Of finger/hand/arm cramps and La Campanella - how to play it

Ah yes, the treacherous La Campanella.

The piece that every adventurous and serious pianist will try some time or other. I figured it was finally time to tackle it.

Now let's look at the difficulties of the piece, and how to overcome them:

1. Opening - leaps. No, slow sluggish practice will never help you reach the speed. I learnt it the tough way. Accuracy comes from slow but rapid motions. Contradictory?

2. LH melody - with so much going on in the RH, it seems convenient to leave out the LH. It's tougher than it seems - to bring out the melody beautifully! Separate hand practice would get that sorted. Try to do the LH without looking.

3. 2-1-5 repeated RH fingering. Ooh, that's where the cramps come in. Relaxing the hand will not help either. During slow practice, lock in the tension, but keep your hands supple and flexible.

4. 4-5 trill on RH. My uber-nemesis. I alternative 45 and 35 every 6 notes. Works a treat for me, but am still trying to get it to be even. Some people do all 45, others all 35, some do 3545 or 4535. I suggest try all!

(5. Repeated octaves on RH, and leaping octaves in the LH. Work in progress...)

Voila, end of piece! I've left out the less difficult passages imo, but everyone faces different difficulties. I hope you have fun playing it too!

Review: Simon Trpceski plays Chopin, Debussy, Prokofiev

Simon Trpceski, one of the world's leading piano soloists, gave a recital in cambridge yesterday, playing an ambitious programme of:

Chopin Mazurkas Op 24
Chopin Mazurka Op 17 no 4
Chopin Sonata no 2 in B flat minor, Op 35

Debussy Children's Corner Suite
Prokofiev Toccata in D minor Op 11
Prokofiev Sonata no 7 in B flat, Op 83

The mazurkas were approached with such poise that one might have mistaken them for etudes in coloration and tone. Trpceski is fully aware of each harmonic change, and with expert control of the pedal, he eases the listener into the subtle chromatic harmonies scattered around.

The sombre, somewhat stern and restless character of the sonata was apparent right from the opening, where Trpceski masterly creates an impetuous fire with tastefully placed hairpins. One could expect nothing less of the presto finale, where his rendition kept me at the edge of my seat.

Debussy's suite was a very welcome contrast - having said that, one could possibly say that Debussy took Chopin's numerous colorations and introduced even more possibilities. After all, Debussy did study Chopin very carefully, even editing his complete nocturnes. (ABRSM publishing)

Trpceski's approach to Debussy was warm and comforting. Dr. Gradus ad Parnassum was filled with lots of charming nuances. Subtle pedal changes and tonal translucency was unmistakably present, which created a great deal of colors from the Steinway D model.

Prokofiev's toccata is 4 minutes of molto perpetuo. Trpceski decided to go for a nuanced 2-in-a-slur (4beats a bar) variation instead of pounding through every note - which seemed unusual for a toccata. This later served to link the climatic passages in a much more coherent fashion. Trpceski decides to spare the use of pedal most of the time, keeping his Prokofiev very clean and discrete, which illustrated the unmoving pulse of the piece. The coda had a sudden acceleration and dramatic crescendo, and the glissando was played in a completely unexpected way. A truly memorable performance.

The first movement of the sonata was taken at a breakneck speed. Trpceski certainly used his fast tempo to create the inquieto and restless effect superbly, not stopping to take a breath even at the most treacherous octave cascades in the middle of the piece. While I felt that the 2nd movement could have been a bit more eerie and distant, Trpceski opted for the more direct approach in the presenting of the chordal progressions. The precipitato was very well-defined with accurate accents and not once was the tension abated - even in the quieter development - and towards the end, the clarity of the perpetuo was still maintained with minimal pedalling.

In summary, surreal Chopin, witty Debussy, breathtaking Prokofiev. A splendid performance.

Saint Saens Carnival of Animals - Aquarium

Here's a snippet of the recently performed Saint-Saens Carnival of the Animals!

This is Aquarium, which has a glockenspiel instead of a glass harmonica, with Ian Tindale (2nd piano) and Christ's College Orchestra

More recitals and concerts

It's been and will be a busy term! I've got 5 recitals, of which 2 had passed. They were:

Chamber Recital - Kelvin Chan (piano), Duana Chan (violin)
Duo Concertante presents
Dvorak Sonatina for piano and violin, Op 100
Grieg Sonata no 3 in C minor for piano and violin, Op 45 no 3
6 Feb 09

Solo recital
"Poetry and Invention in Music"
Chopin Ballades 1,2,3
Chopin Nocturne in B flat minor Op 9 no 1
Chopin Nocturne in E minor Op 72 no 1
Scriabin Sonata no 5
21 Feb 09


Upcoming recitals and concerts are:

University of Cambridge Philharmonia
Mozart Piano Concerto no 23 in A major, K488
Emmanuel United Reformed Church
7.30pm
28 Feb 09


Solo recital
Corpus Christi College
All chopin recital
1.15pm
6 Mar 09


Christ's College Orchestra
Saint-Saens Le Carnaval des Animaux
Great St Mary's Church
7.30pm
7 Mar 09


Certainly looking forward to all the concerts!

Piano technicals

Upon request! here it is - help on technique:

Technicals:

1. Seating position and posture - not too near piano, sit at edge of seat, allowing body weight to be shifted forward when necessary. It can be helpful at times to sit with the right foot flat on the floor, but the left leg bent more with just the toes (and not the heel) touching the floor. This allows body weight to be transferred to the fingers for maximum strength and volume.

2. Arm position/ seat height - seat height should be adjusted such that the arms are bent at the elbows at approximately 90 degrees. Increasing seat height gives more flexibility of wrist, and hence more power when playing, but that is coupled to a reduction in finger control. Similarly, a low seat height affords greater finger control and hence lyricism, but power is obtained less easily.

3. Hand position - asking someone to relax at the piano is to ask the impossible. Moving the fingers already generates tension. I think that when the term "relax" is used, it means suppleness, where the hand and fingers are free to move despite having to play one or more notes with the other fingers. Having said that, it can and should be encouraged that the fingers should relax after playing the keys, and no extra force should be applied after the keys are depressed. Upon lifting from the keys, the fingers should try to curl back to the natural position of the hand (obtained by supporting the hannd by the wrist and letting the hand go flaccid)

4. Fingers - strength, dexterity of fingers is absolutely for fine performances. This comes from finger independence, which can be gleaned from various exercises like hanon, or the Ted Joselson technique which i teach my students. It is quite common for some people to have curled up little fingers, or locked fingers, or thumbs which cave in at the joint at the base of the thumb. I think most of these flaws are caused by weaknesses in other fingers (usually 2, 3 and 4), which may lead the pianist to compensate its weakness by increasing the tension in the hand. Although the result will be a 'stronger' and louder sound, it lacks control and suppleness. Try practising in pp, focusing not to add surplus tension in the hand, by using the other hand to support the thumb (for caved-in thumbs) and uncurling the curled fingers. Only increase the dynamics when pp can be played quite comfortably.

5. Metronomic practice - yes it's the good ol' metronome. Start with very slow practice, especially for pieces with treacherous running notes or spreads or leaps, and drive home the rhythmic pulse right from the beginning. At this stage, be careful not to add any accents, which would be very audible when the speed is upped.

Murray Perahia - The complete Beethoven piano concertos

A close friend recently bought me the complete set of PCs by Beethoven, performed by Murray Perahia with Bernand Haitink and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, as a birthday present.

The New York Times said Perahia "Played with clarity, elegance and rhythmic crispness... creating a swirling, beautiful blur of colors." I think that really sums up the set very well. These 5 concertos are highly virtuosic, and Perahia breathes life into the demanding passages, which he tackles without flinching, and always playing it very musically with elegant phrasing.

The balance of sound was delicate, and articulation was simply sublime, with a broad range of colours extracted from both the orchestra and the piano to correspond with the varying moods of the concertos.

There are some people who would claim that live music is always more exciting and musical than a recording - this set is one of the few recordings that certainly debunk this claim - it couldn't possibly sound any better than this. A definitely must in every classical-music-lover's collection.

Alfred Brendel in concert - Mozart Concerto no 24

While currently still in the UK, i've had the opportunity to catch great pianists in concert. Last year i managed to catch Martha Argerich playing Ravel's G major concerto with Charles Dutoit (it was fab); earlier this evening, i went to Barbican Hall to watch Alfred Brendel playing Mozart's piano concerto no 24 in C minor, K491, with Bernard Haitink.

Brendel's playing is absolutely sublime and leaves the audience breathless. His ability to make the melodic line sing is exceptional - one can hear him humming the melody as he plays it - his engagement in the music is probably what distinguishes a person who plays the piano, to a true musician.

Brendel is rather liberal in the use of the pedal; he pedals through melodic lines, and even in runs with rapid flutter pedalling - yet all are in good taste, without shortchanging the clarity and brilliance. Perhaps how he does it is by a lighter staccato touch?

After a dark opening by the orchestra, Brendel enters pensively, retaining the solemn mood of the orchestra. He changes colours so very often with the selective use of the pedal, and creates wonderful balances of sounds when playing with the orchestra, so that he is neither too prominent, nor too distant. The cadenza retains the essence of the movement and is superbly Mozartian, recapitulating the original motifs and (surprisingly not ending with a trill!) leading the orchestra in gently into the coda.

I found the second movement a tad too fast for my liking - i feel that the second movement is somewhat aria-like, and could be allowed for more time to breathe. Having said that, Brendel must have thought through it, as he still managed to put his finger on the pulse of the movement - the only drawback of the speed was that when the solo flute and bassoon had a conversation, they struggled to keep in time with the piece with the required rapid runs.

The last movement was necessarily restless, and Brendel led the orchestra with his vivacity and drew rich sonorous chords, with a refreshing contrast in the light-hearted interlude in the middle of the movement.

A splendid performance of the concerto, which rendered him unanimous standing ovations, so much so as to call him onto the stage 5 times, before he relented to play an encore - Schubert Impromptu D935 op142 in Aflat major. Once again he showed his mastery in creating magical shades and colours, even at dynamics of ppp.

Now my only grievance is that the concerto was too short - i would certainly like to listen to him more!