Piano Technique: The Rotating Thumb

With all the cyber forum posts about thumbs up, thumbs down, early or late, advanced or delayed, the ROTATIONAL dimension of the shortest, and most problematic finger is often overlooked, and because of miss-directed attention, the clunky thumb brigade marches relentlessly through countless arpeggios and scales. But change is possible! During the course of this…

Emma Leiuman, pianist, shares thoughts on sound imagination and tone production

In the midst of a heated Internet-driven controversy that surrounds playing a single note at the piano, Emma Leiuman explores "sound imagination" wedded to fluid physical motions that expand ideas about the universe of expressive piano playing. In a detailed narrative, the pianist, schooled in the great Russian musical tradition, shares her awakenings and technique…

Piano Repair: Taking the noise out of my pedal!

Israel Stein, Registered Piano Technician, whose feats of repair have earned him national recognition, descended upon my humble abode like the fix-it fairy, and banished my sustain pedal noise forever! (Count on it for the years remaining in my playing lifetime) Trouble-shooting as he went along, Stein diagnosed the problem and followed through in graduated…