FROM LEFT AND RIGHT - THE PIANO

FROM LEFT AND RIGHT - THE PIANO

Introduction

 

Many times I have wondered whether or not I should publish a book of self-written notes on musical issues. It is my belief that silence is much preferred where nothing new and important is to be said.

But what does the word «music» and in particular the word «piano» mean? From a certain point of view, teaching or performing music, for example playing a piece on the piano, is somewhat similar to walking on tiptoe or becoming aware of extreme views from both your left and your right. Yet, you continue to walk on the tight rope, that is, you try to always follow the non-biased and royal route.

The various notions set aside in this book refer to the transformation of act into theory. It is only when you bury your own will behind the «ego» of the past and the present, behind the experience of other well recognised musicians, it is only then, that you become be capable of grasping the ideal and attainable beauty of the art of music. 

Within the pages of this book the reader can find many details concerning the movements of the soul and the body, the powers, possibilities and operations which concern music and which spring from the deepest human substance and nature.

The worse damage the conscience of any person may suffer, as far as artistic creativeness is concerned, is its compartmentalisation under the influence of scientific knowledge. That is why the need for a governing science, which serves the purpose of uniting the several secondary sciences, persists until today.

In the old days, a composer did not learn his art through higher educational systems (anyway, the plain study of scientific books usually has nothing more to offer than scentless and tasteless pieces of knowledge). Instead, he devoted his entire life, his whole being, into studying anything associated with the substance of his art.

Every human being is born with a certain number of talents, which one could define as the uncultivated abilities which God in multiple forms offers to each one, such as the ability of perceiving fine sounds, of visually committing to memory various analogies, of object equilibrium etc. From - 11 - the very moment of conception these begin to change shape and form. Each individual character, however, should try hard, adding many new aspects in terms of knowledge, emotion, skill etc., if aiming to reach perfection and to transform into a integral musical existence.

It is this process of gradual improvement that we attempt to describe as best as we possibly can within the pages of this book. However, once the student perceives and experiences these in full length (that is, once he himself empirically and practically experiences the objectives presented by this book), he must then unite all different strains of knowledge so that their form is transformed into one and only notion.

Man as an artistic entity aims in finding through music, and more generally speaking, through art, his idol; for he believes that this is real, with substance, and not imaginary. He, therefore, basically tries, consciously or unconsciously (the later case being the most common), to reach the highest possible point beyond which nobody else can go, that is the point of supreme beauty, of current loveliness, of everlasting heavenly music.

And it is only when exhausted from the numerous attempts and pursuits, after having tried all existing musical forms, it is only then that God may have mercy for his creature, for He can see his pointless search. And then, once you have humbled yourself to the point of realising your insignificance, God will reveal to you the true music, the angelic glorification and the glorious beauty that lies hidden within silence. 

This small essay is the result of experience that springs from many years of searching for vain knowledge. It describes, in every possible detail, the several movements of the body and of the soul, the «musical falls from both left and right», the route that leads towards musical perfection and most importantly towards the training of the artist for becoming a virtuoso.

The greatest, but unfortunately inevitable, as it seems, crime of our century, is the splicing of a living organism following its description, in an effort to understand this with our irrational reasoning. The consequence of this strategy is to lose the sense of integrity and hence of the essence of things.

Within the «being» of truly great composers, all elements composing the marvellous subject termed music are found together as a whole, - 12 - undivided, uninterrupted and not confused entity, as independent yet inseparable parts.

All potentials hidden within the human nature should follow an upward path, moving towards perfection as a unified and non-divided whole, unilaterally and anisotropically, so that no one strengthens at the expense of the others.

Our mind should be under continuous training if it is to become capable of receiving new musical inputs on a daily basis. Moreover, one should exercise body dexterity and ability: of the hand, of the wrist and of the fingers, of vision (so that the performer can «listen» to the music within his soul simply by looking at the score), of hearing (so that when listening to a piece he can «see» the music within his soul). As a final step comes the training of our ability in mastering improvisation.

This book is primarily addressed to piano professors, then to those performing this instrument and finally to advanced students trying to become initiated into the secrets of piano technique and performance.

We are convinced that it is as difficult to become a performer and a soloist, as it is to become a good professor. I say to become because you cannot carry with you by nature all the aptitudes of a good professor, except, of course, those innate qualities of transmitting knowledge and information.

To be an effective piano professor you have to analyse all facts, even the last subdivision, to disarrange them into pieces, to disassemble them into their components, to reach the inferior level of human being, to live the Crucifixion and then rearrange, reassemble them again, arrange them into bigger groups and ascent to the top of beauty of Resurrection and Transformation.

 

Christodoulos Vassiliades Lefkosia, 14 September 2013