EnglishPod

Global View - Learning The Piano #D0242

Charles: Hi Cody, how did practicing go this week?

Cody: Well I had several tests and an oral presentation this week so I didn’t get a chance to memorize the second page, but I think I mastered the tricky section.

Charles: Great! Warm up with some scales and arpeggios first. Good, good. This week, work on keeping the rhythm steady when you play the last part with the sixteenth note. Now let’s take a look at this tricky section.

Cody: Charles? Before I start I was wondering if it was ok if I put a small crescendo in here and then decrescendo back to pianissimo again over here?

Charles: It might work. I’ll have to hear it. Show me what you’ve done. Not bad, not bad.

Cody: It was horrible! I played play it much better at home!

Charles: It’s just nerves. Just play the right hand for now. One two three four five six, ta ti tri-ple-ti. Good, good. Don’t forget the accidentals! The key signature says that note should be a G-sharp but now it’s a G-natural. Now add the bass clef. You’re going too fast. Remember the tempo for this piece is andante.

Cody: Is that better?

Charles: Yes, much better. Watch where you lift your foot off the pedal. What was that?

Cody: Sorry! The stretch for that octave is always hard to make.

Charles: That’s ok, keep going, you’re moving ahead by leaps and bounds. Watch your dynamics! Keep your elbows lifted. Remember to stroke the keys, don’t pound. That’s better! Remember that as a pianist or any other musician, your technique will be what separates you from the pack just as much or more so as your musicianship.

Key Vocabulary

tricky - requiring skill or caution

scale - a series of musical notes

tempo - the speed at which a musical piece is played

by leaps and bounds - very quickly

musicianship - the skill of performing music

note - a specific musical tone

dynamics - changes in how loudly a piece of music is played

key - a button depressed with fingers to produce sounds

Supplementary Vocabulary

hammer - a wooden piece which strikes the strings

string - wires that when hit by the hammer produces sounds

plate - the iron frame which holds the strings in place

hitch pin - a metal screw that holds one end of the string

grand piano - a specific type of piano