In case you missed it, please check out my post on major thirds.

Chromatic fourths and easy and fun:



And of course, this is one reason why you practice chromatic fourths:



You’ll notice that in certain spots you have to slide your second-finger from a black key to a white key. Try this exercise that alternates ascending with descending passages and isolates this occurrence:



I would imagine that Moszkowski’s Book III and IV would contain exercises similar to this. Exercises that focus on isolating spots with troubling fingering/hand positions. I would encourage you to experiment with similar exercises with all intervals. To start simply, practice switching directions! An example using minor thirds:



Stay tuned for part 5!

Chromatic major thirds are tricky. If you’ve worked on minor thirds, you’ll have to turn up the focus. Or else you’ll suddenly find yourself playing minor thirds instead of major thirds!

I’ve experimented with a few fingerings:



This may work as well, it opens the hand up a bit more:



Here’s a variation that I use sometimes (Right-hand ascending or left-hand descending). It can useful if my fifth-fingers need a break or if I’m only playing a section of the scale:



Stay tuned for part 4!

This should be pretty easy if you work on the fingering from the previous post, especially the first example. The third, fourth and fifth fingers in the right-hand use the exact same fingering.



What about descending? The trick: Your right-hand descending uses the same fingering as left-hand ascending. And your left-hand descending uses the same fingering and right-hand ascending! This trick utilizes keyboard symmetry. Example:



The notes D and G# are points of keyboard symmetry. If you ascend chromatically from these notes, you will see an exact mirror image if you descend chromatically. This is you how you can figure out difficult fingering solutions for say, your left-hand: figure out how to play it symmetrically in your right-hand!

All my examples will only show ascending passages. I’ll assume you can figure out descending passages using keyboard symmetry.

Stay tuned for part 3!

Fingering is your key to control. If you’ve found the best fingering-solution to a particular passage, you’ll have better precision and consistency. And with precision and consistency, you can focus on balance and tone.

I thought it’d be interesting to post some fingering exercises for pianists interested in exploring double-note scales. Posts will deal with things that I’ve worked on over that last two years. The exercises are derived from experimenting with Moszkowski’s book Scales & Double Notes Book II. Thanks to Gary Williamson for introducing me to this book!

Side Note: If anybody comes across Book III or Book IV, PLEASE let me know! I’m seriously interested in checking them out. I haven’t been able to find them.

Most important with double note scales is strengthening your third, fourth and fifth fingers. This is especially important because more often than not, these fingers will be playing melodies. Check out this exercise:



You can use the same fingering descending. Of course, there are many variations. So I would encourage pianists to practice ascending and descending with fingering alternating 3-4, 3-5, 4-5 and 3-4-5. This should prepare you for all of them! Example:



I should also mention that you shouldn’t limit yourself to the chromatic scale. Be sure to apply this to major scales, minor scales (melodic & harmonic), bop scales, diminished scales and any other scales you can think of. The above fingering variations will hopefully prepare you for the problems faced in these scales, but be sure to put them to the test!

Stay tuned for part 2!

I’m really interested in how artists treat the word ‘technique.’ (See posts on Technique and Perfect Technique).

For musicians, technique often refers to ‘fast playing,’ but can also refer to precision, control, range and balance. Virtuosos are master technicians. They possess all of these qualities. In an effort to improve our technique, we’re taught, for example, to master scales (in every key!)

But isn’t there a flaw in this approach? If you have no intention of performing music that requires the skills acquired from practicing scales, then why practice scales!?

There are two issues here: The musical and the physical.

We often hear the question: Who has better technique, Oscar Peterson or Thelonious Monk? It’s a silly question. Some will argue: “With his incredible facility, Oscar has ability to express more than Monk!” To which I respond: “Yes, Oscar can express more Oscar than Monk. But Monk can express more Monk than Oscar! Are you listening to the music or notes/minute!?”

What if Monk acquired technical skills beyond what was required of his own music? One day, he ‘mastered’ the C major scale and could play it up and down faster than anybody. Knowing that he would never use a scale like that, one could say that it wouldn’t benefit his music. It might one day benefit someone else’s music, but most likely, it was a waste of Monk’s time.

How does one know what technical exercises they should practice?

What do you want to perform? Pick your repertoire. Repertoire comes first. Music comes first. That should be your goal. Then devise a strategy to acquire the skills needed to execute the music (if you don’t have them already!). Technique is a means to this end, not an end in itself.

Side note: If you are a master technician (i.e. technique is your main objective), could you say that you are a composer’s means to this end?

In regards to the second issue (the physical), I fear that students are too often injuring themselves and becoming discouraged because of ‘technical expectations.’ Their physical limitations make it impossible for them to achieve the proficiency of say, Oscar Peterson. What they need to realize is that everybody has a point of physical exertion on their instrument that can’t be crossed without injury. I would encourage all musicians to explore the limits of their physicality but never try to achieve someone else’s.

Remember: Music comes first.

I’ve realized that when it comes to written or arranged music, much of my practice is dedicated to maintenance. Mainly because over time, muscles need a refresher. Memories fade! Particularly with hard music!

How can we minimize the time spent maintaining a high technical standard? Improvising musicians have an inherent solution. Their notes can be variable to maintain their standards. Can’t play fast today? Then play slow!

But musicians who are dedicated to reading music have a problem. They may know a piece perfectly today, but if they pick up that piece years or months later untouched, they’ll have to relearn it (not completely, just parts of it). Is this avoidable? I don’t think so. But I think it can be managed, especially if the initial learning of the piece is undertaken with lots of patience and discipline.

I’m still exploring. Any thoughts? If you decide to recycle a piece a year later, how long does it take to get it back in shape? How do you minimize that time?

It’s physically impossible for humans to multitask (see my post on multitasking).

Piano students seem to think otherwise. They don’t realize that solid right-hand and left-hand relationships are a result of building, shaping and maintaining an extensive vocabulary over a span of many years. We can’t focus and actively improvise with both hands at the same time. One hand always has to be on autopilot, even though it may be for only a few seconds. Therefore, your hands must have an intrinsic vocabulary to pull from while they’re on autopilot. They have to rely on muscle memory. Otherwise, your hands will only play what they know: nothing.

What do you do with your left-hand? Well, what’s your concept? You have to give your left-hand something to play first! Let’s say: a quarter-note bass line over the blues.

Side Note: How do you form a concept? By asking, transcribing and listening to the specialists!

Pick a twelve-bar, quarter-note pattern and stick to it. This is not a creative exercise. If you’re wavering from the pattern, you’re wasting time.

Practice it a million times. It’s all about repetition. Train your left-hand not to think. Learn it forwards, backwards, upwards and downwards. Learn it from the start, the end and the middle. Learn it in every way. Memorize the notes. Memorize how they look, how they sound, how they feel and how they taste. Learn to play it in your sleep. Know it better than anybody else. Own it. Add your right-hand. Experiment with different melodies, rhythms, tempos and improvisations. Try to throw off your left-hand. When you’re comfortable, move on to the next pattern and repeat.

This process achieves two things. First it develops your muscle memory and vocabulary. Secondly, it rids your playing of bad habits. But only if you’re disciplined enough to stick to your patterns and immediately fix any mistakes and inconsistencies. Again, this is not a creative exercise. You’re infusing vocabulary into your muscles. Creativity would be an act of blending vocabulary. That doesn’t help your left-hand autopilot. The whole point is to think creatively with your right-hand!

Of course, for future study, try putting your right-hand on autopilot!

You have perfect technique if:

• You sound exactly how you want to sound and
• You’re not injuring yourself

Your listeners will think you have perfect technique if:

• You satisfy their tastes

Here’s another excerpt from Kapustin:



I was working on this RH figure for a while (tempo is quarter = 60, so it goes by really fast). I decided that it’s easiest to play 1234, and then finger the chord 1345. It seems counter-intuitive doesn’t it?

I was originally playing the first four notes 2123 or 3123 which readies my pinky for the ‘C’ at the top of the chord, but the thumb cross is too slow for such a fast figure.

But strangely enough, when I use 1234, my hand is quicker at crossing my third finger over my fourth, and lifting up my fourth finger and playing ‘A’ (two notes away!) Maybe it’s momentum. I think it’s just deceptively simple!

Try it!

I’m working on a piece by Nikolai Kapustin. The great thing about playing Kupustin’s music is that his pieces fit nicely under the fingers. So you usually don’t have to struggle with learning awkward fingering. Except for this passage:



I think I’ve figured out the best solution. But I’m curious to know what you would use!

Update: For anybody interested, I use 4, 2, 3, 1, 5, 1, 3, 4, 3, 2, 1, 2, 5, 1, 3, 2, 1. Although, looking at some of your solutions, I may have to adjust! Also, I should have mentioned that that last two notes are played in the right hand. Thanks for your comments!

Scientists have recently discovered that it is physically impossible for humans to multi-task (Link). When it comes to paying attention, our brains are wired to only focus on one thing at a time. What our brains do is trick us into thinking we’re multi-tasking by switching our focus between tasks very rapidly. Once we’ve switched, it takes a second or two to regain the focus level we had on the previous task.

What are the implications of this for improvising pianists? Students often say that they have difficulty figuring out what to do with their left hand while improvising in the right. Now that we know we can’t focus and actively improvise with both hands at the same time, the only solution is to put one hand on autopilot. The left hand will have to rely on muscle memory while we focus on new ideas for the right hand, or vise versa. It’s physically impossible to do otherwise!

More on autopilot and muscle memory soon!

Pianists! Learn this fingering and own it! (Two octaves starting on C)

RH – 1234123123412312312341234
LH – 5432132143213213214321321