Piano Catalogue

It’s not a ‘how to teach’ book, it’s a book of ideas, thoughts and fundamental principles, and yet I wanted it to be
more than just a sharing of information about piano technique and performance. In my early years my inexperience
as a teacher meant I often neglected the musical imagination and creativity that inspires pupils to put in hard
work and practice. I now strongly believe in putting communication, a love of the beauty of sound and an
understanding of the physical relationship with the piano at the heart of teaching to nurture a truly instinctive and
musical performer. Combine this with a relaxed, balanced and instinctive (rather than drilled) physical approach
to the piano and you allow the natural personality of the performer to emerge. This philosophy became the
overwhelming context of the book and linked all the threads together.
“It’s so full of wisdom, brilliant
technique [and] energy...all the
information and advice is clothed in
imagination making everything that is
perceived as difficult seem so simple,
clear and obvious.”
Hilary du Pré
[Music example 9]
Speed in an arpeggio figuration: Musical context and practical example
Burgmüller: L’Orage 1, , bar 10
Music context Rolling arpeggios represent
heavy seas or howling winds; the accent is not
too definitive, more an arrival at the top of the
phrase.
Basic technique The fingers should be kept
close to the keys. The arpeggio is gestural,
slightly rolled across the fingers but with active
fingertips (small movements of the fingers into
the keys). It should be articulated with a static
hand and high finger-lift.
Teaching effect pedal
Refined technique The crescendo is achieved
by releasing weight through to the weaker
fingers at the top. A more gestural action
involves a vertical circular movement of the
wrist towards the outside of the hand (which
begins before the first note is played so there
is no accent). The wrist should come up and
round as weight is released. Use a greater
legato (overlap of notes) at the bottom end of
the arpeggio to give it even more shape.
Further ideas Use differing amounts of weight
behind the hand, amounts of lateral movement
of the wrist and energy (speed) in the finger to
give different shapes and sound.
Place the pedal down and experiment with • Once the strings have started vibrating on
the sonorities using some free improvisation or the first chord, they then need virtually no
reinforcement at all to keep sounding so
Experiment with the effect of different
successive chords can be much more gently
dynamics, registers and even the balance of placed.
• The lower the strings the more quickly the
Notice the significant difference between the resonance builds.
sustaining properties of the lower bass strings • Balance is crucial. Project the melody to avoid
muddy sonorities.
Put the pedal down and by repeating the • ‘Effect’ pedal can be used to blend adjacent
same chord, create the effect of a continuous chords in various ways; a slow lift allows the
new harmony to rise through the blurred
The instinct will be to play a series of similarly texture, a quick release allows it to appear
weighted chords, but you’ll notice that the suddenly.
sound builds very quickly through each
Simple effect pedal: practical example
, bars 42 to 44
“Once in a while a book appears which
must be considered essential, an instant
classic, and this is one such publication.
The Piano Teacher’s Survival Guide
instantly establishes itself as the very
best practical manual available for
today’s piano teachers.”
Andrew Eales, pianodao.com
[Music example 10]
Speed in a scale: musical context and practical example
Burgmüller: L’Orage 2, bar 14
reduced weight will give the notated result
but it will not be a true legato and will be too
brittle and scalic. A lower wrist and a little
initial weight behind the hand, lightening as
the figuration progresses, will allow a more
connected sound and greater shape.
Refined technique A sense of gesture will
enhance the effect. A release of weight into
the first three notes, combined with an anticlockwise
lowering of the wrist will ‘walk the
Music context Exciting chromatic semiquavers
represent the dramatic cascade of water
weight’ across the keys for the first grouping
dripping off the cliff face after the wave (chord) and enhance the sonority. Fingers will need
crashes in.
slightly more time, creating a subtle ritenuto
and adding to the drama.
Basic technique Much of the excitement lies
in the rhythm and dynamic shaping so a more Further ideas Experiment with different
articulated approach is needed. A high finger amounts of weight, lateral movement of the
lift with speed and energy into the keys and wrist and energy (speed) and lift in the fingers.
Finger speed and agility
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Refined technique There is scope to place
the pedal with or just before the B which will
give a warmer and more rounded initial tone.
Chords will need to match the decay of the B
for a more evocative third bar and as the pedal
is being held they will need to decrescendo to
avoid a build-up of sound. Keeping an even
balance in the chords enhances the atmosphere
and stops them intruding upon the melody.
Further ideas Experiment with the degree of
tone on the B and the initial placing of the
pedal. Put the pedal down after the B and try
different speeds of descent to see what audible
difference you can discern.
Whilst, as the title suggests, it is to be a book that can be ‘dipped into’ it is also a book that can be read from cover
to cover. I hope that it will be the resource that both new and experienced teachers alike turn to when they need
inspiration or new ideas, and that it will be the springboard for development, helping them to understand the
challenges faced by young pupils. Above all, I hope it will encourage teaching that puts the pupil and teacher’s own
personalities and imagination at the heart of every lesson.
The Piano Teacher’s Survival Guide
The Piano Teacher’s Survival Guide is a comprehensive and practical guide
providing essential advice for all piano teachers. Aiming to improve and develop
confidence in teaching skills and piano technique, the book focuses on the best
ways to support pupils and develop their love of the piano. Featuring many case
studies, musical examples and problem-solving clinics, this is a rich resource of
basic principles, useful tools and thought-provoking ideas.
0571539645 The Piano Teacher’s Survival Guide Anthony Williams £12.99 €16.78
Faber Music Piano Catalogue
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