Dohnányi's Essential Finger Exercises: An Introduction | Kate Boyd The Piano Prof

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Finger Exercises at the piano are a good way to improve technique. But there are many ways to practice finger exercises, and there are also many different books of piano finger exercises written for pianists by various composers.
This video is an introduction to Ernst von Dohnányi's 1929 classic: ESSENTIAL FINGER EXERCISES FOR OBTAINING A SURE PIANO TECHNIQUE. I give an overview of this volume and also talk about the very idea of finger exercises and what a pianist can hope to attain by practicing them.
Dohnányi Essential Finger Exercises amzn.to/3c7F2hg
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Time stamps:
0:00 Intro
0:40 About Dohnányi
1:12 About the book
2:06 Finger exercises - what they are
2:52 3 reasons not to try to strengthen the fingers (with some cool pictures!)
4:54 The purpose of finger exercises
5:07 Etude vs finger exercise
6:16 How much to practice finger exercises at the piano
6:29 How to choose a piano finger exercise to practice
7:09 Keep the end goal in mind (making music)
7:46 Why Dohnányi published this book
8:23 Why you should memorize the exercises
8:40 Why I'm making this series
9:04 How this book is organized
9:30 Why I don't assign or practice exercises #1-11 from this book
10:47 Which finger exercises from this book I will cover in this series
11:42 How to get the music (or should you even bother?)
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• Dohnányi's Essential F...

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9 июл 2024

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Комментарии : 53

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd 2 года назад

Watch the first tutorial here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-OWz3rehXrkg.html

@fredericlinden 10 дней назад

I applaud wholeheartedly every word this lady says in this presentation. Every word ! Thank you very much for your contribution !

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd 10 дней назад

Wow, thank you! Glad you enjoyed it!

@piano9051 Год назад

I first learnt to play piano in the 1970's, and the aim of moving fingers independently of each other was still popular then.

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

Interesting comment! From what I have seen, I would say it's still popular to talk about moving fingers independently of each other, but it's also important to consider the movement of the fingers in the context of the whole playing mechanism, from the shoulder to the fingertip.

@piano9051 Год назад

@@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Thanks very much for your reply. Hahaha - it all seems like a delicate balancing act and needing to get all the constituent parts working together in the correct fashion depending on what technique is required by the music ! After watching this and other videos of yours, I've decided to book some piano lessons here in Blighty as it's been decades (how time flies !) since I last had any formal guidance and think my playing could benefit from some re-evaluation. Thanks.

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

@@piano9051 That's great! Congrats on your decision - it's really helpful to have direct guidance from a teacher. Good luck with it!

@oldsportpianogeek440 Год назад

A piano instructor assigned me these exercises a while ago. I was given #1 & #12 to start and I have been really getting into them making them the initial part of my on-and-off practice routine. Today, after so long I decided to look up information on how to advance on these exercises by doing them correctly, and to my surprise, I found this video which to me makes so much sense. I can't say I will stop practicing them because I kind of like them, but I am definitely changing the approach and the priority I give them. I will start working on your recommendations. Thank you so much for sharing your expertise with us.

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

Thank you for checking out my channel! And welcome! I'm glad you found this tutorial helpful, and thanks for your comment! 🎹🥳

@angelajacobson1890 Год назад

I absolutely love all of your tutorials! I use them for my own application and share them frequently with my adult students. Your explanations are very clear and always backed up with the "why." I feel like I have my own personal piano mentor while I'm in between semesters at University. I am excited to try these exercises. Thank you so much for sharing your expertise and breaking it down into small applicable tutorials!

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

Wow, it means so much to me to hear this! Thanks so much! Do you have any topics or tutorials you'd be especially interested in seeing me cover?

@angelajacobson1890 Год назад

@@ThePianoProfKateBoyd I have been thinking long and hard about what specifically I would love a video on, and currently choosing music for juries at University would be really helpful. Do you have specific requirements at your University? Where I attend, they require 3 pieces that represent different time periods. But how do I know if what I'm choosing is sufficient? Or too much (For instance do I need to play an entire Sonata or a Theme with all Variations or a set of Preludes? Or do I save that for Sr. Recital and just focus on getting smaller portions or movements really technically sound and proficient-and memorized?)And I would love to explore more of your "if you love this piece then try this one..." because it seems that everyone at University is cycling through the same 2 dozen pieces of repertoire and not branching out.

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

@@angelajacobson1890 Thanks for your thoughtful reply! There's a lot that can be said about choosing repertoire. I applaud you for trying to branch out - there's so much great rep out there. When you have a program that needs to be from different specific time periods, I suggest starting with the total amount of time you'll play, so you don't end up with too much material to learn. Then, if you play a long selection from, say, the Romantic era, you can choose something shorter from the Baroque era to balance it out. Your university will be able to tell you whether they want to hear individual movements of a sonata or if only the entire sonata is acceptable - requirements vary depending on the faculty and institution you're at. Typically, when there is a large set of pieces, e.g., Rachmaninoff preludes, you'd not be expected to play the whole set - just choose one piece, as they are typically performed individually. However, with Theme and Var, those are considered to be 1 piece and so it's unusual to only play a section of that unless you clear it with your teacher first. It can also be helpful to think ahead to what you want to play on your senior recital even if it's several years from now, so you can pace yourself and plan accordingly. This is something your teacher can help with. At some schools, jury prep is part of the recital preparation process, whereas at others, they don't allow students to duplicate pieces from a jury to a recital. It sounds like you're interested in a video with advice on choosing repertoire - is that correct? I'll put my thinking cap on and see what I can come up with! 🤔😊

@stephanierend1261 2 года назад

Excited for the series!

@MrRosendal Год назад

I really learned much from this introduction. Thank you Kate.😊

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

I'm so glad! You're very welcome! 😊🎹

@said1949 8 месяцев назад

Thank you very much , I have know Dohnanyi book , it is very expressive and valuable , I,m not advanced pianist but I find it good to me and gives abbreviation for the so much exercises and saving time.

@dunnkruger8825 3 месяца назад

Thanks

@roadguide123 2 года назад

thank you for sharing your knowledge

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd 2 года назад

My pleasure! Glad you are enjoying the videos!

@alanduncan4207 Год назад

Your series on the Dohnanyi exercises is really brilliant. Completely agree that the first ten isolation exercises are potentially injury-inducing. Similar to several of the lovely (but also possibly dangerous) Brahms exercises, e.g. 16 if I recall correctly. Also the view from the studio window looks very familiar and brought a huge smile to my face. (My daughter is a violin student at the Academy...)

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

Awww, I love Interlochen! Yay!

@MusicDive-ex7mi 2 месяца назад

Many thank for this video and clarification of the first exercises. At first I rejected your videos on Dohnányi because I took a peek, and I considered exercises harmful thus I assumed (wrongly) that you promote those. Irony 🙂 General remark, that (especially as a beginner) I wonder why this book in original form is still in circulation. It is like bag of cookies with common knowledge "they are great cookies, just remember to remove rat poison from the top".

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd 2 месяца назад

Thanks for your comment! I'm glad you took another look! 😊 As for your question, I think some teachers still use the early exercises, but I don't find them helpful because they teach habits I think are harmful. Also, Dohnányi was a historically important composer and teacher, and the types of exercises at the beginning of the book (holding notes down and isolating fingers) are found in many other piano technique books of that era, so probably they just leave it intact as a historical work and let pianists and teachers take what they want from it. 🤷‍♀️ Happy practicing!

@viviennehayes2856 6 месяцев назад

Excellent. Thank you so much 😄💖

@Lunar123424 Год назад

Thank you 😊 i am learning a lot. Greetings from the Netherlands 🥰

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

Thanks for watching - I'm glad you're here! 🥰

@Olleg.G 9 месяцев назад

Thank you for your video! I've started this exercises recently and i think too that independence drills are so scary! As for i find usefuls exercises with scales, especially playing them in thirds, sixths and in contraty motion. They help to improve independence of the hands.

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd 9 месяцев назад

Thanks for sharing!!

@faenrira1 2 года назад

thank you so much

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd 2 года назад

You're most welcome - thanks for watching!

@flatchannel1375 7 месяцев назад

Actually I find the exercises 1 & 2 quite useful as long as you don't practice them too long. Not to gain strength but just in order to be able to control de movement of the fingers independently. Sometimes I find that my brain doesn't know how to control a certain finger while maintaining another and, done slowly, I start to be able to do it.

@michaelbrown192 Месяц назад

Hi, professor Boyd, great content here! What do you think of Feuchtwanger excercises? The seem to have acquired cult status in some circles.

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Месяц назад

I'm not familiar with Feuchtwanger exercises.

@gregsheridan76 Год назад

This is a great video and introduction to the purpose of finer exercises. I believe that you can strengthen tendons overtime though it takes longer than strengthen muscles due to the difference in vascularity. I do believe that strengthening the tendons does not make sense for piano and further developing cordination and fluidity is much more beneficial. A question for anyone reading this. Are we able to strengthen tendon, ligaments, and fascia tissue overtime? I have heard of rock climbers working overtime to increase tendon strength.

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

Thanks for your comment! It may be possible for rock climbers, and I'm not an anatomy expert by any means, but based on my experience, putting strain on tendons and connective tissue in the arms, wrists and hands with regard to playing the piano is dangerous and can lead to injury. As you said in your comment, it's worthwhile to find other ways to approach the piano that don't strain tendons. Curious to hear if athletes/rock climbers have stories about strengthening tendons!

@d_rivadeneyra 4 месяца назад

I was wondering. Isn't there a lot of music that isolates fingers? The first that comes to my mind is bach, for example. How would someone practice that? Or should you simply not pkay that repertoire? Brahms also comes to my mind when we think of this subject.

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd 4 месяца назад

You can play any music without completely isolating your fingers. Your fingers will still move independently but the arm/wrist/hand will support and coordinate the movements.

@stephenvinson6474 5 месяцев назад

I'm curious how you view Independence Exercises by Isador Philipp based on diminished 7th chords. I noticed that you feel that the holding note exercises in the Dohnanyi are not a good choice. I am learning so much from your videos..

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd 5 месяцев назад

I haven't taught or used the Philipp exercises. It's certainly possible to practice these exercises in a healthy way but I wouldn't recommend them for beginners and they should be taught by a good teacher who can help with the choreography of the hand and arm.

@stephenvinson6474 5 месяцев назад

thank you . Dr. Boyd!!!! I use them carefully .. and I did not start them until I had a few years of technical experience under my belt....I do NOT hold down all the notes in the Diminished 7ths I avoid that kind of foolishness :) Its unfortunate that Dohnanyi and Philipp didn't have youtube!!! but even then I'm not sure they would enlighten us as you do!! I use them sparingly not for strength but for increased finger Interdependence ..they do seem to help in allowing for even ness for some reason and dexterity in playing "spread chords" or even to break them when needed- musically! I have also experimented with exercises by Terrence Rust.....the Intermediate Book. I have found that the first 20 or so of his exercises helped me to become more comfortable using the fifth finger and thumb together....increased facility. OH the Dohnanyi Exercise #31....quite similar to a Tausig exercise and much like Philipp....I haven't found your video lesson on #31 one yet. Looking forward to it. I know that the techniques you teach with each of these Dohnanyi Exercises can apply to other, similar ones. I call them "Mindsets" :) The HOW to's I feel that you are taking these exercises to another level where they make sense and become "safe" to use ....and let us know what the benefits are...accountability!!! In addition to that you weed out the non essential ones....those that do not offer us healthy ways of improving our playing!! again thank You!!

@alzhang74 Год назад

I’m at beginner level(learning some easy pieces inBurgmuller op100). I fear that these exercises might be too difficult for my level? Is there equivalent ones in Cerny 599 for the purpose of practicing the same skills? Thanks Alice

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

I would suggest taking a look at the syllabus for the RCM curriculum: www.rcmusic.com/learning/examinations/academic-resources-and-policies/syllabi-look-for-any-syllabus-below If you go to that page and click on the "Piano" Syllabus, it will download a free PDF document, which is the syllabus for all piano levels. The curriculum is graded levels 1-10. For each level there is a technique requirement (you can click through from the table of contents). They also have supplemental technique and repertoire books you can purchase to go along with the syllabus. If you are looking for a good progression to learn technique from the beginner level, that would be my suggestion. Hope this is helpful!

@scarlettrhettforever 2 года назад

What other books do you use for finger exercises?

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd 2 года назад

The main one I use is Dohnányi. I also like Czerny's School of Velocity, although those are already like short pieces. Other books include, of course, Hanon, Pierne, Joseffy, and more!

@Zorgcho 3 месяца назад

Interesting, I find exactly the first 11 exercises to be most useful 😂

@tfpp1 Год назад

Are you sure it’s not in public domain? I feel like I came across the book in its totality on IMSLP.

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

It's on IMSLP but there is a note on there that says it's "likely not" in the public domain in the US, so it wouldn't be legal for me to distribute it or download it in the US.

@monsieur171 Год назад

so this is supposed to be better than hanon?

@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Год назад

These exercises are not a substitute for Hanon; they are a different range of exercises put together by Dohnányi to address many different aspects of technique in as efficient a manner as possible. My experience with Hanon is that it can be helpful with dexterity, in that it presents many different combinations of finger sequences in the five-finger hand position.