Juilliard alum, pianist, and founder of the Piano Ninja Tricksters Club, helping serious adult musicians develop intelligent practice strategies and perform with confidence under pressure.
🎹 But how much is too much? {🎥 video}
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As Chopin’s birthday approaches, I’ll admit it... I’m in a full-blown love affair. 💕 This week I’m recording the Polonaise-Fantaisie. The moment you force it, the music resists. So how much rubato is too much? I recorded a short video exploring exactly that. You’ll learn how to control rubato so your Chopin sounds intentional, grounded and professional.
🗓️ Thursday, Feb 26 pps These weekly newsletters are now public here. Thanks for sharing with other pianists who will benefit. |
Lisa Spector, Piano Ninja
Juilliard alum, pianist, and founder of the Piano Ninja Tricksters Club, helping serious adult musicians develop intelligent practice strategies and perform with confidence under pressure.
It’s 1972, and I’m walking into Hogwarts. Okay, not Hogwarts exactly. But something like it... Crouse College, a building that belongs in another century. I’m 10 and enchanted by the bell tower ringing throughout the Syracuse University campus. It’s my first real concert. I’m here to see David Mulfinger perform all 24 Chopin Études. From the very first C Major bass octave of Op. 10 No. 1, I was mesmerized. While my hands could barely reach an octave, I knew in every ounce of my body that I...
If you heard my Rachmaninoff on Valentine's Day, you know that I love schmalz in my music. 🥰 But I cringe when it’s added at the wrong time, especially in Chopin. 🙃 You're probably not lacking in expression. You may just be adding it in the wrong place. 🎼 A tiny practice experiment for you:Before you add rubato this week... Play the phrase completely without flexibility. Build the harmonic tension. Identify the exact point where the phrase can support rubato. Only then allow the rubato to...
I performed the Chopin Polonaise-Fantasie live Sunday. I was deeply inside the music, listening phrase by phrase, letting the space between the notes speak, enjoying every moment. Even the double-thirds felt easy. Then, at the height of the coda, I had a memory slip. I got close to the end, but it was improvised from that point on. Probably no one noticed except my student in the room who is also working on this transcending work. And then I did exactly what I tell you not to do. 🤦♀️ When he...