Browse online piano courses, available exclusively on tonebase Piano.

Taught by 

Nicolas Namoradze

In this lesson, Georgian pianist Nicolas Namoradze guides you through J.S. Bach's Partita No. 6 in E Minor, BWV 830.<br>Namoradze begins by discussing the Partitas as a set and their place in Bach's oeuvre, before considering the question of playing Bach on a modern piano.<br>He continues for the remainder of this lesson by delving into the opening Toccata, first giving an overview of its form and character before tackling the movement section by section, exploring the key musical features of each part and discussing how you might approach practicing and performing the work.

Taught by 

John O'Conor

In this lesson, Irish pianist John O'Conor performs and guides you through the first movement of Beethoven's so-called "Moonlight Sonata."<br><br>As O'Conor points out, the biggest difficulty of the movement is balancing the accompaniment with the melody in the right hand. You shouldn't approach the key too vertically or risk over-articulating the triplets. Instead, pet each key almost horizontally back towards your body, as if painting with a paint brush, and you'll create a smooth and flowing texture.<br><br>To express the melody effectively, O'Conor insists, you must really listen to the decay of each note. Your work is not done once the key is struck.<br><br>These techniques will take you through most of the movement, as the texture remains more or less uniform throughout. O'Conor shows you nuances, hidden melodies, pedal tricks, and expressive devices, that will improve your musicality and allow you to find your own voice in this most famous piece.

Taught by 

Jerome Lowenthal

In this lesson, American pianist Jerome Lowenthal introduces Schubert's first set of four Impromptus, Op. 90 (D. 899), before walking you through No. 1 in C minor. This work, as Lowenthal demonstrates with several examples, is an example of an artist borrowing from his predecessors, in this case Beethoven. <br><br> Emphasizing a narrative approach, Lowenthal likens the lyrical first theme to the opening of Rachmaninoff's Third Concerto. He then demonstrates the character of the music as it transforms and moves to the second theme. <br><br> Lowenthal shows reveals how the work is structured in a quasi-sonata form, and how you can make sense of this unusual structure by applying the narrative interpretation and developing the drama. In the technically challenging middle section, Lowenthal urges you to mold your mechanism to the music, so that technique is never divorced from expression. A grasp of the meter and a sense for how the phrases are shaped aids in developing facility. <br><br> In the end, Lowenthal quotes Robert Browning – "a man's reach should never exceed his grasp" – to encourage you to tackle this works challenges, both technical and musical.

Taught by 

Inna Faliks

Female composers in every era have experienced setbacks just because of their gender. This beautiful sonata by Clara Schumann is a case in point: although it was written in 1842, it wasn't published until 1991. Join acclaimed pianist and professor Inna Faliks for an exploration of what we've been missing.<br><br>This video features the songful slow movement. Learn how varied voicing and deft pedaling will bring the string-quartet-like texture to life, and how to make the melody soar with apt fingerings, rhythmic subdivision, and singing it aloud. There is also a complete performance for you to hear how Faliks' ideas work together harmoniously.

Taught by 

Frederic Chiu

Chopin believed the melody of his E Major Étude, Op. 10 No. 3, to be the most beautiful he ever composed. Join American maverick Frederic Chiu as he explores the many layers of this multifaceted study.<br><br>For Chiu, the primary challenge of this Étude is "multitasking" to give an independent character to multiple simultaneous layers. He offers three spectrums you can control to achieve this distinction: dynamics, timing, and his trademark "surgical shift pedal" technique. After demonstrating each in turn, Chiu confronts the animated middle section, offering tips for simplifying the intricate patterns of devilish dyads. Finally, he considers the question of how to interpret the work's three-part form, providing strategies for expressing the return to the beautiful opening theme. 

Taught by 

Frederic Chiu

As with most revolutions, Chopin's C Minor Étude, Op. 10 No. 12, begins with a crisis. Join maverick American pianist Frederic Chiu as he deconstructs the drama of Chopin's "Revolutionary" study.<br><br>For Chiu, the rapid lefthand passagework is a diversion from the true technical and musical challenge of the etude, which is capturing the rhetorical drama latent in half note motif that dominates the score. In order to inform your physical inputs, you first have to develop a conception that depicts the struggle of the half steps in both left and right hands. Then, when larger intervals are introduced (even as small as a whole step), suddenly the entire landscape is altered and new horizons emerge. The dramatic arc of the piece arrives finally in a coda tinged with defeat and withdrawal before a final last outcry brings closure to the tumultuous events. 

Taught by 

Frederic Chiu

Pianists have a love-hate relationship with the Chopin études. Beautiful but deadly, these treacherous pieces have been an essential part of piano studies for almost two centuries — but how often have they been seen in an entirely new way? Frederic Chiu is famous for his maverick interpretations, and he brings this unconventional approach to a set of four etudes: two of the most popular, and two that are lesser-known. With Chiu’s fresh perspective, you’ll learn how to project lyrical beauty in Op. 10 No. 3 (“Tristesse”) and craggy intensity in the famous “Revolutionary Etude” Op. 10 No. 12. In the less famous etudes, Nos. 10 and 11, Chiu shows how to master Chopin’s rhythmic and textural layers using the “rotating board” technique and a unique left-pedal tactic that creates a special, high-contrast effect. Art thrives on new ideas, and this provocative course will give you tools to improve everything you play.

Taught by 

Evan Shinners

Join Bach-specialist Evan Shinners for a look at the up-beat and energetic Prelude in D Minor, BWV 875 – one of the more approachable works from Book Two of the Well-Tempered Clavier.<br><br>This Prelude exists in an earlier version, which Shinners plays through for comparison purposes. Knowing how Bach updated and improved the work can help shape your interpretation, as can understanding what D minor represented in Bach. Shinners offers historically-informed guidance on matters of tempo, ornamentation, and articulation, and demonstrates how to choreograph some of the trickier passagework on a modern piano. He ends with a walk-through of the work, breaking down the technical and musical challenges in each phrase.

Taught by 

Evan Shinners

Join young Bach hotshot and Yamaha artist Evan Shinners for a lesson on one of the most popular preludes from Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier. His holistic insights set you on a path to playing this work with ease, beauty, and clarity of expression.<br><br>To help you avoid fatigue in this relentless prelude, Shinners offers advice on choosing a suitable tempo for each section, supported by natural phrasing that suits the melodic contour, meter, and harmonic events like modulation. He also shares insights on the prelude’s overall structure, proceeding from toccata-like figuration to a pedal point underpinning a more vocal style that mimics speech, recitative, cadenza, and soliloquy. He even finds time to discuss Bach’s interest in numerology.<br><br>Alongside these interpretive remarks, Shinners never fails to provide practical reminders of efficient, step-by-step technical solutions and groupings to help you master this prelude without physical strain.

Taught by 

Evan Shinners

One of the most recognizable piano works ever written, Bach's C Major Prelude BWV 846 is also one of the most misunderstood. Yamaha Artist and Bach guru Evan Shinners re-introduces you to the work in its historical context as an etude for your ears.<br><br>Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier was not only a database of compositional techniques and an exhibition of creative ingenuity, it was a treatise on composing in every key. Modern "equal temperament" was but one of many "well-tempered" systems allowing for limitless transposition, and not Bach's preferred tuning scheme in his 48 Preludes and Fugues. Shinners discusses how each key still had subtly different proportions and characters, and the first Prelude is Bach's appeal to open your ears and absorb the myriad relations between minor and major thirds.<br><br>Listeing to the intonation of your instrument will directly inform your interpretation – your choice of tempo and your decision to use pedal. Meanwhile, "clavier" was a collective noun in German that referred to a number of keyboard instruments, and considering which instrument Bach had in mind for the Prelude. As the work unfolds, Bach compresses a phrase in a manner that sharpens the suspenseful harmonic development, a fact lost on square 19th-century editors. <br><br>Shinners then addresses the physical experience of performing the work – how to practice the more awkward figures, determine fingerings, and allow the natural shape of your hand to roll through each broken chord like the spokes of a bicycle wheel.

Taught by 

Dominic Cheli

In this course, Dominic Cheli will guide you through the basics of playing arpeggios at 1-octave, to developing speed, accuracy and relaxation in virtuoso 4-octave arpeggios.

Taught by 

Jarred Dunn

Jarred Dunn presents a comprehensive guide to Chopin's Mazurkas. In this course, he discusses how to interpret the mazurkas, historical context and the hidden dances, as well as style, expression and lessons on specific mazurkas.

Taught by 

Claire Huangci

In this course, Claire Huangci teaches how to play repeated notes starting with 1 finger all the way to using all 5. She teaches how to balance speed with power and the correct way to use the finger, wrist and arm.

Taught by 

Ben Laude

In this course, Ben Laude teaches the fundamentals of rhythm and meter starting with the basics of note values and time signatures, leading to complex polyrhythms, syncopations and how to feel rhythm at its core.

Taught by 

Garrick Ohlsson

In this six-lesson course, Garrick Ohlsson sets out to demystify the work’s technical challenges and reveal the economy of means underlying the seemingly infinite surface of notes.

Taught by 

Nikolai Lugansky

Famed Rachmaninoff interpreter Nikolai Lugansky shares a course exploring the ideas that fired the composer’s (very active) imagination.

Taught by 

Boris Giltburg

The name “Rachmaninoff” has become synonymous with the passion, pathos, and power of the composer’s music. Nowhere are these qualities more on display than in Rachmaninoff’s music for piano and orchestra. In this series, Ben Laude sits down at the piano with one of today’s leading Rachmaninoff exponents Boris Giltburg for an engrossing deep dive into Rachmaninoff’s breathtaking tetralogy of piano concertos.

Taught by 

Vadym Kholodenko

Join 2013 Cliburn Competition Gold Medalist Vadym Kholodekno as he shares the insights of his illustrious teacher at the Moscow Conservatory, the late Vera Gornostaeva. Kholodekno is one of a whole generation of pianists who emerged from Gornostaeva's studio and found international success.<br><br>In this lesson, he identifies three core principles Gornostaeva stressed to her pupils. The most important was sound. There is no single way of playing that can achieve a beautiful sound, nor is the category of "beautiful sound" helpful. Rather, there are specific sounds pianists must create in order to realize their expressive intention.<br><br>These expressive intentions are expanded to the realm of structure, which Gornostaeva understood as an attunement to the rhythmic unfolding of a work. Lastly, technical considerations are never addressed in the abstract, but only made when solving musical problems. Kholodenko demonstrates each principle in turn, using examples from Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Liszt, Tchaikovsky, and Scriabin.

Taught by 

Ursula Oppens

Join five-time Grammy nominee Ursula Oppens for an illuminating lesson on Elliott Carter’s most popular piano work, Caténaires ("chains"). Anyone attempting to master this thorny, single-minded modernist work will need expert insights, and Oppens is ideally equipped to help untangle the difficulties: her 2009 Grammy nomination was for a recording of Carter’s complete piano works.<br><br>In the lesson, Oppens begins with a look at the work’s origins and stylistic influences, showing Carter’s interest in jazz and the classical canon, in particular Caténaires’ connection to the tradition of piano études stretching from Chopin to Debussy to Ligeti. These contextual insights are followed by practical tips on achieving consistent non-legato articulation, choosing a tempo, slow practice, and redistribution.<br><br>Oppens also sheds light on the structure of the piece, walking you through each section so you never feel lost in the ceaseless stream of sixteenth-notes. By delving into Carter’s unexpectedly slow harmonic changes (through an obsessive emphasis on various sets of pitches), use of different registers, and unrealistic dynamic markings, Oppens shows how Carter demarcates different sections, creates narrative flow, and arrives at climactic moments.

Taught by 

Ursula Oppens

American pianist Ursula Oppens is one of the foremost interpreters of contemporary music of the past half-century, having worked closely with the likes of Elliott Carter, Frederic Rzewski, and Conlon Nancarrow, among others. Join Oppens as she discusses the joys and challenges of contemporary music with tonebase Head of Piano Ben Laude. The first part of the discussion centers around Elliott Carter, whose complete piano music can be heard in Oppens' recent GRAMMY-nominated album "Oppens Plays Carter." The conversation expands from there, touching on the benefits contemporary music study brings to all-around musicianship, the innovations in timbre and meter in 20th-century music, and the often misunderstood democratic ideals embedded in contemporary music aesthetics.

Taught by 

Simone Dinnerstein

In this introduction to the series Realizing Bach, American pianist Simone Dinnerstein lays out the challenges faced by the pianist when interpreting Bach's D Minor Keyboard Concerto, BWV 1052. Dinnerstein's solo investigation into the possibilities of articulation, tone, and phrasing culminates in a collaboration with members of the string ensemble Baroklyn. Through their insights, Dinnerstein is able to resolve the problems posed in her initial investigation, and realize a compelling interpretation of Bach's concerto on modern instruments.

Taught by 

Seymour Bernstein

Join Seymour Bernstein as he presents some of his favorite pieces from Schumann's popular Album for the Young, Op. 68. In this introduction, Bernstein shows off his good luck charm: a tea kettle that once belonged to Robert and Clara Schumann.

Taught by 

Seymour Bernstein

Join Seymour Bernstein as he guides you through 'probably the most popular piano piece ever written': Für Elise. In his lesson, Bernstein offers detailed practical advice on the opening page for students approaching it for the first time.<br><br>The key to achieving a warm legato in the first phrase is rotation, Bernstein stresses, which begins by slightly lifting the finger but is supported by the wrist and forearm. Bernstein also clarifies how to interpret Beethoven's dynamics and pedal markings, which is crucial to producing an idiomatic sound.<br><br>Bernstein then delves into the much-neglected remaining sections of the work, providing technical and musical tips as well as an analysis of the form and character of the work as a whole. He finishes with a full performance.

Taught by 

Seymour Bernstein

Join Seymour Bernstein as he re-introduces you to one of Chopin's most popular and tragic works, the E Minor Prelude, Op. 28 No. 4. In this in-depth lesson, Bernstein not only demonstrates the physical mechanics necessary to realize your expressive intentions in this work, he reveals how the Prelude contains information crucial to your general development as a pianist.<br><br>After performing the work, Bernstein deals with the opening melodic line, showing how to properly execute a two note slur so that it cries with Chopin. The first phrase demonstrates Chopin's predilection for chromatic harmony, and Bernstein helps you navigate the left hand chords while reminding you to stay within the proper metrical framework, 'alla breve.'<br><br>While the interpretation is ultimately up to you, there are some aspects of the music that are set in stone. Bernstein, referring to the original manuscript, draws your attention to Chopin's placement of "hairpins," before revealing a discovery he made about their proper interpretation. According to Brahms and Fanny Mendelssohn, hairpins indicate not only a swell in dynamics but rhythmic flexibility as well.<br><br>Bernstein moves on to discuss Bach's influence on Chopin, as evinced by the four-part chorale texture that pervades the work, and demonstrates how to properly voice the individual notes of a chord. Finally, he shows you how to properly balance the two hands to achieve an effective crescendo.<br><br>These insights aren't only intended to enhance your playing but to develop your emotional, intellectual, and physical well-being as a human being.

Taught by 

Seymour Bernstein

In this video, Seymour Bernstein performs one of Chopin's most popular and tragic works, the E Minor Prelude, Op. 28 No. 4. Despite its small dimensions, this prelude contains a world of deeply pained emotion. Its melody seems trapped, an endless series of sighs, interrupted by a single passionate outburst, and underpinned by endlessly sinking chromatic harmonies. For more insights, watch Bernstein's lesson on this piece.

Taught by 

Seymour Bernstein

In this video, Seymour Bernstein performs Mozart's first-ever composition, a Minuet in G written at age four. Even with a genius like Mozart, you might expect such an early work to be rudimentary – but no, it's flawlessly constructed and very endearing.<br><br>It follows the typical minuet structure: ABA form consisting of a series of perfectly regular eight-bar phrases, each repeated.

Taught by 

Seymour Bernstein

Join legendary pedagogue Seymour Bernstein for a fascinating and funny interview and lesson on Beethoven, hosted by tonebase Head of Piano Ben Laude.<br><br>Ben plays two beautiful slow movements for Seymour that bookend Beethoven's oeuvre: the early 'Adagio Cantabile' from his Pathetique Sonata, Op. 13, and the Bagatelle 'Andante, Cantabile e grazioso' from his final piano work, Op. 126. Equal parts enlightening and entertaining, Seymour targets Ben's physical and expressive approach to interpreting Beethoven at the piano, searching for just the right rubato and helping him find the most poetic way to deliver each phrase.

Taught by 

Seymour Bernstein

Join Seymour Bernstein and Ben Laude at Seymour’s cottage on the Atlantic Coast in Maine for three intimate lessons on popular intermediate works from the piano repertoire. Ben presents Seymour with a Bach Invention, a Mozart Fantasy, and Chopin Prelude, and invites the 96-year-old to share his wisdom on how he interprets each piece. The results are charming explorations of the expressive possibilities of the piano between friends from two different generations.

Taught by 

Sara Davis Buechner

Mozart's C Major Sonata, K. 545 is one of his most popular works, often attempted by young students during the early phase of their development at the piano. This so-called "easy sonata," as Sara Davis Buechner explains, is more than child's play. It requires great skill to execute Mozart's deceptively simple textures and lines.<br><br>Mozart intended this sonata as a teaching piece for young musicians, Buechner tells us, not only in their development as pianists but also as composers. It is a model of sonata form, featuring some surprising modulations that serve to challenge the student's musicianship and stimulate their creativity.<br><br>Walking step-by-step through each of the three movements, Buechner highlights the challenges students often face in their early training – scales, arpeggios, and trills – and shows how to conceptualize and practice them to gain facility and style. At the same time, Buechner offers higher level advice that will both inspire less advanced pianists to reach for new heights, while engaging more serious students to refine their own skills.

Taught by 

Sara Davis Buechner

Mozart was famous for his melodies, and the first movement of his F Major Sonata, K. 332, is full of them. Join Sara Davis Buechner as she shows you how to make your fingers sing in this memorable piece.<br><br>Buechner shows how Mozart opens with the simplest and most elegant of lines before answering with a hint of counterpoint, offering advice on executing Mozart's slurs to achieve a singing line. The second theme anticipates Verdi's Rigoletto, and Buechner reveals techniques for generating lyrical, operatic phrases. Technically the work presents challenges of polyrhythms and legato double-notes, each of which can be mastered through specific practice techniques that Buechner demonstrates.<br><br>The piece is a dramatic narrative, and Buechner insists on understanding the drama of the work's unfolding thematic and tonal relationships as the key to fashioning a compelling interpretation.

Taught by 

Sara Davis Buechner

Join Mozart-specialist Sara Davis Buechner as she teaches you the first movement of the delightful G Major Sonata, K. 283. The sonata is an excellent introduction to Mozart's piano writing for intermediate players, while nonetheless a masterpiece worthy of the concert stage.<br><br>Buechner deftly balances technical and expressive advice as she guides you through the exposition, development, and recapitulation. Topics include: Alberti bass technique, melodic shaping, scale and arpeggio practice, two-note slurs, ornaments, and more!

Taught by 

Sara Davis Buechner

Mozart's D Minor Fantasy is for many pianists one of the first introductions to the composer's piano works. As Sara Davis Buechner stresses, it's also a window into Mozart's operatic world.<br><br>"Here in miniature fashion you have all the elements of Mozartian drama," Buechner points out. In her lesson, she reveals how the work portrays a movement from chaos and order, beginning with a turbulent "Sturm und Drang" opening in D minor and culminating with the clarity and balance of the final D Major theme.<br><br> While foregrounding the character changes that define the work's form, Buechner also spotlights the stylistic conventions which define Mozart playing in general, and demonstrates how to approach these physically and expressively.<br><br>In the midst of her musical exploration of the piece, Buechner delivers a wealth of practical advice, often geared to the intermediate player. From memory, fingering, and practice tips to advice on scales, arpeggios, and sustained trills, Buechner's appeals to pianists and music lovers from a range of backgrounds.

Taught by 

Rebecca Penneys

Join noted American pianist Rebecca Penneys for a wide-ranging look at the fundamental concepts that underpin expressive and fluent piano playing. Based in part on her early training as a dancer, Penneys reveals the inextricable nature of physicality and expressivity — or, as she puts it, “motion and emotion” at the piano.<br><br>Penneys begins by describing four basic principles of piano technique: staying close to the keys to aid all single-note playing; rotation in scales; “port de bras”-like use of the arms in arpeggios; and efficient positioning in chords and octaves. Each of these ideas helps to minimize strain and make beautiful playing possible (and even easy).<br><br>From the harpsichord to the pianos of Chopin and Liszt’s day, insights gleaned from historic instruments, influence how we play the modern piano: changes in physical positioning, fingering, and palette of sound. These adjustments are part of the task of the pianist, molding the voice of the piano – any piano – to create the desired soundscape. Penneys’ tips for “bending” the sound help achieve a smooth, singing legato on different instruments by reducing noise from the piano mechanism (hint: use your upper arm to smooth out and slow down the keystrokes).<br><br>Penneys closes her lesson by exploring “motion and emotion.” Physical composure has a direct effect on the character of the music: if you feel cramped or artificially constrained, the music will as well. She discusses the painterly art of finger-pedaling, as if holding onto these beautiful sonorities — as well as the opposite: the releases necessary to keep music going forward!<br><br>Peppered throughout are anecdotes of memorable encounters with great figures like Arthur Rubinstein and Oliver Sacks, all attesting to the remarkable power of physical expressivity.

Taught by 

Rebecca Penneys

In this lesson, American pianist Rebecca Penneys guides you Chopin’s Waltz in A-flat Major, Op. 34 No. 1. First, you will learn the basic steps of a waltz and discover the importance of the first beat, which carries the most weight in this triple-meter dance style. Next, Penneys will teach you how to shift your upper body while maintaining your balance at the piano bench. Developing this kind of lateral movement will help you to navigate the various leaps that occur throughout this piece and many other waltzes. <br><br>Many of Chopin’s piano works require fast fingers, and this waltz is no exception. Dead weight inhibits your dexterity, and Penneys encourages you to beware of your fingers when they aren’t playing notes. Your thumb and pinky, for instance, are your hand’s “training wheels,” and if either sticks out or is left unattended to, you risk your agility. Finally, Penneys teaches you how to execute fast repeated notes in the context of dotted rhythms, which appear throughout this work and many other waltzes, mazurkas, and polonaises.

Taught by 

Rebecca Penneys

In this lesson, American pianist Rebecca Penneys guides you through Chopin’s Nocturne in D-flat Major, Op. 27, No. 2. <br><br>First, you will learn strategies for internalizing the three different themes that distinguish this nocturne from the others in Chopin’s oeuvre. Though Penneys will guide you through the composer’s harmonic progressions in detail, she tells you that knowing the work’s keys and form is not enough to truly learn it. <br><br>Rather, she encourages you to explore ways of varying your phrasing, articulation, and ornamentation, both as means of distinguishing between repeated figures and, more importantly, honing your own interpretation of the music. <br><br>Finally, you will learn how to tailor your pedaling, trills, and rubato to the stylistic demands of this piece.

Taught by 

Rebecca Penneys

Eastman School of Music Professor Emeritus Rebecca Penneys guides you through Chopin's intimate and mysterious C-sharp minor Nocturne, Op. 27 No. 1.<br><br>A portrait of darkness transforming to light, this work is effective when paired with the second Nocturne from the same opus, set in the parallel major of D-flat. Penneys shares her personal insights into the C-sharp minor Nocturne, developed over many decades of experience teaching and performing the work. Topics include Chopin's extended left-hand positions, romantic rubato, voicing, and pedaling. She offers technical guidance and interpretive guidance on the turbulent and modulating B section, and challenges you to recompose the coda: not to improve Chopin, but to realize what made his compositional decisions so breathtaking.

Taught by 

Rebecca Penneys

Join noted American pianist Rebecca Penneys for a lesson on one of Chopin’s most bewitching pieces: his Berceuse in D-flat Major, Op. 57. Her insights into technique, physicality, and positioning give you the tools you need to master this work’s gentle but etude-like style.<br><br>In her walkthrough of the piece, Penneys draws attention to the work’s genre (lullaby, or cradle song), the role of the brief “vamp” that opens the piece, rich blending of harmonies in long pedals, as well as the unfolding variations of the Berceuse and their relation with many concepts Chopin explores more thoroughly in his 24 Etudes, Op. 10 and 25. She plays many examples from the etudes that are related to passages in the Berceuse, demonstrating the specific physical approaches required to play them fluently: not sitting too close, high wrist, rotation, pivot fingers, weight on the outer side of the hand, energy impulses, physical mapping, finger-pedaling, and more. This nuanced physical vocabulary will help you play the Berceuse with elegance and suppleness.<br><br>Penneys closes with her reflections on hands-separate and very slow practice.

Taught by 

Rebecca Penneys

Professor Emerita at the Eastman School of Music, Rebecca Penneys sits down with tonebase Head of Piano Ben Laude for wide-ranging discussion on piano playing and artistry. Seated at her "Ferrari" Steinway in St. Pete Beach, FL, Penneys reveals her holistic philosophy of musicianship, integrating the mechanics of the finger, hand, and arm, with the awareness of the ear and mind, with a sensuous experience of your whole body living in the world. From Chopin and dance to dolphin cruises and chocolate, Penneys reveals the art of the piano as a force for good in the world, individually and socially. Recorded in July, 2019.

Taught by 

Peter Dugan

Few pieces of piano music are so simple, yet so rich, as Debussy's beloved La fille aux cheveux de lin, "The girl with the flaxen hair." In this lesson, host of NPR's 'From the Top' Peter Dugan delves into the work's tenderness and warmth, offering advice for capturing the work's magic passage-by-passage. While the work's colors are intoxicating, students often get their feet stuck in Debussy's paint. Dugan shows you the power of observing the precise rhythms indicated in the score, shaping phrases, and generating movement towards the climax. At the same time, it is crucial to control the harmonic and melodic content of the work through careful voicing and pedal, and Dugan shows how to use finger substitution to create legato phrases and avoid over-blurring. Finally, Dugan basks in the Prelude's magic moments and shows you the technique required to capture its warmth and tranquility to deliver a beautiful performance of your own.

Taught by 

Peter Dugan

Get in a Gershwin groove with Peter Dugan, host of NPR’s From The Top! Gershwin’s three preludes strike a great balance: they’re simple enough for amateurs to play, but also glitzy enough to wow an audience. <br><br>Dugan’s lesson on the first prelude tackles every aspect of how to play Gershwin with authentic style: how articulation and dynamics help make the rhythm pop; how to naturally play with a vibrant pulse; fingering to make it easy and punchy to play; tips on leaps and hand crossings; how to toss your hand at gestures instead of aiming for fiddly perfection; and most importantly, how to forge an authentic connection with the audience. He also includes tips on how to get in the right frame of mind by improvising a prelude to the prelude!

Taught by 

Norman Krieger

What is it in a great pianist's technique that allows for such pristine control and refined artistry? Having witnessed performances by many of the legendary pianists of the 20th and 21st centuries up close and personal, Indiana University professor Norman Krieger has identified a secret weapon common to their technical arsenal: wrist movement. Krieger shows how through subtle, "electrical" wrist impulses, pianists the likes of Hofmann, Rubinstein, and Arrau have achieved exceptional facility and artistic control in diverse concert repertoire. While it is easy to characterize such artists as divinely gifted geniuses whose musicianship transcends technique, they nonetheless employ objective movements that we mere mortals can observe and attempt to reconstruct in our own playing. Drawing on famous repertoire passages from Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, and Gershwin, Krieger demonstrates how to develop an agile wrist to use a secret weapon in voicing, sonority, style, and virtuosity.

Taught by 

Peter Dugan

Debussy is famous for the intoxicating color and imagery he could conjure at the piano, which is immediately evident in the opening bars of his Arabesque No. 1. One of the most popular introductions to Debussy among developing pianists, this gem of a piece is a study in fluidity and intertwining lines. Join pianist, improviser, and host of From the Top Peter Dugan as he walks you through the Arabesque passage by passage, revealing the piece's magic and teaching you the practical choreography required to realize it at the piano.

Taught by 

Norman Krieger

A masterpiece of texture and lyricism, Chopin's so-called "Aeolian Harp" Etude Op. 25 No. 1 is an approachable study in opposites: how to play lightly with the strong part of the hand, and boldly with the weak part of the hand. Join the Chair of the Piano Department at Indiana University, Norman Krieger, as he explores what he calls a "gift to the wrist." Focusing always on beauty and nuance of tone, Krieger identifies and analyzes the mechanical demands of the piece while offering creative practice techniques for making the physical act of playing subservient to the music.

Taught by 

Nicolas Namoradze

Gramophone magazine refers to Nicolas Namoradze as "the kind of musician whose artistry is like a compelling novel where you can hardly wait for what comes next." In this lesson on Scriabin's ominously heroic C-sharp minor Etude, Op. 42 No. 5, Namoradze brings his powers of communicating musical narratives with his analytic gifts, breaking down the work's phrase structure and pianistic challenges.<br><br>For Namoradze, this Etude is the center of gravity of Scriabin's Op. 42 set. The menacing character of its first theme gives way to one of the most soaring and jubilant melodies ever composed. The Etude presents many challenges of choreography and stamina, and Namoradze demonstrates how striving for clarity of texture can help bring more transparency and contour to the dramatic arc, while also fostering more facility in the physically demanding passagework.

Taught by 

Nicolas Namoradze

In this lesson, Georgian pianist Nicolas Namoradze shares his insights into Scriabin’s meltingly beautiful Etude in F-sharp Major, Op. 42 No. 4. Namoradze’s remarks on style, variety of touch, rubato, and crafting eloquent phrases will lead you into Scriabin’s expressive universe.<br><br>Namoradze begins the lesson by placing this etude in the context of Scriabin’s increasingly pathbreaking style and its position as a lyrical respite from the other Op. 42 etudes which seem to whirl incessantly. The gentler waves of this piece still need careful attention: as part of his discussion of phrase structure, Namoradze explores “micro-dynamics” — little waves within the broader sweep of a phrase. He uses this example to show how to craft a beautiful phrase, describing the subtle relationship that must exist between dynamics and rhythm in order to maintain the musical flow.<br><br>To capture the sensuality of Scriabin’s music, Namoradze shows you how to cultivate a truly singing, even “slimy,” legato touch, as well as a contrasting bell-like sonority. For legato, Namoradze’s tips include overholding, slight “smudginess,” getting to the notes in advance, and finally, both pressing and releasing very slowly. This is a very clear, step-by-step explanation of one of the most important (and yet elusive) topics in piano playing.<br><br>Finally, Namoradze discusses the nature of rubato and lets us in on a little secret: when playing Scriabin, if the context demands a special degree of anticipation or hesitation, the hands needn’t always be synchronized!

Taught by 

Nicolas Namoradze

Join prizewinning pianist Nicolas Namoradze for an insightful lesson on one of Scriabin’s earliest works, the famous Etude in C-sharp minor, Op. 2 No. 1. Namoradze’s meticulous attention to every element of this work will help you capture its somber and emotionally wrenching atmosphere.<br><br>After a brief account of this etude’s history, Namoradze looks closely at what makes this piece tick. Its phrase structure holds some surprises, in addition to the typical two- and four-bar phrases, it also has some with five bars! These often include unexpected, mercurial modulations. Use these twists and turns in asymmetrical phrases to your advantage, as well as their insistence.<br><br>This leads Namoradze to a striking observation: good rubato should reveal structure, not obscure it. For this reason, make sure that little eddies in the musical flow don’t disrupt the trajectory of the phrase. He also suggests other strategies, such as making your rubati more gradual and smooth in execution, and also to keep your voicing and expression in sharp focus so you can maintain the tension even if you take time.<br><br>To maximize the emotional impact of this brief but poignant work, you’ll need some other means as well: a legato melody despite the thick texture, richness in the harmony and layers of counterpoint, and carefully structured choice of dynamics. Namoradze has answers for all of these: exercises to properly exaggerate voicing the melody, maintaining the illusion of legato with a sonorous, pressure-filled touch and keeping the hands close to the keys, nuanced pedaling to connect and show the harmony (even holding your foot off the ground at times!), and using silent playing to carefully train your touch. Through close attention to the dynamic markings, Namoradze shows that you must regulate your dynamics, saving your supply of magic for the absolute softest moment, marked pianississimo. This comparative approach helps interpret Scriabin’s expressive surprises in the recapitulation so you know exactly where to give your all and when to die away.

Taught by 

Nicolas Namoradze

In this lesson, Georgian pianist Nicolas Namoradze guides you through Schumann’s Arabeske in C Major, Op. 18, which he dubs one of the most “charmingly beautiful pieces of the piano repertoire.” <br><br>Namoradze breaks down the work’s rondo form and offers you strategies for highlighting the “logic, coherence, and organicism” within its contrasting sections. You will also explore ways of varying the repeated A section so that it always sounds fresh. <br><br>In addition to honing your interpretive skills, Namoradze shares with you his technical insights into voicing and legato. When you practice passages that require you to play multiple voices in rhythmic unison, Namoradze suggests that you practice arpeggiating them slowly. “Breaking” the voices in this way will allow you to focus your attention on each one. He encourages you to apply a similar attention to detail to your legato as well. He advises you to practice depressing the keys silently, gradually adding pressure until you start to perceive a sound. This exercise, if performed with a consistently slow attack, will attune you to the innerworkings of the piano’s action mechanism and reveal the infinite gradations of touch that are available to you.

Taught by 

Magdalena Stern-Baczewska

One of the greatest milestones in a pianist's development is the progression from playing Bach's Two-Part Inventions to his Three-Part Inventions, also called "Sinfonias." The reason is rather simple: humans have two hands, not three, so the work of cultivating hand independence transforms into more granular finger independence. As a third voice travels between hands, the task of coordinating all three voices becomes significantly more challenging. In the Sinfonia No. 9 in F minor, BWV 795 – which Sir Andras Schiff calls the greatest of all the Inventions – Bach delivers a master class in three-voice polyphony.<br><br>As your instructor Magdalena Stern-Baczewska points out, most of the core devices used in Bach's fugues are already found here. She demonstrates the subtle physical movements that will allow you to balance two voices in the same hand while preserving the independent character of each motive. In doing so, she gives you the tools to realize the work's musical message, which is a profound one. Combining a descending lament, a sighing motive, and a jarring countersubject, Bach infuses this work with religious symbolism – culminating with the transformation from darkness to light in the final cadence.

Taught by 

Magdalena Stern-Baczewska

While we most often associate virtuosity with the likes of Chopin, Liszt, and Rachmaninoff, Bach was no stranger to fast, brilliant, and technically demanding passagework at the keyboard – the "Chromatic Fantaisie and Fugue" and "Goldberg Variations" being among the pinnacles of baroque keyboard virtuosity. Already in the Inventions, Bach challenges the developing pianist with dazzling contrapuntal writing, most notably in Invention No. 8 in F Major, BWV 779. Magdalena Stern-Baczewska shows how the key to mastering the piece's athletic obstacles lies in the cultivation of independence between hands. This physical independence corresponds with the independence of the two moving parts, so that the technical achievement of coordinating the two hands is at once a musical achievement. Through insightful demonstrations, Stern-Baczewska presents you with a regimen for developing your fingers and your ear, and – as always – playing with distinction and good taste.

Taught by 

Magdalena Stern-Baczewska

You've arrived at Bach's First Invention, one of the landmark pieces in a pianist's development. According to Bach's own hand-written preface to the Two and Three-Part Inventions, these pieces were meant for music lovers interested in improving their keyboard technique and compositional understanding. Invention No. 1 in C major, BWV 772, is the first of fifteen written in two-parts. Bach encourages you to study them carefully and develop a facile, cantabile playing style, at which point you're ready to graduate to the Three-Part Inventions, or "Sinfonias."<br><br>It is in this spirit that Magdalenz Stern-Baczewska approaches this lesson, guiding you through the First Invention, introducing you to the main concepts of advanced, two-part counterpoint – including motives, imitation, inversion, augmentation, modulation, and sequence – while demonstrating how to approach the piece technically so as to realize two, independent singing "voices." The lesson also serves to orient you to the principles of Baroque performance practice, and teach you how to apply them on the modern piano, with a focus on articulation, phrasing, and ornamentation.

Taught by 

Magdalena Stern-Baczewska

There is no better place to begin your Bach journey than with the famous "Minuet in G," and its counterpart in G minor. Long attributed to Bach himself, scholars have now shown that the Minuets were composed by Christian Petzold, one of many friends of Bach who would compose short pieces for his family upon visiting. Bach was fond enough of the works to include them in a notebook of simple pieces given to his wife Anna Magdalena. Despite its authorship, the piece is composed in a simple, two-part contrapuntal style that provides an ideal entryway into Bach's more mature works of counterpoint.<br><br>This lesson is meant for students of all ages with at least some exposure to the keyboard and staff notation. Magdalena Stern-Baczewska provides step-by-step guidance for understanding the musical patterns and translating them into graceful physical actions at the keyboard. More than just a repertoire lesson, she introduces you to many basic concepts in music theory, piano technique, and Baroque style, laying a musicianship foundation for you to continue building upon in subsequent lessons.

Taught by 

Magdalena Stern-Baczewska

Whereas a piece like the Minuet in G trains the hands and the mind to play varied, mostly scalar patterns in two-part counterpoint, Bach's Little Prelude in C minor trains you to think in terms of vertical harmonies, which Bach unfolds up from the bass line in the form of broken chords. In this lesson, Magdalena Stern-Baczewska reveals how Bach conceived of preludes like this one in terms of shorthand notation known as "figured bass." Understanding this compositional design will give you a strong framework for learning the notes of the work and executing it physically. Stern-Baczewska walks you through the brief, yet dramatic, prelude, giving both musical and technical insights that will help you control the arpeggiated right-hand figurations and deliver a breathtaking performance.

Taught by 

Louis Schwizgebel

Join Louis Schwizgebel in exploring Brahms' Two Rhapsodies, Op. 79, which are among his most passionate, yet approachable works. The second, in G Minor, is more compact than the first, and more coloristic, featuring an inexorable momentum from start to finish.<br><br>Schwizgebel looks for musical solutions to technical problems, such as the opening hand crossings. These needn't feel rushed, but instead benefit from the natural time it takes to execute them, as the slight agogic accents resulting from the left hand crossings help articulate and shape the rising phrase. In the staccato chords, it is best to practice in groups to avoid clumsiness, and Schwizgebel shows how to avoid arm tension in executions.<br><br>The ensuing polyphonic passage comprises a tapestry of layers, and Schwizgebel walks you through the process of taking them apart, practicing them each in isolation, and reassembling them to ensure clarity and confidence in performance. The relentless motion of the repeating triplet march also benefits from practicing the chords alone before adding the smaller elements.<br><br>The work features magical, surreal moments not often associated with Brahms, and Schwizgebel encourages you to explore other-worldly sounds at the instrument.

Taught by 

Louis Schwizgebel

Join Louis Schwizgebel in exploring Brahms' Two Rhapsodies, Op. 79, which are among his most passionate, yet approachable works. The first, in B Minor, is the grander of the two, featuring an undercurrent of restlessness throughout most of the work, except one memorable, tender middle section.<br><br>Schwizgebel approaches this lesson by pinpointing a handful of principal challenges and techniques that recur throughout the work, and targeting them one-by-one. One of the main techniques you must develop is the application of arm weight, which is required in both octaves and chordal textures as well as the triplet figures found throughout the work. Schwizgebel shows how to properly carry your weight so that your fingers are supported by your whole arm, and how to take time both to aid in physical execution and to capture a feeling of resistance in the music.<br><br>The work is marked "agitato," but this does not refer to a fast tempo. Instead, Schwizgebel shows how emphasizing rests and syncopations will give the opening an ideal restless character at a slightly slower tempo than is often favored by students. This has its benefits, as it allows for more tempo continuity with subsequent themes, which serves Brahms's architectural goals.<br><br>Finally, Schwizgebel examines the special tender theme in the middle of the work, revealing the duet between right and left hand, as well as the mysterious coda.

Taught by 

Louis Schwizgebel

Join Louis Schwizgebel for a lesson on Debussy's exotic and breathtaking L'isle Joyeuse, a portrait of color, contrast, and texture that culminates in pure exaltation.<br><br>The lesson is geared towards the late intermediate and early advanced pianists, trying to take their techniques to the next level to gain command of one of Debussy's most effective stand-alone works for solo piano. Schwizgebel takes a practical approach to the work, offering fingering tips as well as technical guidance on touch, voicing, and pedaling, so you can create the kinds of rich and varied sonorities that the work demands.

Taught by 

Louis Schwizgebel

In this lesson, Swiss pianist Louis Schwizgebel guides you through the first movement of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15. In his discussion of the movement’s playful exposition section, Schwizgebel attunes you to the ways in which Beethoven broke from the conventions of his time through unusual modulations and thematic introductions. <br><br>Schwizgebel also teaches you how you should approach concerti differently than solo and chamber repertoire: you must learn to project by exaggerating your articulation and phrasing and maintaining a strong inner pulse so that you stay together with the orchestra. Schwizgebel encourages you to study the orchestra’s part, so that you know when you're the soloist, when you're the accompanist, and when you're conversing with the orchestra. <br><br>Finally, you learn tips on how to tackle particularly different passages by maintaining flexible wrists and rotating your forearms.

Taught by 

Leon Fleisher

The late Leon Fleisher, one of the great American pianists of the 20th century, presents a short master class on the iconic exposition of Beethoven's "Waldstein" Sonata with Ben Laude at the piano. Fleisher brings his characteristic conviction to matters of phrasing, voicing, rhythm, and pedal, in an effort to elevate Laude's playing and achieve a level of drama and excitement worthy of Beethoven's score.

Taught by 

Leann Osterkamp

In this lesson, American pianist Leann Osterkamp teaches Kuhlau's Sonata in C Major, Op. 20 No. 1. A popular piece with early intermediate players, the piece offers many opportunities to develop one's fundamental skills at the instrument, ultimately laying the groundwork for tackling more challenging classical sonatas by Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven.<br><br>Osterkamp breaks down the work into its component technical and musical challenges. She focuses first on the catchy main theme, revealing its structural role and providing insights into shaping and interpreting the theme as it recurs throughout the work.<br><br>Next, Osterkamp delves into the always important subject of hand coordination, giving tips on how to control the left hands' Albertis bass and employing subdivisions in practice to achieve more security in your mechanics and to prepare for faster playing.<br><br>For the remainder of the lesson, Osterkamp delves into questions of fingering, memorization, articulation, and pedal, while tackling specific technical challenges in all three movements.

Taught by 

Leann Osterkamp

In this lesson, American pianist Leann Osterkamp shares her technical insights into Clementi’s Sonatina No. 1 in C Major, Op. 36. <br><br> She encourages you to keep your hands moving during moments of rest in order to release tension, reinforce your sense of rhythm, and prepare for changes in hand position. <br><br>Osterkamp also teaches you to avoid rushing through fast runs by dropping your arm weight in-time with the music. You learn to use this gesture not as a means of accenting notes but rather as a way to ground yourself. Furthermore, when you're practicing fast runs, Osterkamp encourages you to use the fingerings that you know well – fingerings that you use to play scales and arpeggios. <br><br>Finally, Osterkamp shows you how to play a quick Alberti bass in a legato style without sacrificing clarity and comfort. You learn that you don’t have to hold onto notes to create a connected sound. Rather, you can play each note with a staccato-like bounce. At a fast tempo, your notes will still sound connected, especially if you incorporate light touches of the pedal.

Taught by 

Garrick Ohlsson

One of the towering figures of concert pianism, and one of the greatest living American pianists, Garrick Ohlsson is featured here in conversation at the piano for an intimate look back on his formative years.<br><br>Hosted by tonebase Head of Piano Ben Laude, the conversation starts on an oft-trodden topic: piano competitions. Ohlsson won several as a young man, most famously the Chopin Competition in Warsaw in 1970 – a competition to which he would return as a judge in 2015. Ohlsson then discusses his mammoth discography, reflecting on the experience of listening to his own recordings. For Ohlsson, piano is both a profession and a pleasure, and he shares his ideal morning routine at the instrument.<br><br>Like most great pianists, Ohlsson's artistry bears the imprint of his mentors. Ohlsson reminisces on two of them in particular, telling stories of playing Beethoven and Brahms for Rosina Lhevinne and Claudio Arrau.

Taught by 

Jean-Efflam Bavouzet

Join celebrated French pianist, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, as he walks you through the first movement from Haydn's thrilling Sonata in E Minor.<br><br>'Presto' is an unusual marking for a sonata first movement, and Bavouzet draws your attention to the interplay between the brisk tempo and recurring pauses in momentum. The many fermatas throughout the first movement offer the opportunity to achieve an element of surprise, a trademark of Haydn's compositional style.<br><br>Bavouzet also addresses the economical approach Haydn takes to his material, highlighting the underlying continuity between first and second themes despite their contrasting characters. As a performer, you will need to master a variety of articulations in order to execute the between slurred and staccato motives that pervade this piece. Bavouzet is always ready with fingering and technical advice, and shows how they can support a tasteful interpretation. Most importantly, Bavouzet insists, "be creative" and "never boring."<br><br>Finally, Bavouzet shares his arrangement of the first movement coda, arguing based on scholarly evidence that the repeat should be shifted to the end of the recapitulation.

Taught by 

Jarred Dunn

Join Canadian pianist Jarred Dunn for a heartfelt and insightful lesson on Chopin’s “Cello” Etude in C-sharp minor, Op. 25 No. 7. With elegaic left-hand melodies throughout, the piece lives up to its title, Dunn is quick to point out that there’s more to it than meets the ear: the “cello” writing is always interacting with a beautiful treble line, as well as the ceaselessly repeating accompaniment chords sandwiched between the melodic lines. The challenge of the piece stems from balancing these three layers and bringing out the tragic, languorous character.<br><br>Likewise, Dunn’s advice always balances aesthetic, stylistic, and historical commentary with practical tips for achieving the desired interpretation. He makes erudite observations about Chopin’s personality and musical interests (Bach, the cello, and even foreshadowing Debussy). Thinking of vocal style and specific instruments immediately suggest the right color for a given section, or a more beautiful phrasing.<br><br>His technical advice always applies to overarching musical goals: to allow the melodic duo to soar, practice arpeggiating the accompaniment, and apply more weight and key speed in your outer fingers; to play the accompaniment more softly, gently “ride the key” in the Taubman style, not allowing it to rise entirely; divide the left-hand runs into chunks but not metronomically; partial pedal changes to keep the rich sonorities hanging in the hair.<br><br>Particularly striking are Dunn’s ideas regarding the flexibility of one’s interpretation. By experimenting with different voicings, you’ll equip yourself to play several ways and react to them in the moment. In this way, you’ll prepare yourself for the variable conditions you’ll experience on stage.

Taught by 

Jean-Efflam Bavouzet

Discover the miracle that is Debussy's beloved 'Clair de lune' with the celebrated French pianist, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet. Phrase-by-phrase, Bavouzet reveals the work's hidden meaning and provides practical advice for navigating its textures and moods.<br><br>For Bavouzet, Clair de lune contains three extra-musical elements: the moon, water, and love. In particular, Debussy depicts the light of the moon shimmering on the water as the backdrop for love's yearning. This love culminates in a "romantic ecstacy," but realized only in the context of a dream. In reality, both before and after the dream, love proves to be, perhaps, unrequited.<br><br>With this programmatic interpretation in mind, Bavouzet breaks down the work's many challenges, both technical and musical. From fingering and mechanics to analyzing layers and harmonies, Bavouzet's lesson proves that, in his words, "the more you know about the music, the more you find it extraordinary."

Taught by 

Imri Talgam

In this lesson, contemporary music virtuoso Imri Talgam guides you through Ligeti’s mind-bending Etude No. 1, “Désordre.” This piece is essentially a musical version of the butterfly effect, and matters quickly get out of hand. Anyone hoping to master its extreme challenges and radical innovations will need some seriously good advice.<br><br>Luckily, Talgam knows this music inside and out. To help wrap your brain (and hands) around the unique rhythmic structure of this piece, Talgam offers 11 surefire practice tips, along with many insightful remarks on memorization, pedaling, and most important of all: counting. The misaligned barlines in Désordre scare off many pianists, but by following Talgam’s specific steps to break down the texture into simpler and more intelligible units, you’ll be able to practice this etude without overloading your brain. Well, not as much, anyway.

Taught by 

Imri Talgam

Join Israeli pianist Imri Talgam for a look at the aesthetic of György Ligeti, famous for his mind-bending and finger-twisting études. These groundbreaking works test the limits of what’s possible for human performers, their unyielding logic making few concessions to practicality. In spite of this (or perhaps because of it), Ligeti’s études have become an object of fascination for pianists. After mastering one of these essays in impossibility, complex works by other composers seem simple by comparison.<br><br>Talgam dives deeply into these issues as well as Ligeti’s fascination with texture and polyrhythm. Perhaps most importantly, he addresses the mindset necessary to successfully learn and perform a Ligeti étude.

Taught by 

Henry Kramer

In this lesson, American pianist Henry Kramer guides you through Chopin’s Étude Op. 10, No. 2 in A Minor, an exercise in developing the independence of the weaker fingers of the right hand. <br><br>Kramer begins by teaching you rudimentary exercises that will help you to build a firm foundation for the technical demands of this piece. First, he advises you to focus your attention on the étude’s left-hand part, practicing a staccato that bounces off the keyboard. Learning this upward motion will invite your fingertips to come together in a natural close midair, helping your hands to release tension. <br><br>Then, Kramer teaches you to dissect the right-hand part, practicing the staccatos in your first and second fingers before gradually incorporating fragments of the chromatic scale with your third, fourth, and fifth fingers. <br><br>Once you have built this firm foundation, you will learn Kramer’s strategies for maintaining stamina. In this piece, your fingers do not always need to dig fully into the keybed. Rather, imagine your right hand as a “pond skimming insect” gliding over the keyboard. When you do need to create a louder sound, however, Kramer suggests focusing your efforts on your left hand, as the resonance of the bass register will create the illusion of a more evenly distributed forte dynamic.

Taught by 

Gwendolyn Mok

Ravel's music is rich – expensive, you might say. His piano works are like the exquisite knickknacks found in Ravel's household collections: exquisite but fragile. Gwendolyn Mok, one of the last pupils of Ravel's preferred pianist Vlado Perlemuter, discusses the care required in approaching Ravel's scores. Featuring demonstrations from across Ravel's piano works – including Gaspard de la nuit, Miroirs, Le Tombeau de Couperin, Valses Nobles et Sentimentales, and the Sonatine – Mok breaks down the most salient facets of Ravel's style and character, in both the man and the music – emotional restraint (pudeur), classical proportion, sound and touch, pedal, color and orchestration – and considers the benefits of playing Ravel on a period Érard piano.

Taught by 

Gwendolyn Mok

Join San Jose State Professor Gwendolyn Mok, one of the remaining heirs to Ravel's pianism via her late teacher Vlado Perlemuter, in this lesson on the Sonatine. One of Ravel's more approachable works, the first movement nevertheless poses serious physical and musical challenges to the student. Mok breaks each down in turn, showing how to choreograph the awkward hand positions required to execute the opening while drawing your attention to the different layers and motives of the piece – especially the ubiquitous descending "Maman" motive – and giving insights on how to realize Ravel's restrained aesthetic through subtle acts of touch and timing.

Taught by 

Gwendolyn Mok

One of the last serious pupils of Ravel's preferred pianist, Vlado Perlemuter, Gwendolyn Mok brings decades of experience researching and performing Ravel's works to this lesson on the Pavane pour une infante défunte ("Pavane for a Dead Princess").<br><br>For Mok, Ravel's Pavane demonstrates the composer's reserved character and the quality of "pudeur" or restraint that imbues his music with such distinction and beauty. Mok begins by focusing on articulation and balance in the "plucked" accompaniment figures, before showing how to layer the singing line on top. She goes on to emphasize the importance of developing a "ravishing tone," after Perlemuter, and demonstrates techniques for achieving this with advice on pedal, fingering, and voicing. Zooming out, Mok analyzes the beauty of the work's form and reveals the special moments in the C section where, for just a brief moment, Ravel loses that sense of restraint in favor of a momentary outburst of passion.

Taught by 

Gary Graffman

Join Gary Graffman as he sits down with tonebase's Ben Laude to discuss Chopin's Ballade No. 4 in F Minor, Op. 52.<br><br>Graffman, one of the top American pianists of the 20th Century, listens to his own performance of the Ballade recorded for RCA in 1959. Moving passage-by-passage, Graffman discusses the technical and musical challenges presented by one of Chopin's most profound works.<br><br>The opening phrase is notoriously difficult to interpret, Graffman thinks it should be played very quietly – even more quietly than he played it in his performance. Graffman points out the competing crescendo and decrescendo between the two hands as a clue to realizing Chopin's intentions. The main theme is also difficult to phrase, but Graffman notes how if you follow Chopin's phrase markings precisely you can achieve a more eloquent line.<br><br>As the piece progresses, Graffman discusses the challenges of pedaling the work and allowing its many layers to speak. The fughetta, climax, and coda bring even more difficulties of phrasing and execution, and Graffman emphasizes the importance of practicing slowly, hands separately. From time to time, Graffman pauses to tell stories of playing for Horowitz, and at the end he gives his assessment of the Four Ballades as a whole.

Taught by 

Gary Graffman

Join Gary Graffman as he sits down with tonebase's Ben Laude to discuss Chopin's Ballade No. 2 in F Major, Op. 38.<br><br>Graffman, one of the top American pianists of the 20th Century, listens to his own performance of the Ballade recorded for RCA in 1959. Moving passage-by-passage, Graffman tells the story of the legendary sunken city of Świteź as depicted by Adam Mickiewicz's poem, which is regarded by many to have inspired Chopin's composition (although scholars have never definitively proven this connection).<br><br>Graffman hears the placid lake depicted in Chopin's long, gently lilting opening phrases. Soon, a storm rages and an invading naval fleet is heard approaching during the Allegro con fuoco section. As the coda approaches, you hear the fleet dragged underwater. Pandemonium ensues and the entire fleet drowns. The storm passes and the lake returns to an eerie calm, as the lilting hymn returns and dies away in A Minor.

Taught by 

Garrick Ohlsson

In this lesson, American pianist Garrick Ohlsson guides you through Chopin’s Scherzo, Op. 39, No. 3 in C-sharp Minor. <br><br>When you practice the introduction, Ohlsson encourages you to explore playing with different degrees of rubato, since pianists have interpreted this section in numerous different ways, and Chopin does not specify tempo markings. <br><br>When you practice the octaves in this piece, Ohlsson suggests using the lateral movement of your thumb to help you to reach wide intervals without needlessly shifting your entire hand position. To find even more comfort, you will learn to cultivate a “relaxation response,” immediately releasing tension in your hand after striking the keyboard. <br><br>You will also learn strategies for practicing Chopin’s challenging left-hand jumps. To avoid locking your hands at either end of a jump, Ohlsson teaches you to imagine each jump as a single, fluid gesture in which your arm is constantly oscillating.

Taught by 

Garrick Ohlsson

In this video, Ben Laude talks with the great Garrick Ohlsson at his home in San Francisco.<br><br>They attempt to answer the unanswerable question of whether Frédéric Chopin falls into the classical or romantic style. This leads them to discuss Chopin's connections to their favorite works and composers along the way.

Taught by 

Garrick Ohlsson

In this lesson, American pianist Garrick Ohlsson guides you through Brahms’s “unbelievably loveable” Intermezzo in A Major, Op. 118, No. 2. <br><br>Ohlsson directs your attention to Brahms’s detailed articulation markings, which he helps you to decipher and incorporate into your strategies for phrasing. You will learn to play the constant stream of eighth notes that flow throughout this piece with expression and musicality. This accompanimental figure, Ohlsson advises you, should not sound neutral or passive, nor should it overpower the melody. <br><br>During the piece’s more contrapuntal passages, Ohlsson invites you to decide for yourself which voice to bring out. He encourages you to consider highlighting one of the inner voices, since most pianists emphasize the topmost. Whichever voice you decide to bring out, Ohlsson advises you to practice doing so in an exaggerated fashion until you are comfortable voicing with more subtlety.

Taught by 

Garrick Ohlsson

If it's possible for a single work of Chopin to sit supreme among his countless masterpieces, his Barcarolle in F-sharp major, Op. 60 might be it. Chopin's one and only contribution to this Romantic genre is beloved by concert pianists and audiences alike, and is the favorite piece of Garrick Ohlsson – gold medalist of the 1970 Chopin Competition and one of a small handful of pianists in history to record Chopin's complete works. Ohlsson is your gondolier in this extended, in-depth lesson on the Barcarolle, steering you through its intricate polyphonic waters and basking in its resplendent colors. Approaching the piece from a pianist's point of view, Ohlsson demonstrates the refined tonal control you must achieve to realize the fullness of the work's inner drama, and shows a path towards technical mastery required to pull off Chopin's most inspired, enchanting piece – one of the great works of the Romantic era.

Taught by 

Garrick Ohlsson

Join celebrated American pianist Garrick Ohlsson as he shares tips and tricks for mastering glissandos at the keyboard. Although glissandos sound and look impressive, Ohlsson shows that, with the right approach, they’re simple once you get the hang of them.<br><br>By flipping your hand over and using the fingernails (and less pressure), it’s possible to avoid getting stuck or injured — although for specialized, double note glissandi, Ohlsson’s teacher once told him that while developing the panache necessary to just toss them off under any circumstances, it might hurt a little at first! With practice, you’ll find a good angle for your hand that avoids strain and allows for a smooth, even glissando.<br><br>Ohlsson demonstrates his approach to standard glissandi as well as to special examples found in Ravel’s Alborada del gracioso, Beethoven’s “Waldstein” Sonata, and Prokofiev’s Third Concerto.

Taught by 

Garrick Ohlsson

In this lesson, American pianist Garrick Ohlsson examines the biomechanics of Chopin’s First Étude in meticulous detail. Concentrating on the first couple bars, Ohlsson demonstrates methodically how to choreograph the hands to execute the first pattern. If you can learn to practice the opening, you will know how to practice the whole piece. <br><br>Ohlsson admits that there are spots that are particularly “diabolical." To master them, you must develop a technique he calls "relaxation into the future." Ohlsson stresses the importance of releasing the tension in your hand immediately after striking a note in order to be prepared for the next one. In a piece of music as virtuosic as this, you cannot afford to hang onto notes. Rather, Ohlsson encourages you to focus on the natural expansion and contraction of the hand as a means of traveling across the keyboard with flexibility and fluidity. <br><br>Though Ohlsson warns that the piece requires you to “train like an athlete,” the payoff is enduring: “an encyclopedic lifetime” of knowledge about how to use your hands deftly and efficiently.

Taught by 

Frederic Chiu

Chopin believed the melody of his E Major Étude, Op. 10 No. 3, to be the most beautiful he ever composed. Join American maverick Frederic Chiu as he explores the many layers of this multifaceted study.<br><br>For Chiu, the primary challenge of this Étude is "multitasking" to give an independent character to multiple simultaneous layers. He offers three spectrums you can control to achieve this distinction: dynamics, timing, and his trademark "surgical shift pedal" technique. After demonstrating each in turn, Chiu confronts the animated middle section, offering tips for simplifying the intricate patterns of devilish dyads. Finally, he considers the question of how to interpret the work's three-part form, providing strategies for expressing the return to the beautiful opening theme.

Taught by 

Garrick Ohlsson

In this lesson, American pianist Garrick Ohlsson takes you through Chopin's G Minor Ballade. "A revolution in its time," according to Ohlsson, the piece is one of the most beloved works of the Romantic period. Ohlsson takes you on a tour of the work, revealing the miracle Chopin performs in each and every passage.<br><br>Dedicating considerable time to the introduction of the Ballade, Ohlsson analyzes the harmonic ambiguities that give the iconic opening phrase its special character. The work tells a musical story, Ohlsson stresses, and the choices you make about phrasing and rubato will influence the kind of story you're telling. Balancing Chopin's textures is also important, and Ohlsson gives advice on how to achieve a singing, bel canto line in the right hand while carefully applying pedal to layer the harmonic and contrapuntal elements in the lower registers.<br><br>As the story unfolds, there are multiple climactic moments, and the timing and pacing with which you move to and from these peaks will define the arc of the whole work. The journey also brings a series of virtuoso passages, each of which Ohlsson analyzes for the most important rhythmic and tonal elements that can aid in execution.<br><br>The coda of the work, feared by so many pianists, is the focus of the last part of Ohlsson's lesson. He breaks down the right hand's technical obstacles into its simplest elements, and offers practice advice for building the passage up slowly and comfortably.

Taught by 

Frederic Chiu

As with most revolutions, Chopin's C Minor Étude, Op. 10 No. 12, begins with a crisis. Join maverick American pianist Frederic Chiu as he deconstructs the drama of Chopin's "Revolutionary" study.<br><br>For Chiu, the rapid lefthand passagework is a diversion from the true technical and musical challenge of the etude, which is capturing the rhetorical drama latent in half note motif that dominates the score. In order to inform your physical inputs, you first have to develop a conception that depicts the struggle of the half steps in both left and right hands. Then, when larger intervals are introduced (even as small as a whole step), suddenly the entire landscape is altered and new horizons emerge. The dramatic arc of the piece arrives finally in a coda tinged with defeat and withdrawal before a final last outcry brings closure to the tumultuous events.

Taught by 

Frederic Chiu

There's more to this étude than meets the eye. Although many pianists treat Chopin's Étude in A-flat, Op. 10 No. 10 as a study in rotation, American maverick Frederic Chiu discerned the underlying principle that is the key to playing it successfully: it's a study all the different ways you can divide up 12 notes.<br><br>Chopin gives each 4-bar unit a unique subdivision of 12: here it's 4 groups of 3 notes, there it's 6 groups of 2 – and even 12 groups of 1! Since this applies to the left hand as well, Chopin creates an infinitely varied framework of accentuation. He uses all the means at his disposal to mark different groupings: barring, slurs, accents, articulation, and more.<br><br> In addition to being more captivating musically, this approach also solves the problem of constantly building tension: by changing up the groupings, you're constantly releasing tension in what Chiu calls the "three axes of tension": up and down, left to right, and rotation. To help you learn the notes, Chiu also offers insight on how to practice blocking (playing the chords together instead of as successive notes) and how it will help you make the hands more independent as well.

Taught by 

Frederic Chiu

Chopin never explicitly wrote an etude for the pedal, but many of his studies give you the opportunity to create new challenges with your feet. For Frederic Chiu, the Etude in E-flat major, Op. 10 No. 11 is just such a piece. Chiu focuses on applying his "surgical shift pedal" technique to create the effect of an in-focus melody and out-of-focus accompaniment. He also takes liberty in interpreting Chopin's markings, turning the rolls in either hand into one long role from bottom to top, like a harp. The resulting arpeggios are challenging, but as Chiu shows, developing your pedal technique will actually free up your fingers to execute some of the trickier intervals in the right hand.

Taught by 

Ben Laude

Of all the dubious nicknames given to classical masterpieces throughout history, the so-called "Minute Waltz" might be the most misleading. Chopin would have frowned upon such attempts to fast-forward through his Waltz in D-flat, missing out on the delicious details that give the piece its elegance and humor. In this lesson on Chopin's beloved waltz, tonebase Head of Piano Ben Laude reveals the craftsmanship of Chopin's famous miniature, taking you on an in-depth tour inside the score. Likening the piece to a dog chasing its tail, after Chopin, Laude analyzes the musical elements that give the piece its playful character and offers detailed practical instruction on how to play with facility and charm.

Taught by 

Ben Laude

In the vast sea of Scarlatti's keyboard sonatas, the E major K. 380 has risen to the fore as one of the most popular. Pianists are often introduced to the work by Vladimir Horowitz, who revealed its tenderness and charm in his many different recordings of the work. In this lesson, tonebase Head of Piano Ben Laude sets the scene of the Sonata as an antiphonal dialogue between imagined instruments of a courtly procession. Exploring its character and design in meticulous detail, Laude also offers practical advice on executing ornaments and fingering figurations, while exploring interpretive possibilities for bringing the work to life.

Taught by 

Barbara Nissman

Join Barbara Nissman for a lively lesson on Alberto Ginastera’s folk-inspired Danzas Argentinas, written when the composer was just 19. Nissman is the perfect guide for these popular, zesty pieces: she knew Ginastera, and his last-ever composition was written expressly for her.<br><br>Nissman walks you through the characterful narrative of each piece, ranging from quirky ambling and prodding in the “Dance of Old Cowherd,” to melancholy and passionate singing in the “Dance of the Beautiful Maiden, to fire and exuberance in the “Dance of the Outlaw Cowboy.”<br><br>Ginastera’s style features a number of vivid ideas borrowed from Argentinian folk music: imitations of open strings and the strummed flamenco guitar, and the driving rhythm of the malambo (a competitive dance). With practical advice on interpreting Ginastera’s notation, where to place accents that keep the rhythm stable, use of your hands, arms, and even legs, Nissmann shows that Ginastera’s music is actually less difficult than it sounds!

Taught by 

Barbara Nissman

A pulsating, neo-Scarlattian mini-sonata with a Lisztian cadenza and characteristic Argentinian twang and flair, Alberto Ginastera's Sonata No. 3 is an unknown masterpiece of the 20th-century piano repertoire. Ginastera composed the work on his deathbed for Barbara Nissman, who takes you on a tour of the work's motives, interjections, and magical departures, while deconstructing its patent virtuosity to make it playable in your hands.

Taught by 

Barbara Nissman

Join Prokofiev expert Barbara Nissman for a lesson on the tautly structured first movement of Prokofiev’s Sixth Sonata.<br><br>Nissman begins with an introduction to Prokofiev and his multifaceted musical personality. Far from being merely harsh and brittle, Prokofiev’s music encompasses lyricism, heart, and impeccable craftsmanship. She also explores Prokofiev’s reputation as a virtuoso pianist and his considerable output for the instrument, culminating the in three so-called “War Sonatas.” <br><br>Bringing her attention to the Sixth Sonata, Nissman walks you through the first movement, giving special attention to how each section functions in the overall form. She shows how Prokofiev’s apparent complexity is more in the piano writing rather than the underlying structure, which is very clear and derived from Classical models — especially Beethoven. By explaining the structural role of each section and motive, Nissman gives you a clear road map to the piece: where the tension is, which details should be emphasized.<br><br>In tandem with this close look at how all the sections relate to one another, Nissman provides practical pianistic advice for how best to bring out the distinctive character of each passage. To sustain certain bass notes, she makes use of the middle (sostenuto) pedal as well as pedal vibrato (partial changes of the right pedal). To tackle Prokofiev’s acrobatic piano writing, Nissman often throws the hand without the typical “touch-then-play” approach. She also offers two tips that are particularly helpful for pianists with smaller hands and short arms: specific redistributions of notes between the hands, as well as places where you can lean forward to reach the extremes of the keyboard. The main goal is to constantly maintain your focus on melodic material despite the keyboard acrobatics all around.<br><br>Throughout, it’s often necessary to create a dialogue between different voices, as well as to bring out Prokofiev’s biting and sarcastic sense of humor with the jabbing, obstinate dissonances that eventually start to seem familiar. Nissman closes the lesson by once again stressing the importance of understanding the structure and making it the basis for your interpretive decisions.

Taught by 

Asiya Korepanova

Join powerhouse pianist Asiya Korepanova for a lesson on Wilde Jagd, Liszt’s wildest etude. With Korepanova's step-by-step practice tips to demystify even the trickiest passages, you'll be nailing the leaps and conjuring up the spirit of the hunt in no time.<br><br>The main challenges of this etude are its rapid changes and precipitous leaps. To master them, Korepanova recommends specific mental groupings to structure your movements, feeling a strong underlying meter despite all the surface disruptions, close-to-the-keys choreography to bounce repeated chords, and memorizing distances by skating across the surface of the keys as if you were blind. She uncovers the points of greatest intensity, as well as the best opportunities to rest.<br><br>This etude tests more than your reflexes: it also tests your imagination. Full of vividly descriptive music, Wilde Jagd shows the unpredictability of hunters and hunted alike, the orchestral richness of horn calls, and a passionate love scene in the middle section.<br><br>To bring out these myriad characters, Korepanova finds the ideal moments for colorful voicings, clear yet atmospheric pedaling, and rich finger-pedaling. She also shares her tips on pinky endurance and achieving powerful tone without harshness.

Taught by 

Barbara Nissman

In this lesson, American pianist Barbara Nissman guides you through Bartók's Allegro Barbaro, one of his most popular and influential work for piano.<br><br>Nissman, who literally wrote the book on playing Bartók's piano music, reveals the historical context in which the work was first conceived and interpreted (or, misinterpreted). Bartók's own recording is a great reference point for anyone approaching this work for the first time.<br><br>Diving into the opening material, Nissman shows you the importance of keeping a consistent pulse, and using accents to help punctuate the ostinato rhythm and capture the relentless, driving character of the music. The piece is filled with "vamp" material, and Nissman shows how not to lose track of how many repetitions you've played.<br><br>In the many rapid octave passages, make sure you stay loose and experiment with throwing the hand. It is also important to use gravtity to your advantage, and allow the hand to fall freely.<br><br>While the piece is almost always moving forward, there is a structurally significant improvisatory section with a flexible tempo. Nissman shows how to feel this elusive passage, and how to reveal the many layers of the texture as the music returns to tempo.

Taught by 

Asiya Korepanova

Join powerhouse pianist Asiya Korepanova for a lesson on Mazeppa, Liszt’s Transcendental Etude No. 4. Korepanova’s meticulous, bar-by-bar practice tips will take you a long way toward mastering this tumultuous etude.<br><br>Based on a poem by Victor Hugo, Mazeppa depicts the ordeal of a hero tied to a wild, bucking horse. Korepanova shares ideas that bring out this character while making your performance as technically reliable as possible, in particular how to use Liszt’s unusual fingering to play with vigorous, biting articulation. She offers powerful but simple strategies for tacking very challenging passages: repeat each note immediately to build endurance and independence; repeatedly loop individual beats or measures; play double notes with one voice staccato and the other legato; practice voices of chords and octaves separately; leave out parts of the texture to focus on the specific difficulties holding you back; redistribute notes between the hands; starting from the end of a passage and adding preceding notes a few at a time.<br><br>Korepanova adds to these detailed suggestions by finding the best places to “reset” yourself physically and mentally, and how to stay balanced and stable in even the most death-defying passages. Lastly, she shares her thoughts on how to make sense of the unexpected recitative (hint: it’s voicing) and triumphant coda.

Taught by 

Asiya Korepanova

One of the most beloved works of the Romantic piano literature, Liszt's "La Campanella" is also one of the most feared. A specialist in Liszt Etudes, Asiya Korepanova breaks down the technical challenges one-by-one, offering practice tips to help you find comfort and facility in passages you once thought impossible.<br><br>The piece is named "little bell," but the pianism required to play it is far from small. The right hand jumps in the opening passages are notoriously hard to play cleanly, but Korepanova reveals how to approach the jumps psychologically, knowing which notes to target and where to center the arm so that the leaps shrink.<br><br>What might seem like a serious difficulty in the piece – episodic passages, each requiring a different technique – also makes the piece easier, since you never have to continue the use of a given muscle group for more than a few phrases, unlike in other Etudes. For each of these techniques – leaps, repeated notes, trills, octaves, rapid chromatic scales – Korepanova demonstrates practice strategies for reducing the specific difficulty, relieving strain and stress from your forearm, and ultimately achieving brilliance and ease in execution.<br><br>The piece is not Mount Everest, says Korepanova. Once the challenges are broken down into a series of achievable physical tasks, they can be surmounted with relative ease.

Taught by 

Asiya Korepanova

The second of Liszt's Two Concert Etudes, Gnomenreigen, is one of his most enchanting piano works. Although it poses major technical obstacles, it is considerably less daunting than most of his Transcendental and Paganini Etudes.<br><br>Asiya Korepanova, the first pianist in history to perform all 24 of Liszt's Etudes in a single recital, is uniquely qualified to understand the challenges posed by Gnomenreigen and offer constructive solutions. In her lesson, she walks through the piece section by section, offering detailed practical advice for executing Liszt's tricky figurations.<br><br>Beginning with the opening Presto Scherzando, Korepanova focuses on executing the rapid grace notes in a way that preserves the mischievous character of the opening theme and emphasizes the gigue-like dance element. In the subsequent passage marked 'Un poco animato,' Korepanova stresses the importance of minimizing motion and using arm weight to achieve brilliant fingerwork. In the developmental and closing passages, she confronts the difficulties posed by Liszt's repeated notes, rapid chords, and other daunting technical obstacles, deconstructing the physical requirements for execution and demonstrating in detail how to conceptualize and practice each.

Taught by 

Asiya Korepanova

Chopin's Fourth Ballade is one of his most famous and extraordinary works, unique in its combination of tenderness and power. Join Russian pianist Asiya Korepanova for a deeply insightful look at how to arrive at an emotionally and pianistically satisfying interpretation of this pillar of the repertoire.<br><br>This video addresses the first half of the piece, including the yearning introduction, the somber first theme and its passionate polyphonic transformations, the sincere and gentle second theme, and the glittering dance-like passages that dissolve into a brief but heartstoppingly ethereal cadenza.<br><br>Korepanova's advice draws on time-honored devices from her vast expertise and the Russian tradition of piano playing: immaculate craftsmanship of every phrase and their proper relation to the whole piece; a search for exquisite colors without losing sight of the ongoing flow; and a deep understanding of the physicality of piano playing, including all aspects of touch and sound production, weight distribution, finger independence, resting points, and surefire practice techniques.

Taught by 

Asiya Korepanova

Performing one Liszt Etude is hard enough. Performing 24 is superhuman. Join Asiya Korepanova for a special interview feature as she tells the story of learning and performing Liszt's formidable studies. The only pianist in the world currently programming the whole cycle in a single concert, Korepanova reveals how she prepared psychologically and physically to execute these fiendishly difficult pieces in performance.

Taught by 

Arie Vardi

Join world-renowned Israeli pedagogue Arie Vardi for a profound look at how Chopin constructs intricate emotional worlds in music. Vardi reveals how Chopin’s twin loves of opera and Bach relate to two powerfully expressive compositional techniques: poly-melody and polyphony.<br><br>He begins by showing Chopin’s mastery of introductory music. In the Mazurka in B-flat Minor, Vardi sees the shrinking intervals showing how exploration of the inner nucleus of the self is more fascinating than visiting distant lands. This introduction flowers into an unforgettable melody that illustrates his main topic.<br><br>Vardi defines poly-melody as a mysterious, imagined “third voice” that results from the combination of two voices in a duet. Chopin often gives a strikingly vivid, human character to each voice in the texture, as if it were an operatic duet; in the case of this mazurka, he presents both a pleading and a refusing voice in the upper register. Poly-melody is the synthesis of these two that creates a third, richly emotional impression.<br><br>Vardi contrasts this with traditional polyphony. Instead of presenting two relatively independent characters like in poly-melody, when using his polyphonic technique Chopin is like a philosopher repeating the same musical idea from many perspectives until reaching the truth. Instead of merely emphasizing the top voice, freely choose to zoom in and out on this or that voice. <br><br>Vardi closes by encouraging freedom and flexibility in your interpretation: “Play in such a way that no one will recognize what you are playing” — a surprising strategy for ensuring that Chopin’s extraordinary music will continue to inspire players and listeners alike.

Taught by 

Arie Vardi

In this lesson, Israeli pianist Arie Vardi teaches you the difference between legato and cantabile playing. To play legato, you must connect your notes by pedaling with your fingers, i.e., releasing a note only after its sound has briefly overlapped with the next note. You must also touch the keys with the pads or “cushions” of your fingers, and your attack, you learn, must be slow. <br><br>Vardi encourages you to enhance the expressivity of your legato playing with cantabile (“singable”) phrasing. To achieve a cantabile style, Vardi explains, you must never play two notes at the same volume; rather, you must use dynamics to give your playing a constant sense of direction. Finally, you learn to imitate singers’ phrasing by taking time during large melodic leaps.

Taught by 

Arie Vardi

What is the secret of harmony?' Ever since he was a child, Arie Vardi was drawn to the enchanting sonorities unique to the music of Debussy. In this lesson, the world-renowned pianist and teacher introduces you to the magic of Debussy's harmony and the mystery of the touch required to reveal the colors and perfumes emanating from his scores.

Taught by 

Arie Vardi

In this video, Ben Laude sits down Israeli pianist Arie Vardi to discuss the peculiarity of composers, and how playing the music of Frédéric Chopin is so uniquely challenging.<br><br>To Arie's dismay, the topic of competitions comes up, leading them down a conversation about what it means to be a pianist in the modern day.

Taught by 

Anne-Marie McDermott

What does Bach have to do with Prokofiev? In a word: clarity. For a maverick musician like Anne-Marie McDermott, both composers write music that "pops." And both benefit from a balance of discipline and freedom. Join McDermott as she sits down with tonebase Head of Piano Ben Laude for an intimate and insightful half-hour conversation exploring the intersection of piano interpretation and the human experience. McDermott tells how she developed an addiction to Bach and Prokofiev as a teenager, one that persists to this day. With these two composers as focal points, McDermott details her life's unusual path, with twists and turns through Jungian psychology and Eastern philosophy, and reveals how her musicianship evolved along the way.

Taught by 

Arie Vardi

In this video, Ben Laude sits down with Israeli pianist Arie Vardi to discuss Debussy. Laude probes Vardi's expertise on Debussy's life and legacy, and together they examine the composer's musical influences, his life and career, and the lasting impact he made on the musical world, especially for the composers and pianists who came after him.