My teacher is not happy with the sound of quality, how should I improve?

[claireliii]

My teacher always is very strict with the quality of sound. I am playing Chopin's valse, and she says when I am playing forte, my sound was too rigid, harsh and lacked imagination, that my speed of attacking the keyboard was too fast. She also says that the quality of sound is more elusive than the anything else in piano playing.

Does playing Chopin drastically differ from playing Prokofiev or Rachmaninoff? She told me that my "awfully rigid sound" could potentially be of use with Prokofiev, but not with Chopin. When I was watching the Chopin competition, however, I noticed that there were times where the contestants had to bang really hard too. Also, from my knowledge, in order to play forte, you'd have to reach a minimum level of speed when attacking the keyboard. It's about speed and weight, and it wouldn't work without either. So my question is, with Chopin's music, how to play forte appropriately? Does it differ that much from playing Prokofiev or Rachmaninoff? How am I supposed to know if I am doing it wrong, where can I get a point of reference?

[quantum]

First of all, if your teacher tells you they do not like your sound, they should be giving you solutions on how to improve your sound.  What has your teacher suggested to you to remedy the situation?

At a very basic level, dynamic intensity on the piano is related to key velocity, the faster a key moves the more sound produced.  Many schools of piano teaching do not address this directly, rather they use mnemonics or ideas such as various degrees of weight, like arm weight, body weight, etc.  Terminology can get confusing because the piano is not a weight sensitive keyboard, more specifically it is a velocity sensitive keyboard.  On a piano, applying weight after the initial press of a key, does nothing to change sound.  Examples of weight sensitive keyboards include: theatre organs with second touch, or synthesizers with aftertouch. 

In terms of actual music, the overall perception of forte has many more elements than key velocity alone, so it is a lot more than just playing louder or playing softer to address the concern.  How one voices chords, balances melody and accompaniment, shapes phrases, uses pedal, selects articulation, shapes music accordingly to the performance space, all of these things contribute as a sum to the listeners perception of forte.  The concept of forte is more than just a dynamic indication, it is how musical intensity is perceived by the listener. 

Maybe you could post a clip of your playing in the audition room, so we could have more insight as to what you teacher might be referring to.

[lelle]

My teacher always is very strict with the quality of sound. I am playing Chopin's valse, and she says when I am playing forte, my sound was too rigid, harsh and lacked imagination, that my speed of attacking the keyboard was too fast. She also says that the quality of sound is more elusive than the anything else in piano playing.

Does playing Chopin drastically differ from playing Prokofiev or Rachmaninoff? She told me that my "awfully rigid sound" could potentially be of use with Prokofiev, but not with Chopin. When I was watching the Chopin competition, however, I noticed that there were times where the contestants had to bang really hard too. Also, from my knowledge, in order to play forte, you'd have to reach a minimum level of speed when attacking the keyboard. It's about speed and weight, and it wouldn't work without either. So my question is, with Chopin's music, how to play forte appropriately? Does it differ that much from playing Prokofiev or Rachmaninoff? How am I supposed to know if I am doing it wrong, where can I get a point of reference?

Has your teacher offered any advice on HOW you can improve your sound rather than just criticized it? After all, it's her job to help you solve this problem, and I'm not getting the impression that she is helping you at all, from your post.

Remember that you are paying your teacher to provide you a service, and if all they do is complain about how you are doing things without offering solutions and working with you until you get it, I would consider paying someone else.

I would say there is a difference in style between Chopin and Prokofiev that requires different tone. In Chopin, you want your sound to be beautiful and round even when playing loudly. In Prokofiev, you sometimes want a very harsh and metallic sound in forte.

For good sounding forte I think there are some basics such as being free from tension and having effectively coordinated movements, but ultimately your ears will need to be the guide.

One of my favorite pianists is Cortot, and he is known for having very beautiful tone. Take a listen to what he does with his sound, even when it gets loud, below. How would you describe the sound quality he creates?

[adodd81802]

I always find it interesting when someone with a teacher goes to a forum of (potentially) unqualified strangers for advice.

This is my advice - if you have any questions, ask your teacher, that's what you pay them for. If they do not answer your questions, or you are not happy with their explanations, find another teacher, that's your power to do so.

Ask her exactly what you should be doing differently, whether that's description alone, or if she can physically show you the biology and physics of her request, with her own demonstration.

I personally feel like Chopin's forte comes from emotion rather than the physical description of what you're doing. Maybe that be the case for a lot of composition, if you feel it, you will play it.