…to Other Piano Technique & Pedagogy Sites
Alan Fraser’s Craft of Piano Method is only one of many worthy schools of piano technique and pedagogy. The wide variety of approaches we possess is rich precisely because of its diversity and contradiction. If everybody thought the same way we would be sterile! When Different schools engage in creative dialogue it leads to new understanding and consensus – it’s a process that keeps the body of knowledge on piano technique growing. This page lists links to other websites dealing with various aspects of classical piano, piano technique and piano pedagogy.
Craft of Piano Method Links
Maple Grove Music Productions The official online store for all Craft of Piano Method products.
The Craft of Piano Playing FORUM Visit this site to share your experiences with Craft of Piano materials, and to learn from others. Craft of Piano Method raises many questions which find clarification here on the forum.
Craft of Piano.com The official site for Craft of Piano Method, featuring background articles, book & DVD descriptions etc.
This site aims to be a sort of wikipedia of piano technique, offering articles on the history of piano technique and peddagogy, the traditional schools of piano technique and their representatives, and new approaches to piano technique. The site also features piano teaching and piano performance videos.
Other sites related to classical piano technique and pedagogy…
Pulse Patterning for Pianists – Charles Aschbrenner Charles Ashbrenner has brought his deep studies of the Dalcroze and Feldenkrais Methods to his insightful and unique contribution to our knowledge about piano technique. Pulse Patterning investigates how musical rhythm and phrase shape, when expressed by the pianist organically, is always generated from subtle, free movements of the pelvis that ripple through the entire frame of the body, enhancing and beautifying piano tone and phrase expression. See a review of Aschbrenner’s work at www.reviews.pianotechnique.org .
Mastering Piano Technique – Seymour Fink Seymour Fink has created a body of exercises designed to “install movement” as a quality of being in one’s piano playing mechanism. His techniques don’t just free up the fingers, hands and arms, they empower them to be free and active: potent. At this site you can browse both book and DVD versions of Mastering Piano Technique. See a review of Mastering Piano Technique at www.pianotechnique.net .
What Every Pianist Needs to Know About the Body – Thomas Mark Thomas Mark has written a book on anatomy for pianists that avoids the dryness of so many technique manuals. He brings the concept of function to each part of the piano playing mechanism, describing it with detailed accuracy that’s anything but pedantic – his view of how things work is refreshing and enlightening. See a review of What Every Pianist Needs to Know About the Body at www.pianotechnique.net .
Freeing the Caged Bird – Barbara Lister Sink Barbara Lister-Sink is one of the pioneers of modern, injury-preventive piano technique. Her ideas about potent, congruent use of the physical self at the keyboard have transformed the face of modern piano pedagogy. For a review of her approach go to www.reviews.pianotechnique.org .
Piano Power – Richard Prokop Richard Prokop is one of the brave souls who has dared to fly in the face of accepted wisdom and propound a radically different theory of piano technique. And his theory holds water! It’s one example of the need we face to combine and blend many different approaches if we are ever to arrive at a truly global understanding of piano technique. For a review of Prokop’s ideas, see www.reviews.pianotechnique.org .
The Dorothy Taubman Institute Dorothy Taubmann has been a huge influence in modern piano pedagogy. Her treatments of seriously-injured pianists have proven nothing short of miraculous, and the body of theory backing up her work is considerable. As with any great theory, this one is surrounded with controversy – for a look at what all the fuss is about, please visit www.reviews.pianotechnique.org .
The Well-Balanced Pianist (Taubman-Based) One of the many sites devoted to one student’s experience of the profoundly transformational work of Dorothy Taubman.
Theresa Dybvig – An Integrated Approach to Piano Another look at the Dorothy Taubman/Edna Golandsky presence in the world of piano technique.
Artistic Piano Pedalling with Katherine Faricy Katherine Faricy was a student of Lili Kraus, whose musical soul seems to live on in Kathie’s erudite and enlightening view of all things musical and technical related to piano. We await further publications from Madame faricy, but for the moment she has blessed us only with two volumes on artistic pedalling which delve into much greater detail than any other pedalling book so far, and which go a long way for actually creating a systematic approach to pedalling. This book is worth getting for her brilliantly conceived method of notation for pedalling alone.
Peter Feuchtwanger Peter Feuchtwanger is a somewhat unique phenomenon in the world of piano technique and pedagogy, being virtually self-taught. He learned things like the Chopin G minor Ballade by ear of an old record player that played everything a half tone too high, so when he finally went to a teacher, the man was astonished to hear a rendition of the Ballade in G sharp minor! Imagine the talent of that young pianist! Feuchtwanger works a great deal with a form of hyper-relaxation that allows the fingers to activate with singular ease and beauty of tone.
John Michael Iverson, Pianist & Pedagogue John Michael Iverson is a brilliant young talent living, teaching and playing in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His artistry and dedication form one of the bright spots in today’s midwest music scene.
MTNA – The Music Teachers’ National Association, USA The MTNA is the main music teachers’ association in the USA, with over 18,000 piano teacher members alone.
EPTA International: The European Piano Teachers’ Association Founded by Dame Myra Hess protege Carola Grindea, EPTA International now boasts over 35 member countries and is still expanding. Their annual conferences are a great place to get caught up on all that is new in the piano pedagogy world.
ISSTIP – UK: The International Society for the Study of Tension in Performance Another foundling of Carola Grindea, ISSTIP has continued after her death to offer valuable help and information to all musicians suffering from performance injury.
EPTA UK: The European Piano Teachers’ Association – United Kingdom The local branch of EPTA International.
Beethoven Piano Society of Europe Browse this site for all things Beethoven: new literature, symposiums, concerts and other events.
Piano Street Piano Forum One of the largest and longest running forums, this website provides a huge body of information and opinion from pianists of every ilk the world over.
Piano Place Sheet Music, CD’s and DVD’s The place to go for all your sheet music needs.
The IMSLP / Petrucci Music Library This site is by far the most comprehensive source of free, legal classical sheet music on the web.
Inter-Note: Printed Music On Demand Inter-Note has come up with the unique idea of printing out any set of compositions you desire in one easy-to-carry volume. Ideal for piano students who are tired of carrying entire volumes of Beethoven Sonatas, Bach Preludes & Fuges, Chopin Etudes etc. around but who are forbidden from bringing photocopied material to lessons.
PianoNews Magazine, Germany THE German language magazine for all things related to classical piano: essays, review, performances, interviews. PianoNews has it all.
‘IDEA – IMAGE – TECHNIQUE’ Piano Method This site offers an unusual look at piano technique. Its author at the outset warns the visitor of the unorthodox beliefs to be found here, and asserts that if things develop, they need be different, even radically so. His somewhat critical look at Craft of Piano Method raises questions that need to be addressed, and poses the question as to whether it is ever possible to explain the mystical underpinnings of piano technique in a way that is completely invulnerable to misinterpretation…
The Piano Education Page A valuable resource for all things related to piano education and pedagogy.
PianoWorld.com Another key focus for pianists on the Internet.
Classical Cat Asite offering free mp3 classical music files.
Angela Chan, a Phil Cohen Student Angela Chan offers us a site with her own personal account of the rich experience of study with one of the true masters.
Doctor Voice Doctor Voice is also a pianist and a Craft of Piano fan – for a creative and fun approach to singing (and maybe even singing at the piano) you can’t do much better than Doctor Voice.
Vocal Dynamix with Maggy Borrowes Another great vocal resource in the London area, Maggy Burrowes combines Feldenkrais Method with voice in ways similar to Alan Fraser’s combination of Feldenkrais and piano.
Andre van Haren, Online Composer & Writer Listen to sound files of Andre playing his own works, many of them recorded afterhe had worked through The Craft of Piano Playing.
Allegro Music Center, Miami, Florida Manuel Berberian, proprietor of Allegro Music is one of the true friends of music. His store has been a valuable outlet for all quality music products in the Miami area for generations.
World Piano Conference, Novi Sad, Serbia This annual conference is an exciting opportunities for colleagues to meet and share ideas, for pianists to come and learn from many of the established masters of piano pedagogy, and for all to enjoy a plethora of high-level concertizing from seasoned veteran pianists as well as some of the brightest upcoming young “stars of tomorrow.”
Michiko Studios in Mid-Town Manhattan, New York City If you are in New York and need a place to practice, Michiko is convenient and inexpensive. And Alan Fraser has been known to do some teaching there when he’s in the New York area.
Adam Cole is one of the true modern Rennaissance men: pianist, teacher, composer, singer-songwriter, Feldenkrais practitioner, and author of several novels and short story volumes. He also found time to help Alan Fraser edit Honing the Pianistic Self Image.
Ed Hastie is a musician with a message: he’s come up with a quick and easy way to learn scale fingering visually.
Established in 1988, the Adult Student Music Forum (ASMF) has provided resources and encouragement to adult musicians striving for growth in musical skill and understanding for over 20 years.