Thoughts on the conclusion of piano teaching method

Yesterday, I finished the piano teaching method for one semester. This is the second time to attend this course in the Central Conservatory of Music. Compared with the first time, I have a deeper understanding of some points I don't understand and a higher understanding of the handling of music.

Piano teaching is mostly taught by hands-on teachers, so what students learn from teachers will be passed on to his students. In piano teaching, there are many methods and schools, which can't be said to be wrong, but in the course of piano development, the teaching method has also changed, so modern piano teaching has been very different from the original, but there are still many people who use some ancient teaching methods in piano teaching. For example, when playing the piano, you are not allowed to move your wrist, put a coin in your hand to prevent it from falling, and so on.

Let's talk about the most subversive thing about this course: hand shape

This is what all beginners have to contact, and it is also the most emphasized by teachers at the beginning. A lot of times, it depends on whether the students play well. First, look at the hand shape. If the hand shape is not good, it will not play well. When it comes to students' problems, they often start with their hands. In the past, I also emphasized the hand shape in my teaching. The requirements are: put your hand on the piano, open your fingers naturally, and you can hold eggs inside; Or slowly release the hand after it is clenched, and the hand is in a semicircle state.

when playing, it is required to keep a good hand shape. There are two common playing requirements;

the first type: after the hand shape is set, which finger is used to lift it high, and all the other fingers are fixed on the keys.

the second type: swing the hand first, and then directly press the key when playing with one finger; The fingers at the back, 2, 3, 4 and 5, should be lifted and dropped together when playing, and the strength should be put on the finger to be played, and the other fingers should be kept in good shape and put on the keys.

Now, the understanding of hand shape is: hands naturally droop, and hands naturally form an arc. When you gently put them on the piano, the hand shape will be ok.

when playing, the hand type is required: all fingers are open, and there is a certain distance from the piano. If you play any sound, press the key for each finger you need, and all the other fingers are still on it, making it open.

When I am learning the piano, my fingers are not allowed to tilt up. No matter what method is used, my finished hand must be in good shape on the piano. Because at that time, 4 or 5 fingers were always up, and I was beaten by the teacher. The back hand shape, when playing, the fingers are all open on it. According to the previous requirements, this is definitely wrong.

However, the scientific teaching method now is the second one, and the fingers that don't need to be played are all open on it. There are two reasons:

First, the second one is faster, because there is no finger lifting in the middle. For example, playing three notes, with the second method, can be completed by pressing the key directly with three fingers, while the first method requires five actions.

Second, the piano is an auditory art, and what kind of sound is more important than what kind of hand shape it is. Just like in the past, teaching was more about staring at students, watching hands, reading scores and watching movements. But you should really listen with your ears, not your eyes, and what kind of timbre he plays is the key. When the sound is wrong and the timbre is inappropriate, even the best hand shape is useless.

It can be seen that the hand shape is not the most important when playing, and the hand shape will also change according to the sound of the music.

it needs to be emphasized that hand shape is not as important as we thought, but it doesn't mean that you just let yourself go when you start learning, and there are still some rules. At first, the hand is open, but as the difficulty of learning deepens and the speed increases, the hand will be lowered lower and lower, and the higher the level, the more ways to play the keys will be.

A new understanding of "playing"

Piano needs fingers to play, but just playing this piano, many sounds or sound patterns are really not "played" as previously understood. For example, Mozart's left hand has a special number of (1535) tones, which are also common in many etudes. The tone is very simple and easy to play, but it is not easy to play well. The key lies in the first tone. As I understood before, if you want to "play" with your fingers, the first tone will have an accent effect, and it will be played quickly, which is not good and the sound is too hard. Play lightly, and the effect is not good. Now I know that this sound is not played by "bouncing", but by touching the key with the power of the arm. This kind of "bouncing" method will form a rhythmic rhythm when the speed is fast. This is the sound and feeling that can't be made when you knock with your fingers. They are all "bouncing", but the movements are completely different and the sounds that come out are also completely different. If you "bounce" with the strength of your arm, your voice will be smoother when you are fast, and you will have a backbone and layers.

In many works, the sound or some sounds need to be played by fingers, but more often by wrists and arms, or even by physical strength.

Rhythm of Rhythm

I didn't have any concept or idea about rhythm before teaching or playing, until in class, the teacher played the same tune with a totally different timbre and feeling from ours, which touched me very much. Why can't I play such timbre and feeling? This is the rhythm of rhythm. No matter how simple a piece of music is, it has its inherent rhythm, but it is ignored by us, and we think it is simple, so we don't pay attention to it.

The trend of phrases and the connection between sentences do not exist in isolation, but they are inevitably related, which requires us to consider the touch keys and strength between sounds clearly when playing, rather than the isolated sounds.

Use wrist and arm more

In the above example, the use of wrist and arm has been introduced in "play". Playing the piano is a complex coordinated action of the body. To make a good sound, it needs the whole cooperation.

Modern pianos can be said to be playing with wrists and arms, not just fingers as previously understood. After all, the power on the finger is limited. The piano is much heavier than before, especially the nine-foot grand piano, which is heavier and more difficult to play than upright piano. Therefore, relying only on fingers can not satisfy the expressive force of music, but more need to use the wrist to transfer strength, and use the arm to transfer the strength of the body to make a fuller and more powerful sound.

understanding of "p"

"p "is short for piano, which translates to piano. "P" is a common symbol in the expression terms in music, which translates as "light", meaning to control the volume when playing, and not to play too loudly.

In my previous teaching, when I saw "P", I would ask students to play lightly and make a difference and contrast with "F". I found that students often can't meet my requirements, either they can't lighten up or their voices are empty. Now I understand that at that time, I asked junior students to do a very advanced action. Before they mastered this skill, ordinary students could not do it unless they were gifted students.

"p" is very difficult in playing, and the demands on opponents are very high. Hold on to your hand, don't loosen it, and control the strength and speed of pressing the key, so you will be tired after playing your hand, instead of just pressing the key lightly as previously understood. At the same time, because of the limitations of the teaching environment, I have never thought about what kind of environment the music will eventually be placed in, so that students will be required to play according to the existing space standards, and the volume requirement for "P" will be lighter. How to ask for the volume is another change that impressed me deeply.

How to ask for the volume

Piano classrooms in general music shops are very small, and even if they teach at home, they are restricted by the room. We often ask students how to deal with the volume when playing according to the size of the existing space. The volume played by students is suitable for a small room to listen to. The piano performance or competition is ultimately on the stage, in the concert hall.

So, at the beginning, we should ask the students according to the volume of the concert hall or the big room. Only in this way can the sound played be heard in every corner in the subsequent competitions, exams and even performances. Especially now the competition is basically grand piano, and it needs more strength to pop up the sound. Compared with the previous teaching, the overall volume of playing is bigger and fuller. When playing "P", you should not only be light, but also need more strength to play low than before, even if it is light, you should have a full and transparent voice.

I think so much today, and there is no end to learning. I don't know if I am the frog at the bottom of the well. Teaching and educating people, students are most afraid of meeting irresponsible teachers, and teachers are most afraid of stopping their own growth. The revolution is still on the road and there is a long way to go!