Ive never ever seen anyone explain this physical aspect of piano playing adequately. Technique is a barrier to me. I would not have gotten through this video without the captions. Im glad they were accurate. Great video.
Thank you Terence. Piano playing is probably the most complex neuromuscular endeavour that humans can do. Unfortunately, it may also be the most complex 'gymnastic' to analyse by simple visual observation. This is another reason to take the extra effort to understand our own physical action at the piano. Glad this video may be of any help to you. CS.
I really enjoy watching the animated finger, hand and forearm movement which enhance explantion easier to understand. Thank you for making this video with captions
Excellent presentation. Thanks. I compose for independent filmmakers and an international music cue library, based in L.A., and use (MIDI) an 88 key controller...so this will certainly speed up my ability to create material....
Buenos días Sr. Saavedra, como siempre muchas gracias por las mejores lecciones que se pueden tener, en didáctica, contenido y calidad, hecho que motivan enormemente el perfeccionamiento de este maravillo arte, muchas gracias nuevamente
So wonderful. I don't know why, but I was moved to tears during the "responsibility to lift finger". Is it because I feel like I penetrate in the "details". I'm Japanese, so I'm sorry if my writing is weird.
I didn't know you still make videos. I instantly subscribed and ring the notification bell. I have some question. How do you know Chopin's method and do you plan to make any video about Chopin's interpretation. For example: Did he play with tempo or rubato? How did he play a piece that is not his own work? These are so important for all Chopin fans because we all would love to know how chopin was playing his own pieces or others. Thank you for the video, this is subject that I was trying to understand. Can't wait to watch another video about our piano master!
I read many books about Chopin, someone very serious like "Chopin - Belotti", "Chopin - Zielinsky", "Chopin - Cortot", "La tecnica di Chopin - Rattalino" and others. From these readings it's evident that Chopin don't had a technique and in its time many peoples suggested him to write a method, but Chopin don't achieve that goal never (under pressur he wrote on details only the first lesson of this his method where nothing speaks about technique). The book from Italian author Rattalino "La tecnica di Chopin" (Chopin technique) is a personal vision of an hypothetical Chopin method; in my personal opinion, Chopin, and like consequences his pupils, his music friends and other pianist of his time, was every time focused on hearing the effect of playing and not how to obtain it. One example for all: Chopin says and write that every fingers is different from another and for this, in my opinion, there is not only one method but everyone must search own technique. I take this opportunity to write that, already in Chopin's time but today more than ever, performers abuse the right pedal of the piano; Chopin was particularly precise in marking it on his manuscripts and in requiring such precision from his students, but.... with his right pedal, interpreting Chopin is difficult! ...especially because we are now used to listening to performers who prefer the "filling charm" of the right pedal, ignoring the choices that authors like Chopin note in their music.
@@GianfrancoCavallaro I understand. Oh, dear Chopin... He didn't expect himself to be the most famous pianist in the world probably. I wish he did take some time to write a short 'Art of Interpretation' book. Anyways, maybe with his unknown mysterious playing, everyone will try to play and say 'he meant to play it like this' forever. I totally agree with sustain pedal incidents. The sustain pedals were not as affective as it is today. Especially in his Mazurkas, it is a folkloric dance music. Yes, there are some espressive ones among them but just because it is Chopin it doesn't mean emotional or using pedal to give reverb effect. For example: Chopin's op 6 no 2 (Second Mazurka), including Rubenstein most people play it slow and emotional as possible. Which I believe playing the main theme faster is the correct way to play it.
Thank you for asking such questions Demon! Please allow me to answer them in the same order: 1. Like most of us, I have heard about Chopin's quotes here and there. It was their compilation that made the whole difference in the world. Let's always recognise Prof. Jean-Jacques Eigeldinger for the research and compilatory work. 2. Chopin's interpretation is a fascinating topic. Thank you for this! Of course, there is always going to be some speculation about how Chopin played, sounded and interpreted. Fortunately, there are many written accounts of his playings. An interesting observation here is that no one in music history has made so strong an impact among contemporary colleagues as Chopin's playing of the piano. I gather so far that Chopin, just like Mozart, valued rhythm as a key variable in music. His devotion to simplicity makes us believe that for him, each note is already a world of meaning ... provided it is beautifully played. 3. There are two somewhat detailed accounts of his playing of Beethoven's Sonata A flat Op. 26. Both critics, being from different countries, differ very much! CS
Hello Gianfranco. By all direct accounts (students and colleagues), Chopin had very clear ideas about piano technique. Bordering in predecesing modern biomechanics, we should consider his own vocabulary: natural posture of the hand, support at the finger level, support at the hand-forearm system, the timing of the action (finger first), the mechanism and so on. Even if Chopin hadn't left these sketches, his own music (in particular études) speaks volumes about this novel scientific conception of the hand. Fortunately, Chopin did write the sketches, and did take them quite seriously (one of his last instruction while in his final moments was to save the équisses while burning everything else). The hearing effect you mention is more consistent with the Liszt school. Liszt gave feedback and instruction to his students meters away from the piano, while Chopin would closely observe and guide the pupil's hand on the keyboard. Chopin died young, Liszt lived until his 80s and markedly influenced piano teaching ever since. The consequences can be seen in the level of frustration, sound quality and injuries in present day pianists.
Thank you for answering. In the first decades of the 1800s it became "fashionable" to write methods and techniques for playing the piano: 1828 Hummel Method, 1831 Kalkbrenner Method, 1837 Moscheles / Fetis Method, 1838 Herz Method, 1839 Czerny Method .... everyone had their own! Since Chopin did not leave any writings or indications on the technique or method to be used on the piano, these are my sources, Kleczynski in 1879, after about twenty years of collecting Chopin material from various students and friends of Chopin, also wrote a piano method claiming to translate Chopin's hypothetical wishes that were never expressed, never written; in 1993 Eigeldinger does the same. Thanking you further for the space given to me, I underline that just as the tailor takes the measurements for each individual customer to sew a good suit, while at the store you have to adapt to the standard measurements, in the same way there is no piano technique that is adaptable to everyone and Chopin knew this Well; expecting to find one by naming it after him is, in my opinion, incorrect. However, I appreciate the investigative and scientific aspect proposed in your videos.
The highest distance is from a white key to a black key. So there raises a question: HOW to play it effectively when you start with thumb on black, finger 2 on white, 3 on black, 4 on white and 5 on black?
Hello. The first and perhaps most important step is to be aware of these "untamed" conflicts between the fingers and the keyboard. Next is to work slowly and consciously while avoiding any other finger/body tension. All this may be considered as the adult way of learning to walk ... five legs. Cheers!
Hello and thank you for the informative material on the method of fingering in playing the piano. Please help me learn to play chords on the piano. Chords and fingering are very important in playing them. I hope you have the opportunity to help me and I can receive your educational videos. Thank you dear teacher. With respect, Nasser. I wish you the best.
Thank you Nasser. I will cover chord technique in a near video (a near video probably means many more months). In the meanwhile, please observe a good finger technique. The most beautifully sound chords come from finger technique!
Dear Dr. Claudio A. Saavedra. I greatly appreciate your work and am very grateful for the fact that you share such a high-quality materal freely, accesssible to anyone interested. Recently, I have read the book you reffered to in the beginning of the series, «Chopn: pianist and teacher…». Could you, please, explain what is meant in here by «raising the fingers», since in your videos it is never shown that the fingers should be in any way raised: «Then we use a legato executed with the fingers raised considerably above the keyboard; and, finally, we have the legato performed ad lib., with a movement of the fingers more or less marked, modifying at pleasure the volume from ff to pp, and the movement from andante to prestissimo (D)» (about the five-finger exercise) «By this staccato exercise the hand was rendered familiar with the successive positions; then by the various steps of legato staccato, accentuated staccato, etc., the pupil got to the point when, raising the fingers high, the thumb was passed by the action of the muscles alone, the hand still retaining its horizontal position; the hand was thus prepared for the more difficult scales, and for arpeggio passages, in which the wide intervals were eventually reached without effort and without greatly raising the fingers. I know from experience that by this method an equal and steady style of performance is attainable even when it is necessary to pass the thumb after the fourth or fifth finger, as in the Scherzo in B-flat minor op. 3 (A), in the Etude in A minor op. 25/II (B), in the Impromptu in A flat op. 29 (C), etc.» (about the scales exercise) Thanks for your work and sorry for any mistakes, since English is not my mother tongue. Best Regards, IS.
Hello dear IS. Thank you very much for your valuable question. It is wonderful that you have read JJ Eigeldinger's book with so much care. Here a major distinction must be done between the text or quotes attributed to Chopin, from the account of third party authors. The referred paragraphs belong to Jan Kleszynski, and a special note was made by Eigeldinger about this in my edition (Fayard, 2006 in French). Not Chopin or any of his students ever mentioned the raising of the fingers over the keyboard. Hope this helps. Regards! CS
Does Shopin's approach imply that white keys have to be played by fingers 2, 3, 4 vertically in between black keys to maintain the natural hand position?
I was noticing in my studies that the faster the arpeggios, the less the individual use of the fingers and bigger the use of wrist gravity as an action force on the keys. Is it true or just a mistake?
Hello Sonico. Thanks for asking. Finger action is sacred in any piano musical figure. The fingers lead in the arpeggio just as our legs lead a dance. The only exception Chopin mentioned is fast octaves (more on this on a future video). The wrist, which is heavy, is always free to serve as support or as a universal joint. In piano playing, the wrist is reactive in nature. Cheers!
They are as different as it can be from a piano keyboard. To the extent that a pianist who spends time dealing with such designs should consider them as two distinct hand skills.
Regrettably, popular concert pianist are seldom the best example for good finger technique. This explains the high frequency of devastating hand injuries among them. Musically speaking, Chopin was quite blunt in separating the quality that is obtained intimately from the quality played for the public. In the later, the musician's body charisma is expected to be part of the worderment. Most of these face and body expressions, however, go against the detailed musical message that only the fingers can bring.
Hi! I was a member of the Patreon before but since I don't currently have a credit card I switched to the RU-vid membership. I was promised I'd get access to videos months in advance, yet I don't see any of those videos. When will they be released to the members only part of the channel?
Salam Cenab Saavedra teşekkür edirem ,sebrsizlikle,maraqla sizin deyerli derslerinizi izleyirem Xahiş edirem L V Bethovenin fortepiano yaradıcılığı haqda da metodik tövsiyeler vere bilersinizmi?❤🌺👍
Thank you for asking. I believe that Chopin's technical discoveries pertain to piano music in general. There is of course percussive expression in all music, and a particularly 'machine' type in the XX C that should only be played in modern robust pianos. In his moderate tempos, however, Beethoven was a meaning-in-each-note advocate. These fine nuances are best accomplished when the fingers lead the action. Best!
건반의 입체성과 그에 따른 손가락의 위치 인지입니다! 우리가 길가다가 턱을 알고 넘어갈때와 모르고 디뎠을때 충격이 다르듯이, 피아노에서도 건반의 입체적인 위치를 손가락에게 더 인지시켜주는것이 필요합니다. 고작 몇cm이지만 건반을 평면적으로 잘못 이해할때와 입체적으로 인지할때의 차이가 커요
Hello! Really wonderful question! More than any particular piano brand, it is the direct command over the hammers what appealed to Chopin. He praised other brands in this regards.
Hello Onlinelessons. This method is best for everyone wanting to play a keyboard satisfactorily. Young, old, beginner, maestro. Getting rid of a deeply rooted bad technique, however, requires extra attention and awareness. The good news: modern science shows that neural plasticity occurs at all ages and that mind-muscles connection with the correct biomechanics is very efficient. Cheers!
Thank you for your comment Sayed! Indeed, my voice is hardly appropriate to narration (in person is worse :) Microphones are not the problem I think (condenser type), but my lack of sound edition knowledge and the fact that I am not an English speaking native. Aware of all this, I try to compensate with detailed subtitling in 20 languages. Should I trust some voicing cover software available? Been reluctant when they sound commercial oriented. I will keep researching. Thanks again. CS
@@thechopinmethod7257I’ve rewatched the video to try to figure out the issue, i think there is some reverb/echo/sound muffling happening to your voice as I notice the letters you pronounce bled into the letters that follow. If its reverb maybe its a microphone/computer setting that you can adjust. If its echo perhaps get those sound boards that you put on the wall that have waves in them that reduce echo (idk their name).if its muffling, it might be the microphone itself. I noticed this issue in this recent video only so have you changed your recording place/ settings/ microphone? If so its probably the cause. If not try adjusting the computer settings/ room first before buying a new mic as they are the cheaper fixes Your English pronunciation sounds very crisp and comprehensible to me. P.S I love your videos so much as I study medicine and adore to learn how our anatomy and mechanics connect with the beautiful expression of chopin’s music!
@@thechopinmethod7257 i don't know anything about mics, but for what it's worth, it sounds increasingly worse the larger the speaker (best on phone, worse on computer, worse on tv sound system). There's a lot of air/background noise, and the audio direction keeps changing as well (your voice comes out more from the right speaker, then more left..)
