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What are Dynamics in Music?

Categories Music in General Music Practice Piano Theory

In music (or, more precisely, in music notation), we use a variety of symbols and written instructions to tell us how a piece of music should sound.  We use notes to tell us about pitches and how long they should be. We use slurs, staccato dots, and accents to tell us about how we should articulate the notes. We use tempo markings to tell us how fast the piece should be.  We also use special symbols to tell us how loud or soft the music should be, and these are what we call dynamics.  Dynamics (or dynamics markings) are volume … Read more

What are the Piano Pedals?

Categories Music in General Music Practice Piano

“The pedal is the soul of the piano,” said the famed 19th century pianist Anton Rubinstein.  But wait, which pedal? Aren’t there three of them?  In this article we’ll provide an overview of the piano pedals: we’ll tell you what they are, how they work, and briefly explain how they are used. The Sustain Pedal How the Sustain Pedal Works The sustain pedal (also called the damper pedal), is the rightmost pedal when facing the keyboard. Whenever you hear someone talk about using “pedal,” this is the pedal they’re referring to (including Mr. Rubinstein in his quote from above). The … Read more

What are Piano Scales?

Categories Music in General Music Practice Piano Theory

Practicing scales is one of the most commonly encountered topics when exploring ways to learn the piano.  There are good reasons for this; practicing scales not only teaches you how to navigate the keyboard, but also teaches you about some of the key, foundational elements of musical thinking. The notes within scales are used in composition to determine how the melody and harmony work together. Knowing more about scales and the notes they contain will make it easier to understand how music works, and easier to learn pieces. However, before you can achieve that level of understanding, you need to … Read more

What are Key Signatures?

Categories Music in General Music Practice Piano Theory

Key signatures are some of the most commonly encountered elements of music notation. They are frequently used in western notated music, and even music beginners will probably come across them early in the music learning process.   But what exactly are key signatures? Despite their prevalence, key signatures can be strangely difficult to understand for beginners. In this article we’ll explain what key signatures are, where they’re found, and how to most easily think about what they do. Where are Key Signatures, and What do they Mean? Key signatures are collections of accidentals that show up at the beginnings of pieces … Read more

How to Memorize Music: A Pianist’s Guide

Categories Classical Music Music Practice Piano Theory

Introduction Have you ever watched a great pianist perform a complicated piece from memory? Impressive, isn’t it? All those notes and details, perfectly remembered and then fantastically re-created in the moment. There’s something about a performance of memorized music that makes it feel somehow more authentic, more intimate and honest. To be sure, this is a subjective perception, as many of the greatest performers used sheet music when playing, but the appeal of a memorized performance certainly exists. The practice of memorizing music is different from the more standard modes of practice to learn music off the page. In some … Read more