Prelude In B Minor

[fuel925]

Im currently doing my grade 6, and one of the pieces I have to perfect is Chopin's Prelude in B Minor Op.28 No.6. I'm having trouble getting the sotto voce just right, mainly because sometimes I hit notes with the right hand too softly so they dont sound at all. Does anyone have any tips on making the left hand sound louder than the right hand in this piece?

[jlh]

Don't play it so softly.  Seriously, if you were to play this in a hall and you played the notes so soft that sometimes they don't sound, then people in the back won't be able to hear you at all even if they do sound.  Remember that the RH is just playing the accompaniment, so focus more on the LH instead.  If, in order to get a good balance between hands, you have to play the RH almost inaudibly soft, then you probably aren't voicing the melody enough.  Concentrate on the melody and it will be easier.

[bernhard]

Try this:

You want to sound softly, not to play softly. Volume in the piano is mostly a function of how fast you depress the key, not how softly. If you keep your fingers firm and press with quite a bit of pressure but go down slowly you should have a very soft and yet audible and controlled sound. In short, do not depress the keys lightly, but instead firmly and slowly.

(I hope you can make sense of this. These things are easier to demonstrate than to describe in writing - and by the way, jlh is right).

Best wishes,
Bernhard.