Beethoven 126\6 tremolo thingies

[akasimone]

That stormy passage at the beginning--anyone have tips on how to get the LH up to tempo? 

I have a feeling the consensus is going to be "find the motion that works for you and practice it really slow a million billion times," which is basically what everyone seemed to say about the Pathétique first movement tremolos (which I've also yet to really lock in...) but these seem even trickier since you've got to worry about getting the blocked chord on top to come out nice and even...

Anyway.  Of course endless practice will be the answer, ultimately   but any tips or tricks to make it easier--wrist up?  down?  emphasis on wrist rotation or fingers?  mental tricks/analogies?--would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

[bachbrahmsschubert]

Initially I thought your problem was that your wrist is too high, but that doesn't seem to be the case since you mentioned that you're having difficulty bringing out the chord.

Notice how only two notes shift with the chord change. G natural (I assume you play this with your 3) goes up to Ab, an Eb down to D. Be sure your hand isn't too close to the edge of the black keys, it should be closer to the fulcrum of the piano. The thumb should easily slide down to the D, at no point should your arm or wrist need to move.

I suspect your problem is that you're getting tense, thus creating it more difficult to bring out the chord. At any point do you feel any pressure on your elbow or a burning sensation in your forearm? You may also be putting stress on your upper arm without knowing it, the only analogy I can think of at the moment is flexing the bicep.

Just be sure your entire body is completely relaxed, there should be minimal movement with the wrist.

Best wishes,

[akasimone]

Thanks for the advice.  Yeah, tension does seem to be at least part of the problem.  I tend to want to hold my hand position rigid and kind of swing it back and forth, which strains my wrist awfully quickly.  But when I relax the chord falls apart and it gets muddy.  Maybe I should try a more lateral motion instead of the almost rolling motion I'm doing now.

[pianowolfi]

Ha, I *love* these pieces and I have played them a long time ago. This very passage seemed to me one of the most tricky of the whole set, especially in a performance. In a few parts of a second it's over and either you screw it completely or you nail it down brilliantly!  

My suggestion is: don't think that you need to play f all the time. There's anyway enough sound, just put accents on the first count, and a slight accent on the second one, in both hands. It's not supposed to sound massive, just brilliant. Only think of the accents, play the rest softly, it will fall into place. And of course forearm rotation is helpful, as well as a relaxed approach.

[akasimone]

Thanks, pianowolfi--that does seem to help (in combination with focus on an even tempo in the RH, which I hadn't noticed was such a problem before and, incidentally, was also causing problems in my study of Pathétique...).

[pianowolfi]

Thanks, pianowolfi--that does seem to help (in combination with focus on an even tempo in the RH, which I hadn't noticed was such a problem before and, incidentally, was also causing problems in my study of Pathétique...).

Yes, and I'd recommend to practice this with a metronome, gradually increasing the speed step by step.