Sandor or Fink for resource on advance techinique?

[ThePhoenixEffect]

Ok I've heard these two are good resources for advanced technique, but I'm not sure what to pick.

I'm inclined to go for Fink simply because of the cost.
(Mastering Piano Technique by fink is only around 20 dollars while On Playing Piano by Sandor is 50!)

Does Fink's book automatically come with the video that is supposedly necessary to understand it or do I have to find and pay for it too?

Do both books cover basically the same thing? What are the major differences wether it be in concept or presentation of the material?

[bernhard]

These are the two best books around.Get them both. It will be the best investment you ever made.

Do not think about them as “advanced technique”. Everything they say can be used straightaway from the very first lesson. However, the musical examples (particularly in Sandor’s book) are taken from the advanced repertory. If you want the same kind of ideas with elementary examples, try Seymour Bernstein “20 lessons in Keyboard choreography” (Hal Leonard).

They both say more or less the same thing and follow more or less the same principles. However the way they describe it is very, very different. I found they complement each other beautifully. Because the concepts – although more or less the same – are organised and presented very differently, one informs the other. You may not understand what Sandor is getting at until you see the same thing explained differently by Fink and vice versa.

It is a real shame that Sandor’s book does not come with a video. Fink’s video is absolutely essential. These things cannot be really written about. You must see it demonstrated. But publishers are really mean people. You will have to buy the video separately. If your funds are very limited, buy the video first and the book later. And if you have to choose between both books, I would probably recommend Fink’s not because it is better, but because of the accompanying video.

Also have a look at your local library and compare both books (or borrow them from a friend) so that you can check for yourself.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[ThePhoenixEffect]

Thanks for the reply! I guess I'll settle for the Fink video and book.

The nearest piano store has a very limited stock.  I really doubt they have those books because I had a very hard time finding anything beyond basic method books and pop music.  I have to go an hour and half to get to any place "decent" for this kind of stuff.

I'll just have to order it. The book on Amazon is like 6 dollars cheaper than anywhere else, but they don't have the video.  So I guess I'll have to settle for the book and video from the website of the publisher.

[rlefebvr]

https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/store/smp_fastresults.html?cart=32931318542114123

Sheetmusicplus have both the book and video.

I have ordered from there before and had no problems.

Have decided to order these items myself.

[seepiano]

I found it at buy.com $16.59
https://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=30251611&sp=1&loc=106

Also, does anyone have a comment on videos by Dorothy Taubman? It seems to me the series of these vedios is not available anymore. Anyway, they are too expensive for me.

[tiklivry]

Hello! I thought I would jump into this post. bernhard mentioned he wished there was a video on Sandor's book and well, it just so happens that I just released one on YouTube a few days ago on the 5 basic motions of piano technique based on Sandor's book. Sandor was my teacher at the Juilliard School back in the 80s, only a couple years after he had published his book, so I was fortunate enough to really learn in depth his take on piano technique. Here is the link if anyone is interested:https://youtu.be/rto4hOS105A . It's free and I just want to keep his teaching alive since his book is out of print. If you enjoy it, please like it and subscribe so that I'm motivated to post more and hopefully you'll be inclined to share it. Thanks for your consideration and let me know what you think!

[keypeg]

Thank you for this!