You might think this sounds simple. (All you have to do is play a note, right?) but there is actually a lot more to it. Tuning correctly with other musicians is vital to a good sounding performance.
I can’t tell you how many times my wife Florence (florenceflutist.com) and I have attended a concert where we see the musicians barely pecking out notes when tuning. Many times we look at each other wondering how they can possibly be sure of their tuning. That’s because they aren’t playing the notes anything like they will play in the performance.
One great technique when tuning is to play the tuning notes separately so you can compare the pitches. It may be easy to tell if you are in or out of tune, but to know whether you are high or low can be difficult when playing at exactly the same time. You can certainly overlap the notes, but have at least some time where you can hear the pitches separately.
The best way to play a tuning note is to alternate notes and play them out – just like you would in the performance. On a piano you can add D and F below the A forming a D minor triad which is easier to tune to. (You can also provide an A Major Chord, A – C-sharp – E and the A an octave above.)
For an example of this technique watch the video included with this article. Florence and I demonstrate our technique for you that we use in every performance we play.
Sometimes soloists are squeamish about tuning – they don’t want to play too loud if they don’t have to. (They seem concerned about alienating the audience). But it is far better to endure a few moments of tuning than suffer through an out of tune performance!
So remember to take your time with tuning and make sure the soloist is comfortable and has time to adjust their instrument as needed. You should never rush a tuning and you should always make sure you are tuned properly before you perform. Your audience will appreciate it!
Thanks again for joining me Robert Estrin Robert@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729