FROM LEFT AND RIGHT Technique

FROM LEFT AND RIGHT

Technique

«Everything in music moves both paralled and opposity. Transform difficult parts into easy ones and easy ones into difficult».

 

1. Generally speaking, fingers should be at very close distance to the keys; the wrist should move, but as little as possible.

2. Movement of the wrist or of the hand, in the upward or sideways direction (as for example in Mazurkas and other dancing plays), if not affecting the note following, is necessary and assists the better expression of the spirit of the play.

3. The wrist usually moves to the left or right according to the flow of the melody.

4. Having learned to examine human substance in its entirety, scientifically and systematically, internally and externally, man can by himself learn everything.

5. Movement shall come naturally, on its own, when you allow yourself to loosen up and relax.

6. To be able to perform a composition as best as you possibly can, you should be completely relaxed.

7. Usually in music everything moves both in paralled and opposite direction. When playing a fast piece you should relax, whereas when performing a slow piece you should try to preserve movement within melody.

8. When originally studying a piece at a slow rhythm, you should allow yourself to be rightly expressed by means of appropriate movements of the fingers, wrist, hand and body, analogously, avoiding exaggerations. In this way, when learning to play the piece at its normal tempo, these movements will, within the correct boundaries, become natural, thus aiding and assisting the correct interpretation and performance of the composition.

9. The wrist should always, especially when you are studying, maintain an elastic movement in all directions (upwards, downwards, to the left and right). In this way, when learning to play the piece at its normal tempo, movements will become limited within their natural boundaries.

10. If you have to play two or more notes simultaneously, you should slightly tighten your fingers in order to achieve this. It is self-explicatory that it is not the fingers but the wrist, in combination with the hand that perform the chords.

11. During a proper execution of a trill, fingers hold 50% of the movement, the rest 50% being held by the wrist. The slower the trill, the bigger the movement of the wrist, whereas the faster the trill the more the movement of the wrist is reduced. While that of the fingers is increased. When wishing to perform the trill loudly (forte), use your wrist more (80%) and your fingers less (20%) frequently. When wishing to perform the trill lightly (piano) (the way in which it should usually be performed), use mostly your fingers (80%) and less your wrist (20%).

12. Performance of fast solo compositions presupposes three factors: a. Grouping b. Preparation of position c. Performance, where required, using positions instead of fingering.

13. Sometimes you have to tighten your fingers (especially when playing chords), while on some other ocassions you may have to loosen them. As long as you allow yourself to feel relaxed, the guide for when to do each, so as to transmit the analogous strength to the fingers, is your own self.

14. Chords of the harp mainly include the movement of the wrist and to a much lesser extend of the fingers. Thus, learning the art of how to change difficult parts into easy ones, and vice versa, is very important.

15. When performing a small trill or a fast appogiatura, raising your wrist slightly prior to the musical ornament immensely aids in their correct performance.

16. For purely technical reasons, a group of notes belonging to one hand may be chosen to be played by both hands; the music produced, however, should sound as if being played by one hand alone. As a first step you should study the notes just using one hand, allocating them analogously to both hands only as a later stage, yet paying attention to - 32 - retain the same hue, as if they are being played not by two, but by one hand alone.

17. When performing chords, stabilise and slightly tighten your fingers, while always keeping your wrist loose, so as to be capable of playing the different notes simultaneously.

18. For fast parts or pieces, movements of the fingers should be minimised as much as possible, while movements of the wrist and hand should become more frequent. This, of course, is always relative and analogous.

19. Every time you have to learn a composition, group together all notes into positions with the appropriate fingering; when in the same position, it is the fingers which play and move more rather than the wrist.

20. A basic rule on how to play notes quickly while keeping the wrist in the same position, is to move your fingers at a close distance to the keys; the wrist should be kept stable and passive, avoiding unnecessary and pointless movements.

21. When having to perform a slow and tranquil movement of a composition, exaggerate and emphasise notes of great values, so as to avoid breaking of the sound at the middle or towards the end of these notes by the sounds of other voices that may interfere.

22. On the contrary, notes of small value should be performed softly and gently, without any effort at all from your behalf.

23. When the sign of a small trill is found above a note, it is good to first perform that part without the trill, so that the correct rhythm can be imprinted in your soul; add the small trill at a later stage. In this way you will succeed in achieving rhythmic accuracy.