PIANO TECHNIQUE
Tone,Touch, Phrasing and Dynamics
If I do not practicefor one da, I will Izear it.
If I do not practicefor iwo days myfriends will /zear it.
If I do not practicefor t/zree days the audience will hear it.
— Hans von Bùlow

Practice is indeed the soul of piano technique and this concise handbook— by a noted pianist and teacher — tells you how to get the most out of it. It is a working manual, containing technical studies, excerpts from the works of the great piano masters, and photographs — all of which help the student devdop a sound technique in a comparatively short time.

Beginning with such elemental topics as scai ng position, hand and finger positions,
and scales, the author proceeds to trilling exercises, thumb exercises, tisur-finger
exercises, accent, tone production, chords, flngering, pedaling, phrasing, sightreading and other essentials of keyboard art.

Ms. Philipp has distilled the experience òf a lifetime of piaying and teaching (she
studied with students of Liszt and Busoni) into a highly useful guide for all piano
students. The text is replete with hints and suggestions for developing better technique:

Melody — If you want a melody to sing, keep the accompanying figuration softer
and you will get the desired effect.

Practice—Practicing pianissimo, as many great pianists have been known to do,
will help further technique and improve velocity.

Pedaling— If you want an individuai tone to be particularly beautiful, catch it with
the pedal just after you have bit it.

These hints, and a host of others, are complemented by 63 musical excerpts from the
masters—Beethoven, Chopin, Schumann, Bart6k, Mendelssohn, Liszt—and numerous exercises illustrating various technical, stylistic and musical approaches.
Close-up photographs indicate proper positioning of hands and fingers to achieve the
proper playing skills and practicing techniques.

Pianists at all levels can benefit from careful study of this unique book — beginners wffl
find it particularly helpful in acquiring a thorough knowledge of the essentials; inter-
mediate and advanced pianists will appreciate its review of basic principles and the
author’s authentic and interesting treatment of probiems concerned with the study of
the piano.

Unabridged and corrected Dover republication (1982) of Piano Study: Application and
Technique, published by MCA Music, New York, 1969. 64 black-and-white photographs. Numerous musical examples and exercises. Tree of Keyboard Masters and

Disponibilità: