Pieces to improve technique

[pianoman2]

Hello, I am a 13-year-old student with ~3 years of experience playing piano. Of course, when I started I wanted to play all the ear-candy pieces like La Campanella and Fantaise-Impromptu. However, I now realize that I should probably get back to basics technique-wise, so I will become a stronger pianist, both musically and technically. I just finished Un Sospiro, which took ~2.5 months for me to finish. However, I make a few mistakes and it feels like I am spending too much time on it. I've heard several recommendations floating around (bach fugues, preludes, scarlatti, mozart?) But I would appreciate a few pieces (around 2-3) that I can pick for my skill level and goal. Thanks!

Also - side question - how many hours shouold I practice? I start with scales, arpeggios, hannon, sight-reading practice (the normal), but I always find myself zoning out while playing repertoire, almost letting my fingers do the work and just playing the whole piece. I believe this is a result of my over-practicing and losing focus (3-4 hours everyday).

Thanks!

[ed24dyt]

Now, I am no expert, but I do believe that playing Czerny's Op 139's "100 progressive studies" will help a lot, with fingering, and technique. Also, i forgot to add, you should listen to a audio or video recording of his 100 variations so you can get a feel of the correct tempo and dynamics. Never progress to the next variation unless you played the last one correctly or it wont be as useful (since czerny is about practicing technique) Hanon is more scale orientated and although some pieces have a lot of scales and stuff of that sort, I believe that Czerny is more worth putting effort into. if you feel stressed practicing, then don't practice! You should practice with a good mindset instead of rigorously working at something for hours straight without getting anywhere. THis is if you are starting out/building technique/etc. However, if you do get to a point where you want to start the pieces like La Campanella, or Chopin, or etc, Im afraid you must have to practice non stop 

TLDR: Get a Czerny op 139 "100 progressive's studies book"
sincerely, ed

[ranjit]

If you have a teacher, progressively working through pieces of increasing difficulty is a good idea to develop control over time.

You could also take a look at these videos:

[anacrusis]

Bach's prelude and fugue in c minor is a popular early choice that has some tricky spots and sounds pretty awesome when you get it down!

 (you don't need to play it this quickly)

[getsiegs]

I've suggested these pieces on another thread, but I'll repeat them here since they helped me quite a bit when I was a little younger: Chopin Waltzes Op. 18 and Op. 34, No. 1.

They're great introductions to big Romantic works like Fantasie Impromptu, the Ballades, or the Etudes. These waltzes contain lots of different techniques in small doses; they're challenging but not pieces that'll really wear you out or injure your hands. Between these two, you'll find: repeated notes, big LH jumps, fast RH scale passages, some octaves, sweeping arpeggios, ornaments and trills, sixths, and more. They also require a delicate, controlled sound and clear voicing. I'd recommend them to any intermediate pianist looking for fun but challenging pieces to improve your technique overall.