How to practice Bach

Bach's composition is very tricky to teach/play because there is no tempo/dynamics markings on the scores. It relies on a lot of understanding of the style of Baroque period's intrumental music and personal judgement, in terms of articulation, dynamics, hand balance and voicing. Knowledge of fugue structure and analysis is essential.

The good news is that to learn to play is absolutely achievable. All you need to do is to take it apart then put it together. Patience is the key. The result is unbelievably fruitful and satisfying. Not only it trains your fingers to be indepent from each other, it also trains your ears to differentiate voices. Fortunately I played many Bach inventions when I was young so now as an adult I am not too fearful to Baroque style.

When I said "taking it apart" it means cutting the compositions into groups of two bars, or cutting the composition into right hand only/or left only, or cutting the composition into three different minor pieces by voice, or cutting the composition by the harmonic structure; for example, exposition-development-final section. In short, you have to know it inside out! There is no way you can cut corners, for Bach! The complexity in the structure demands that much work to get it ready for performing, unfortunately.

At the same time, Bach gives a lot of freedom/flexibility for interpretation. Playing it in a romantic style can sound amazing too, in my opinion. The depth and width of the compostion makes it able to take so much.

Learning some Prelude and fugues are a must for any serious piano learner.

What makes a good performance? Does a tiger mother create success or sorrow?

I attended a couple of Baroque piano classes in Calgary Performing Arts Festival yesterday, hearing several young pianists perform advanced Bach piano solos. The grade ten class performances were astounding and inspiring. Two performers delivered surprisingly high quality performance, leaving me wonder how a young person can accomplish such professional level of playing. Not only the techniques were solid, the expression, voicing, shaping and confidence were all there.

Piano performance is a highly intensive activity, especially solo performance. Intensive work requires intensive preparation. At the same time, because a performer's job is to execute a piece of music that has long been written and printed, the activity is highly scripted. The process of preparation can be very technical and repetitive - much like quality control, if put it in a business like language. If a 100 times of drills are not enough, do 500 hundred times; if 500 times are still not enough; do 1000 times or 2000 times, to make your nerves know what to do automatically and perfectly. So that there is zero mistakes, zero risk, zero hesitation, etc.

Sounds very boring?

If you hear a boringly good performance, that is a good performance. That is the minimum requirement for one who wish to become a concert pianist You need to be boringly good first.

Then, you cultivate your personal art and involve your personal inpterpretation maybe just a little to make your performance different than others'. One day when you become famous, you can do whatever you want.

Many kids quit piano becuase of boring practice and drills. I'd like to be honest with all inspiring young pianists. If you dream to be a concert pianit, techniques are unfortunately everything you need to work on, for now. For you who just can not go on with boring practices; stop thinking of becoming concert pianist, relax and play whatever way you wish. If you play "from your heart" with a few mistakes; I still consider it a wonderful performance because you are much more relaxed and happier.

A highly musical person could give a performance that sounds great but not good enough to wirn a prize; a non musical person could give a flawless performance that is faked to sound musical. It is true.

Kid, if you did not get a prize this year, it is really not a big deal. The important thing is what you learn from this experience. You may finally agree to do all your drills and slow section practice; you may decide you will never touch piano again. Both are va

Composer's note on Lotus Pond Fantasia

Last Saturday I was sitting at a coffee table at the fitness club waiting for my training session; my early morning improvision brought me an audio file in my phone, so that I listened to the file again and again, writing down the notes on the manuscript. Having a headache, I was so annoyed by the loud voice of the guy who was talking on the phone in the hall way. The audio was supposed to be in the section of the waterdrop dance on the large lotus leave. It was not very good. I thought. Nothing sounds good when you have a splitting headache. How can I stop getting sick???

Having prolonged headache, I struggled to watch an inspiring movie on Tuesday: Geninus. Surprisingly inspiring! It is so right that a polished work relies on sticking with the core idea throughout. Form! That is why form is important. Decisions on themes, variations of themes and transition make up a work.

To me folk tunes are much more effortless and accessible, compared to major-minor tonality. Melodic lines like Chopin are impossible to mimic. Debussy and Faure are much more friendly to me. Seeking materials and rhythmic devices for my work, I lately realized that for years what Chopin had haunted me was his ever love-provoking melody lines that made me indulge in the sorrows. However, Debussy's break free from practical period's tonality frame to explore freedom and variety in tonality, seeking greatness and mystery in nature moved me much more! Isn't the mood in Chopin too confined to personal emotions?