Nikos Kokkinis | Piano Practising

How to Approach an Accent

by Nikos Kokkinis | Mar 24, 2022 | 0 comments

An interpretation of an articulation on the piano is only as good as the successful interpretation of both its preceding and succeeding passages.

To explain this in a more simplified setting, it’s like when you aim to do, say, a successful pianissimo; to do that, you have to have already set clear dynamic boundaries of your own forte, your own piano and of all other dynamics in the preceding passages of the piece you are trying to play. If those previous dynamics are not presented clearly to your audience (or you haven’t taken them in clearly yourself), then the success of your pianissimo could be compromised.

The climax of the story you’re telling your audience depends not only on the quality of the story itself but also on your own musical prosody.

The accent symbol is like a short, open hairpin. It’s placed underneath or above a note and its purpose is to pronounce a rhythmical or melodic element (chord or note) of a passage.

As implied at the beginning of this article, the interpretational success of an articulation, in our case an accent, depends strongly on the interpretation of the preceding and succeeding music; if the music encircling the accent is not well presented, the accent won’t achieve its desired effect. Thus, the accent is, in essence, an integral result of its neighbouring musical gestalt.

The performer should anticipate the imminent arrival of an accent and treat the precursory passage accordingly (ex. by playing a softer melodic line) so to clearly establish the accented note or chord when it arrives. Equally, when leaving the accented note, the performer should create a more subtle musical canvas, departing from the “sharpness” of the accent and thus boosting the effect of the accented note.

In practice

So, as a general rule when attempting to perform an accent on a note or chord:

Avoid crescendoing smoothly to reach the accented note, since, frankly, the accented note won’t be considered accented if it derives from a symmetrical dynamic development of a previous passage. See example 1, below:

accent on the piano

Contrary to “Example 1”, if the dynamic ascent to the accent arrives more abruptly, per se, the effect of the accent will be more discernible. See, example 2, below:

If the passage continues without accent on the voice that had the accent previously, then it is advisable to lower the dynamics of the succeeding passage, thus amplifying the “aftertaste” of the accent. See, example 3, below.

Finish

The approach of interpreting common articulations on the piano is not set in stone, and depends on many factors, such as the composer, the context (how convenient!) the tempo, and other provincial opinions that scholars have in abundance. Hope this text gets you off to a good start on the accents.

===========

Support this free website by buying our originally engraved music

← Real Dynamics in Music Which Is the Perfect Repertoire to Teach Your Pupils →

Real Dynamics in Music

by Nikos Kokkinis | Mar 1, 2022 | 2 comments

p – f – ppp – mp – pf – fff – ffff – fp – pp – mf – ppp…

… and the list goes on…

and on…

REALLY???

Are you really telling me that a pianist could implement all those nonsensical dynamics on a piece of music? And, in our case, a pianist can differentiate between p, pp, ppp, pppp, or ppppppppp, in a single piece? Come on!

Well, to save you from the endless headaches that composers have inflicted on us through the centuries, NO, you cannot play all those dynamics, because, simply, most of them do not exist! Yes, you read it correctly. Most dynamics written laboriously on music scores (especially of the past 40 years) are fakes – Gimmicks, “composers” of today’s use to differentiate themselves from the other “composers” in an effort to distinguish their musics from a sea of similar musics.

What composers of today want

The absolutely vast majority of “serious” composers today, from the ones writing on DAW’s to the ones using digital notators and to a lesser extent the composers who write by hand, care only about one thing and one thing only: To show off their engraving capabilities, and perchance to entertain a bit through their compositional malarkey.

Enough is enough! I’m telling you.

The nonsense has got to stop at some point, dear ladies and sirs. “Lesser” composers, such as Bach(!), were on to something, weren’t they? Guess what! They used no dynamics, or, well, they used them, but laconically. And I do not want to hear any “but the instruments of the day couldn’t handle dynamics” or “but the music often was written incidentally” or “but the musicians themselves knew what to do” and the rest of moaning, and mellow-mooded excuses of the Imperial Grand heirs of today. I do not buy any of that.

It’s simple luck of originality, of Netflix-Era procrastination and self-love, that today’s musical “creators” use those gimmicks and tricks to pump up their musical standings – to the disadvantage of the performer, of course. But performers themselves are equally guilty – most are gullible, inexperienced and, frankly, inferior musical minds, that accept the composers’ caprices because they think that just because something is written down, it must be right and should be performed. Go figure. Pfff. I’ve just realised I’ve had too much coffee today! Sorry.

So.

What are the real dynamics?

Real dynamics are only three: Piano, Forte, and Mezzo Piano. Those are the only dynamics you must learn to play. Softly, loudly and normal.

Dynamics do not move up and down sequentially. There are not just “one plus one equals two” like in mathematics. Dynamics are general guidelines. You should learn to play the “real” dynamics first and then spice up your dynamics repertoire.

So, play forte (f) first, before aspiring to follow a composer’s indication of fffff, okay? As if a dynamic like this is even possible to attempt. What’s the matter with you, pianists? Relax a little! Learn the basics first. And, I haven’t even started on the articulations…

Play piano (p), and when you feel that your p has substance and any discernible body, then try to control an ever softer pp , perhaps.

Do not care yet about playing a “mastermind’s” pppppppppppp . What?

Sweating over the ludicrous offsprings of the 20th and 21st century freakish composers is not fair. Not fair for your own wellbeing, but dare I say, not fair for the future of music creation. The grotesque use of today’s overabundant compositional tools has to stop. The composers should not be geeks. They should write music and stay clear of their shallow, false compositional priorities.

Learn to play the basics first – and then, if your instrument or your fingers permit, go for the extra mile.

Off you go now and play a ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff.

===========

Support this free website by buying our originally engraved music

← Leggiero and Its Differences to Legato How to Approach an Accent →

Leggiero and Its Differences to Legato

by Nikos Kokkinis | Jan 29, 2022 | 0 comments

Is it possible to describe with words a musical articulation? Well, I could easily say no, because I’m sure that I would be insufficient to achieve this in this very article you are reading. However, a seasoned writer and musical scholar of pianism might let out a sizeable guffaw reading my thoughts above and profess that you could certainly describe articulations by both demonstrating them on an instrument (that goes without saying), and by writing about them; and, I would have to admit, he would be absolutely correct.

In this article I’m trying to define leggiero and answer a follow up question my pupils ask after I ask them to oblige to the articulation in our lessons — because, let’s face it, quite often “leggiero” is not written on the score and we have to add it when the music asks for it. The question my students ask after they see leggiero is, you guessed it, “Is it like more legato?” And, sometimes they could be right.

But leggiero is by no means legato.

Legato is when we tie notes together to create the effect of smoothness, but also to carve the boundaries of a phrase.

What is Leggiero

If I was forced to sum-up the definition of leggiero in a single sentence, I would say that leggiero is when you pitter-patter lightly on the piano keys. Leggiero is reserved for passages that belong to the quick denomination and contain sounds of light velocities (example 1). Leggiero is not legato, in a sense that all notes are tied between them producing a sense of sound unification, but, more often than not, it feels like a lightly pat staccato.

Note that often, leggiero is neither explicitly notated nor typeset as in this revised Schirmer edition by Arthur Friedman below. However, it could be desired on the R.H quavers of the finale:

Example 1: Ending of Chopin Study Op. 25 No. 2

In the following example, Rachmaninov suggests that the oval-shaped groups of semiquavers in the R.H must be played with an airy and gleaming feel. (Moscow Muzgiz – Example 2) The dynamic is pp, fitting for this type of articulation:

Example 2: Rachmaninov Prelude Op. 32. No. 5

In the following example from his Op. 849, Czerny tries to persuade us that a more playful touch can be achieved by not succumbing to the “heaviness” of a legato iteration, but by “scratching” lightly on the nimble semiquavers of the R.H. The sound to be achieved should be crisp and exciting, something that a mere legato wouldn’t be able to suffice (example 3). Again, sensibly, the dynamic range of the leggiero remains in the sphere of soft (p), miles away from the “showoffness” of today’s voguish composers who claim they “push the limits” of notation by using leggiero on fortissimo passages (!) — example withheld.

Example 3: Czerny Etude Op. 849, No. 6

Mendelssohn, on the other hand, submits that his leggiero could be legibly insinuated with the use of staccatoed quavers, provided, of course, that the tempo marking includes the very word (example 4). Arguably, his desire for an unassuming accompaniment to the melodic line cannot be notated in a healthier way. Laconic use of pedal is paramount throughout the accompaniamental parts of the piece (perhaps none or ¾ pedal) and only ½ pedal and above when the melodic takes over.

Example 4: Songs without words, Op. 67, No.2

As you may see, different composers, different notational approaches to indicate leggiero. Nothing is set in stone here, but, just to be on the safe side, using the word “leggiero” or (unfortunately) “leggero” in our own performance editions, is highly advised. Some neo-purists even claim that leggierissimo is certainly needed to cater to the insufficiency of leggiero to denote an ever so light touch, and not only that, but apparently one could hear the difference between the two. Go figure — do not worry about them, though.

What is leggiero and its differences to legato

Again, leggiero is not a relative of legato. Well, maybe it is a distant relative who’s only left with a couple of black and white photos of some people he barely recognises… But, with that said here’s a few differences between leggiero and legato:

Legato can be applied to both extremely loud and extremely soft passages.
Leggiero works better in softer passages
Legato’s notational approach is most of the time straightforward; a slur above the passage
Leggiero needs to be explicitly written on the score, but sometimes its necessity is assumed
Legato’s job is to join rather than to distinguish the notes
Legato is suited to both fast-paced and slow music
Leggiero is better suited to faster passages

===========

Support this free website by buying our originally engraved music

← Coming Back to Piano After a Long Break Real Dynamics in Music →

Coming Back to Piano After a Long Break

by Nikos Kokkinis | Dec 30, 2021 | 0 comments

Coming back to piano after a long break is refreshing, is exciting and, undoubtedly, is a brand new experience.

But in order to return to piano, something happens inside us. We felt the need to hear ourselves playing this marvellous instrument and we anticipate the warmth of the keys underneath our fingers. Everything is so refreshing getting back to our previous love.

But piano is like any other physical endeavour that requires conditioning. Conditioning of our bodies and mind — Yes, you read it right; we should condition both our bodies and our minds to withstand the rigours of practising. Because, let’s face it, in order to get back to piano we need to encounter this dreaded horror that is called “practising”. And where else to find the way to do practising properly and feel as guilty as possible at the same time other than in PianoPractising.com? Thank you for reading this article! (With a horrid smile on my fat face)

Condition of the bodies first

Now, I said we need to condition our minds and bodies. But what comes first? Is it the minds that we need to train, making them instruct our bodies properly? Or is it our bodies that will dictate our holistic approach to the piano through our minds? (I have no idea to be honest with you, but since this is a website that is edited by me, I should find the solution. Otherwise, how am I going to be considered an expert on the piano, even though I am far from it?) Let’s carry on.

We need to condition our bodies first — basically, we need to teach our hands and legs to get back doing the right thing once again. And we do it by starting our practising sessions slowly and deliberately. We start from scales (always). Just a couple of scales on our first few weeks of practising. We play them slowly. With the arpeggios. Really slowly. Our warming up should last for at least five to ten minutes before tackling any repertoire.

Also, even though the notion of coming-back-to-piano applies to all levels of pianists, more often than not, the ones to come back to the piano are not the professionals. The ones to return from a long break are us, the amateurs — the intermediate pianists. That means, Czerny 30, Duvernoy and even Beyer are in order. Those warming-up composers will reset our technique and make it last longer in our practising sessions. And, of course, those composers will get us ready to play the “actual” music; the music one plays in concerts. You wouldn’t play Czerny’s Op. 740, No.1 in a concert, would you? Even though it is music, after all. Well, I have played from that Opus the G minor as an encore, but that’s just me. I mean, look at the ludicrousness of this website — what would you expect?

So, yes: Body comes first. The body will teach our minds to withstand the heaviness of practising. If we cannot last in practising, we won’t come back on anything. We need to be able to teach our minds that enjoyment comes from proper conditioning of our bodies. It’s like in marathon running and its physiological demands. You enjoy the marathon (mentally) after you have learned how to run without exhausting yourself, basically.

And that’s all there is to it. No holistic philosophies, no nights with cheese and wine talking endlessly about the philosophy of Spinoza, nor alternative solutions and other mumbo-jumbo. Just sheer, honest, sensible practising. This will make you come back to piano with a vengeance.

========

I am indebted to the following artists the images of whom I used to create the composite image used in this article: This composite image tries to convey our false priorities in life.

THANK YOU:

Miguel Bruna on Unsplash

NeONBRAND on Unsplash

Japheth Mast on Unsplash

Vinicius Wiesehofer on Unsplash

Sincerely Media on Unsplash

Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash

Tania Mirón on Unsplash

Nils on Unsplash

Did you enjoy this article today? Support our thought-provoking writings. Click to find out how.

← The Night Owl | How to Find the Strength to Practice Your Musical Instrument Leggiero and Its Differences to Legato →

The Night Owl | How to Find the Strength to Practice Your Musical Instrument

by Nikos Kokkinis | Nov 29, 2021 | 0 comments

Reader Discretion is Advised

Intro

“I will play the f minor Chopin Nocturne by the summer,” you said to yourself.

“I’ll finish that novel by the end of the year,” you heard your friend saying in the cafeteria.

“This year I will finally complete my 1st piano sonata. After all, it is on my new year’s resolution list,” you said to your auntie while strolling in the park.

But, as we all know, you never did…

You are like most of us (me included); a lazy, self-absorbed, wannabe artist that prefers to watch the real artists pass you by. But, that’s normal. Imagine if you actually did the work! You would have been a brilliant writer or a skilled musician or even a celebrated painter. But that cannot happen for most of us and that’s why we will let the Hemingways, the Bill Evanses and the Turners do their job, unhindered by our artistic procrastination and vast incapacity.

But we have better things to do, don’t we? Strolling in the park, for example. Window shopping for three hours. Treating the internal walls of our shed to paint it afterwards. Working like crazy to buy a Louis Vuitton bag. And many more important things to holistically improve our lives. Yes?

But enough of my patronising. After all, you are reading this article and somehow I have to make a point.

The Night Owl

I’ll tell you, for the last 10 years, I have been a night owl (as the people I described in the previous paragraphs would say). But not to indulge in some Netflix series (even though I pay for a yearly subscription for no reason) or to share my nonsensical thoughts on the social media, but to realise my “artistic” needs.

One of those artistic needs is to write this article that you read, while baffled by my monumental preposterousness. And you know when do I get to write this article? Guess. Yes, at nights – when you are relaxing in the comfort of your couch watching Netflix and accomplishing, well, zilch. Well, each to their own. For me, writing about the piano is what makes me keep going and allows me to feel like an active musician. And not only I write articles, but also, none other than original music… Who could have believed it… my artistic ludicrousness has reached unreachable depths.

How I do it

Well, it is very, very easy. I use my method of “Three Boxes” that I preach to my pupils all day long. Easy-peasy.

Here’s how it goes:

There are “three boxes” in anything we set our mind to:

Figure 1 The Three Boxes

— The first box is our goal (what we want to achieve at any given time). For instance, complete a piece of music, finish a chapter in our book, or even accomplishing simpler goals, such as sending an apologetic email to a friend or taking the trash out.

— The second box is our reluctance to pursue our goal because of many foreseeable and unforeseeable circumstances, such as tiredness, timidity, shyness, difficulty of task at hand, tendency to procrastination, or other internal delaying tactics.

— The third box is the box to make us reach our goal: Is the act of doing the work; practising, writing, drawing, etc.

All three boxes live inside us, and we all have the same predispositions before pursuing our goals. But only the professionals and the ones that leave no stone unturned in their quest to achieve their ultimate goal manage to “crash” the middle box. And this, my dearest readers, explains the Three Boxes method; to terminate the Middle box — to end our hesitances and the things that make us stop doing the “right” thing.

Figure 2 Evading the Second Box and reach our goal faster

How to Accomplish the Three Boxes Method

To bypass the second box and skip over to the third box and subsequently accomplish your goal, you need to be in a kind of robot-mode. That means you should not let your emotions and the negativity of the second box spiral out of control, influencing your actions.

So, on the piano, when the notion of the work that needs to be done comes to mind (first box), just suppress and block the second box from appearing in your mind and just go practise. Do it mechanically. Even if you feel exhausted, you will notice that after a few minutes of going into this sequence of events (first to third box) will make you wanting to carry on practising. This is a mind trick, per se, that tricks our brains in essence to detour from its usual psychological paths and just keep going. I have to admit, I am in that mode right this very moment I write this article; I did not have time to write during the day, so I had to make myself do the work and meet this article’s deadline late at night.

So, try out the Three Boxes method – especially when tired. Good things will come.

Did you enjoy this article today? Support my writings by joining my membership.

← How to Improve Stamina in Piano Practising Coming Back to Piano After a Long Break →