III. Selected Topics in Piano Practice

• 1. Tone, Rhythm, Legato, Staccato
  • a. What is “Good Tone”?
  • b. What is Rhythm? (Beethoven’s Tempest, Op. 31, #2, Appassionata, Op. 57)
  • c. Legato, Staccato
• 2. Cycling (Chopin’s Fantaisie Impromptu)
• 3. Trills & Tremolos
  • a. Trills
  • b. Tremolos (Beethoven’s Pathetique, 1st Movement)
• 4. Hand, Finger, Body Motions for Technique
  • a. Hand Motions
  • b. Playing with Flat Fingers
  • c. Body Motions
• 5. Playing Fast: Scales, Arpeggios, and Chromatic Scales
  • a. Scales: Thumb Under (TU), Thumb Over (TO)
  • b. The TO Motion, Explanation and Video
  • c. Practicing TO: Speed, Glissando Motion
  • d. Scales: Origin, Nomenclature and Fingerings
  • e. Arpeggios (Chopin’s FI, Cartwheel Motion, Finger Splits)
  • f. Thrust and Pull, Beethoven’s Moonlight, 3rd Movement
  • g. Thumb: The Most Versatile Finger
  • h. Fast Chromatic Scales
• 6. Memorizing
  • a. Why Memorize?
  • b. Who can, What to, and When to, Memorize.
  • c. Memorizing and Maintenance
  • d. Hand Memory
  • e. Starting the Memorizing Process
  • f. Reinforcing the Memory
  • g. Practicing Cold
  • h. Slow Play
  • i. Mental Timing
  • j. Establishing Permanent Memory, Mental Play
  • k. Maintenance
  • l. Sight Readers versus Memorizers: Learning Bach’s Inventions
  • m. Human Memory Function; Music = Memory Algorithm
  • n. How to Become a Good Memorizer
  • o. Summary
• 7. Exercises
  • a. Introduction: Intrinsic, Limbering, and Conditioning Exercises
  • b. Parallel Set Exercises for Intrinsic Technical Development
  • c. How To Use The Parallel Set Exercises (Beethoven’s Appassionata, 3rd Movement)
  • d. Scales, Arpeggios, Finger Independence and Finger Lifting Exercises
  • e. Playing (Wide) Chords, Finger/Palm Spreading Exercises
  • f. Practicing Jumps
  • g. Stretching and Other Exercises
  • h. Problems with Hanon Exercises
  • i. Practicing for Speed
• 8. Outlining (Beethoven’s Sonata #1)
• 9. Polishing a Piece - Eliminating Flubs
• 10. Cold Hands, Slippery Fingers, Illness, Hand Injury, Ear Damage
• 11. Sight Reading
• 12. Learning Relative Pitch and Absolute Pitch (Sight Singing, Composing)
• 13. Video Recording and Audio Recording Your Own Playing
• 14. Preparing for Performances and Recitals
  • a. Benefits and Pitfalls of Performances/Recitals
  • b. Basics of Flawless Performances
  • c. Practicing for Performances
  • d. Practicing Musically
  • e. Casual Performances
  • f. Performance Preparation Routines
  • g. During the Recital
  • h. That Unfamiliar Piano
  • i. After the Recital
• 15. Origin and Control of Nervousness
• 16. Teaching
  • a. Types of Teachers
  • b. Teaching Youngsters, Parental Involvement, Mental Play, Absolute Pitch
  • c. Memorizing, Reading, Theory
  • d. Some Elements of Piano Lessons and Performance Skills
  • e. Why the Greatest Pianists Could Not Teach
• 17. Upright, Grand & Electronic Pianos; Purchasing and Care
  • a. Grand, Upright, or Electronic?
  • b. Electronic Pianos
  • c. Uprights
  • d. Grands
  • e. Purchasing an Acoustic Piano
  • f. Piano Care
• 18. How to Start Learning Piano: Youngest Children to Old Adults
  • a. Do You Need a Teacher?
  • b. Starter Books and Keyboards
  • c. Beginners: Age 0 to 65+
• 19. The “Ideal” Practice Routine (Bach’s Teachings and Invention #4)
  • a. Learning the Rules
  • b. Routine for Learning a New Piece
  • c. “Normal” Practice Routines and Bach’s Teachings
• 20. Bach: the Greatest Composer and Teacher
• 21. The Psychology of Piano
• 22. Summary of Method