Early this September, I attended RCM Chief Examiner Thomas Green’s workshop for the new 2008 RCM Technical Requirements of the Piano Examinations syllabus. In the three-hour session, Dr. Green not only delivered a superbly well-organized presentation, but he also shared with us his wealth of pedagogical experiences.
In a casual exchange with a few musical colleagues after the workshop, I realized that we shared similar feelings. Though we felt a bit daunted by the extensive overhaul in the technical requirements, Tom reminded us of a very important message. In a nutshell - technical requirements are only tools to facilitate the development of musicianship and artistry. It is not an end in itself.
Throughout my teaching career, I have come across countless students who perceive technical requirements or exercises merely as a series of mechanical drills. In their fervent (yet often futile) attempt to “warm up” before playing their pieces, they plough through their scales, Hanon or Pischna exercises like automatons. They appear as if they have been transported to an altered state of consciousness (or perhaps entered a state of “unconsciousness”) much akin to a state of hypnosis. Fingers engage in auto-pilot mode as though other sensory modalities have completely shut down. As they play, they no longer seem to see, hear, sense, or even feel anything. In this case, technique has been reduced to isolated physiological motion devoid of emotion. I sometimes wonder if these poor souls can experience any difference between hand-drying a soaked towel, massaging a squid, or playing the piano!
In my first meeting with a transfer student, the eager teenager charged at the running scale passage at the beginning of Schubert’s Impromptu in E-flat major with impeccable speed and iron-clad accuracy. Despite tremendous finger agility, the tone and mood were completely lackluster. When I suggested that he may consider a more lyrical interpretation at the beginning of the piece, the 6- foot tall fellow stared at me in total bewilderment and responded “I worked very hard in getting the scales. To get the speed, I practice Hanon and scales in all keys everyday.” To demonstrate his technical prowess, he bulldozed through a number of scales at a phenomenal tempo.
This vignette is probably not unfamiliar to many of us. Unquestionably, being able to negotiate the keyboard typography with dexterity involves disciplined practice, however, this is merely a minute fragment of the multi-faceted kaleidoscope of musicianship. Unfortunately, many students mistak- enly believe that technique and artistry are disparate entities.
As music teachers, hence I believe that we have the responsibility of instilling within our students that technical exercises, much akin to a musical composition, require an approach that emerges from a musical mindset and physical organization. Technique and artistry need to be fully reconciled in the student’s mind before musicianship can truly blossom.
I often remind my students that technical dexterity involves much more than skill. Carl Czerny, a prolific composer for technical studies - including Fingering and Velocity Op. 299, and the Art of Finger Dexterity and Virtuosity Op. 740, successfully integrated musicality and technique in his studies as a means to cultivate artistry. I believe that artistry involves an integration of physical and mental co-ordination guided by an inherent sense of musicality. Ultimately, music is about expression and communication. Knowledge of scales and chord patterns in isolation does not necessarily make a convincing performance. An intelligent understanding of the music when artfully assimilated with physical control (i.e. technique) and thoughtful articulation of intent, on the other hand can bring about a touching performance.
At this point, I would like to share some questions that I consistently pose during my practice at the piano, which can be useful reminders for music students: Am I practicing technique in isolation from a musical context? Instead of perceiving a scale simply as a series of tones in a pre-defined order, how can I weave it into the fabric of the music? How can I infuse the passage with life and communicate expressive intent in terms of trying alternative phrasings, or applying a palette of tonal qualities, dynamic shaping, and articulations? How can I make the scale sound convincing yet without compromising musical style? For instance, a scale passage in a Bach Prelude has a different flavor from that of a Mozart Sonata, or for that matter a Liszt Concert Etude.
Approaching technique under this light prompts me to approach technique as a sketching canvas for artistic expression. Through daring experimentation balanced with thoughtful attention to musical notation, one may then discover new possibilities. From these, we can select the most appropriate option – in which musical movement and expressive intent can be assimilated. In the final analysis, musical performers are not technicians, but artists – whose sole purpose of existence is to communicate and inspire.
By Angela Chan
© September 2007
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