Clara Wieck Schumann sits at a particularly thorny juncture in musicological scholarship, as her career mirrors a period of nineteenth-century transformative social and musical change. The concept of public and private spaces came to be codified, and women's musical interactions, somewhat unsurprisingly, followed suit. In accordance with the now bourgeois concerns for social cultivation and primacy, concert structures were destabilized, programs moved away from an emphasis on miscellany, virtuosity was soundly rejected, and serious musical efforts came to dominate critical inquiry and commentary. The philosophy of Romantic listening hinged on the primacy of absolute, "serious" musics and, similar to the morals of the public bourgeoisie, privileged "masculine" expression. Within these strictures, a female pianist developed into the preeminent symbol for all that was ideal in the public piano recital. Clara Schumann has, for scholars of nineteenth-century music, come to embody the serious music aesthetic: whether it be through her role as interpreter, more homogeneous recital structuring, or allegiance to the goals of transcendental listening, she remains a figure who performed out of duty to her higher, artistic "calling." Nevertheless, scholars have rarely attempted to consider how, in a restrictive gender society, Clara was able to maintain such a successful and highly respected public career. My dissertation seeks to tease out the dynamics of Clara Schumann's reception, in order to elucidate ways she, as a woman, was able to perform in this preeminent public space, and, in fact, embolden (rather than degrade) the ascendancy of the masculine. With a career spanning some 60 years, Clara's 794 German concerts allow us a window into the complex negotiations that permeated her public performances and celebrated personality. For the first time in English translation, Appendix I gives a complete listing of Clara's programming in Germany and Vienna. By considering a wide range of sources--visual images, concert reviews, and programs--I hope to unearth ways that Clara, while challenging the hegemony of the male pianist, nonetheless continued to entrench the mores of the musical masculine to an even greater degree. / text

Title: Evaluation of musculoskeletal disorders in pianists Background: Musculoskeletal (MS) disorders are common in pianists. Allsop and Ackland (2010) in their study describe that pianists suffer from MS disorders in 42 %. However, the prevalence of MS disorders differs depending on the region. There has not been done yet any evaluation of prevalence of MS disorders in pianists in Czech republic. This evaluation is crutial to make a comparison of our national results internationally. Furthermore, it is required to establish well-prepared preventional program for starting pianists. Aims: The purpose of this study is to evaluate prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders in pianists. Methods: Our data were collected using questionnaire survey. We distributed questionnaires among czech profesional pianists, piano teachers, and piano students by emails who were older than 18. Results: We sent 390 questionnaires by emails and received 78 of them completed. We revealed that the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders of all respondents was 72 %. The prevalence was the highest in the group of the age from 18 to 60 reaching 90 %. The most common locality of musculoskeletal disorder was in the forearm. The group of pianists who started to play piano at the age from 3 to 4 were more prone to present with...

The purpose of this D.M.A. Essay is to highlight the legacy of duo-pianists, Bill and Pat Medley. To that end, this essay will explore: (a) the early biographical information of the Medleys (developing their musical talents in the Depression and World War II Era), (b) the Medleys' concert touring career, including a section on the logistics of travelling with their own concert grand pianos across the United States and Canada, (c) the Medleys' teaching career which included both secondary and pre-college levels, (d) a collection of comical stories learned through personal interviews with the Medleys that speak to their many years of concertizing, and (e) the Medleys' composing and arranging career, which includes a detailed overview of The Medley Way method book series published by The Hal Leonard Corporation and a detailed review and analysis of twenty-two of their educational solos, which were published by the Alfred Music Company, The FJH Music Company, and The Willis Music Company. Bill Medley stated, "As I look back on our lives and the past sixty years, I see two teenagers striking out on a journey that would take them to unfathomable destinations. It would not be done alone, by any means, but with the help of many, many people..." It is my hope that this essay will shed light on a career that has endured sixty plus years and counting. The Medleys' touring career allowed small town communities to experience the art of classical music, who otherwise would not have experienced such beauty. The Medleys' teaching career passed along a musical lineage from their teachers, including Pierre Luboshutz and Genia Nemenoff, along with a composing and arranging career that continues to serve as a pedagogical essence of quality to this day.

This study placed specific emphasis on the motor-skills and practice strategies employed by piano players when practising and performing in relation to playing-related musculoskeletal disorders (PRMDs). The survey questionnaire-instrument was designed by the researcher to investigate the prevalence of PRMDs among both professional and non-professional piano players. Five hundred and five respondents completed the self-administered survey questionnaire. Out of the total 505 participants, 42% of the players reported PRMDs. The professional players (72%) reported a significantly higher incidence (p < 0.05) of PRMDs in comparison with the non-professional group. The professional players with piano as their major instrument, using predominantly neutral wrist posture (i.e., open-kinetic chain playing technique), reported a significantly higher incidence of PRMDs. Although the present study showed a greater number of years of playing was associated with greater risk of PRMDs, the result also showed that the years of playing had no significant effect on the incidence of PRMDs (p > .05) when it was analyzed with the practice hours within seven days. Moreover, analyzing the practice hours over seven days with the piano major/non-major instrument, the various grade levels and PRMDs; the results showed that the practice hours had no significant effect on the groups with and without PRMDs (p > .05). Although women reported a significantly higher percentage of PRMDs (p < 0.05) than men, there was no significant association between the groups with and without PRMDs when analyzing practice hours over seven days by grade levels and gender. The PRMDs seem to arise when overuse is compounded by misuse and/or adverse playing conditions. The best and safest practice would be to minimize consumption of musculoskeletal force production and combine this with effective practice-breaks between sessions to achieve the optimum goal of daily practice. Keywords: hand injury, PRMDs, wrist pain, hand-span size, playing-technique, and piano player.

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Thesis (M.App.Sc.) - Carleton University, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 117-124). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

There is a growing popularity among musicians to turn to somatic approaches such as the Alexander Technique, Body Mapping and Feldenkrais Method to improve posture and movement at the instrument and to produce better tone quality. There is little scientific and objective data to support the changes that are apparently seen and heard after such training. This study examines if a single somatic session has an immediate, perceivable effect on pianists’ body usage and musical quality. In the first mode of evaluation, judges rated specific aspects of body usage and musical quality. In the second mode of evaluation, judges were asked to identify post-somatic performances. Results indicated that there are perceivable changes in body usage and musical quality although those differences are not as apparent or easily detectable as is often believed. The findings also suggest that it is easier to identify post-somatic performances through body usage than musical quality.

One of the most important skills of a pianist is the ability to read at sight. Because there are so many areas of piano study to address, sight-reading is overlooked either out of frustration or simple neglect. However, if acquisition of this skill is neglected, it will be difficult for a pianist to ever attain his full potential. For a pianist, sight-reading is one area that strengthens all others. The purposes of this study were to secure data concerning teaching sight-reading to undergraduate piano majors, to identify methods and techniques in current use in the instruction of sight-reading, to determine the extent of keyboard and computer-assisted learning technology usage within sight-reading instruction, to identify more effective methods and techniques being used to teach sight-reading, and to search for ways to enhance sight-reading instruction, including the utilization of recent computer technology applications in education and learning. The method used was survey research with a questionnaire sent to 168 randomly selected NASM colleges and universities. Response rate was 49.4 percent. The questionnaire, designed by the researcher, sought to ascertain the status of sight-reading instruction in these colleges and universities and to endeavor to determine the extent, if any, keyboard and computer-assisted learning technology was being used. Respondents of the survey were requested to identify outstanding sight-reading instructors and prominent accompanists, seven of whom were then interviewed. Final conclusions and recommendations are based upon the summation of data from respondents and professionals. There were no emerging tendencies in the instruction of sight-reading, but there was a strong agreement among respondents that there is a need for the development of a program to enable the usage of CAI. There were ten recommendations, ranging from the addition of sight-reading skills classes to conferences among teachers and computer programmers, to devise suitable programs to assist in the instruction of sight-reading skills.

No description available.

Thesis ( MMus (Music))--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / Steven De Groote (1953-1989) was one of the most successful pianists to have emerged from South Africa. His international reputation rests largely on the fact that he won first prize in the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 1977, the only South African to date to have achieved this feat. As such he must be recognized as an important figure in the music history of South Africa. Because the performing musician’s product is transitory in nature and therefore his/her legacy is not tangible in all respects, the introduction to the thesis discusses the specific methodological problems arising from this fact in respect of the writing of a biography. The focus in this biography is on De Groote’s numerous achievements and especially on his career as concert pianist. It includes a discussion of his formative years, his subsequent years of study and the influence of competitions, and more specifically the 1977 Van Cliburn competition on his career. Discussion of his pianistic style, De Groote as teacher and his love for chamber music is also included. De Groote’s contribution to the South African musical scene is highlighted, especially his honorary professorship at the University of Stellenbosch during 1986 and 1987, as are his master classes in this capacity and his regular performances in South Africa. His role as a South African musician abroad is also examined. The biography is concluded with a brief discussion of his airplane accident and the influence this had on his career as a pianist and on his playing.