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This is a great piece of music for students to learn. It is not a simple piece of music by any means, but it’s one of the easiest Beethoven Sonatas to learn and it is a substantial work. It’s interesting to know that the Op. 49 sonatas were composed much earlier than the opus number would indicate. However, they were published later.

There are many aspects to approaching Beethoven’s works that can be applied to this piece. It’s very important to play with a regular beat. So, practicing with the metronome is invaluable with Beethoven. It can make life much easier to memorize the piece first. Classical period music is not particularly hard to memorize and I have a video on the subject you can watch.

What techniques can you use in your practice of this work and other pieces of Beethoven?

You should practice in chords whenever possible. Learning to play your music in chords can be very beneficial. This aids in a number of ways. First, by reducing the music to chords, you will understand the harmonies. More than that, you will discover fingerings that accommodate the notes well. It also makes it easier to learn.

It’s important to bring out the melody which is typically in the right hand. One technique for achieving this is to play the accompanying parts staccato with a light wrist when the texture allows for it.

Another important aspect of practicing effectively is to work out your trills. It isn’t important to play a large number of notes. It is essential that you work out exactly the number of notes you can play with confidence. This will result in a musical execution.

Beethoven didn’t write out many of the dynamics in this piece. However, many editions offer suggestions for expression. For example, you can start this piece forte. In different editions of the piece, people will suggest certain dynamics and while no version is necessarily better than others, you should find something to create contrasts with the music to keep the performance compelling.

Obviously, these are not the only aspects to learning this piece or any work of Beethoven. But they will provide a good foundation for progressing through the music to bring it to a higher level.

Thanks again for joining us here at Living Pianos. If you have any questions about this topic or any others, please contact us at: Info@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

Piano Lessons: Approaching Beethoven’s Sonata Op. 49 No. 2

One of the most common questions I get is how to build strength on the piano. This is a tough topic because practicing the wrong way can potentially lead to injury, so you must always be aware of how you feel. The fact is, there is no simple method to instantly gain more strength in your piano playing – but this exercise will definitely help.

This is a very tough exercise that will take some practice to master. However, with persistence and patience you will find that this can be a very beneficial exercise to use and it’s something that you’ll only have to do once every practice session.

If this exercise is too challenging, try this exercise first:

THE BEST PIANO EXERCISES (PART 1) – BROKEN TRIADS

This exercise is built upon broken 7th chords:

You’ll start with a Major 7th Chord, the Dominant 7th Chord, the Minor 7th Chord, a Half-Diminished 7th Chord, and then finally a Diminished 7th Chord.

But this is just the beginning of what we are going to do! In both hands you will be playing broken chords and you will be playing every other note in each hand and play in contrary motion. So it looks like this:

Is this the end? Not at all! You’re going to go through all twelve keys going up a half-step at a time until you reach C an octave higher. This will be challenging to learn, but once you get the hang of it, this will be an incredibly beneficial exercise for you and one that will help you build strength in your piano playing and independence of your fingers.

Another thing to keep in mind is that you don’t have to play this exercise fast in order to gain benefit from it. Play it at a comfortable speed and work up the tempo gradually over time. This exercise will take time to master, but keep at it and you will get results.

Thanks again for joining us here at Living Pianos. If you have any questions or comments about this topic or any topic at all please contact us directly Info@LivingPianos.com or (949) 244-3729.

The Best Exercise to Develop Strength on the Piano

We are very happy to welcome our guest Jonny May www.PianoWithJonny.com on this video. Jonny is an expert at Ragtime music who will share his music and knowledge with us.

An early form of jazz music, created just before the turn of the 20th century, ragtime is a popular form of music that you’ve undoubtedly heard many times. Some ragtime music is completely written out (like Classical concert music) and other times it is more of an improvised style of music. You might be familiar with the rags of Scott Joplin who is probably the most famous Ragtime pianist known for The Entertainer as well as other music.

Ragtime is typically associated with a fast and upbeat style of music. However, Scott Joplin himself was quoted as saying, “Ragtime should never be played fast”. Is there a right or wrong speed or tempo of this music? Like most things from different eras, it’s open to interpretation. Some people prefer ragtime slower, while some prefer a faster tempo. The bottom line is enjoying the music and making it your own.

Another common misconception about ragtime is that it should be played with a “swing” feel to the music in which the notes are played with a long-short emphasis on each 2 note group. This style became popular decades later. What does differentiate ragtime music from other genres is the syncopated rhythms which are played off the beat of the music. When you listen to ragtime you’ll find it almost impossible not to move because of the bouncy quality of the syncopation. It makes you want to dance!

What’s fun about ragtime is that you can take nearly any song or piece – old, contemporary, Classical, whatever you can imagine – syncopate the rhythms and play it in a ragtime style. If you have a chance to watch the video provided with this article you’ll see Jonny play some amazing examples of taking popular music from different eras and turning them into ragtime.

The alternating octaves and chords in the left hand in ragtime are one of the biggest technical challenges for most people approaching this style of music. This is a technique rarely used in Classical music with some notable exceptions, such as the end of the 6th Hungarian Rhapsodie of Franz Liszt. So, what advice did Jonny give us? Simplifying the music is a great way to get yourself acclimated to playing ragtime. Jonny recommends using shorter jumps between octaves and chords and possibly leaving out some notes until you get comfortable with the style. Jonny also recommends watching your left hand as opposed to the right hand since the left hand will be jumping from octave to chord back and forth while the right hand stays relatively in the same position.

Another thing that’s so fascinating about ragtime music is that almost every piece contains a melancholy section. No matter how happy the piece is, there always seems to be a section that changes the mood. It’s a great compositional technique that adds depth of emotion to the music.

Ragtime was developed in the late 1800s through the early 20th century and really hit it’s stride around 1898 with the release of Maple Leaf Rag. It was a very popular form of music in it’s day and contemporary composers from that time would sometimes write rags or rag-style music into their pieces – such as Debussy’s Golliwog’s Cakewalk and some music of Gershwin.

For more information about ragtime piano you can visit Jonny’s website www.PianoWithJonny.com or subscribe to his YouTube Channel.

Thanks again for joining us here at Living Pianos. If you have any questions about this topic or any topic at all please contact us directly: Info@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

What is Ragtime Music?

We are very happy to welcome our guest Jonny May www.PianoWithJonny.com on this video. Jonny is an expert at Ragtime music who will share his music and knowledge with us. An early form of jazz music, created just before the turn of the 20th century,

Asking if there is a right or a wrong way to learn the piano is a really loaded question. There is no clear cut answer but I’m going to try and answer this the best I can based on my experience. I’ve had the opportunity to study with several great teachers including Constance Keene, Ruth Slenczynska, John Ogden and my father, Morton Estrin. Despite many techniques and approaches for learning the piano, there are some basic truths that are almost universal among fine teachers.

Being able to count your music is one of the most important things you must learn. Practicing with a metronome to check your rhythm and timing is something that is vital in developing as a musician. Yes, there are some truths that are somewhat universal. Why not universal? Because there is more than one way to approach the piano – if you watch other pianists you will notice very different techniques.

My father, Morton Estrin, was my only teacher through high school (other than some master classes in Austria). When I attended the Manhattan School of Music I gained the opportunity to work with other concert pianists. However, for most of my early development on the piano, I studied with my father. He would describe playing the piano “with a quiet hand”. What he meant was that he used a minimal amount of motion and this is how I learned. I was taught to use as little motion as possible to produce the best sound I could. Now there are certain techniques which require more motion (such as wrist technique) but the principles of his method are fundamental.

When I went away to music conservatory I was surprised by my new teacher. She taught me to allow more movement in my playing and loosen myself up a bit. Now my father’s technique wasn’t wrong but in experiencing another way to learn I was able to develop further as a pianist. I used aspects of both of their methods to create a technique all my own. As I’ve said in other videos, no two people are built exactly the same. What might work for one person won’t necessarily work for another. If you have small hands – like me – there are some aspects of playing piano where you will be limited and other areas where small hands provide advantages; the same goes for people with larger hands.

So there are many correct ways to approach the piano as well as many techniques that may not be reliable. You must find solid techniques that work for you. There are dozens of techniques for learning certain aspects of the piano and there are hundreds of opinions on what is right and what is wrong. There are two things that matter as you continue to learn about various techniques and improve as a pianist. One is if the technique works for you. Two is if the technique can be applied to a certain aspect of playing but not another. Many times a technique will be a great way to solve one problem but will leave you struggling in other areas. This is why adopting many different techniques and developing your own playing style is so important.

So yes, there are right and wrong techniques for learning the piano. If a technique works for you don’t be discouraged if someone else does it differently. Right and wrong is more of a subjective experience when it comes to learning piano and what works for one person might not always work for another.

Thanks again for joining me, Robert Estrin Robert@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

Is There a Wrong Way to Learn Piano?

Is it okay to fake at the piano? Many teachers would say that you must not fake on the piano. I would tend to agree with them. But is this all-encompassing?

Let me give you some examples where faking or not playing totally accurately might actually be necessary.

Everything we strive for in practice and in teaching is geared to ensure that you know the score faithfully and can perform accurately. So, why would you want to ever play sloppily?

There have been times where I was called upon to accompany someone at an audition when their pianist didn’t show up at the last minute. Imagine sight reading the Hindemith Trombone Sonata under such circumstances if you had never played the piece. Hindemith scores are extremely complex pieces of music that are nearly impossible to read accurately at first glance. There may be some parts you can play accurately depending on the level of your reading. But some sections will be impossible to grasp initially up to tempo without working things out.

In this instance, if the trombonist didn’t have an accompanist, they couldn’t even take the audition. In situations like this, I have reluctantly accepted the challenge to rescue the soloist. I have gone in and grabbed as many notes as possible. Most importantly, I stayed with the soloist never allowing any problems to interfere with the fluidity of their performance. This is one instance where faking will be inevitable.

Here is another example. You are playing a concert and you are well prepared and are in great shape. Then you get to a certain part and something happens where you find yourself over the wrong set of keys. This could be due to a number of things such as a mechanical issue with the piano or you simply got distracted by something in the room. There is nothing better than you can do than to fake it until you get back on track because if you stop you will ruin the performance for everyone. Not only that, but people will be very uncomfortable for you. An eerie silence in the middle of a performance is not something you ever want to subject anyone too much less yourself! You are much better off faking your way through a little bit to get back on the right track rather than to correct or go back to the beginning of the section.

So there is a place for faking in some unusual circumstances. But we do everything in our power to avoid doing it. But when the situation comes up, the show must go on!

Thanks for joining me, Robert@LivingPianos.com.

Is it Okay to Fake at the Piano?

Is it okay to fake at the piano? Many teachers would say that you must not fake on the piano. I would tend to agree with them. But is this all-encompassing? Let me give you some examples where faking or not playing totally accurately might actually b

I’ve different aspects of voicing on the piano: How to Play Softly, How to Play Loud, How to go from Loud to Soft, How to Play One Hand Louder Than the Other on the Piano, and How to Bring Out Lines in Your Music.

Today I am going to talk about something a little different; something I learned as a conservatory student.

When I would listen to performances of concert pianists, I would notice that the melody was delineated much more in their playing than in most student performances. The difference in volume between the melody and the harmony was much greater in the performances of the great pianists.

In the example provided with the video in this article, I play the slow movement of the Beethoven Pathetique Sonata and show you how playing the melody much bigger and playing everything else very delicately will give the piece a much more intimate feel.

The thing to keep in mind is that this isn’t a right or wrong approach to your music, it’s simply one technique you can bring that will create a unique presence for your performances. In very dense music, delineating your melody from the rest of the music is essential; otherwise, it can get lost very easily.

While it doesn’t work on all occasions, in some instances you must create extreme separation between your melody and harmony by accentuating the melody above all else. Practicing Without the Pedal and Practicing While Playing Slowly are two great techniques in learning how to bring out the melody in your music.

Thanks again for joining us here at Living Pianos. If you have any questions about this topic or any others, please contact us at: Info@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729