Famous Pianists and Their Technique, New Edition by
Famous Pianists and Their Technique has been a standard in the field since its first publication in 1974. This widely used and acclaimed history of piano technical thought includes insights into the techniques of masters such as C.P.E. Bach, Bartók, Beethoven, Brahms, Chopin, Clementi, Czerny, Debussy, Godowsky, Horowitz, Levinskaya, Leschetizky, the Lhevinnes, Liszt, Mozart, Prokofiev, Ravel, Rubinstein, and Schubert, among others. Called "the bible of piano technique" by Maurice Hinson, this book is a comprehensive resource for the student, teacher, and professional pianist who seek to discover the secrets of how the immortal professional pianists developed and polished their mechanical and musical technique. This expanded edition contains a foreword by Alan Walker, a new preface, and multiple new appendices.
Guide to the Pianist's Repertoire, Fourth Edition by
Guide to the Pianist's Repertoire continues to be the go-to source for piano performers, teachers, and students. Newly updated and expanded with more than 250 new composers, this incomparable resource expertly guides readers to solo piano literature and provides answers to common questions: What did a given composer write? What interesting work have I never heard of? How difficult is it? What are its special musical features? How can I reach the publisher? New to the fourth edition are enhanced indexes identifying black composers, women composers, and compositions for piano with live or recorded electronics; a thorough listing of anthologies and collections organized by time period and nationality, now including collections from Africa and Slovakia; and expanded entries to account for new material, works, and resources that have become available since the third edition, including websites and electronic resources. The "newest Hinson" will be an indispensible guide for many years to come.
Pianists Guide to Standard Teaching and Performance Literature by
This reference book is an invaluable resource for teachers, students and performers for evaluating and selecting piano solo literature. Concise and thoroughly researched, thousands of works, from the Baroque through the Contemporary periods, have been graded and evaluated in detail. Includes an alphabetical list of composers, explanations of works, and much more.
The Piano Practice Physician's Handbook by
Right now, all over the world, piano students are wasting precious practice time. And piano teachers are straining valuable vocal chords telling them to practice more. It's time to reexamine this setup, and cure the underlying piano practice ailments. The Piano Practice Physician's Handbook takes a fresh look at how piano teachers teach practice skills. These 32 piano student ailments and their cures open up new ways of thinking about piano practice problems. With this straight-forward and practical guide piano teachers can get their students practicing more effectively, making faster progress, and having more fun!
Practicing Perfection by
The memory feats of famous musicians seem almost superhuman. Can such extraordinary accomplishments be explained by the same principles that account for more ordinary, everyday memory abilities? To find out, a concert pianist videotaped her practice as she learned a new piece for performance, the third movement, Presto, of the Italian Concerto by J.S. Bach. The story of how the pianist went about learning, memorizing and polishing the piece is told from the viewpoints of the pianist (the second author) and of a cognitive psychologist (the first author) observing the practice. The counterpoint between these insider and outsider perspectives is framed by the observations of a social psychologist (the third author) about how the two viewpoints were reconciled. The CD that accompanies the book provides for yet another perspective, allowing the reader to hear the polished performance. Written for both psychologists and musicians, the book provides the first detailed description of how an experienced pianist organizes her practice, identifying stages of the learning process, characteristics of expert practice, and practice strategies. The main focus, however, is on memorization. An analysis of what prominent pianists of the past century have said about memorization reveals considerable disagreement and confusion. Using previous work on expert memory as a starting point, the authors show how principles of memory developed by cognitive psychologists apply to musical performance and uncover the intimate connection between memorization and interpretation.
Teaching Piano in Groups by
Teaching Piano in Groups provides a one-stop compendium of information related to all aspects of group piano teaching. Motivated by an ever-growing interest in this instructional method and its widespread mandatory inclusion in piano pedagogy curricula, Christopher Fisher highlights the proven viability and success of group piano teaching, and arms front-line group piano instructors with the necessary tools for practical implementation of a system of instruction in their own teaching.Contained within are: a comprehensive history of group piano teaching; accessible overviews of the most important theories and philosophies of group psychology and instruction; suggested group piano curricular competencies; practical implementation strategies; and thorough recommendations for curricular materials, instructional technologies, and equipment. Teaching Piano in Groups also addresses specific considerations for pre-college teaching scenarios, the public school group piano classroom, and college-level group piano programs for both music major and non-music majors.Teaching Piano in Groups is accompanied by an extensive companion website, featuring a multi-format listing of resources as well as interviews with several group piano pedagogues.