Learning a new piece is a challenging and painstaking undertaking. Processing the significant amount of information on the page and then converting this into physical movements and refining these for accuracy can be an all-consuming endeavour.
However, music is more than just a mechanical rendition of a collection of notes. Alongside the note learning and finessing, it is vital we develop our own individual artistic image of the music, uncovering the composer’s message as we see it and formulating our own ideas about how the music should sound.
Your Artistic Image
Developing an artistic image is about identifying what you want to bring out in a piece, making it personal and meaningful to you. Before you start physically practising your piece at the piano, it is essential to have some idea of what you want to do expressively with it and what you would like to say about it in your playing.
This might involve considering what the character of the piece is or whether there is a storyline you can create or indulge in as you learn it. Some pieces lend themselves to a narrative that comes from our own imagination. Others might be more about moods, characters, feelings and emotions, or colours and textures.
The following is a useful exercise to activate and engage the imagination to formulate your artistic image: Close your eyes and imagine a movie screen in front of you. There’s a film playing and your piece is the background music. Then use your imagination to describe what you see on the imaginary screen!
Using Analysis to Stimulate Ideas
If you’re not sure where to begin, a further tool for aiding in the process can be to start out with an analysis of the content of a piece. This starts with basic information e.g. the name of the piece, composer, publisher and then delves into various analytical categories:
- Key Signature: Identify the key.
- Time Signature: Note the time signature and any rhythmic features or patterns.
- Melodic Features: Recognise recurring patterns or themes.
- Structure: Determine the design, such as sonata or ternary form. For example, a ternary piece (ABA) could be likened to a musical sandwich—what’s the texture of the “filling”?
- Modulations: Document any key changes with bar numbers.
- Phrases: Label phrases within each section.
- Articulation: Note the range of articulation required.
- Dynamic Range: Identify the softest and loudest points, and where the climax occurs.
- Note Range: Specify the lowest and highest notes.
- Harmony and Cadences: Note significant harmonic progressions or cadences.
- Musical Devices: Identify elements like sequences or chromatic chords.
- Textures: Analyse the texture, such as chordal, melody-accompaniment, or unison.
- Pedalling: Consider how the pedal contributes to the piece.
- Mood and Expressive Qualities: Use descriptive adjectives to capture the mood.
- Background: Explore the social, cultural, or historical context of the piece.
The objective of this exercise is to build a deeper understanding of the music beyond simply learning the notes. By analysing the piece, you gain insights into its construction and develop a clearer sense of what you want to express in your playing.
Remember – Developing an interpretation is a process, you will sharpen it up as you go along so don’t worry if you only have an inkling at this stage. The artistic image is personal to you – there’s no right or wrong!
Examples
The following are some examples of narratives and imagery from the repertoire to provide you with some further ideas and inspiration!
- A Fantasy Analysis of Brahms Intermezzo in A (Op. 118 No. 2) – Click here for Graham Fitch’s exploration of the touching backstory and his own narrative for one of the most beloved piano pieces of all time.
- Brahms’s Late Piano Works – Click here for a blog post with ideas for narratives on a selection of other late works by Brahms.
- Classical Examples – Click here to watch a video with a personal narrative for the opening movement of Beethoven’s Sonata No 6 in F Major (Op. 10 No. 2) or click here for a workshop recording by Graham Fitch on Haydn’s “English” Sonata, Hob. XVI/50.
- Stories, Images, and Magic from the Piano Literature – Neil Rutman’s best selling book which brings together programmatic, poetic, or imaginative musical images and stories on piano works from the classical literature.
- Awakening the Imagination Bundle – This bundle features a compilation of recordings and resources from online presentations by Graham Fitch on imagination, narrative and repertoire ideas.
- Making Friends with Beethoven – Amateur pianist Marie-Louise Curtis tells the story of how she grew to love a work by Beethoven which she initially struggled to relate to by creating a personal narrative.
- Isaac Albéniz Cordoba (A Parable) – Click here to read an example by Anette McAnn featuring her narrative for Cordoba from Chants d’Espagne, Op.232.
Share Your Narratives!
We’d love to know what narratives you have come up with for pieces that you’re playing! Please join our Learning New Pieces Facebook Group where you can gain inspiration from other examples, share your own ideas and access useful resources for learning pieces.