Advantage to flat-fingered playing?

[ramibarniv]

I had a pleasure to take lessons with eminent Israeli pianist Pnina Saltzman, who used to study with Cortot since she was a little girl.......

Ah, Pnina, yes, she was a friend and a colleague.  We had lots of mutual "stories".
Regards,
Rami

[theodore]

The following was witnessed by me during a Chamber Music master class:

During a practice session, while rehearsing a Beethoven trio, the coach noticed that the violin and cello were playing a long melodic duet while the piano was playing a high register trill. This beautiful string duet was hardly heard because of the brilliance of the piano trill.

The coach, who was a pianist, had the performing pianist gradually lower his palm and this action resulted in a flatter hand position. The flatter hand position reduced the volume, but not the velocity, of the trill until it truly became the ornament which Beethoven had in mind to enhance the legato string duet.