In this issue
July 2013; Vol. 5, No. 4
A Choice to be Made
The tradition of memorizing music has been traced to the mid-nineteenth century, a time in history when the concept of the performer as a virtuoso was…
July 2013; Vol. 5, No. 4
One Pianist’s Choice Not to Memorize
The traditional requirements of memorizing piano music for public performance have made nervous wrecks of many pianists. Fear of a memory slip can become an enormous…
July 2013; Vol. 5, No. 4
Behind the Notes: Music Edited by Ignaz Friedman
When learning a new musical work, we trust that all the notes confronting us have been accurately deciphered from a manuscript or its earliest source. While this is…
July 2013; Vol. 5, No. 4
Louis Nagel “The People’s Pianist”
From Juilliard to Jerusalem, Town Hall to Taichung, Washington to Warsaw, concert pianist Dr. Louis Nagel has graced stages on four continents for more than fifty…
July 2013; Vol. 5, No. 4
Interpreting Jazz Accents
Accents are a fascinating thing. I mean the kind that keep Americans from understanding folks from across the pond and vice versa. I'll never forget landing…
July 2013; Vol. 5, No. 4
An Unknown Pupil of Franz Liszt
Today we know only a few composers and performers from the past in contrast to the many who were active, and even well known during their…
July 2013; Vol. 5, No. 4
Thoroughly Learned: Playing by Memory and/or Using the Score
Try that passage again with your eyes closed." I heard myself today repeating to a student the advice I heard from my own teachers during my…
July 2013; Vol. 5, No. 4
Memorization in Adulthood
It really gets my dander up when I hear people say that adult amateur pianists aren't "serious" about their piano study. Why underestimate the thousands of…
July 2013; Vol. 5, No. 4
How Do You Teach Memorization to Elementary and Intermediate-Level Students?
Last year I attended an excellent lecture that John Ford did on the teaching of memorization. I enjoyed his extensive summary of mainstream ideas on the…
July 2013; Vol. 5, No. 4
A Philosophy of Piano Pedagogy, Part 2
Editor's note: In this issue's column we present the conclusion of one of Frances Clark's popular lectures from the 1970s—"A Philosophy of Piano Pedagogy." The first…