I will be visiting the Charleston Chapter of MTNA on April 12. The program is entitled"Stop - Look- and LISTEN". I will explore ways to increase listening skills at the piano, looking at compositions by Bach, Beethoven and Debussy. In the Bach "French Suite in C minor" I will show how pattern definition can result in a musical articulation that reveals the character of the piece. In the slow movement from Beethoven's Sonata in C minor Opus 10, No.1, I will present various ways to conquer a very, very slow tempo which contains many quick and tricky rhythmic passages that decorate the line. In the Passepied from Debussy's "Suite Bergamasque" I will show how the piece as a whole is influenced by such a work as the Bach Corrente from the above French Suite. I will also show how to approach the pedal in Debussy in general, since no pedals are indicated in the originals.
I often find that teachers are very interested in Baroque ornamentation, but far less interested in the articulation. And the fact that most just use pedal to cover over a general dislike of holding any notes to create the necessary suspensions and resolutions within the line, points more to a technical problem then anything else. I will offer first the Allemande and Corrente without pedal, and then illustrate how just a very small dose of pedal can aid the performer in performance without blurring the line. So, many students play what I call Un-Holy Bach...they don't HOLD anything!! Just the addition of a few suggestion of how to play two melodies in one hand should carry a lot of interest for most.
This all takes place at Fox Music House, starting at 9:30 AM. If you might be interested you can email me for more info. www.jadams12@sc.rr.com
