's. (This was decades before the quaint hub for musicians seeking authenticity…

Yevgeny Sudbin, another Russian Pianist topples my day!

I had my heart set on working out at the gym before noon, but as fate had it, I was stopped in my tracks by the breathtaking artistry of Yevgeny Sudbin. (only 32 years old) And it was merely 24 hours after I'd cried over Nikolai Lugansky's Schumann Intermezzo from Faschingsschwank aus Wien. Could these…

The Piano Repertoire: Does making fingering/hand adjustments constitute a “swindle?”

Seymour Bernstein, author of With Your Own Two Hands, remarked that "Chopin wrote out an outline for an intended method of teaching piano. And when he died he left it to Charles Alkan who never finished it. Wouldn't you think that Chopin would stress at the beginning that everything depends upon a deep emotional involvement…

Scarlatti Sonata in E Major, K. 380, the one Vladimir Horowitz loved to play

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WS1Z2bqbss8 The great Vladimir Horowitz made this sonata almost a household word among pianists. Back in the 1950s, Ben Grauer, host of NBC's "Recital Hall" introduced students from Juilliard who played at least 3 Scarlatti sonatas, following Volodya's example. These Baroque selections were a necessary entrée to the main course of Classical, Romantic and Contemporary…

Aiden cat, our loving companion and musical mascot

He might as well be human. Left with me by one of my daughters over 4 years ago, this atypical cat had a history of jumping into the shower, then going to sleep on his owner's head. When brushed, he molded himself in his caretaker's lap, enjoying each of her lavish strokes. A pedicure that…

Trills and Domenico Scarlatti (Video)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyXvet9KrLc In a separate writing about crossed hands, large leaps, and other keyboard acrobatics, I'd discussed trills which permeate Domenico Scarlatti's music. Perhaps these precious ornaments evoked the gypsy wails in the surrounding Madrid countryside, or they were part of the performance practice of the Baroque period. I would hedge my bets that hunting horns,…

Aglow with creative fire: My NYC visit with harpsichordist, Elaine Comparone

The centerpiece of my trip back East this past weekend was meeting up with Elaine Comparone in her acoustically magnificent West Side apartment. Two splendid harpsichords of incomparable beauty, a custom made Dowd and Hubbard, graced a divinely resonant space with a cathedral high ceiling. And with a snap of my fingers I ignited a…