About the Book
In The Pianist’s Craft 2, pianist and scholar Richard P. Anderson gathers together a new collection of essays by renowned performing artists and teachers and discusses the preparation, pedagogy, and performance of selected works by an entirely different set of composers whose works are standard in the piano literature. In this volume, readers will find an invaluable collection of contributions on C.P.E. Bach, Antonio Soler, Felix Mendelssohn, Gabriel Fauré, Erno Dohnányi, Francis Poulenc, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Dmitri Kabalevsky, Alberto Ginastera, Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber, Olivier Messiaen, and John Cage.
The contributors—all nationally and internationally recognized as performing artists, teachers, recording artists, and clinicians—write thoughtfully about the composers whose work they have studied and played for years. Each author addresses issues unique to an individual composer, examining questions of phrasing, tempo, articulation, dynamics, rhythm, color, gesture, lyricism, instrumentation, and genre. Valuable insight is provided into teaching, performing, and preparing these great works—information otherwise available only in conferences, master classes, and private lessons.
This collection, with more than 250 musical illustrations, is intended for teachers and students of the intermediate and advanced levels of piano, instructors and performers at the university level, and those who love piano and piano music.
Table of Contents:
Foreword by Norman Krieger
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1: C.P.E.--Thinking Outside the Bachs: The Music of Carl Phillip Emanuel Bach
Louis Nagel
Chapter 2: Soler’s Fandango
Robin Hancock
Chapter 3: Lyricism and Lightness in the Piano Music of Felix Mendelssohn
Joel Hastings
Chapter 4: Interior Virtuosity: Grasping Fauré's Piano Music
David Korevaar
Chapter 5: Reflections on Performing Dohnányi's Variations on a Nursery Song for Piano and Orchestra
Timothy Ehlen
Chapter 6: Francis Poulenc's Early Writing: A Critical Analysis of Trois pièces (1918) and Mouvements perpétuels (1919)
Jerry Wong
Chapter 7: Drinking from the Source of Universal Folklore: Villa-Lobos, Bach and Chorões
Alexandre Dossin
Chapter 8: The Musical Imagination of Dmitri Kabalevsky
Timothy Shafer
Chapter 9: Remembering Alberto Ginastera
Barbara Nissman
Chapter 10: Improving ‘The Long Line’ Through Score Markings in Piano Repertoire
Caroline Hong
Chapter 11: Aaron Copland and the Musical Idea
Hilary Demske
Chapter 12: Some Suggestions for Playing the Piano Music of Samuel Barber
Jeffrey Jacob
Chapter 13: A Practical Pianist’s Introduction to Messiaen: Technical and Theoretical Approaches via the Vingt Regards sur l’Enfant-Jésus
Christopher Taylor
Chapter 14: A Pianist Looks at the Music of John Cage, 1946-1948
John Milbauer
Chapter 15: The Importance of New Music in the Pianist’s Repertoire
Scott Holden
Index
About the Contributors
About the Editor
About the Author :
Richard P. Anderson is professor of piano at the School of Music of Brigham Young University. He teaches piano performance and pedagogy, serves as the group piano coordinator, and has taught music theory and composition. He is the editor of The Pianist’s Craft: Mastering the Works of Great Composers (Scarecrow Press, 2012), has published two college-level textbooks, and has contributed to Clavier and the Piano Pedagogy Forum.
Contributors:
Hilary Demske, Alexandre Dossin, Timothy Ehlen, Robin Hancock, Joel Hastings, Scott Holden, Caroline Hong, Jeffrey Jacob, David Korevaar, John Milbauer, Louis Nagel, Barbara Nissman, Timothy Shafer, Christopher Taylor, and Jerry Wong
Review :
Continuing what he began in The Pianist’s Craft, Anderson brings together 15 essays—all by concert pianists, recording artists, college professors, or scholars—about specific composers and musical concepts. Anderson did not impose a particular format for these essays, so they vary significantly in length and depth of content. Some contributors provide a broad overview of their assigned composer/topic, whereas others go much more into detail on specific compositions. All of the essays are interesting to read, providing insights into performance practices from the perspective of a pianist who is well acquainted with the particular composer’s output. Some essays stand out: Barbara Nissman writes about Ginastera and her personal connection to him; Christopher Taylor provides a meticulous, in-depth look at Messiaen’s Vingt Regards; Alexandre Dossin takes on fellow Brazilian Villa-Lobos; and Robin Hancock provides a phrase-by-phrase dissection of the Soler Fandango. Also included is an appealing essay by Scott Holden on the importance of playing music by living composers. More than 260 musical illustrations are helpful in clarifying the concepts discussed. This is a book for those with significant piano background. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division through faculty and professionals.
