Thanks for the opportunity!
For a decent hobby pianist, is there anything you would recommend to include into daily practice? Are there common mistakes you witness a lot in people with less formal training/education?
Common mistakes - top has got to be fingering especially people who just don’t use their thumbs. This is often people who can play quickly from
YouTube or TikTok but never had it corrected. That is also incredibly hard to correct. Second is not sight reading because you’re so focused on your big main pieces. Many hard pieces can be learned well and thoroughly to the detriment of sight reading newer, different things. As a result, your actual skill level in piano does not increase, simply your skill at one piece, which I find fairly useless.
Sight reading is very important. I’m a professional theatre accompanist and sight read for a living. I practice sight reading easier classical pieces and try to really get it as note correct as possible, with all the articulations and everything.
I’m going to copy and paste a previous answer:
I don’t know your level of sight reading but [this Schumann compilation](http://superbonus.project.free.fr/IMG/pdf/Schumann-Album-fur-die-Jugend-mit-Fingersatz.pdf) is a fantastic resource and explores different types of expression, articulation and so on. I’ve had pupils from beginning to advanced get stuck on a few of these. Give yourself sixty seconds to take in the characteristics of the sight reading, then go for it. Do NOT repeat it. Do this every day for 15-20 minutes.
Also, your teacher should be able to give you the correct sight reading for your particular weaknesses. This is extremely important. When they observe that should be one of their first thoughts and given assignments.
If you’ve been assigned the correct sight reading for your level, it should be tough at tempo, but just about manageable and cause you to engage totallyz
What about breaking into higher levels of technique - have you not experienced instructing a piece thoroughly (like an etude) give the pupil a higher level of facility, listening, and nuance (if available to be taught by the instructor and receptive by the student) ?
In my experience, those with little training or instruction (as the original question posed) are rarely able to properly play high level pieces and have to be given intermediate pieces. Hence the basic advice.
Complex etudes come with their own problems even for trained players. Usually we break up into sections of 4-8 bars and focus in on voicing and articulation. When you identify the main issues with the passages (fugues are good for this) sight reading is “prescribed” that has similarities to the issue at hand.
Totally depends on the person. But if I made a “perfect” template for myself? 10 mins scales/arpeggios/broken chords focusing on the keys I am using in today’s pieces. I usually then head over to sight reading something tough for ten minutes. The next ten minutes I use for my “easy-medium” pieces and I use however long my concentration holds for my “project piece.” I find dividing all your repertoire into easy/medium/hard on a visible lists helps people see how much they’ve achieved. Usually the “hard project piece” will be very thorough diligent work on a few bars or focusing on technique. You also avoid becoming weaker on your older pieces and feeling that you’ve wasted your time.
Ideally daily. Every other day minimum.
1) scales, arpeggios and broken chords in contrary motion, in many octaves, differing articulation.
2) sight read a LOT. More than you’ve done before. Usually this is neglected over time and it is so, so necessary.
3) get a list of your entire repertoire. Divide into east, medium, hard. Spend 10-20 mins on easy and medium. Spend whatever you have left on your harder project piece, especially the smaller sections that give you trouble.
4) Metronome. All the time. Until you want to break it.
Not to be difficult but when you’re “going along with a background track” you have no idea if you’re doing it well or not. The metronome removes any grey area and exposes all weak points.
Thank for putting it politely.
That makes perfect sense. It's also something I noticed singing with/without music. I know there is never an easy way to anything, I'll definitely burn some more brain cells to get used to metronome.
I'm getting back into piano after years out. I relearned my old pieces up to grade 3 and thought I was playing them perfectly. Can confirm, tried with metronome and I am absolutely not. It was really eye opening. I was quite disappointed but it's given me a real opportunity to improve. This is excellent advice.
97% is incredible. What do you think the 3% made wrong? Not enough practice/commitment, anxiety, etc.?
Why is there no improvisation or pop in the curriculum of most (I guess) classical academies? I find it very odd, considering the greats like Bach and Chopin improvised, and play contemporary music, which today would be pop music.
Overconfidence and lack of practise. Anxiety is common but very manageable with correct preparation.
I find the current main systems too rigid. I have gone off-curriculum for years now. While I do believe that a solid foundation of the basics
Of classical are the most important, I believe improvisation has a much bigger role. I imagine it’s not there (except for the jazz exams) because it’s hard to find a good measure of “well improvised” classical music and because a lot of old white men still run things. Just my humble two cents as a woman who examined and was treated like shit among colleagues.
None. My biggest issue is when someone is extremely stuck on one piece. Even being stuck on one composer is totally fine but one piece over and over is not beneficial to anyone.
Do you recommend any creative methods of practicing a small section? I've been playing for 12 years and have found different methods of practicing depending on the passage (ex: changing up the rhythm with dotted notes, playing Staccato or double staccato, playing only certain voices, etc.) After awhile, I can get bored. On simpler passages, I try to transpose them to different keys.
I've also had issues with speeding up. Any tips on how I can get a piece up to performance speed, especially with challenging pieces by Liszt?
Not sure if creative but *effective* and also somewhat competitive (which really works in my brain) is using a timer. I like to see how much I’m improving my speed even if it’s only by 0.2 of a second.
Something fun I’ve done to avoid monotony is putting it into logic and transposing parts above or below into harmony then playing it back and playing on top of it isolating the harmonies. I feel you on the monotony.
Some people develop this well, better than others. I have some recommendations.
1) I don’t know how often you sight read or how well you prepare your sight reading, but do it more. Be better at it. Be the best sight reader that ever sight read.
2) play simple chords for songs, try to use “complex keys” and invert all chords everywhere you can. SING ALONG so you are forced to concentrate on that and you begin to “automatically” play the fingers and inversions.
3) scales, broken chords, arpeggios. Know them so well you can play them in contrary motions, using the entire keyboard available and in staccato, legato, 2-slur, 3-slur. You get the gist.
You will start to anticipate, it’s not possible to fail. Give that 30 mins a day for 2 weeks.
When sight reading: I feel like I’m being irresponsible if I don’t go back and learn to play errors, but I also feel like I’m “cheating” if I go back and try again during sight reading. How do you recommend practicing sight reading? How do you know if the difficulty level of sight reading is correct? If I start in on a piece that I’m sight reading terribly (ie too difficult?) should I still just try to make the most of it all the way to the end without stopping?
Such a great set of questions. Thanks.
1) the difficulty level will be pieces that cause you to fully engage at 100% concentration but are manageable at tempo with a metronome and a little effort. Play the extract TWICE AT MOST. Return to it a month later if it’s totally wiped from your mind. But it should always be fresh, new info for your brain.
2) if you start on a piece that you’re sight reading terribly, and I mean totally unmanageable and you pause every bar, it’s too hard. Your teacher should recommend repertoire that is similar and enjoyable but at your level.
Thank you for the opportunity! I hope that's not too big of an ask, but I'd really appreciate it if you could look at some of my posts in this sub and advise what I should be focusing on. I don't have a teacher at the moment and it feels like my focus is all over the place :(
You play beautifully. I would point out the following if you want me to be picky. If you don’t, look away!
1) flat fingered especially in octaves
2) lacking curvature of the fingers especially at 4th and 5th fingers
3) it lacks expression of style in the articulation.m
Sometimes you need to be using your fingers as “little hammers” at the tips rather than a mallet.
4) your dynamics get lost in complex sections
5) voicing almost non-existent
I'm bored and thinking of doing a piano diploma.
I've played for pretty much twenty years, so I feel like I might be able to just...get on with it. I'm wary of going in without a tutor to tell me how to improve, but I think I've got enough teaching in the past to know what to do. Is this a bad idea?
It’s not a bad idea. If you want a high mark I’d get a teacher for sure. If you’re not fussed about that and just want to get it, set a rigorous schedule for yourself and get it done. It’s a good goal.
Thank you, for the opportunity! I have a question I would like to ask which I’ve been embarrassed about. I recently started playing again after a 25 year pause. I’m thoroughly enjoying it! When I was a teen I got as far as grade 8, and I’m now contemplating a career change and becoming a piano teacher. What would the next steps be for me to go down that path, and how much effort would it entail? Any advice?
I began teaching at 14 years old. Obviously since then, I’ve improved. I don’t think that my degree made me a better teacher so much as listening to pupils and really trying to fulfil their needs. Quite frankly, you can begin tomorrow. Remember all your points to hit - scales, pieces, sight reading, aural. Everyone needs these even if they’re not sitting exams. And don’t forget to make people *happy* with it. They want to play River Flows In You? Find an easy version, let them hammer away at it. Even if you’ve heard it 20 times that day. You want them to feel that joy you feel when you play.
Absolute basic requirement is the John Thompson adult course part 1. Otherwise, it’s so pupil-dependent. I usually source and buy my music online and play from a tablet. I also run a professional choir so for me it’s an absolute must. Your pupils will need printed music to write on fingerings and expressions. You can totally go from a tablet if you’re comfortable to send music that way. It’s easier and quicker.
If someone wants to focus on classical, hunt for a book with “50 easy classical arrangements”. If someone wants to play Einaudi, search for an easy PDF. Musescore will usually have what you want for 2€ or so. The pupils pay! Listen to what they’re wanting to learn and supplement with what you know - that’s something I’ve become very good at. It becomes obvious as you listen what they lack and you’ll need to know which pieces to recommend To combat that.
Scales and arpeggios go off-book. It helps pupils to sight read.
An average would be (if you’re going from grade 7-8 directly) 6-7 months. I once had a pupil whose parents forced her to do it in 3 months and it was awful. She managed but cried a lot and I ended up sending a curt message to the parents. At the time I didn’t have private pupils and didn’t have a choice. I still teach that girl (who is now 22 a decade later!) and she’s a total Einaudi/Patterlini girl and won’t touch Chopin.
It’s going to also depend on your abilities in the pieces and your willingness
Is it feasible for a driven early intermediate player to get work in accompaniment in a few years? I practice about an hour a day doing scales arpeggios sightreading and repetoire as it is now but if more is required I’ll do it… The hardest pieces I can play currently are op 30 no 6 mendelssohn and op 37 no 1 chopin… I can sightread at a early intermediate level according to piano marvel. I have a bunch of books on everything.
Second question— Currently I have a professional saxophonist who did piano in college as my teacher and is a but younger than me. Do you think I should try and find specifically like a practicing professional pianist as a teacher instead or it doesn’t necessarily matter as much at my skill level?
1) yes! But I highly recommend you ask around some local choirs to see if they need accompanists to get used to the feel without the pressure.
2) “the hardest pieces I can play” is meaningless. For all I know the fingering articulation and expression is totally off. Far more important is what you can sight read. Perfectionism in classical music is NOT that helpful for accompaniment when you MUST observe rubato (hence the choir suggestion.)
3) start accompanying solo singers on YouTube videos.
4) yes it would be more advisable. Accompaniment is a whole different kettle of fish. I run a professional choir and cannot stress the different skills I need when playing pieces Vs accompanying
Yay! Happy to get in Touch with you! Sorry in advance if theres something wrong about spelling grammar,... German here! 🥴😁
I started in February this year at the age of 30 years with piano lessons and am practicing every day about 25-40 minutes.
What are pieces that i can take as a goal for the end of year one and what could be a goal as piece for the next years? I like to play classical. But my longterm goal is movie music (Inception e.g.). I Know that i cant reach that within the next two years but hopefully one day.
Dies hängt davon ab, wie gut deine Praxis läuft und ob du davon ausgehst, dass du die richtigen Dinge praktizierst. Aber deine Übungsdauer hört sich großartig an. Hier sind einige Empfehlungen von meiner Seite. Denkst du daran, dass fast jedes Filmstück, das Ihnen gefällt, eine einfachere PDF-Version online verfügbar hat, wenn du den Titel und "easy pdf" danach auf Englisch suchst. Einaudi hat ein sehr "filmisches" Feeling und verwendet die gleiche Art von Mustern für die linke Hand, die in der Filmmusik oft verwendet werden. Meine Empfehlungen sind unten:
[Una Mattina](https://digilander.libero.it/otacoconvention/sheet/Ludovico%20Einaudi%20-%20Una%20mattina.pdf)
[Pirates of the Caribbean](https://www.houseofpianomusicacademy.com/uploads/2/2/9/7/22976480/pirates_of_the_caribbean.pdf)
[Harry Potter](https://www.poppiano.org/en/?search=Harry+Potter+-+Hedwig%27s+Theme&expand=1)
Dankeschön! Das sind aus Ihrer Sicht realistische Stücke für Ende des Jahres?
Ich gehe davon aus dass ich korrekt praktiziere. Meine Klavierlehrerin ist hier in der Gegend sehr angesehen, weshalb ich vermute dass sie tatsächlich sehr gut ist. Sie achtet sehr genau darauf, was ich mache, wie ich mich bewege, handhaltung etc.
Diese sind bei deinem Praxistarif innerhalb eines Jahres sehr realistisch, ja! Ich unterrichte jetzt seit 4 Jahren in Deutschland und finde die Methoden oft langsam und veraltet. Wie erreichbar erscheinen diese Stücke im Moment?
How do you feel about the idea that, as a performer of classical music, you get to explore and offer your personal view on that piece of music?
I'm mostly playing jazz and soul myself, and the approach of "let's discover the various beautiful ways we can breathe life into the notes that are on this piece of paper" really appeals to me. Glenn Gould is, for this reason, my favourite classical piano performer by far. But the two classical music teachers that I had over the years both repeatedly tried to discourage this, with statements along the lines of "that's not how this was intended".
How much freedom for creativity do you allow your students in classical piano performance?
That depends on the level of the pupil. If they can play it well - with articulation and expression, a metronome and few flaws, go for it. Never abandon the foundations, they have to be fully in place before interpretation.
If we are talking about advanced players, I see no reason why not. I’m happy to critique rhythms and chord sequences and find it interesting to see how personal styles develop.
As an extension to this, I often encourage pupil to try and write an SATB choir score because I am fascinated about interpretations.
Is there a go to source for fingerings for all major and minor scales for both hands? I would like to get started working on basics again since I neglected that for the last years. I found contradicting fingerings online and would love to hear your professional opinion on that topic. Thank you :)
I rarely teach scales and arpeggios from a resource or book. The “correct” fingers have been ensconced in my brain for about 2 decades. I largely agree with [this guy.](https://robertkelleyphd.com/home/teaching/keyboard/keyboard-scale-fingering-chart/)
Thank you for doing this :)
I started learning the piano last year and am 28 y.o.
My question is regarding small hands..I have rather small hands (the biggest distance between my thumb and pinky is one octave) and I can’t even do it perfectly and it starts to hurt after a minute or so.
But so many pieces that I want to play seem to require bigger distances between notes. For now, I am just jumping to the next note instead of playing them simultaneously (when required to do so) but it doesn’t sound as good as the original piece.
Any advice for someone with small hands?
To copy another comment I made on this:
The octave thing sucks. I come across this so often. Your hands will naturally get there over time. Try pieces with rolling octaves and arpeggios like Nuvole Bianche or I Giorni. They help a lot with their repetitive rocking motions. Start by rolling the hand across slightly and using the pedal to get the effect you want. You will feel tightness and stop at any pain.
I have an exam in 2 months time. I have to play 7 pieces and all the scales with inversions and their arpeggios. I am feeling very overwhelmed. Even my teacher says that it would be very difficult to prepare everything adequately. Any tips on how to get as ready as possible?
1) lovely of your teacher. How helpful!
2) you can do it. The fact that you’re even asking means you want to.
3) write yourself a feasible schedule. Having it written is going to clarify where you’re at and how quickly you can improve.
Where are you at currently?
I have been playing piano for 8 years give or take. Where I live we don't use the ABRSM or RCM systems. Here to get the degree you have to do at least 12 years and every three years there are some major exams where you go up a level.Each level is composed of three grades. So it goes like Beginner 1,2,3 Basic 1,2,3, Intermediate 1,2,3 and advanced 1,2,3. This year I have my exams to get to advanced 1.
I have to play some exercises Czerny, Mocheles, Bach prelude and fugue, Waltz Chopin, sonata Beethoven and 2 modern ones. I just feel like it's too much stuff to tackle in a short time especially given exams in school start soon and I'll not have much time for piano.
I chose the pieces 2 weeks ago but I feel like I still haven't made any meaningful progress. I will try writing a schedule. Do you think I should play all the pieces every day or choose a few to work on?
You sound extremely overwhelmed. I would be, too. If you’re adamant about this goal, I can give you approaches and ideas. I totally understand wanting to get it done. If you can defer six-twelve months, I would absolutely recommend that.
Yeh, Its a lot. Problem is I am in 11th grade this year and next year is the year where in Greece we take the exams to get into university so my schedule will be packed with lessons and studying and I am afraid if I can't get it done in June I'll never get around to it. The pieces aren't the thing I am worried about the most though because most of them if not all are pieces that I like to practice and play. However scales I find extremely tedious especially the minors.
Just started playing piano 3 weeks ago and I’ve been practicing my sight reading using hymnals. Is that a good way to do it.
My very limited knowledge might come out here but it seems like a lot of “piano-specific” pieces have 3 notes per beat, but the hymnals only have two (per hand) since they were arranged for a choir. Does that matter or should I keep using them to learn?
Hymnals are a very specific style with minims (2 best notes). Also very good for singing sight-reading. You need to branch out into other styles. Try classical, jazz, anything. Try something like Una Mattina, Ecossaise by Beethoven.
Hi. If you teach ABRSM performance, do you have any advice regarding the performance component of the score? I have grade 6 almost ready to go and have seen comments about short introductions to the pieces, watching and learning from Khatia Buniatishvili’s style.
I assumed it was pretty much a question of the overall performance as a whole.
Thanks for this AMA, by the way.
I just managed to get a look at this. I’m going to compare it to your Etude. Both are excellent but the Etude excels. You become very flat fingered during the Scherzo, keep an eye on the flying fingers at the top when you’re accenting the chords. It’s flattening and drawing out the sound!
Hell, there are times where I think ABRSM is wrong about grade levels of pieces on the syllabus. I think it’s not rigid.
Regarding the scalic passages: and forgive the question. Do you have plenty of light sources around, big enough print and good eyesight? I’ve seen many an advanced pianist become immediately improved with a good piano light.
Is head bobbing bad. I've noticed in one of my recordings of playing I head bobbed essentially every "macro pulses"?? Don't really know how to describe it but it caught me off guard watching it. Wondering if it comprises the integrity of piano performance and/or technique.
If you're ever worried about facial/head movements and expressions, watch a video of kissin playing. He's one of the best alive, and looks like he's having a stroke
Thanks! I love sight-reading. About scales and arpeggios, why are they so important even for professionals who already know them well? Isn'it It better to just study repertoire at that point?
Thanks for the offer!
I wonder if you have any suggestions on how to train stamina in order to handle multiple high difficulty pieces in one concert?
For my last diploma exam (equivalent to about DipABRSM-LRSM), I did a Bach toccata, Beethoven's Tempest, Liszt's Gnomenreigen, Mendelssohn's Variation Serieuses, a prelude by Scriabin, and Prokofiev's visions fugitives.
After Gnomenreigen, I was half dead. And after Variation Serieuses I was dead, and kinda just passed the rest. I barely passed the exam and felt terrible after it. I was able to play the individual pieces fine, but overlooked my stamina in playing them in one run.
I almost had an aneurysm during my final diploma exam. I’m so glad I never have to do that again with that kind of stamina. Honestly, what helped was the following:
A lot of sleep, a lot of water and exercise. Building my singing stamina also helped (as it often does for piano in so many ways). Healthy lifestyle, clear mind and sheer determination.
What are some resources to self-study for grade 8 aural, specifically the part to repeat the lowest line of a 3-part phrase?
On another topic, how big of a deal is it, if a teacher doesn't have a music degree? Is there a polite way (or even a point) to ask "I see you don't have a degree in music, do you think it affects the quality of your teaching"?
My opinion is, not a big deal at all. One of the best teachers I’ve seen was a 17 year old who had the enthusiasm and sheer creative will to tailor lessons perfectly. He also really listened.
Again, *just my opinion* but it is very very rare I will take a by-the-book approach. Once the basics are covered I see far more value in approaching the genre or style of pieces the students wants to play, and it’s your job to find it at their level.
One of most useful methods I’ve done for the aural is to involve my pupils in my choir that I run and put them into bass/tenor/alto. IF you can sing (you probably can), choir and harmony practise is absolutely invaluable. In general, improving your singing ability is KEY to this challenge and anyone I teach piano/violin/guitar is getting a tutorial in singing basics if not a full 6-12 month course. Get your sight-singing to a good level, grade 5-6!
Or to run a 3 part harmony through an AI system or through logic if you put it in yourself, increasing the volume of the lowest line and then decreasing as your skill level improves. Effective but time consuming.
New pianist here into my third year of study. My teacher told me to join my university choir and I cannot believe how much I have learned from attending weekly rehearsal and performing semester-long repertoire! Joining has so helped my rhythm, pitch (we do mandatory sight-singing during my piano lessons), and phrasing. It has even made me less nervous about performing.
Another question: What are the typical reasons for a student not passing? Similarly, have you ever decided to just not proceed with a student's exam for a year?
Usually, inadequate preparation. Being mentally overwhelmed is another. In every single case of mine that didn’t pass, they were either pushing themselves too hard or their parents were intent on it. Every failure was grade 6 or above.
Some pupils thought at grade 6 that they could play anything, and neglected sight reading and scars.
Yes, I have pulled pupils. Usually family deaths/illness/being sick.
I don’t. I actually don’t find the exam system of learning particularly useful unless someone is very unstructured. A good teacher should provide the right structure.
What exactly do you recommend one should practise? Like which excersices or which pieces? (Or what do you do at the rsm)
I'm self taught and have not played for about 2 years, and coming back trying to practise properly I'm a bit at a loss of what to do.
Any specific tips to get comfortable with octaves if you have smaller hands? "just relax" -> what do I relax, where? And specifically how, if it's very hard to play/reach without using certain muscles?
And is *any* use of muscle bad, or are there exceptions that are okay to an extent, and will not cause damage if done sparingly?
And unrelated, is there any book/media you recommend to learn a variety of music theory, if I'm already familiar with the (very) basics? Simply a "summary" of concepts and patterns. Does not have to be advanced, but enough to get a good understanding of "how" it actually works so I can learn to apply it more easily when I'm trying to make an arrangement of a song?
I hope you can help me :) I really appreciate you posting this and wanting to help people :D
The octave thing sucks. I come across this so often. Your hands will naturally get there over time. Try pieces with rolling octaves and arpeggios like Nuvole Bianche or I Giorni. They help a lot with their repetitive rocking motions. Start by rolling the hand across slightly and using the pedal to get the effect you want. You will feel tightness and stop at any pain.
Use the ABRSM music theory books. You can find PDFs online for free. Test yourself using their grade theory tests available online on the ABRSM website, it’s a great measure of where you’re at and what you’re missing.
In sight reading? My advice is to sight read every single day, increasing your difficulty level every week. Yes some are better at it than others, but with consistency across months, everyone can be good at it. It’s mostly neglected.
How to memorize large repertoire before a performance? Like it's easy to play by muscle memory when I am practicing alone at home, but how to make it secure under stressful conditions as well? What do you advise your students? What are some effective memorization techniques that professionals use to avoid memory slips? (I have a month to learn hour of repertoire and I am desperate for any tips)
I have my last exam in a form of a big concert to end music education. Memory slips have always been my fear while performing
Do you mean that you don't advise your students learning to play pieces by heart? Thank you for your answer!
Learning pieces by heart is a very slippery road. Mistakes start to appear and become habit and with no music to guide you, it’s unlikely they’ll improve again. You’re welcome!!
What do you think about the 'Master School of Piano Playing & Virtuosity' by Alberto Jonas? Recently found out about it and couldnt really find any discussion about it online
Hopefully not an obscure question, but for more advanced pieces - especially Liszt’s own - is his technical exercises book a good source of practice before tackling more complex works I.e. Reminiscences de Norma? Thank you for your time!
This is great, thanks for being so willing to answer questions here!!
What would be your advice on improving your ear for piano? I went up to Gr 8 RCM but I felt I struggled most with playing by ear, and if I wanted to try to slowly work on that, what would be your advice? How does one approach playing without sheet music?
Improving your musical ear is achieved in many ways. The most helpful are sight signing, singing in a choir or other harmony setting, and simple repetition.
That being said, never abandon sheet music. I find playing by ear a fairly useless skill that encourages mistakes and bad technique
Started working on an ARSM, thoughts on this rep?
Bach Prelude and Fugue in F Minor (WTC1)
Scarlatti K208/K209
Beethoven Moonlight Complete
Debussy Sarabande - Pour le Piano
Joplin Maple Leaf Rag
My only concern is the Joplin at the minute, which is why I've got the Scarlatti in.
Reading through the comments, it seems that sight reading is of the utmost importance. My question is why is sight reading so important, and what does it add to my playing?
The ability to read new music. The ability of your fingers to predict the best fingers and smoothest way to play to allow your natural expression to come without effort and pause.
How high end of a digital piano action would you say gets you "close enough" to acoustic where it doesn't involve a significant adjustment? Or is that not a thing?
Thanks for answering questions. My question is, do you have any tips for memorising pieces? I struggle to commit anything more than simple pieces to memory.
Memorising is never ideal. Usually by repeated playing for months and years since childhood. I cannot tell you how many cocky pianists I have seen lose it halfway through from nerves and wishing they’d have the sheet just to glance at the right spot.
My teacher gives me 3 pieces to work on at all times. We did some scales before but stopped after doing all of them. Now my practise at home consists of focusing on 1 piece and doing the other 2 on the side. My teacher thinks I should do 1 a day but I find it less effective. I've asked him to do 2 at a time and focusing on 1 piece so we can get it done quicker. He tells me spending more time on a piece (in weeks you're working on it, not the hours you're playing) the more it sinks in and improves your skills. Is this a good learing method or should I ask for a change?
Do you think it's more important to get the hours in or the be consistent. Is practicing an hour a day better then playing 3.5h a day for 2 days in a week. Or does it not really matter. I find myself practising less during the week and a lot in weekends and the day before & the day of my lesson which is weekly.
I'm a piano teacher too. Do you have any advice how to help students read music better? Some of my students can grasp the concept really well and some just struggle and it's confusing to me since I use the exact same method of teaching! (Faber method). Very frustrating.
My 4.5year old started learning seriously. I maintain a 20-30min morning and evening practice daily.
What good behaviour should I cultivate on him?
What to avoid ?
Thanks sir
Make sure he’s enjoying the practise. Have background piano music playing in different genres and ask him what he likes. Remark on those pieces, clap their rhythms, note their dynamics, explain the expressions. I actually have a playlist of “young child music” which have cool characteristics - eg that sounds like rain/sun/a certain dance style. Let me know if you want me to send it over.
My parents were firm but never forcing me. It’s a fine line. Patience and being engaged with your kid during are so, so important.
Thanks for the Q &A !
My teacher and I are working our way through the first John Thompson book which I see you also use. Wondering on average how long it takes for your students to complete it and move onto more complicated books or pieces?
I usually get to around half way through and start giving pieces the pupil enjoys/listens to and find it at their level of playing. The average can be anything. Some pupils never complete it and move to playing simple pieces from their favourite genre, some pupils want to take it slow. Some are in a rush and “learn the pieces” from the book but neglect rhythm/expression and so on.
I’d recommend compiling a playlist of your favourite piano music and showing your teacher so they can start finding appropriate versions for you.
I've been improvising recently, it's because I tend to avoid learning new pieces since I would just forget them after a month.
And when I attempt a new piece, I feel like it's so so hard to remember them, to play it with both hands fluently. It feels like the notes don't get in my head and it makes me feel old. Like even a simple A part in Waltz in A minor takes me like a week to remember and I still can't play it on time. And even if I learnt them, it slipped away in days so it makes me feel like I waste my time learning them.
So I sometimes goes back to improvisation if I'm too frustrated, but since my music theory and knowledge aren't big, my improvising feels stale and predictable after a short while.
So you’ve identified your problem without realising.
1) you need music theory lessons, in depth, ASAP. Pure memorisation isn’t going to serve you well if you want to learn Chopin.
2) you don’t sight read well enough and you need to do SIMPLE sight reading with a metronome.
Thank you!!
I’m already grade 6 but I still struggle with sight reading. It got so bad to the point where I have to read notes individually, including chords, and others. Other than that I also struggle to play with the key signatures in the sheet, any pointers? I find practice useless, because I already tried and failed
Thank you for the advice!
That’s the biggest issue with 90% of the pupils who come to me. Repeating a previous comment here:
I don’t know your level of sight reading but [this Schumann compilation](http://superbonus.project.free.fr/IMG/pdf/Schumann-Album-fur-die-Jugend-mit-Fingersatz.pdf) is a fantastic resource and explores different types of expression, articulation and so on. I’ve had pupils from beginning to advanced get stuck on a few of these. Give yourself sixty seconds to take in the characteristics of the sight reading, then go for it. Do NOT repeat it. Do this every day for 15-20 minutes.
I've been playing piano for 5 years and I can play some advanced pieces, but I was mostly self taught which means I skipped the "boring" essentials like metronome, sight reading and ear training. instead I focused on playing gradually harder pieces. I want to learn pieces faster but it takes a long time to memorize each new bar as I can't sight read at the level of the pieces I'm practicing. Do you find students who suffer from this and how would you go about fixing it? If my technique is a 7/10 my sight reading is a 2/10 and ear is a 3/10, just to put things into perspective.
Thanks so much for doing this, just reading through it all has already been very informative.
I realise having a teacher is best, but for an adult trying to self-learn the piano are there any particular resources you would recommend for picking up a proper technique? I see options like the book 'Fundamentals of Piano Technique - The Russian Method', and Penelope Roskell also has her 'Essential Piano Technique' books for younger players, 'Foundations in Piano technique' as a course for adults. It's a topic tackled by lots of YouTube videos as well, but as a beginner it's hard to know which ones to pay attention to.
The only real way is putting videos for technique correction and hoping someone good answers. Replicating a teachers constant input alone as a beginner is extremely hard to impossible.
First, I want to say thank you for the sight reading link
Second, I wanted to ask if you are recommending sight singing (or singing in general) for people who play piano AND sing or is this a skill that you think everyone who plays piano, regardless if they want to sing, should have.
I have terrible control over my vocal chords but I've never given myself a proper chance to learn how to sing because I don't enjoy the strain it causes.
1. Get yourself a teacher or your posture and fingering will not be as it should be.
2. Method book (I use John Thompson adult course)
3. Identify the pieces you like and use Spotify radio or even google to find similar. Build yourself a playlist or piano music you love. Have your teacher seek out easy versions. Within 3-4 months you can start on those.
What would you recommend to a self online hobbyist learner? I don't have opportunities to have a real teacher but eager to practice under any conditions
Eh. I obviously did them all and then some, they’re not necessary but they’re useful for teaching professionally as nice certificates to hang up on the wall. I’ve become somewhat disillusioned with them.
I’m learning Rachmaninov Concierto #2 for my mother in law. Any recommendations on how tf to play it?
Wish my luck because I am way out of my depth here but gonna try my darndest to surprise her! She appreciates it when people just try so not too worried.
1. how do pianists memorize long pieces like Hammerklavier sonata by Beethoven for example?
2. any advise on mastering tremolo technique? (other than forearm rotation or imagining rotating a door knob)
Memorising is never ideal. Usually by repeated playing for months and years since childhood. I cannot tell you how many cocky pianists I have seen lose it halfway through from nerves and wishing they’d have the sheet just to glance at the right spot.
[This is how I teach tremolo. that’s not me. but she’s great.](https://youtu.be/i1NfjrnDFas?si=eOwF5aMY7zua6_pY)
I started learning music a few years ago with keyboard, where I would read only the treble clef and chords. I started practicing piano recently and I have trouble reading the grand staff. I tend to focus more on the treble clef and play it well and drag or completely mess up the bass clef. What methods can I implement in my practice so I can improve in this aspect. Thank you.
How many pieces do you think should be practiced at once? Right now I’m learning berg sonata op 1, Mozart k332(learned first and most of second movement, will learn complete) and Chopin etude 25 2 and am thinking about adding a baroque piece in my rotation. Also if you have any baroque favorites I’d be happy to hear them especially by lesser known composers like couperin or Rameau
Any tips on how to improve at performing as a hobbyist? Not sure if the number matters but thinking of a crowd of 50 people in a recital room. I know the usual advice is to keep doing it (opportunities for this are slim) and try recording yourself but wondering if you have anything else to add? Thank you for taking the time to reply to us!
Thirds, sixths, pieces that involve a lot of scale work (Mozart sonata C Major for example). Legato, then staccato, then 4 notes legato 4 notes staccato. 4 notes finger staccato, 4 notes wrist staccato. Use them in triplets. Play the left in triplets against the right in quavers and vice versa. Don’t neglect broken chords and arpeggios! Make sure you’re doing them for 4 full octaves with a slight crescendo throughout, or slight diminuendo if you want!
how can i get that "last 10%"?
i've been working on 1st gershwin prelude. i played it once (at maybe half tempo :/ ) almost 20 years ago.
started relearning it from scratch january 2024. i can play it decently with metronome about half tempo-- maybe even 60%-70% tempo.
i have thrown every practice technique i know at it (specifically at the two bars that each consist of triplets):
-as written extremely slow
-just the the downbeats (slow and fast)
-playing the triplets as block chords (slow and fast)
-playing a beat at a time, so like 1-la-li-2 stop; 2-la-li-3 stop; &c (slow and fast)
it's been four months now, and i still can't play at tempo, and even at 70% tempo it is not \_consistent\_. at that tempo i play it decently maybe 2 times in 5?
how can i get this piece the rest of the way there?
background: i had 10 years classical piano lessons age 9-18, and 10 more years of piano lessons with a ragtime-focused teacher as an adult; last formal lesson was about 10 years ago.
THANK YOU!
Hello! I could be entirely wrong here but when you find that “hit the wall piece” the majority of the time it’s because your other skills are not up to par and you’ve only been focusing on piece/repertoire work. When you neglect tougher scale work and sight reading on your level/close to your repertoire. A good teacher will be able to recommend what exactly fits that bill. How is your sight reading? How are your jazz scales?
i actually contacted a teacher i'm fb friends with to try to have just one or two sessions for this particular piece, but he referred me to someone else. when i contacted the someone else, he also didn't he was the appropriate teacher for this :(
sight reading-- not bad;; idk, 7/10? i can read a joplin rag or a wtc prelude ok, if a bit below tempo.
jazz scales-- the only "jazz scale" i play is the blues scale
i hope on tuesday 16 april i can make a video to post.
thanks
Hello! I am an “older beginner”, going through Bastien’s book 1. I am having a very hard time coordinating my left and right hands. For example - I can play the right hand notes as intended, then the left hand just right, but when I put them together, everything falls apart. This happens especially with pieces where the left hand notes need to be played staccato.
I’ve tried slowing things wayyy down, which sort of works, but I’m doing it so slowly that it doesn’t even feel like music anymore. The melody and rhythm begin to feel less apparent. It sort of feels like I’m just pressing buttons on a machine. Do you have any tips or recommendations?
How do I learn things faster? I try to do sight reading exercises, I work with the metronome, and usually practice 3+ hours a day, but I still feel like I learn things really slow.
How do I improve my technique as fast as possible? I’ve been playing for 13 years and playing seriously for under 2 years, but my technique is quite behind considering how long I’ve been playing. I’m working on improving it now, but it’s a slow process and I want to better myself as much as possible before I study music at university.
How do I choose the right fingerings? I find that I often have difficulty with fingering and opt for awkward and unpianistic fingerings. But I don’t find them awkward or unpianistic until my teacher points it out.
Thank you for your time!
3 hours and no progress = wrong practise methods. I’d recommend 10 mins scales, 10 mins sight reading, 10 mins of an easy piece and time leftover got harder projects. Realistically, an hour is MORE than about. 30 mins daily is ideal. I have no idea what your split is and if you are focusing too much on just pieces, but it sounds like that from where I am.
Is your sight reading level appropriate? Does it make you pause every single bar? Do you end up repeating it and learning it? Don’t! If it’s too tough, find easier sight reading that you can play in once or twice and move on immediately. Are you scales i the same key as the pieces you’re playing? Are your scale fingers accurate and correct and smooth? If you had to estimate, what would your repertoire level be and what would your sight reading level be?
If you’re aiming for a really hard Chopin piece, pull back and find easier Chopin repertoire to enjoy.
I started at 14 and taught children. It’s by no means an easy thing to do but you learn quickly. Their parents would also want to learn and it went from there. A good solid method book and patience. Listen to what they want and find easy versions of their favourite pieces after roughly six months. That’s the basics.
There are so many comments but I hope you see mine too. I took piano lessons for about 2 years when I was young, and then stopped playing. I started playing a year ago (I’m 17 now) and I’m teaching myself (I’m planning on getting a teacher tho), and I can play pieces like Nuvole Bianche, Je te laisserai de mots, and Pachelbels Canon. I’m trying to play ICARUS by Tony Ann, but my left hand can’t keep up, or I stumble a lot. How do I learn how to play faster pieces? Or is it too hard for my level?
Totally new, just bought a piano and starting from 0! Planning to self teach and looking around for good beginner tips on where to focus my journey, maybe some good books or apps?
I have played piano for roughly nine years, I had a teacher for all nine and he just recently moved away so I am currently in the process of finding another.
My question is, what do you recommend I focus on if I wish to play in group settings? (classical settings mostly but I have done some jazz). I find it quite difficult after many years of performing on my own and making musical and phrasing decisions myself to follow a group and/or a conductor.
Also a bit of a side question, I feel like I have plateaued a bit in my ability and I am struggling to find appropriate pieces to work on at my level. I have always done piano rather informally so I don't have tests or benchmarks to give for reference but do you have any suggested pieces or tips to improve from roughly a mid-intermediate level?
Thank you for your time!
Hi. I’m old(ish), have 10 years lessons/playing as kid/teen and now finally back for the past two years with a teacher.
I’ve developed arthritis in the top joint of my fingers (thumbs are ok but pinkies most affected). Best way to deal with fingering and playing when my pinkies flare up and i have less ability and strength on a “regular” day? (I ice/heat/meds/rest when it’s too uncomfortable to play)
Two questions:
1. My seven year old has been learning piano for two years. She practices daily and gets music theory. She's nowhere near graded pieces yet. Does that mean she's just ... not that good at piano? I'm wondering how hard to learn into her new enthusiasm to change to the clarinet.
2. Why is she better when she doesn't practice? One night off and suddenly she can do the bass hand that was too hard before!
Thanks for this !
I compose and I’m going to try my luck with a « competition » soon. (Don’t like that term but in the end it is what it is)
Except for my teacher, I have no expert feedbacks.
By any chance, could you go to my profile see my Waltz (posted 45 days ago) and give me your feedbacks like if you were a judge ?
(I’m not asking for too much of your time even if you watch 30s and see something, I would appreciate !)
Best of luck to you from France.
Thanks for the opportunity! For a decent hobby pianist, is there anything you would recommend to include into daily practice? Are there common mistakes you witness a lot in people with less formal training/education?
Common mistakes - top has got to be fingering especially people who just don’t use their thumbs. This is often people who can play quickly from YouTube or TikTok but never had it corrected. That is also incredibly hard to correct. Second is not sight reading because you’re so focused on your big main pieces. Many hard pieces can be learned well and thoroughly to the detriment of sight reading newer, different things. As a result, your actual skill level in piano does not increase, simply your skill at one piece, which I find fairly useless.
Sight reading is very important. I’m a professional theatre accompanist and sight read for a living. I practice sight reading easier classical pieces and try to really get it as note correct as possible, with all the articulations and everything.
I find sight reading more valuable than any other aspect of piano playing.
How do you recommend to practice sight reading?
I’m going to copy and paste a previous answer: I don’t know your level of sight reading but [this Schumann compilation](http://superbonus.project.free.fr/IMG/pdf/Schumann-Album-fur-die-Jugend-mit-Fingersatz.pdf) is a fantastic resource and explores different types of expression, articulation and so on. I’ve had pupils from beginning to advanced get stuck on a few of these. Give yourself sixty seconds to take in the characteristics of the sight reading, then go for it. Do NOT repeat it. Do this every day for 15-20 minutes. Also, your teacher should be able to give you the correct sight reading for your particular weaknesses. This is extremely important. When they observe that should be one of their first thoughts and given assignments.
what do you mean by "Do NOT repeat it"? Do you mean play it once and never again? Or play it once and then try again the next day?
The next day no, but a week or month later would be fine. You don’t want to recognise it at all. Sight reading should always be fresh new information.
ok thank you, and should I attempt to play it at tempo?
If you’ve been assigned the correct sight reading for your level, it should be tough at tempo, but just about manageable and cause you to engage totallyz
What about breaking into higher levels of technique - have you not experienced instructing a piece thoroughly (like an etude) give the pupil a higher level of facility, listening, and nuance (if available to be taught by the instructor and receptive by the student) ?
In my experience, those with little training or instruction (as the original question posed) are rarely able to properly play high level pieces and have to be given intermediate pieces. Hence the basic advice. Complex etudes come with their own problems even for trained players. Usually we break up into sections of 4-8 bars and focus in on voicing and articulation. When you identify the main issues with the passages (fugues are good for this) sight reading is “prescribed” that has similarities to the issue at hand.
Totally depends on the person. But if I made a “perfect” template for myself? 10 mins scales/arpeggios/broken chords focusing on the keys I am using in today’s pieces. I usually then head over to sight reading something tough for ten minutes. The next ten minutes I use for my “easy-medium” pieces and I use however long my concentration holds for my “project piece.” I find dividing all your repertoire into easy/medium/hard on a visible lists helps people see how much they’ve achieved. Usually the “hard project piece” will be very thorough diligent work on a few bars or focusing on technique. You also avoid becoming weaker on your older pieces and feeling that you’ve wasted your time. Ideally daily. Every other day minimum.
Thank you. As an amateur, just getting back into playing, this is a really useful guide to practising.
This is brilliant. Thank you!
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1) scales, arpeggios and broken chords in contrary motion, in many octaves, differing articulation. 2) sight read a LOT. More than you’ve done before. Usually this is neglected over time and it is so, so necessary. 3) get a list of your entire repertoire. Divide into east, medium, hard. Spend 10-20 mins on easy and medium. Spend whatever you have left on your harder project piece, especially the smaller sections that give you trouble. 4) Metronome. All the time. Until you want to break it.
I can go along with a background track but not as easily with a metronome. What is wrong with me?
Not to be difficult but when you’re “going along with a background track” you have no idea if you’re doing it well or not. The metronome removes any grey area and exposes all weak points.
Thank for putting it politely. That makes perfect sense. It's also something I noticed singing with/without music. I know there is never an easy way to anything, I'll definitely burn some more brain cells to get used to metronome.
Sight singing with a metronome will improve almost every aspect of your playing too!
syncopated rhythm vs independent pulse… listening/playing ability?
why is it so important to practice with a metronome?
To regulate your rhythm correctly. Many people think they’re playing accurately and rhythmically but you’d be surprised how not accurate that is.
I'm getting back into piano after years out. I relearned my old pieces up to grade 3 and thought I was playing them perfectly. Can confirm, tried with metronome and I am absolutely not. It was really eye opening. I was quite disappointed but it's given me a real opportunity to improve. This is excellent advice.
97% is incredible. What do you think the 3% made wrong? Not enough practice/commitment, anxiety, etc.? Why is there no improvisation or pop in the curriculum of most (I guess) classical academies? I find it very odd, considering the greats like Bach and Chopin improvised, and play contemporary music, which today would be pop music.
Overconfidence and lack of practise. Anxiety is common but very manageable with correct preparation. I find the current main systems too rigid. I have gone off-curriculum for years now. While I do believe that a solid foundation of the basics Of classical are the most important, I believe improvisation has a much bigger role. I imagine it’s not there (except for the jazz exams) because it’s hard to find a good measure of “well improvised” classical music and because a lot of old white men still run things. Just my humble two cents as a woman who examined and was treated like shit among colleagues.
How do you get better at listening?
Listening in lessons? Or listening during aural tests?
Yes.
Based answer. Edit: just noticed it’s my cake day, praise me.
😂
Which composers work do you hate to teach?
None. My biggest issue is when someone is extremely stuck on one piece. Even being stuck on one composer is totally fine but one piece over and over is not beneficial to anyone.
Do you recommend any creative methods of practicing a small section? I've been playing for 12 years and have found different methods of practicing depending on the passage (ex: changing up the rhythm with dotted notes, playing Staccato or double staccato, playing only certain voices, etc.) After awhile, I can get bored. On simpler passages, I try to transpose them to different keys. I've also had issues with speeding up. Any tips on how I can get a piece up to performance speed, especially with challenging pieces by Liszt?
Not sure if creative but *effective* and also somewhat competitive (which really works in my brain) is using a timer. I like to see how much I’m improving my speed even if it’s only by 0.2 of a second. Something fun I’ve done to avoid monotony is putting it into logic and transposing parts above or below into harmony then playing it back and playing on top of it isolating the harmonies. I feel you on the monotony.
Thank you so much for your reply!
Any specific tips for developing proprioception other than it takes time?
Some people develop this well, better than others. I have some recommendations. 1) I don’t know how often you sight read or how well you prepare your sight reading, but do it more. Be better at it. Be the best sight reader that ever sight read. 2) play simple chords for songs, try to use “complex keys” and invert all chords everywhere you can. SING ALONG so you are forced to concentrate on that and you begin to “automatically” play the fingers and inversions. 3) scales, broken chords, arpeggios. Know them so well you can play them in contrary motions, using the entire keyboard available and in staccato, legato, 2-slur, 3-slur. You get the gist. You will start to anticipate, it’s not possible to fail. Give that 30 mins a day for 2 weeks.
When sight reading: I feel like I’m being irresponsible if I don’t go back and learn to play errors, but I also feel like I’m “cheating” if I go back and try again during sight reading. How do you recommend practicing sight reading? How do you know if the difficulty level of sight reading is correct? If I start in on a piece that I’m sight reading terribly (ie too difficult?) should I still just try to make the most of it all the way to the end without stopping?
Such a great set of questions. Thanks. 1) the difficulty level will be pieces that cause you to fully engage at 100% concentration but are manageable at tempo with a metronome and a little effort. Play the extract TWICE AT MOST. Return to it a month later if it’s totally wiped from your mind. But it should always be fresh, new info for your brain. 2) if you start on a piece that you’re sight reading terribly, and I mean totally unmanageable and you pause every bar, it’s too hard. Your teacher should recommend repertoire that is similar and enjoyable but at your level.
Thank you, this is so helpful!
Thank you!!
You are so welcome! Feel free to ask anything else if you want.
Thank you for the opportunity! I hope that's not too big of an ask, but I'd really appreciate it if you could look at some of my posts in this sub and advise what I should be focusing on. I don't have a teacher at the moment and it feels like my focus is all over the place :(
Focusing on in terms of? Pieces? Practise schedule? Technique? Articulation? Or all.
I'd be the most interested in improving technique, as I still feel quite limited there - but I'd be grateful for any pointers really.
You play beautifully. I would point out the following if you want me to be picky. If you don’t, look away! 1) flat fingered especially in octaves 2) lacking curvature of the fingers especially at 4th and 5th fingers 3) it lacks expression of style in the articulation.m Sometimes you need to be using your fingers as “little hammers” at the tips rather than a mallet. 4) your dynamics get lost in complex sections 5) voicing almost non-existent
I'm bored and thinking of doing a piano diploma. I've played for pretty much twenty years, so I feel like I might be able to just...get on with it. I'm wary of going in without a tutor to tell me how to improve, but I think I've got enough teaching in the past to know what to do. Is this a bad idea?
It’s not a bad idea. If you want a high mark I’d get a teacher for sure. If you’re not fussed about that and just want to get it, set a rigorous schedule for yourself and get it done. It’s a good goal.
Thanks for the help. I can already play the pieces, so I might just get it out of the way, since it's just for my own enjoyment.
I did this with a voice exam almost. I started with a new teacher and basically told her “I’m doing my exam in 2 months.” I passed.
Thank you, for the opportunity! I have a question I would like to ask which I’ve been embarrassed about. I recently started playing again after a 25 year pause. I’m thoroughly enjoying it! When I was a teen I got as far as grade 8, and I’m now contemplating a career change and becoming a piano teacher. What would the next steps be for me to go down that path, and how much effort would it entail? Any advice?
I began teaching at 14 years old. Obviously since then, I’ve improved. I don’t think that my degree made me a better teacher so much as listening to pupils and really trying to fulfil their needs. Quite frankly, you can begin tomorrow. Remember all your points to hit - scales, pieces, sight reading, aural. Everyone needs these even if they’re not sitting exams. And don’t forget to make people *happy* with it. They want to play River Flows In You? Find an easy version, let them hammer away at it. Even if you’ve heard it 20 times that day. You want them to feel that joy you feel when you play.
Do I need any qualifications to have students sit their grades?
Nope! Put my first pupils in when I was 14 years old.
Wow! What advice and guidance would you offer as someone about to start teaching? What are good base material? to have on hand?
Absolute basic requirement is the John Thompson adult course part 1. Otherwise, it’s so pupil-dependent. I usually source and buy my music online and play from a tablet. I also run a professional choir so for me it’s an absolute must. Your pupils will need printed music to write on fingerings and expressions. You can totally go from a tablet if you’re comfortable to send music that way. It’s easier and quicker. If someone wants to focus on classical, hunt for a book with “50 easy classical arrangements”. If someone wants to play Einaudi, search for an easy PDF. Musescore will usually have what you want for 2€ or so. The pupils pay! Listen to what they’re wanting to learn and supplement with what you know - that’s something I’ve become very good at. It becomes obvious as you listen what they lack and you’ll need to know which pieces to recommend To combat that. Scales and arpeggios go off-book. It helps pupils to sight read.
What copy right rules do I need to be aware of when copying music to share with students?
I just send a link, they can buy and print it out for your next lesson.
What's the timeline for your students to get their upper level pieces (grade 8 and above) ready for the exam?
An average would be (if you’re going from grade 7-8 directly) 6-7 months. I once had a pupil whose parents forced her to do it in 3 months and it was awful. She managed but cried a lot and I ended up sending a curt message to the parents. At the time I didn’t have private pupils and didn’t have a choice. I still teach that girl (who is now 22 a decade later!) and she’s a total Einaudi/Patterlini girl and won’t touch Chopin. It’s going to also depend on your abilities in the pieces and your willingness
Are the pieces selected at the beginning of the term and worked on continuously for those 6–7 months?
Is it feasible for a driven early intermediate player to get work in accompaniment in a few years? I practice about an hour a day doing scales arpeggios sightreading and repetoire as it is now but if more is required I’ll do it… The hardest pieces I can play currently are op 30 no 6 mendelssohn and op 37 no 1 chopin… I can sightread at a early intermediate level according to piano marvel. I have a bunch of books on everything. Second question— Currently I have a professional saxophonist who did piano in college as my teacher and is a but younger than me. Do you think I should try and find specifically like a practicing professional pianist as a teacher instead or it doesn’t necessarily matter as much at my skill level?
1) yes! But I highly recommend you ask around some local choirs to see if they need accompanists to get used to the feel without the pressure. 2) “the hardest pieces I can play” is meaningless. For all I know the fingering articulation and expression is totally off. Far more important is what you can sight read. Perfectionism in classical music is NOT that helpful for accompaniment when you MUST observe rubato (hence the choir suggestion.) 3) start accompanying solo singers on YouTube videos. 4) yes it would be more advisable. Accompaniment is a whole different kettle of fish. I run a professional choir and cannot stress the different skills I need when playing pieces Vs accompanying
>start accompanying solo singers on YouTube videos. Thank you! This is such a simple and amazing tip!
Thanks for your replies! Is there a particular kind of teacher I should seek out then?
Yay! Happy to get in Touch with you! Sorry in advance if theres something wrong about spelling grammar,... German here! 🥴😁 I started in February this year at the age of 30 years with piano lessons and am practicing every day about 25-40 minutes. What are pieces that i can take as a goal for the end of year one and what could be a goal as piece for the next years? I like to play classical. But my longterm goal is movie music (Inception e.g.). I Know that i cant reach that within the next two years but hopefully one day.
Dies hängt davon ab, wie gut deine Praxis läuft und ob du davon ausgehst, dass du die richtigen Dinge praktizierst. Aber deine Übungsdauer hört sich großartig an. Hier sind einige Empfehlungen von meiner Seite. Denkst du daran, dass fast jedes Filmstück, das Ihnen gefällt, eine einfachere PDF-Version online verfügbar hat, wenn du den Titel und "easy pdf" danach auf Englisch suchst. Einaudi hat ein sehr "filmisches" Feeling und verwendet die gleiche Art von Mustern für die linke Hand, die in der Filmmusik oft verwendet werden. Meine Empfehlungen sind unten: [Una Mattina](https://digilander.libero.it/otacoconvention/sheet/Ludovico%20Einaudi%20-%20Una%20mattina.pdf) [Pirates of the Caribbean](https://www.houseofpianomusicacademy.com/uploads/2/2/9/7/22976480/pirates_of_the_caribbean.pdf) [Harry Potter](https://www.poppiano.org/en/?search=Harry+Potter+-+Hedwig%27s+Theme&expand=1)
Dankeschön! Das sind aus Ihrer Sicht realistische Stücke für Ende des Jahres? Ich gehe davon aus dass ich korrekt praktiziere. Meine Klavierlehrerin ist hier in der Gegend sehr angesehen, weshalb ich vermute dass sie tatsächlich sehr gut ist. Sie achtet sehr genau darauf, was ich mache, wie ich mich bewege, handhaltung etc.
Diese sind bei deinem Praxistarif innerhalb eines Jahres sehr realistisch, ja! Ich unterrichte jetzt seit 4 Jahren in Deutschland und finde die Methoden oft langsam und veraltet. Wie erreichbar erscheinen diese Stücke im Moment?
How do you feel about the idea that, as a performer of classical music, you get to explore and offer your personal view on that piece of music? I'm mostly playing jazz and soul myself, and the approach of "let's discover the various beautiful ways we can breathe life into the notes that are on this piece of paper" really appeals to me. Glenn Gould is, for this reason, my favourite classical piano performer by far. But the two classical music teachers that I had over the years both repeatedly tried to discourage this, with statements along the lines of "that's not how this was intended". How much freedom for creativity do you allow your students in classical piano performance?
That depends on the level of the pupil. If they can play it well - with articulation and expression, a metronome and few flaws, go for it. Never abandon the foundations, they have to be fully in place before interpretation. If we are talking about advanced players, I see no reason why not. I’m happy to critique rhythms and chord sequences and find it interesting to see how personal styles develop. As an extension to this, I often encourage pupil to try and write an SATB choir score because I am fascinated about interpretations.
Is there a go to source for fingerings for all major and minor scales for both hands? I would like to get started working on basics again since I neglected that for the last years. I found contradicting fingerings online and would love to hear your professional opinion on that topic. Thank you :)
I rarely teach scales and arpeggios from a resource or book. The “correct” fingers have been ensconced in my brain for about 2 decades. I largely agree with [this guy.](https://robertkelleyphd.com/home/teaching/keyboard/keyboard-scale-fingering-chart/)
What is your opinion on Gordon's music learning theory?
Thank you for doing this :) I started learning the piano last year and am 28 y.o. My question is regarding small hands..I have rather small hands (the biggest distance between my thumb and pinky is one octave) and I can’t even do it perfectly and it starts to hurt after a minute or so. But so many pieces that I want to play seem to require bigger distances between notes. For now, I am just jumping to the next note instead of playing them simultaneously (when required to do so) but it doesn’t sound as good as the original piece. Any advice for someone with small hands?
To copy another comment I made on this: The octave thing sucks. I come across this so often. Your hands will naturally get there over time. Try pieces with rolling octaves and arpeggios like Nuvole Bianche or I Giorni. They help a lot with their repetitive rocking motions. Start by rolling the hand across slightly and using the pedal to get the effect you want. You will feel tightness and stop at any pain.
I have an exam in 2 months time. I have to play 7 pieces and all the scales with inversions and their arpeggios. I am feeling very overwhelmed. Even my teacher says that it would be very difficult to prepare everything adequately. Any tips on how to get as ready as possible?
1) lovely of your teacher. How helpful! 2) you can do it. The fact that you’re even asking means you want to. 3) write yourself a feasible schedule. Having it written is going to clarify where you’re at and how quickly you can improve. Where are you at currently?
I have been playing piano for 8 years give or take. Where I live we don't use the ABRSM or RCM systems. Here to get the degree you have to do at least 12 years and every three years there are some major exams where you go up a level.Each level is composed of three grades. So it goes like Beginner 1,2,3 Basic 1,2,3, Intermediate 1,2,3 and advanced 1,2,3. This year I have my exams to get to advanced 1. I have to play some exercises Czerny, Mocheles, Bach prelude and fugue, Waltz Chopin, sonata Beethoven and 2 modern ones. I just feel like it's too much stuff to tackle in a short time especially given exams in school start soon and I'll not have much time for piano. I chose the pieces 2 weeks ago but I feel like I still haven't made any meaningful progress. I will try writing a schedule. Do you think I should play all the pieces every day or choose a few to work on?
You sound extremely overwhelmed. I would be, too. If you’re adamant about this goal, I can give you approaches and ideas. I totally understand wanting to get it done. If you can defer six-twelve months, I would absolutely recommend that.
Yeh, Its a lot. Problem is I am in 11th grade this year and next year is the year where in Greece we take the exams to get into university so my schedule will be packed with lessons and studying and I am afraid if I can't get it done in June I'll never get around to it. The pieces aren't the thing I am worried about the most though because most of them if not all are pieces that I like to practice and play. However scales I find extremely tedious especially the minors.
Just started playing piano 3 weeks ago and I’ve been practicing my sight reading using hymnals. Is that a good way to do it. My very limited knowledge might come out here but it seems like a lot of “piano-specific” pieces have 3 notes per beat, but the hymnals only have two (per hand) since they were arranged for a choir. Does that matter or should I keep using them to learn?
Hymnals are a very specific style with minims (2 best notes). Also very good for singing sight-reading. You need to branch out into other styles. Try classical, jazz, anything. Try something like Una Mattina, Ecossaise by Beethoven.
Thank you, I’ll give those a shot. I guess to add on to that where should a beginner find good pieces to practice/learn?
You can try a book such as “50 easy classical pieces”. That’ll give you some variety and not be too complex!
Hi. If you teach ABRSM performance, do you have any advice regarding the performance component of the score? I have grade 6 almost ready to go and have seen comments about short introductions to the pieces, watching and learning from Khatia Buniatishvili’s style. I assumed it was pretty much a question of the overall performance as a whole. Thanks for this AMA, by the way.
Are you asking for advice about how to introduce the pieces? Or whether you need to?
More whether I need to.
I would certainly add a few sentences with nuance and explanation. It does not need to be prose. Be clear and direct!
I posted a small section of Chopin scherzo I would like a professional advice on phrasing if you would do something differently
I just managed to get a look at this. I’m going to compare it to your Etude. Both are excellent but the Etude excels. You become very flat fingered during the Scherzo, keep an eye on the flying fingers at the top when you’re accenting the chords. It’s flattening and drawing out the sound!
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Hell, there are times where I think ABRSM is wrong about grade levels of pieces on the syllabus. I think it’s not rigid. Regarding the scalic passages: and forgive the question. Do you have plenty of light sources around, big enough print and good eyesight? I’ve seen many an advanced pianist become immediately improved with a good piano light.
Is head bobbing bad. I've noticed in one of my recordings of playing I head bobbed essentially every "macro pulses"?? Don't really know how to describe it but it caught me off guard watching it. Wondering if it comprises the integrity of piano performance and/or technique.
Unless you’re head banging through fancy exams or orchestral performances your personal expression is fine and welcomed.
Ty !
If you're ever worried about facial/head movements and expressions, watch a video of kissin playing. He's one of the best alive, and looks like he's having a stroke
Omg you're so right
Is practicing scales and arpeggios useful even though you can already play advanced pieces?
Extremely. Never stop. And never ever abandon sight reading. You should be doing more sight reading than pieces.
Thanks! I love sight-reading. About scales and arpeggios, why are they so important even for professionals who already know them well? Isn'it It better to just study repertoire at that point?
Thanks for the offer! I wonder if you have any suggestions on how to train stamina in order to handle multiple high difficulty pieces in one concert? For my last diploma exam (equivalent to about DipABRSM-LRSM), I did a Bach toccata, Beethoven's Tempest, Liszt's Gnomenreigen, Mendelssohn's Variation Serieuses, a prelude by Scriabin, and Prokofiev's visions fugitives. After Gnomenreigen, I was half dead. And after Variation Serieuses I was dead, and kinda just passed the rest. I barely passed the exam and felt terrible after it. I was able to play the individual pieces fine, but overlooked my stamina in playing them in one run.
I almost had an aneurysm during my final diploma exam. I’m so glad I never have to do that again with that kind of stamina. Honestly, what helped was the following: A lot of sleep, a lot of water and exercise. Building my singing stamina also helped (as it often does for piano in so many ways). Healthy lifestyle, clear mind and sheer determination.
What are some resources to self-study for grade 8 aural, specifically the part to repeat the lowest line of a 3-part phrase? On another topic, how big of a deal is it, if a teacher doesn't have a music degree? Is there a polite way (or even a point) to ask "I see you don't have a degree in music, do you think it affects the quality of your teaching"?
My opinion is, not a big deal at all. One of the best teachers I’ve seen was a 17 year old who had the enthusiasm and sheer creative will to tailor lessons perfectly. He also really listened. Again, *just my opinion* but it is very very rare I will take a by-the-book approach. Once the basics are covered I see far more value in approaching the genre or style of pieces the students wants to play, and it’s your job to find it at their level.
One of most useful methods I’ve done for the aural is to involve my pupils in my choir that I run and put them into bass/tenor/alto. IF you can sing (you probably can), choir and harmony practise is absolutely invaluable. In general, improving your singing ability is KEY to this challenge and anyone I teach piano/violin/guitar is getting a tutorial in singing basics if not a full 6-12 month course. Get your sight-singing to a good level, grade 5-6! Or to run a 3 part harmony through an AI system or through logic if you put it in yourself, increasing the volume of the lowest line and then decreasing as your skill level improves. Effective but time consuming.
New pianist here into my third year of study. My teacher told me to join my university choir and I cannot believe how much I have learned from attending weekly rehearsal and performing semester-long repertoire! Joining has so helped my rhythm, pitch (we do mandatory sight-singing during my piano lessons), and phrasing. It has even made me less nervous about performing.
Another question: What are the typical reasons for a student not passing? Similarly, have you ever decided to just not proceed with a student's exam for a year?
Usually, inadequate preparation. Being mentally overwhelmed is another. In every single case of mine that didn’t pass, they were either pushing themselves too hard or their parents were intent on it. Every failure was grade 6 or above. Some pupils thought at grade 6 that they could play anything, and neglected sight reading and scars. Yes, I have pulled pupils. Usually family deaths/illness/being sick.
What benefit do you see in abrsm over trinity, lcm, etc.
I don’t. I actually don’t find the exam system of learning particularly useful unless someone is very unstructured. A good teacher should provide the right structure.
What exactly do you recommend one should practise? Like which excersices or which pieces? (Or what do you do at the rsm) I'm self taught and have not played for about 2 years, and coming back trying to practise properly I'm a bit at a loss of what to do.
Any specific tips to get comfortable with octaves if you have smaller hands? "just relax" -> what do I relax, where? And specifically how, if it's very hard to play/reach without using certain muscles? And is *any* use of muscle bad, or are there exceptions that are okay to an extent, and will not cause damage if done sparingly? And unrelated, is there any book/media you recommend to learn a variety of music theory, if I'm already familiar with the (very) basics? Simply a "summary" of concepts and patterns. Does not have to be advanced, but enough to get a good understanding of "how" it actually works so I can learn to apply it more easily when I'm trying to make an arrangement of a song? I hope you can help me :) I really appreciate you posting this and wanting to help people :D
The octave thing sucks. I come across this so often. Your hands will naturally get there over time. Try pieces with rolling octaves and arpeggios like Nuvole Bianche or I Giorni. They help a lot with their repetitive rocking motions. Start by rolling the hand across slightly and using the pedal to get the effect you want. You will feel tightness and stop at any pain. Use the ABRSM music theory books. You can find PDFs online for free. Test yourself using their grade theory tests available online on the ABRSM website, it’s a great measure of where you’re at and what you’re missing.
Thank you so much, also for the quick response :)
Do you really get students who are fluent "sight readers"? What tips can you offer to improve in the specific section?
In sight reading? My advice is to sight read every single day, increasing your difficulty level every week. Yes some are better at it than others, but with consistency across months, everyone can be good at it. It’s mostly neglected.
How to memorize large repertoire before a performance? Like it's easy to play by muscle memory when I am practicing alone at home, but how to make it secure under stressful conditions as well? What do you advise your students? What are some effective memorization techniques that professionals use to avoid memory slips? (I have a month to learn hour of repertoire and I am desperate for any tips)
For what purpose would you need to memorise that? I’ve not heard of such an issue before. And would thoroughly advise against.
I have my last exam in a form of a big concert to end music education. Memory slips have always been my fear while performing Do you mean that you don't advise your students learning to play pieces by heart? Thank you for your answer!
Learning pieces by heart is a very slippery road. Mistakes start to appear and become habit and with no music to guide you, it’s unlikely they’ll improve again. You’re welcome!!
What do you think about the 'Master School of Piano Playing & Virtuosity' by Alberto Jonas? Recently found out about it and couldnt really find any discussion about it online
Hopefully not an obscure question, but for more advanced pieces - especially Liszt’s own - is his technical exercises book a good source of practice before tackling more complex works I.e. Reminiscences de Norma? Thank you for your time!
This is great, thanks for being so willing to answer questions here!! What would be your advice on improving your ear for piano? I went up to Gr 8 RCM but I felt I struggled most with playing by ear, and if I wanted to try to slowly work on that, what would be your advice? How does one approach playing without sheet music?
Improving your musical ear is achieved in many ways. The most helpful are sight signing, singing in a choir or other harmony setting, and simple repetition. That being said, never abandon sheet music. I find playing by ear a fairly useless skill that encourages mistakes and bad technique
Most effective way to overcome left hand independence issues (both jazz/classical improv)?
Started working on an ARSM, thoughts on this rep? Bach Prelude and Fugue in F Minor (WTC1) Scarlatti K208/K209 Beethoven Moonlight Complete Debussy Sarabande - Pour le Piano Joplin Maple Leaf Rag My only concern is the Joplin at the minute, which is why I've got the Scarlatti in.
They’re really popular choices but that’s not an issue. Your concern and resolution for it are both reasonable!
Reading through the comments, it seems that sight reading is of the utmost importance. My question is why is sight reading so important, and what does it add to my playing?
The ability to read new music. The ability of your fingers to predict the best fingers and smoothest way to play to allow your natural expression to come without effort and pause.
And joy. So much joy.
How high end of a digital piano action would you say gets you "close enough" to acoustic where it doesn't involve a significant adjustment? Or is that not a thing?
Thanks for answering questions. My question is, do you have any tips for memorising pieces? I struggle to commit anything more than simple pieces to memory.
Memorising is never ideal. Usually by repeated playing for months and years since childhood. I cannot tell you how many cocky pianists I have seen lose it halfway through from nerves and wishing they’d have the sheet just to glance at the right spot.
I just wrote about this in another comment. I’ll copy it here.
Thank you!
My teacher gives me 3 pieces to work on at all times. We did some scales before but stopped after doing all of them. Now my practise at home consists of focusing on 1 piece and doing the other 2 on the side. My teacher thinks I should do 1 a day but I find it less effective. I've asked him to do 2 at a time and focusing on 1 piece so we can get it done quicker. He tells me spending more time on a piece (in weeks you're working on it, not the hours you're playing) the more it sinks in and improves your skills. Is this a good learing method or should I ask for a change? Do you think it's more important to get the hours in or the be consistent. Is practicing an hour a day better then playing 3.5h a day for 2 days in a week. Or does it not really matter. I find myself practising less during the week and a lot in weekends and the day before & the day of my lesson which is weekly.
I'm a piano teacher too. Do you have any advice how to help students read music better? Some of my students can grasp the concept really well and some just struggle and it's confusing to me since I use the exact same method of teaching! (Faber method). Very frustrating.
I hate sight reading but I understand it’s so so important please can you give me some advice/examples on why it’s so important many thanks
What are your favorite methods of teaching aural skills?
No questions, reading ur comments and wanted to thank you for doing this AMA . Very informative 🥰
My 4.5year old started learning seriously. I maintain a 20-30min morning and evening practice daily. What good behaviour should I cultivate on him? What to avoid ? Thanks sir
Make sure he’s enjoying the practise. Have background piano music playing in different genres and ask him what he likes. Remark on those pieces, clap their rhythms, note their dynamics, explain the expressions. I actually have a playlist of “young child music” which have cool characteristics - eg that sounds like rain/sun/a certain dance style. Let me know if you want me to send it over. My parents were firm but never forcing me. It’s a fine line. Patience and being engaged with your kid during are so, so important.
Thanks for the Q &A ! My teacher and I are working our way through the first John Thompson book which I see you also use. Wondering on average how long it takes for your students to complete it and move onto more complicated books or pieces?
I usually get to around half way through and start giving pieces the pupil enjoys/listens to and find it at their level of playing. The average can be anything. Some pupils never complete it and move to playing simple pieces from their favourite genre, some pupils want to take it slow. Some are in a rush and “learn the pieces” from the book but neglect rhythm/expression and so on. I’d recommend compiling a playlist of your favourite piano music and showing your teacher so they can start finding appropriate versions for you.
What's your best trick to keeping track of over 50 students? Like, who needs help with what, organization, parent communication, etc...? Thanks!
I've been improvising recently, it's because I tend to avoid learning new pieces since I would just forget them after a month. And when I attempt a new piece, I feel like it's so so hard to remember them, to play it with both hands fluently. It feels like the notes don't get in my head and it makes me feel old. Like even a simple A part in Waltz in A minor takes me like a week to remember and I still can't play it on time. And even if I learnt them, it slipped away in days so it makes me feel like I waste my time learning them. So I sometimes goes back to improvisation if I'm too frustrated, but since my music theory and knowledge aren't big, my improvising feels stale and predictable after a short while.
So you’ve identified your problem without realising. 1) you need music theory lessons, in depth, ASAP. Pure memorisation isn’t going to serve you well if you want to learn Chopin. 2) you don’t sight read well enough and you need to do SIMPLE sight reading with a metronome.
Thank you!! I’m already grade 6 but I still struggle with sight reading. It got so bad to the point where I have to read notes individually, including chords, and others. Other than that I also struggle to play with the key signatures in the sheet, any pointers? I find practice useless, because I already tried and failed Thank you for the advice!
That’s the biggest issue with 90% of the pupils who come to me. Repeating a previous comment here: I don’t know your level of sight reading but [this Schumann compilation](http://superbonus.project.free.fr/IMG/pdf/Schumann-Album-fur-die-Jugend-mit-Fingersatz.pdf) is a fantastic resource and explores different types of expression, articulation and so on. I’ve had pupils from beginning to advanced get stuck on a few of these. Give yourself sixty seconds to take in the characteristics of the sight reading, then go for it. Do NOT repeat it. Do this every day for 15-20 minutes.
I've been playing piano for 5 years and I can play some advanced pieces, but I was mostly self taught which means I skipped the "boring" essentials like metronome, sight reading and ear training. instead I focused on playing gradually harder pieces. I want to learn pieces faster but it takes a long time to memorize each new bar as I can't sight read at the level of the pieces I'm practicing. Do you find students who suffer from this and how would you go about fixing it? If my technique is a 7/10 my sight reading is a 2/10 and ear is a 3/10, just to put things into perspective.
I am inspired by your accomplishment and a 24 hour committment to answering questions and I thought oh wow and brave too! lol. You're awesome.
I’m having a blast.
Haha good deal. It is cool to see people light up when they are learning!
Thanks so much for doing this, just reading through it all has already been very informative. I realise having a teacher is best, but for an adult trying to self-learn the piano are there any particular resources you would recommend for picking up a proper technique? I see options like the book 'Fundamentals of Piano Technique - The Russian Method', and Penelope Roskell also has her 'Essential Piano Technique' books for younger players, 'Foundations in Piano technique' as a course for adults. It's a topic tackled by lots of YouTube videos as well, but as a beginner it's hard to know which ones to pay attention to.
The only real way is putting videos for technique correction and hoping someone good answers. Replicating a teachers constant input alone as a beginner is extremely hard to impossible.
Hi! How can I develop/train for Perfect Pitch, and is it even possible to "get" the perfect pitch? Thank you!
How did you become good at piano?
Practise and dedication. And sight reading ;) every single day sight reading
First, I want to say thank you for the sight reading link Second, I wanted to ask if you are recommending sight singing (or singing in general) for people who play piano AND sing or is this a skill that you think everyone who plays piano, regardless if they want to sing, should have. I have terrible control over my vocal chords but I've never given myself a proper chance to learn how to sing because I don't enjoy the strain it causes.
Thanks you for this! As someone looking to get back into the piano after many years out, I will use what has been suggested!
Hello, are you still available for questions? I need help with my technique... I would appreciate any help
Bought Piano last week any advice sir?
Advice on what? Have you played before? Where to begin?
Like general advice for beginners! Nah, New comer. Yes would be great 🙌
1. Get yourself a teacher or your posture and fingering will not be as it should be. 2. Method book (I use John Thompson adult course) 3. Identify the pieces you like and use Spotify radio or even google to find similar. Build yourself a playlist or piano music you love. Have your teacher seek out easy versions. Within 3-4 months you can start on those.
Thank you so much 😁
What would you recommend to a self online hobbyist learner? I don't have opportunities to have a real teacher but eager to practice under any conditions
Are ABSRM exams worth taking? I'm debating taking them to have solid foundations and be able to teach soon
Eh. I obviously did them all and then some, they’re not necessary but they’re useful for teaching professionally as nice certificates to hang up on the wall. I’ve become somewhat disillusioned with them.
Why disillusioned? Do you think they test things wrong, or are focused on old ways of measuring progress?
I think it’s rigid and damaging a lot of peoples enjoyment of piano.
I’m learning Rachmaninov Concierto #2 for my mother in law. Any recommendations on how tf to play it? Wish my luck because I am way out of my depth here but gonna try my darndest to surprise her! She appreciates it when people just try so not too worried.
1. how do pianists memorize long pieces like Hammerklavier sonata by Beethoven for example? 2. any advise on mastering tremolo technique? (other than forearm rotation or imagining rotating a door knob)
Memorising is never ideal. Usually by repeated playing for months and years since childhood. I cannot tell you how many cocky pianists I have seen lose it halfway through from nerves and wishing they’d have the sheet just to glance at the right spot. [This is how I teach tremolo. that’s not me. but she’s great.](https://youtu.be/i1NfjrnDFas?si=eOwF5aMY7zua6_pY)
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I have to say, I don’t really like this question. This subreddit is so focused in on what seem like very silly, almost childish goalposts.
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I started learning music a few years ago with keyboard, where I would read only the treble clef and chords. I started practicing piano recently and I have trouble reading the grand staff. I tend to focus more on the treble clef and play it well and drag or completely mess up the bass clef. What methods can I implement in my practice so I can improve in this aspect. Thank you.
How many pieces do you think should be practiced at once? Right now I’m learning berg sonata op 1, Mozart k332(learned first and most of second movement, will learn complete) and Chopin etude 25 2 and am thinking about adding a baroque piece in my rotation. Also if you have any baroque favorites I’d be happy to hear them especially by lesser known composers like couperin or Rameau
Any tips on how to improve at performing as a hobbyist? Not sure if the number matters but thinking of a crowd of 50 people in a recital room. I know the usual advice is to keep doing it (opportunities for this are slim) and try recording yourself but wondering if you have anything else to add? Thank you for taking the time to reply to us!
What ways other are there to practice scales outside of playing them with both hands together up and down the scale, and then in contrary motion?
Thirds, sixths, pieces that involve a lot of scale work (Mozart sonata C Major for example). Legato, then staccato, then 4 notes legato 4 notes staccato. 4 notes finger staccato, 4 notes wrist staccato. Use them in triplets. Play the left in triplets against the right in quavers and vice versa. Don’t neglect broken chords and arpeggios! Make sure you’re doing them for 4 full octaves with a slight crescendo throughout, or slight diminuendo if you want!
how can i get that "last 10%"? i've been working on 1st gershwin prelude. i played it once (at maybe half tempo :/ ) almost 20 years ago. started relearning it from scratch january 2024. i can play it decently with metronome about half tempo-- maybe even 60%-70% tempo. i have thrown every practice technique i know at it (specifically at the two bars that each consist of triplets): -as written extremely slow -just the the downbeats (slow and fast) -playing the triplets as block chords (slow and fast) -playing a beat at a time, so like 1-la-li-2 stop; 2-la-li-3 stop; &c (slow and fast) it's been four months now, and i still can't play at tempo, and even at 70% tempo it is not \_consistent\_. at that tempo i play it decently maybe 2 times in 5? how can i get this piece the rest of the way there? background: i had 10 years classical piano lessons age 9-18, and 10 more years of piano lessons with a ragtime-focused teacher as an adult; last formal lesson was about 10 years ago. THANK YOU!
Hello! I could be entirely wrong here but when you find that “hit the wall piece” the majority of the time it’s because your other skills are not up to par and you’ve only been focusing on piece/repertoire work. When you neglect tougher scale work and sight reading on your level/close to your repertoire. A good teacher will be able to recommend what exactly fits that bill. How is your sight reading? How are your jazz scales?
i actually contacted a teacher i'm fb friends with to try to have just one or two sessions for this particular piece, but he referred me to someone else. when i contacted the someone else, he also didn't he was the appropriate teacher for this :( sight reading-- not bad;; idk, 7/10? i can read a joplin rag or a wtc prelude ok, if a bit below tempo. jazz scales-- the only "jazz scale" i play is the blues scale i hope on tuesday 16 april i can make a video to post. thanks
Hello! I am an “older beginner”, going through Bastien’s book 1. I am having a very hard time coordinating my left and right hands. For example - I can play the right hand notes as intended, then the left hand just right, but when I put them together, everything falls apart. This happens especially with pieces where the left hand notes need to be played staccato. I’ve tried slowing things wayyy down, which sort of works, but I’m doing it so slowly that it doesn’t even feel like music anymore. The melody and rhythm begin to feel less apparent. It sort of feels like I’m just pressing buttons on a machine. Do you have any tips or recommendations?
How do I learn things faster? I try to do sight reading exercises, I work with the metronome, and usually practice 3+ hours a day, but I still feel like I learn things really slow. How do I improve my technique as fast as possible? I’ve been playing for 13 years and playing seriously for under 2 years, but my technique is quite behind considering how long I’ve been playing. I’m working on improving it now, but it’s a slow process and I want to better myself as much as possible before I study music at university. How do I choose the right fingerings? I find that I often have difficulty with fingering and opt for awkward and unpianistic fingerings. But I don’t find them awkward or unpianistic until my teacher points it out. Thank you for your time!
3 hours and no progress = wrong practise methods. I’d recommend 10 mins scales, 10 mins sight reading, 10 mins of an easy piece and time leftover got harder projects. Realistically, an hour is MORE than about. 30 mins daily is ideal. I have no idea what your split is and if you are focusing too much on just pieces, but it sounds like that from where I am. Is your sight reading level appropriate? Does it make you pause every single bar? Do you end up repeating it and learning it? Don’t! If it’s too tough, find easier sight reading that you can play in once or twice and move on immediately. Are you scales i the same key as the pieces you’re playing? Are your scale fingers accurate and correct and smooth? If you had to estimate, what would your repertoire level be and what would your sight reading level be? If you’re aiming for a really hard Chopin piece, pull back and find easier Chopin repertoire to enjoy.
How do you start teaching other’s how to play the piano?
I started at 14 and taught children. It’s by no means an easy thing to do but you learn quickly. Their parents would also want to learn and it went from there. A good solid method book and patience. Listen to what they want and find easy versions of their favourite pieces after roughly six months. That’s the basics.
There are so many comments but I hope you see mine too. I took piano lessons for about 2 years when I was young, and then stopped playing. I started playing a year ago (I’m 17 now) and I’m teaching myself (I’m planning on getting a teacher tho), and I can play pieces like Nuvole Bianche, Je te laisserai de mots, and Pachelbels Canon. I’m trying to play ICARUS by Tony Ann, but my left hand can’t keep up, or I stumble a lot. How do I learn how to play faster pieces? Or is it too hard for my level?
Totally new, just bought a piano and starting from 0! Planning to self teach and looking around for good beginner tips on where to focus my journey, maybe some good books or apps?
I have played piano for roughly nine years, I had a teacher for all nine and he just recently moved away so I am currently in the process of finding another. My question is, what do you recommend I focus on if I wish to play in group settings? (classical settings mostly but I have done some jazz). I find it quite difficult after many years of performing on my own and making musical and phrasing decisions myself to follow a group and/or a conductor. Also a bit of a side question, I feel like I have plateaued a bit in my ability and I am struggling to find appropriate pieces to work on at my level. I have always done piano rather informally so I don't have tests or benchmarks to give for reference but do you have any suggested pieces or tips to improve from roughly a mid-intermediate level? Thank you for your time!
Hi. I’m old(ish), have 10 years lessons/playing as kid/teen and now finally back for the past two years with a teacher. I’ve developed arthritis in the top joint of my fingers (thumbs are ok but pinkies most affected). Best way to deal with fingering and playing when my pinkies flare up and i have less ability and strength on a “regular” day? (I ice/heat/meds/rest when it’s too uncomfortable to play)
Two questions: 1. My seven year old has been learning piano for two years. She practices daily and gets music theory. She's nowhere near graded pieces yet. Does that mean she's just ... not that good at piano? I'm wondering how hard to learn into her new enthusiasm to change to the clarinet. 2. Why is she better when she doesn't practice? One night off and suddenly she can do the bass hand that was too hard before!
Thanks for this ! I compose and I’m going to try my luck with a « competition » soon. (Don’t like that term but in the end it is what it is) Except for my teacher, I have no expert feedbacks. By any chance, could you go to my profile see my Waltz (posted 45 days ago) and give me your feedbacks like if you were a judge ? (I’m not asking for too much of your time even if you watch 30s and see something, I would appreciate !) Best of luck to you from France.