Tag Archives: piano lessons

The Art of Pedaling on the Piano – Part 2

Welcome back to our multi part series on the art of pedaling on the piano. Last time in part one we talked about the damper pedal and clearing the pedal on the downbeat of new harmonies. This week we are going to be covering some nuances of pedaling.

For this example, I use the Beethoven Pathetique Sonata. In the example, I demonstrate playing the piece without the pedal. When it comes to performing the piece you will want to use the pedal, but you should learn all your music without the use of the pedal first so you can hear the connection of notes that good fingering provides. This helps you to understand where to apply the pedal in your music as well as avoiding the bad habit of using the pedal as a crutch to connect notes in difficult passages.

Another way to enhance your music with the pedal is like what we talked about in the first video. This is achieved by putting the pedal down as soon as the harmonies change. Sometimes you might want the clarity of the notes to shine through in certain passages,. In these instances it’s a good idea to not hold down the pedal for the entire beat like we did in the first video. Instead, we will be using touches on the melody and for the passages that you can’t connect with my fingers alone.

This might give you an idea as to why pedal markings are not written into the score most of the time. If you tried to write down everything I was doing in the example video above it would create chaos on the page! Many other factors from the acoustics of the room, to the quality of the piano, to the size of pianist’s hands all factor into when to use the pedal.

The best thing you can do is to practice without the pedal and learn your music completely that way. After you feel confident playing the piece without the pedal, slowly go through and add the pedal where you think you need it – either to connect difficult passages or to enhance the harmonies or melodies of your music.

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

The Art of Pedaling on the Piano Part 1 – The Damper Pedal (Right Pedal)

Welcome to an ongoing series about how to use the pedals on the piano. Today we are going to be covering the right pedal, commonly referred to as the damper or sustain pedal. This is the pedal you will be using most of the time while playing the piano and it’s a great place to start.

The question I get asked the most is when to use the pedal. While there are no absolutes, there are some general guidelines that you can follow. A basic rule that applies to nearly any type of music is that when the harmonies change, you must clear the pedal. If you don’t do this you will get clashing dissonance.

While the pedal shouldn’t be overused, it is a great way to enhance the tone of your music. We know that you should clear the pedal when there are new harmonies, but there is a wrong way and a right way to do this. When the harmonies change, you should release the pedal upwards – don’t push it down. This is very counterintuitive because you are probably used to tapping your foot and tapping down on the downbeat. The opposite is true for the damper pedal, you will want to bring your foot up and clear the pedal on the downbeats when harmonies change and put it right back down.

Another technique you should practice is to not push the pedal down before you begin. Pushing the pedal down before playing a note will result in an echoing sound. You should push the pedal down right after you play the note, but before your fingers are released. If you push the pedal down after you release your fingers it will not hold the notes.

These are the basic principles of pedaling and how you should be using the damper pedal. Practice these techniques and make sure that you are releasing the pedal on the downbeat of changing harmonies and push it down immediately after but before you release your fingers.

Thanks again for joining me and be on the lookout for future videos about the art of pedaling on the piano. Robert Estrin Robert@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

Why You MUST Sing your Music! Piano Lessons

Singing might often be overlooked by most musicians but it’s an essential component in musical development and education. When it comes to piano, you can produce a tone without hearing it first. Singing is the absolute opposite of this – you must hear the notes first or you can’t possibly sing them.

Singing lends more to music than you might think. Like we talked about in our video this week, the breath and the cyclical nature of things weave its way into music. Understanding this relationship is extremely beneficial to a pianist and that’s why if you are a piano major at a music conservatory, you will have to either play an instrument in the orchestra or sing in the choir. Adversely, if you play an instrument or sing in the choir, you will need to learn to play the piano!

The tone the piano produces is a sharp attack, a quick decay, and a slow descending sustain. Music, on the other hand, is produced in round phrases – much like singing or breathing. That’s why it’s always a good idea to sing along with your music while you are learning it. It might sound silly but it’s an extremely helpful tool to get you to understand how the music should be played and heard.

In the video accompanying this article, I play the Chopin Prelude in E minor. I demonstrate the benefits of singing the melody while playing the chords. By singing your parts you will start to understand the structure of the music like you never have before; it’s enlightening.

I really can’t recommend this technique enough. It’s something that every pianist must do as it helps enhance your understanding of music and will greatly benefit your playing. There is no substitute for this technique so even if you cringe at the sound of your own voice you should do yourself a favor and sing along – I guarantee it will help!

Thanks again for joining me Robert Estrin Robert@LivingPianos.com

How to play the opening chords of the Tchaikovksy’s Piano Concerto

Everybody that is a fan of classical music has definitely heard this piece before. The massive chords complement the orchestra so well; the sound is incredible and powerful. Many people will attempt to play these chords but many people won’t play them correctly. In this lesson, I’m going to discuss how to play these chords and produce the desired sound.

If you watch any professional pianist on youtube or live you might notice that they move their arms up and down and look very animated as they play. Many people might not realize that this is done mostly for show and the actual sound is produced not by these exaggerated motions but once the fingers come in contact with the keys.

It doesn’t matter how big your piano is, you will always produce a better sound if you push from the surface of the keys. Producing more volume is simply a matter of producing more energy in the point of attack – not by striking the keys harder from above. Slapping the keys produces a very harsh sound and it’s also incredibly difficult to play accurately.

Try and play some chords on your piano by simply placing your fingers over the keys and pushing them into the key bed. Try just pushing down and don’t even strike the keys at all. You will be surprised at how loud and wonderful the sound can be just by using this technique.

Thanks again for joining me Robert Estrin Robert@LivingPianos.com

How to Play the Bach Italian Concerto on Piano – Part 2

As we discussed in Part 1 of this lesson, Bach wrote this “concerto” as a solo piece and it’s not what you would typically think of as a concerto (one instrument or a group of instruments with orchestra). To replicate the sound of a traditional concerto, Bach wrote dynamics for both hands throughout the piece. Last week we talked briefly about the first movement of the piece, today you will get some tips on the second movement.

In the right hand, you have a beautiful and luscious melody while the left hand is to be played very quietly. The right hand has an almost improvisational quality. Classical composers improvised quite a bit in their days, however, since recording technology wasn’t invented yet we really have no examples of what it sounded like. One could imagine that the right hand in the second movement of the Italian Concerto is a glimpse into the styling of Bach’s improvisational work.

The left hand in this piece has a repeated regular pattern of 8th notes and is a great place to focus as you begin learning the second movement. If you listen to the piece, you’ll notice that there is a nice steady beat to these notes. Think of it almost like a heartbeat that holds up the structure of the music.

When I play this piece, sometimes I use a little bit of pedal, sometimes I use no pedal at all. It’s always a great idea to practice without the pedal so it doesn’t act as a crutch. One way to approach without the pedal is to play the top notes of the thirds legato and the bottom notes more detached. This will help to bring out the clarity of the lines. The secret to this is utilizing good fingering. If done correctly, this will give the illusion that it’s two instruments playing together. Baroque music is personified by counterpoint and this is one example of that.

When it comes to the right hand, you should always remind yourself that the ornamentation should not affect the rhythm. You should play very expressively but don’t get that confused with changing tempo. Many times people will see trills and turns and think it means playing fast, which is not the case. Here you will want to play the lines very expressively, letting them stand out and playing them as beautifully as possible.

I’ve had numerous videos talking about the importance of the arms when playing piano; here is no different. You can use the weight of the arms – both left and right to create a nice balance and tone between the two hands. Use more weight in the right hand to bring out the melody.

Thanks again for joining me. I will be producing some much more thorough lessons in the near future on specific repertoire like this. If you would like to be notified when these become available please email me Robert@LivingPianos.com

How to Play the Bach Italian Concerto on Piano – Part 1

Welcome to my ongoing series of lessons for specific repertoire. I have much more advanced lessons on piano pieces on the way. If you would like to be notified when these become available, please email me: Robert@Livingpianos.com.

This is an iconic piece by Bach and it has a very interesting history behind it. While it’s called the Italian Concerto, Bach never visited Italy! In fact, Bach was German and traveled very little in his life. A concerto is a piece of music with a group of instruments or a solo instrument with an accompanying orchestra. This piece is purely a solo work – there is no orchestra or even other instruments involved. So how can this be a concerto?

There is no doubt that Bach was a musical genius. He spent his life in Germany but would encounter many visiting musicians from other countries. He would make a point of listening to the music and the styles of different countries and cultures and he would then emulate that in some of his own works. He wrote French Suites, English Suites, and the Italian Concerto just by listening to visiting artists.

Bach was an incredibly busy man. He had over twenty children and at one time composed complete masses every week for not one, but two churches! Even though he left an incredible body of work, most of his music was all but forgotten after his death.

The great composer Felix Mendelssohn worked at the same church as Bach had a century earlier and uncovered many of Bach’s manuscripts. He is credited with bringing the music of Bach to the masses. Even though Bach’s existing work is immense and diverse, it actually represents a very small fraction of his actual output – most of which was lost forever. There are even urban legends of people wrapping fish in Bach manuscripts.

If you’ve ever seen Bach’s original compositions you would notice that there are almost no dynamics written in the scores. If you see anything written in it’s most likely an editorial suggestion. Bach probably did not write them. A huge exception to this, however, is the Italian Concerto; every single section has dynamics. Not only does the piece have dynamics throughout, they are actually written specifically for each hand.

Throughout the composition, each hand will either be playing forte or piano. Sometimes both hands will be forte or piano and on other occasions, one hand will play one dynamic while the other hand is the opposite. This is the way Bach achieved the quality and sound of a concerto with only a solo instrument – he created the effect of large and small groups in a solo keyboard work with different hands emulating solo and ensemble playing.

So what’s the best way to approach this work? Being a Baroque piece, you will not want to take many liberties with the tempo; practicing with a metronome is advised. You should be able to maintain a steady beat while playing this piece.

You should also pay very close attention to the dynamics. In fact, this is the first piece I ever learned to play on the harpsichord because it was easy to delineate which keyboard to play on a two-manual harpsichord. I set one of the keyboard registrations to be loud and the other to be soft, allowing a very easy flow from one keyboard to the other by following the dynamics written in the score.

The other aspect of this piece to pay very close attention to is the phrasing. In my previous lesson for Bach’s Minuet in G, I mention a technique for using the wrist with the staccato sections and being able to link the notes almost seamlessly in the legato sections. The same basic principle applies to this piece as well.

These are some general tips and next time I will be covering other movements of the piece. Thanks again for joining me Robert Estrin: Robert@LivingPianos.com