Piano practice : practice routines and techniques for concert piansts

Abstract

This study investigates the various types of practice concert pianists utilize in preparation for performance. There are surprisingly few published documents which examine the highest levels of piano practice, and this study examines these scarce ideas in comparison with the newly collected material given by eight selected concert pianists regarding their practice methods, techniques and regimes. Keyboard practice techniques from the middle of the 19th century until the present are examined and presented here. Some of the techniques are physical applications of how to practice the instrument, and others are mental preparations which suggest philosophical guidance toward physical practice or enhance performance capabilities. Advice from many famous (older) concert pianists regarding their practice is compared with the newer advice of the eight pianists selected for this study. The amalgamation of all the compiled suggestions should enlighten any pianist’s approach toward practice, and could also be a helpful compendium to any professors of piano who wish to offer a wider variety of practice methods to their students.