Improvisation is an art form which has arguably been present since the existence of music itself. Inventing music on the spot, like spontaneous speech, is a common expression of artistry throughout history and across musical boundaries. While improvisation has maintained its importance in jazz, classical organ music and the music of many eastern cultures, this dissertation will focus on the presence of improvisation as acceptable performance practice within the tradition of western classical music. At several points in history, this musical tradition was encouraged and even expected to be a regular part of a musician's life, and yet in the classical music tradition of the twenty-first century, improvisation is rarely, if ever, heard from the concert stage, nor is it regularly included in the general education of the conservatory student.

The early stage of piano students' training is one of the most important, because it is then that they establish their habits for life. Those who teach beginners need clear principles for developing a solid technical foundation and for preventing bad technical habits. One of the most difficult principles to inculcate in young students is that of tone production and quality. The primary purpose of this study is to provide a pedagogical guide to help piano teachers teach tone production to elementary-level students. To accomplish this purpose, the strategies of the twentieth-century pedagogues Josef Lhévinne, Josef Hofmann, and Heinrich Neuhaus are examined, and applied to the elementary-level piano literature. This study offers practical training suggestions to teachers of elementary piano students as well as musical examples from high-quality piano literature to accompany these suggestions.

Samuil Feinberg was an important performing pianist, composer, and one of the protagonists of Russian Piano School. Among his numerous piano compositions, the Sixth Sonata is one of the most complex and illustrative of his deeply personal musical ideas. The following performer's guide offers some ideas on interpreting and performing the sonata from the perspective of Russian school pianism. Having trained in Russia for nearly a decade with two of Feinberg's most eminent disciples and assistants (Tatiana Galitskaya and Liudmila Roschina) makes this author part of living chain back to his pedagogical principles. I will draw upon my knowledge and expertise to illustrate how interpretation of Feinberg's Sonata No. 6 embodies many of the particular and subtle aspects of the Russian piano school technique.

The purpose of this dissertation is to offer a pedagogical guide to Woodsprite and Waterbug Collection (1977) by Dan Beaty (1937-2002) through an analysis of its pedagogical values and teaching applications. This set consists of twelve short, intermediate-level pieces, featuring various contemporary idioms. Each piece is also pedagogically written to help intermediate students to refine specific pianistic techniques beyond the elementary level. In addition, Beaty's collection expands students' musical vision and musicianship for more advanced studies via the incorporation of contemporary music theory and techniques. These qualities make Woodsprite and Waterbug Collection a valuable tool for intermediate piano students. It is also useful for instructors searching for repertoire to introduce contemporary idioms. The author hopes that this study will encourage performers, teachers and scholars to consider this work and Beaty's other piano compositions. By studying Woodsprite and Waterbug Collection, students will be more appreciative of contemporary repertoire and will welcome learning similar pieces in the future.

Unsuk Chin (b.1961), a Korean-born woman composer, was a student of Gyorgy Sandor Ligeti (1923-2006). Chin's work reflects the influence of Ligeti but also undeniably has its own style. This study investigates the six piano etudes so far published from 12 Piano Etudes (1995-2003) by Unsuk Chin and compares them with Ligeti's piano etudes to highlight the influence of the teacher on the student and to aid pianists in facing the unique technical challenges posed by both sets of etudes. The practice guide provided in this study for each specific technical difficulty requires a degree of patience from a student which, if followed, will enhance the performance.

In Chinese contemporary piano music, large-scale piano compositions featuring innovative polyphonic musical languages are rarely found. Chang-Lei Zhu's Ballade for Solo Piano represents his development of contrapuntal techniques passed on from J. S. Bach and Dmitri Shostakovich in their polyphonic works for solo keyboard or piano. This study focuses on an analysis of Zhu's Ballade as an idiosyncratic composition that makes a significant contribution to the Chinese contemporary piano music repertory. Comparative analysis is made of Zhu's Ballade and J.S. Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier Books 1 and 2, as well as Dmitri Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues for Solo Piano, Op. 87. Zhu, a living Chinese composer born in 1976, uniquely writes the twenty variations of his Ballade based on the opening theme, a single melody in ten subphrases. This research lays out the close relationship of the opening theme with twenty variations in the Ballade. This study also illustrates how Zhu is an innovative voice in Chinese contemporary piano music literature. This comparative study constitutes the first scholarly study of Zhu's Ballade. Chapter 1 is an introduction to my comparative study. In chapter 2, comparisons on selected excerpts are conducted between Zhu's Ballade and J.S. Bach's WTC, Books 1 and 2, as well as Dmitri Shostakovich's Op. 87. Taking into consideration the pedagogical function of the Ballade, this study includes how the work can be used in Zhu's Ballade in piano pedagogy as an addition in chapter 3.

Enrique Granados, Frank Marshall, and Alicia de Larrocha are the chief exponents of a school of piano playing characterized by special attention to details of pedalling, voicing, and refined piano sonority. Granados and Marshall dedicated the major part of their efforts in the field to the pedagogy of these principles. Their work led to the establishment of the Granados Academy in Barcelona, a keyboard conservatory which operates today under the name of the Frank Marshall Academy. Both Granados and Marshall have left published method books detailing their pedagogy of pedalling and tone production. Granados' book, Metodo Teorico Practico para el Uso de los Pedales del Piano (Theoretical and Practical Method for the Use of the Piano Pedals) is presently out of print and available in a photostatic version from the publisher. Marshall's works, Estudio Practico sobre los Pedales del Piano (Practical Study of the Piano Pedals) and La Sonoridad del Piano (Piano Sonority) continue to be used at the Marshall Academy and are available from Spanish publishing houses. This study brings information contained in these three method books to the forefront and demonstrates its relevance to the performance of the music of Granados, specifically the Escenas Romanticas. Alicia de Larrocha, Marshall's best known pupil, currently holds the directorship of the Marshall Academy, and as such, is perhaps the best living authority on this entire line of pianistic and pedagogical thought. An interview conducted with Madame de Larrocha in April of 1983 adds detail and provides valuable perspective about the present use and relevance of these materials and concepts.