Debussy Toccata (video)

[pianistavt]

I played the 1st and 2nd movements from Pour le Piano (1901) many years ago, my teacher insinuated I was to do the 3rd, Toccata, sometime in the future.  That time has come.  Got the notes, going to slowly work up the tempo

feedback / comments welcome

[skari123]

I played the 1st and 2nd movements from Pour le Piano (1901) many years ago, my teacher insinuated I was to do the 3rd, Toccata, sometime in the future.  That time has come.  Got the notes, going to slowly work up the tempo

feedback / comments welcome

While it's not a bad thing to practice slowly and working your way up it might not be a bad idea to try short sections in speed and see how your hands react to that kind of stress. Looking at your hands the movements are very static and you arrive to each hand position a bit later than you need for more speed. I think your fingers need more support from the arm in order for you to feel more secure as well. The last chords in the piece seemed to be very secure, if you put the same effort into the rest of the piece you will be well off playing this up to speed.
Having played the whole suite a while ago, the toccata is certainly not easy, and you need to be anticipating the next move beforehand so you don't lose your pace. Don't forget that this is a toccata, and while it was written by Debussy the whole piece does not need to be played constantly with the pedal. It seems to me that the composer was introducing new ideas to the toccata form, not necessarily revolutionising it as a whole entity. For an example the first bars in the piece does not require any use of the pedal, and if you ask me I think it sounds better without it.

[pianistavt]

While it's not a bad thing to practice slowly and working your way up it might not be a bad idea to try short sections in speed and see how your hands react to that kind of stress. Looking at your hands the movements are very static and you arrive to each hand position a bit later than you need for more speed. I think your fingers need more support from the arm in order for you to feel more secure as well. The last chords in the piece seemed to be very secure, if you put the same effort into the rest of the piece you will be well off playing this up to speed.
Having played the whole suite a while ago, the toccata is certainly not easy, and you need to be anticipating the next move beforehand so you don't lose your pace. Don't forget that this is a toccata, and while it was written by Debussy the whole piece does not need to be played constantly with the pedal. It seems to me that the composer was introducing new ideas to the toccata form, not necessarily revolutionising it as a whole entity. For an example the first bars in the piece does not require any use of the pedal, and if you ask me I think it sounds better without it.

Thank you for listening and providing feedback.  I really appreciate it, especially since you listened to the end!  I think your observations are spot on - I've applied some new practice techniques since this recording, building a stronger, tighter foundation, which can support a faster tempo.  Agree with everything you said, thanks!