Piano Forum

Hi all,

I'm am learning to "play" Invention #1 in C major. I have dabbled with numbers 4,8 & 13 with varying degrees of success.

The best for me was number 4 at full tempo, followed by number 13 at 1/2 tempo and number 8 at a snails pace.

Invention number one seems to be a favorite to teach of many teachers.

I read there are 3 four note motifs, inversions, augmentations, retrograde, sequences, transposition, etc.

Questions:

1. What exactly is this "knowledge" supposed to do for me?

In the long term, analyzing simple pieces teaches you how to analyze more complicated pieces where it is sorely needed later. The intellectual map you gain of the piece certainly contributes to interpretation, because it enables you to make intelligent choice about how to shape the piece and show the listener where you are in its structure. A piece is not just its notes but its logical architecture and how it all fits together. Understanding how composers use and manipulate motifs contributes to that.

For example, if you recognize that something is an inversion or augmentation of an important motif from the beginning of the piece and not just a random collection of notes, you might make choices to highlight it or to color it in a certain way or use certain inflections of phrasing to connect it in the listener's ear to the original motif, depending on how the composer used these things in the structure.

If you play the Liszt Sonata and want to keep it all together you need an intellectual understanding of how the piece is made so you can make choices on how to layer, color and highlight different aspects of the piece, else it just becomes a loud mess. One small example is that the "main" motif of the sonata comes back in inversion just before the recapitulation, and if you are not aware of that, you might completely run past it and not highlight it to the listener.

2. Is all this analysis supposed to make it easier to memorize?

I think so. The more I can understand the piece and the patterns used, the more I have to fall back on as a "backup" if my memory fails me. I also generally think it's easier to memorize something I deeply understand, compared to something that just seems like a random, arbitrary collection of "stuff", regardless if it's music or something else.

3. Is this analysis supposed to make it easier for me to read?

It might. Once you get good at reading once you see it you might go "hmm we are in c major and oh! here is the motif in inversion, I already know how that goes" and then you can instantly play it.

4. Should it make it easier to learn or learn faster?

I would say that it contributes to learning it deeper rather than faster, but again, seeing the various patterns the music is made from helps me memorize so it might.

5. Would it allow me to play full tempo?

I doubt it would contribute much.