Analysis of the melody of Moonlight Sonata by Ludwig Van Beethoven

The melody is introduced in the fifth bar, and must give the idea of floating on the accompaniment. At the tenth bar there comes a change of harmony from the major into the minor key, and here the note G (the first G) in the right hand should be accentuated. Ex. No. 2, bar 10. Proceeding onwards to the last quarter of the fifteenth bar and leading to the sixteenth, the melody adopts a more insistent temper, which may be rendered by emphasizing the notes B and C of the melody in the right hand, especially the C.

In fact, this note C should be taken arpeggiato with the accompaniment underneath. It seems to me to represent a cry of unutterable heart-ache, a Read more

One can scarcely discuss nowadays the merits of pianos in our homes without mentioning in connection with them the latest development of modern musical invention, the mechanical piano players. Some musicians affect contempt for the mechanical piano players and ridicule their value, but I do not agree with this view, for, though, no doubt, they cannot be said to contribute to the highest realms of musical expression, still I think they possess a very real value in that they educate the public taste, and enable people who would otherwise have no inclination or impulse to hear good music to become familiar with it.

A mechanical piano player

Therefore, let us not disparage the mechanical piano-players, even though they are trying neighbors in the next house when one is working or sleeping. Of course, it is not quite the same thing, choosing a piano for one’s private use, or selecting the Concert Grand from a professional point of view for a performance in a big hall. For instance, when I give a recital my piano is selected by me and my piano-maker some weeks before the concert from several special ones which I am in the habit of playing. It is tested as to its power of tone and resonance with reference to the acoustical properties of the hall.

Considerations about mechanical piano players

It is tuned, the action regulated, the pedals adjusted in fact, it is prepared and brought into perfect condition, like a well-trained racehorse before it starts its race, so that it may be equal to all the demands imposed upon it. If I were going to buy a piano for my own house, what should I look for? I should first of all search for one with a good even tone throughout, as well in the treble and bass registers as in the middle. Next, I should try the action by ascertaining if the keys repeat perfectly and whether the touch is easy and pliable under the fingers, and also whether the pedals act promptly But, as I have said before, it takes real knowledge to judge such things oneself. If one has not had the opportunity of experience, the next best thing is to go to a first-class firm where only first-class instruments are kept and are looked after by experts. And now, as a fitting finale, let me once more myself eulogize my beloved instrument and let me emphasize again what a wonderful work of human ingenuity it is.

Mechanical piano players : Effects and sound

Who can but marvel when he hears the variety of its effects, the power and wealth of sound it possesses, its wonderful mechanical soul, the pedal, how it is able to produce such great emotions, tears, laughter, excitement, enthusiasm. It can give at the same time complete satisfaction to those of its unambitious devotees who seek only to pass away a few pleasant moments in evoking charming sounds and yet prove its stimulation as an instrument of superhuman difficulty and interest to those who desire to master it, and make it disclose all the richness and extent of its possibilities. And for such as are not easily tired or discouraged, the piano can be a glorious friend and companion, only they must have the will and perseverance, and above all talent and temperament, to inspire the instrument with life and master its secrets.

In this page there are some scales and arpeggios for piano.

Scales in D flat and Arpeggios for the Right hand on piano

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Suggestions about how to memorize piano music.

It is advisable for the purpose of memorizing, as well as for the general mastery of a piece, to learn it bit by bit, taking eight bars or so at a time. Constant reiteration is bad, for it only fatigues the brain without producing the requisite impression. It is better to play something once or twice over, carefully noticing each detail and then stop to digest it. A good way is to learn each hand’s part separately by heart so as to visualize it mentally with such distinctness that the student can, if required, play any given bar by itself and be able to commence unhesitatingly at any point in a piece when asked to do so.

Memorize piano music

Tips to memorize piano music : mentally

Sometimes it is effective to study a piece in the evening, then go to bed and think the music over mentally, note by note, and chord by chord, as if really performing it, and afterwards sleep. Having done this, the student, upon going fresh to work next morning, will often find that the new piece of the evening before returns clearly to his mind as if it was already a familiar old friend. No one need be downhearted if the power of learning by heart does not come immediately.

For nearly everybody can obtain it in a considerable degree by training, though some people no doubt have a natural talent for it that scarcely seems to need exercising at all to keep it vigorous. Certainly the pianist who possesses by nature a good memory and has also trained it carefully can arrive at the most incredible rapidity in learning music by heart. To wit, Van Bulow, the great pianist, of whom the story is told that he learnt the whole of Tchaikovsky’s Variations in F Major for the piano in the train between St. Petersburg and Moscow, and played them by heart at a concert the same evening when he arrived ! No doubt the more musical talent a man possesses, the easier he will learn music by heart, and the longer he will retain it. It is equally certain that temperament, though one of the greatest enhancements of talent, is to some extent prejudicial to reliability of memory during public performance in the following way. The temperamental player loses himself in the beauty of his music.

Van Bulow and Rubinstein : memorize piano music

He ‘imagines that he is improvising, he feels as if what he is playing is really the expression of his own soul. Suddenly the dream vanishes ! He awakes to actuality and finds that he is still playing a certain part of a set piece by a certain composer ! He is perhaps bewildered by the sudden cold douche of consciousness. He realizes his surroundings, he falters, he forgets what comes next! Rubinstein, greatest of pianists, suffered terribly from this king of lapse of memory, which he put down entirely to being carried away by his temperament.

Still, better the temperament of Rubinstein than the exactitude of the pianola! However, the student is not by any manner of means a Rubinstein, and what was forgiven to his commanding genius cannot be conceded to the ordinary mortal! Therefore the temperamental player will find in his public performance that memory will generally be a source of anxiety to him. But this anxiety ought to be more than com ON pensated for by the reflection that memory can be acquired by patience and reasoning power, while true temperament can never be even simulated, but is a gift of God. The music of Bach is most admirably adapted for developing a precise memory. For in his compositions are to be found the most complicated forms of polyphonic writing, where the mind must be always on the alert to distinguish the many different parts with each their individual workings.

Tips and advices for pianists to avoid common mistakes at piano.

WHEN a student comes to play to the artist with whom he desires to study, how often does he ask, when he has finished his performance Master, what I really want you to tell me is, whether I have any very serious faults in my playing? Serious faults in his playing! Poor fellow! He probably has several which he has not yet discovered himself, and which most likely no one has ever drawn his attention to. Read more