Zigzag Practice
The intermediate piano student who has enjoyed playing CPE Bach's Solfeggietto in C minor will have learned how to convince the listener that the semiquavers passed back and forth between…
The Pot-Bellied Monster
Heinrich Neuhaus spoke of the pot-bellied monster, a fault in piano playing where the harmony swallows both bass and melody. I find myself discussing the layering of sound all the…
The Piano Teachers’ Course EPTA UK
The life of a pianist can be very lonely indeed. For polished performances hours and hours need to be spent at the instrument. Teaching (and for the majority of pianists,…
Playing by Ear
I had an email from a reader asking how he could learn to play by ear, so here are some random thoughts on the subject. When we play by ear…
Marking the Score
The other day I opened up a working score of the Frank Bridge Sonata I inherited from one of my teachers, Peter Wallfisch, and was struck by all the markings…