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Page 48
"I think, for this work, children are easier to handle than their
elders; they have no faults to correct; they like to hold their hands
well and make them look pretty. They ought to have a keyboard adapted to
their little delicate muscles, with action much less heavy than two
ounces, the minimum weight of the clavier. As they grow and gain
strength, the weight can be increased. If they should attempt to use my
instrument with its heavy action, they would lame the hand in a few
moments or their little fingers could not stand up under the weight."
(3) Do you approve of finger action?
"Most emphatically. Finger action is an absolute essential in playing
the piano. We must have finger development. As you say, we can never
make the fingers equal in themselves; we might practise five hundred
years without rendering the fourth finger as strong as the thumb. Rather
let us learn to so adjust the weight and pressure of each finger, that
all will sound equal, whenever we wish them to do so. I tell my pupils
that in regard to strength, their fingers are in this relation to each
other," and the pianist drew with her pencil four little upright lines
on the paper, representing the relative natural weight of the four
fingers. "The fifth finger," she said, "figures very little in scale or
passage playing. By correct methods of study the pupil learns to lighten
the pressure of the stronger fingers and proportionately increase the
weight of the weaker fingers."
(4) Do you approve of technic practise outside of pieces?
"I certainly do. The amount of time given to technic study varies with
the pupil's stage of advancement. In the beginning, the whole four hours
must be devoted to technic practise. When some degree of facility and
control have been attained, the amount may be cut down to two hours.
Later one hour is sufficient, and when one is far advanced a very short
time will suffice to put the hand in trim; some rapid, brilliant
arpeggios, or an �tude with much finger work may be all that is
necessary.
"The player gains constantly in strength and technical control while
studying pieces, provided correct methods are pursued. Every piece is
first of all a study in technic. The foundation must be rightly laid;
the principles can then be applied to �tude and piece."
(5) What do you consider the most vital technical points?
"That is a difficult question, involving everything about piano playing.
There are the scales of all kinds, in single and double notes. Arpeggios
are of great importance, because, in one form or another, they
constantly occur. Octaves, chords, pedaling, and so on."
"The trill, too," I suggested.
"Yes, the trill; but, after all, the trill is a somewhat individual
matter. Some players seem to have it naturally, or have very little
trouble with it; others always have more or less difficulty. They do not
seem able to play a rapid, even trill. Many are unable to finish it off
deftly and artistically. They can trill for a certain number of
repetitions; when they become accustomed to the monotonous repetition it
is not so easy to go into the ending without a break."
(6) What means do you advise to secure velocity?
"I make the same answer to this question that I made to the first--none.
I never work for velocity, nor do I work _up_ velocity. That is a
matter that generally takes care of itself. If you know the piece
absolutely, know what it means and the effects you want to make, there
will be little difficulty in getting over the keys at the tempo
required. Of course this does not apply to the pupil who is playing
wrong, with weak fingers, uncertain touch and all the rest of the
accompanying faults. I grant that these faults may not be so apparent in
a piece of slow tempo. A pupil may be able to get through Handel's
Largo, for instance; though his fingers are uncertain he can make the
theme sound half-way respectable, while a piece in rapid tempo will be
quite beyond him. The faults were in the Largo just the same, but they
did not show. Rapid music reveals them at once. Certain composers
require almost a perfect technical equipment in order to render their
music with adequate effect. Mozart is one of these. Much of his music
looks simple, and is really quite easy to read; but to play it as it
should be played is another thing entirely. I seldom give Mozart to my
pupils. Those endless scales, arpeggios and passages, which must be
flawless, in which you dare not blur or miss a single note! To play this
music with just the right spirit, you must put yourself _en rapport_
with the epoch in which it was written--the era of crinoline, powdered
wigs, snuffboxes and mincing minuets. I don't mean to say Mozart's music
is not emotional; it is filled with it, but it is not the emotion of
to-day, but of yesterday, of more than a century back.
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