How to master consecutive chord passages? - In connection to Rach 2

[ansgarpiano]

Hi forum!

I am in need of tips and advices on what is required to play larger chords in passages as I feel I am slowly running into a wall on Rach 2. Now normally I would be fine with my teachers help, but as I have around a month to my next lessons I would be grateful if some of you who has a lot of expierience, maybe even performed Rach 2, would share what tools are necessairy.

For the curious ones I am planning on doing one to several public performances between october 2016 and april 2017, as well as publishing a video recording here and perhaps a few words on the work, challenges and the overall expierience

Thanks!

[rachmaninoff_forever]

Which measures

[ansgarpiano]

Well I would not say my problems are specific in that matter, I am just looking for tools to sharpen it up, getting every voice accurate, sharp and comfortable. Like the big climax in the first movement as well as just about the whole 3rd movement consisting of chordal passages at times with all 10 fingers in action at the same time!

[louispodesta]

Well I would not say my problems are specific in that matter, I am just looking for tools to sharpen it up, getting every voice accurate, sharp and comfortable. Like the big climax in the first movement as well as just about the whole 3rd movement consisting of chordal passages at times with all 10 fingers in action at the same time!

I am also learning this piece, and as such I am very familiar with it.  Therefore, as suggested before, you are going to have to be more specific as to the measures in question before we can render advice.

[xdjuicebox]

Well you'll notice that none of those passages have strict legato, for good reason. Okay maybe some of them do, but yeah...you can't really finger legato those.

Chord passages, in my opinion, are two things:

1. Mastering how you play each chord
2. Mastering the transition between each chord

A lot of people forget to focus on 2.

If you're talking about the really fast chords alternating between hands during the climax of movement I, just play each pair of 6 as one chord to get the positions down
Then just break them up

[ansgarpiano]

Thanks for the reply. Well it is actiually not the 1st movement that truly seems to challenge me most, it is more the middle section of the 3rd movement.

The piu mosso (Ab major to Fminor) before the Presto part seems very tricky to play clearly without letting any thing out. It is especially the right hand grip that throws me off combined with the small boost to the tempo indicated. The notes are Ab Bb B natural C
                                                            F   F   F            F
                                                            Ab Bb B natural C
I use the fingering 1 1 1 1 it might not be the best even though it seems so after few months.
                          2 2 2 2
                          3 4 5 5
Also the very beginning of the presto part with the left hand quick repeated chords. Donīt have exact measures as I try to keeps sundays free of practising.

The last specific thing I would like is the middle of the presto part beggining with the left hand chord Db E Bb Db. Not hard to make it sound fine with the pedal but voicing everything in the 4 way chords especially the index fingers seems a huge challenge.

As one might get from this is that I, as I said, am most looking for general tips in how to improve playing these types of passages as far as I know only seen in works of Rach like this.

Thanks

[louispodesta]

First, per the OP:

"Well I would not say my problems are specific in that matter, I am just looking for tools to sharpen it up, getting every voice accurate, sharp and comfortable. Like the big climax in the first movement as well as just about the whole 3rd movement consisting of chordal passages at times with all 10 fingers in action at the same time!"

Now, I am proffered:

" Thanks for the reply. Well it is actiually not the 1st movement that truly seems to challenge me most, it is more the middle section of the 3rd movement.   The piu mosso (Ab major to Fminor) before the Presto part seems very tricky to play clearly without letting any thing out. It is especially the right hand grip that throws me off combined with the small boost to the tempo indicated."

In that, as I stated that I my first response required specifics, I do not even remotely know that this original OP's post is for real.

[ansgarpiano]

Anyone?