Onset asynchrony in Western art music

Melodic onset asynchrony, whereby the upper or some component of a musical simultaneity may strike the ear ahead of other sounds, is a common feature in the performance of Western art music. It seems to be of high aesthetic value in the history of pianism, often harnessed to the seemingly contradictory “bass lead” that prevailed in the early 20th century, though in fact the two are far from exclusive. Departing from an application of Brent Yorgason’s taxonomy of “hand-breaking” (2009) to canonical, composed examples of onset asynchrony from Beethoven, Schumann, and Liszt, we examine timbral, organological, and aesthetic continuities that underly distinct practices of asynchrony. We consider the physical nature of such normally non-notated “microtiming”, ranging in performance from a few ms of melodic onset asynchrony to about 100ms, above which it is generally agreed that even the casual listener may perceive it. A piano-roll recording by Claude Debussy, of “The Little Shepherd”, illustrates the mix of melodic onset asynchrony, bass lead, and apparent simultaneity that may be applied in a single interpretation. We then discuss the concept of “audibility” and the question of to what extent, and in what ways, the combined transients of piano attacks may interact. We consider with reference to 20th century Russian piano pedagogy why onset asynchrony seems to have been a little documented, rather than an explicit playing technique, even though certain sources, such as a 1973 treatise by Nadezhda Golubovskaya, show it to be ubiquitous and well theorised. Finally, regarding the thinking that has predominated in musical performance studies in recent decades, with its emphasis on average practices and “ordinary” listeners, we suggest that a new emphasis will be fruitful, that is, research on what is particular about the embodied creativity of expert musicians.

Õpimustritest muusikateose omandamisel klaveri algõppes

This article was inspired by the first author’s observations in the teaching process, which refer to different learning patterns in studying a piece of music. I have noticed that although I teach all the students by using quite the same methods, part of them remember the pieces rather quickly and they prefer to play and practise them from memory. Some others, on the other hand, prefer to play from notes, and they continue doing it during the whole learning process. The aim of this article is to find, by an evidence-based method, the occurrence of the abovementioned learning patterns and describe their characteristic features. In case peculiarities occur, which can be projected against the typology of different learning patterns, it is possible to study connections with the earlier learning styles and learning and information processing theories. It also enables us to offer applications for a more person-centred approach in piano pedagogy to enhance both the learning process, student-teacher collaboration, and the student’s development as well as make them subjectively more pleasant for both parties. To investigate the learning patterns in basic piano studies, I video-recorded the classes with students of possibly similar backgrounds, giving them tasks testing their memory and note-reading skills. Based on the analysis of the collected information, I made conclusions about the existence and nature of hypothetical intuitive learning patterns. The interesting observations made by formal and non-formal examination add material for future in-depth studies, as the described phenomenon should be approached, above all, as a continuum, which enables us to estimate students’ inclination towards one or the other side to a greater or lesser extent, and consequently, the application of a better adapted teaching strategies.

Performing skills of Li Yundi in the context of China's leading trends in the piano art development

The article examines how the performing skills of the outstanding Chinese pianist Li Yundi have been formed. Chinese piano art in a short time has reached the significant success. As Chinese performers have made a rapid rise in their skills, we can speak about the formation of special musical-performing principles, based on a strong national basis. Li Yundi's career success owed not only to a successful teaching methodology, but also to a deliberate state policy. The formation of Chinese piano pedagogy lies in the assimilation of European pianist-teachers' experience and the preservation of ancient Chinese national traditions. Chinese pedagogues-pianists often use elements of ancient art ‘Qigong’. The use of teaching methods in the two performing styles of "Wen" and "Wu" traditionally established in Chinese culture is also important. This work is intended to identify the leading developmental trends in Chinese piano performing and their role in the formation of young Chinese pianist Li Yundi's performing skills.The article reveals the peculiarities of Chinese piano performing, with its integration of European piano school performing traditions. Emphasis is placed on the performing problems of Chinese pianists' interpretation of European composers' piano works. Li Yundi, one of the finest performers of Frideric Chopin's works, is a notable example of Chinese piano pedagogy's successes in the multifaceted development of the pianist's personality.

I. B. KRAMER’S PIANO WORK IN THE ASPECT OF INTERRELATION OF PERFORMANCE AND COMPOSITION

Background. The article is devoted to the piano work of the famous English pianist, teacher and composer Johann Baptist Kramer (1771–1858), whose 250th anniversary is celebrated in 2021. I. B. Kramer, like other pianists of the late XVIII – early XIX centuries, tried to solve a significant problem – mastering the basics of composition, its laws, principles, techniques, their combination with the game nature and capabilities of the piano. Objectives. The purpose of the article is to reveal the relationship between performing and compositional means in I. B. Kramer’s piano works. Methods. The basis of the methodology is a systematic approach, through which musicological research methods are combined with historical ones. The main document of the era in the field of musicological research is the musical text, so the analysis of musical works is carried out from the standpoint of performance at the levels of performing technical means, musical thinking of the composer and performer. Other components of the texture, the development of its individual layers in the whole system, as well as the coverage of one or another feature of the playing nature of the piano are also taken into account. Conclusions. I. B. Kramer’s pedagogical system is considered, which is a system of technical means of performance, which contributed to the embodiment of the game nature of the instrument. In works of art, the composer used these techniques as needed to create a certain figurative sphere. Analyzed “Pathetic Fantasy” op. 87 (1837), four notebooks Suite – arrangements for piano chamber works of classical composers, where the composer embodied ensemble thinking on the piano, introduced the principles of dialogicity and comparison of registers as a method of artistic development of musical material. Results. Continuing the work of his teacher M. Clementi, I. B. Kramer contributed to the development of concert activities in Europe, the differentiation of pedagogy, performance and composition into independent musical activities. His methodical works and opuses of etudes were the basis of pedagogy for the next generations of pianists, defined the foundations of piano pedagogy as a scientific discipline. The piano instructional material created by I. B. Kramer allowed to master the techniques of piano playing in a short time. Along with L. V. Beethoven, I. B. Kramer made an important contribution to deepening the content of musical works by means of composer’s writing. The perfection of the presentation of piano technique had a positive effect on the development of compositional techniques in the works of the musician – the development of contrasting themes, the principles of development of musical material, the improvement of musical forms. The sphere of dramatic pathos and heroism defined the image of pathos in music, which corresponded to the possibilities of the instrument and at the same time contributed to the formation of a romantic style in piano art.

A NEW APPROACH IN PIANO TEACHING: WE TEACHERS CAN COMPOSE REPERTOIRE IN MINIMALISM FOR STUDENTS

Patterns and repetitions are the essence of studies and exercises for piano. In music history, among composers, Carl Czerny (1791–1857) composed a great number of easy pieces for piano pedagogy that widely employed patterns and repetitions. Nowadays, minimalistic music is a new style but overlaps with the traditional repertoire of piano pedagogy on this emphasis. To employ minimalistic music in piano teaching is a new approach. Further, piano teachers can even compose pedagogical repertoire in minimalism for students. Here, I introduced my own experiences of composing such music for my students. The result was proved satisfactory in teaching. Many piano teachers composed music for their students, which was a convention in piano teaching in music history. They contributed huge amount of repertoire to piano. In the meanwhile, they were dedicated to teaching as well. Nowadays, this practice is still shining in A New Approach in Piano Teaching 6 piano pedagogy. There is a great number of piano teachers who compose music for piano pedagogy. They naturally make the music collections and published them. Undoubtedly, music composition is a specific major study in music schools and conservatories. However, the twenty-first century is an era of free style, like you can mix drinks of different flavors from a beverage machine. Further, minimalism naturally brings a solution for achieving your own piano pedagogical pieces. You can have a try! It is so fun and joyful, when you teach your students your own pieces and then enjoy progresses your students make. Ultimately, this practice will bring you such happiness when they can even memorize and perform your music. Of course, it will be fantastic if you publish your music for piano pedagogy.

Music Psychology of the Piano-Playing Hands in Historical Discourse

Music-making hands have drawn considerable scholarly attention, featuring prominently in recent investigations in biomechanics, paleoanthropology, and cognitive sciences. Yet already in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, piano pedagogy theories were evolving not only in response to changing musical styles but also to scientific conceptualizations of the human body. Taking piano-playing hands as a platform for human/machine interaction, this article analyzes the historical discourse on piano-playing hands in relation to the contemporary scientific context and via the framework of cognitive science. In this process, these scientific and pedagogical writings, which have been previously discussed only dispersedly and marginally, emerge as more than didactic instruction. This historical discourse on music psychology of piano-playing hands points to music cognition that is extended beyond the body, situated in activity, and distributed beyond the individual.

Encountering Parallels: A Functional Overview of Piano History

The study describes the three-hundred years’ long development of the piano from the unusual point of view of the parallels between the piano itself and the performing arts, piano pedagogy and scores editing. Each of these components has its own power to induce changes and influence development, which also gives rise to the possibility of individual development in the examined period. The topic becomes complicated when we begin to take into account the effects of these elements. We can see a complete system, where the parallels really do meet, and finally produce a high level of the art of piano music in Europe. Keywords: piano, edition of scores, piano pedagogy, piano art