Teachers are your major source of this knowledge. Also immerse yourself in recordings and concerts until you begin to hear, feel and understand styles, rhythm and individual characteristics of the music you like best. Look for local contests in which students play all Baroque or Bach pieces. Can you pick the winners before the judges announce them? Listen to the sounds and watch the hand technique. Did they use the pedal? Attend a contest for Romantic music. Why does it sound so different? Did they use the pedal? How did the technique differ? Did the students sit at the piano in a different way? Attend concerts by great pianists. If you do not look at the program, can you tell which pieces are Baroque and which are Romantic? Have a discussion with your teacher about the differences between these two styles. Try to incorporate what you have learned into your playing. Do the same with any styles you love and develop your ability to assess the ways in which pianists interpret this music?
Read library books about the lives of the composers you are studying. How does the music reflect the happenings historically? What were the composers saying? Find pictures, preferably in an art gallery, from the composer’s era. Often the artists and the architects were reflecting the same ideas as the composers. When you play, whether it is Romantic, Jazz or Church Music, think of the era, the historical setting and the beliefs the composers and artists were presenting. Try to express, as well as you can, the composer’s intentions.
How can I play one hand louder than the other?
(1) If you can’t hear your own playing clearly, ask your teacher to listen and tell you which notes are out of balance and which hand is too loud or too quiet. (2) To play louder, lean your body into your fingers. To play quieter, lean your body away from your fingers. Be sure your feet are flat on the floor and lean into the foot on the louder side. (3) Pretend a huge giant is sitting on your hand on the louder side. Pretend balloons are tied to your wrist on the quieter side.
Sometimes you will need to play one side of your hand quieter than the other side. Pretend your hand is two hands and do exercises 1, 2 and 3 above. Watch out for your thumb and pull back the weight if it is too loud.
How can I learn to play beautifully?
Playing beautifully is dependent upon all the factors. The most important is listening to your playing and listening for beauty: the rise and fall of melodic lines, relaxed, golden touches on the keys and the beauty of each note as your total playing sweeps across the keys.
