Piano teachers tend to approach pedagogy by treating technical studies and repertoire as separate parts of the curriculum, often using etudes by Charles-Louis Hanon, Josef Pischna, and Carl Czerny to build the student's technique. Yet, although these methods are popular, pedagogues disagree about their value. In any case, many pieces suitable for intermediate pianists integrate technique and musicality, such as Friedrich Burgmüller's 25 Etudes, Op. 100, Muzio Clementi's Preludes and Exercises, Op. 43, and Ignaz Moscheles's 24 Etudes, Op. 70. Although these exercises can indeed build technique through intermediate-level recital pieces, many similar piano works from the Russian school are rarely used, and yet they could better serve students who will eventually move on to the advanced Russian piano repertoire. This paper provides a pedagogical guide for introducing technical skills through various levels of the Russian piano repertoire. The guide focuses on technique in the context of musical expression, especially tone production, wrist motion, and finger technique, progressing systematically through elementary, intermediate, and advanced Russian piano pieces, composed in a Romantic style—both elegant and rich with melody and expression. The repertoire used as examples should develop the finger technique as well as the musicality of the student. The examples come from nineteenth-century Russian Piano School composers such as Reinhold Glière, Alexander Goedicke, Samuel Maykapar, Semyon Barmotin, and Anton Arensky.

Uppsatsen handlar om förekomst av improvisation i tidig instrumentalundervisning på kultur- och musikskolor. Jag avsåg undersöka hur instrumentallärare beskriver sin undervisning, i vilken utsträckning de använder improvisation på lektionerna, genom att låta ett urval av lärare svara på frågor i en enkät. En annan del av arbetet bestod av att studera 25 pianoböcker som riktar sig till unga nybörjare. I dessa läromedel letade jag efter hur vanligt förekommande improvisationsmoment var. Det framgår av min enkät att användande av improvisation under lektionen varierar bland respondenterna. I min läromedelstudie visar det sig improvisationsmaterial vara relativt ovanligt och förekommer endast sporadiskt. Jag talar i uppsatsen också om hur improvisation kan integreras i instrumentalundervisningen med syfte att ge eleven rum för kreativitet och personlighet. Jag önskar att mitt arbete kan motivera lärare att låta sina elever improvisera på sina instrument för att öka spelglädjen och nå de positiva effekter improvisation kan ge. / This study aims to elucidate the presence of improvisation in early instrumental teaching in culture- and music schools. Two issues will be explored within this context. Firstly I intended to examine how instrumental teachers describe their teaching and the extent to which they use improvisation in class, by inviting a selection of teachers to answer a questionnaire. The second aspect of the work consisted of the study of 25 piano books for young beginners. In these teaching materials the presence and frequency of improvisational moments were examined. The results suggested that the use of improvisation during lessons varies between respondents. Furthermore, the findings from the study of piano books for young beginners demonstrate that improvising material is relatively rare and occurs only sporadically. Suggestions are made for how improvisation can be integrated into instrumental teaching to encourage students to develop creativity and personality in their music. It is hoped that this study can encourage teachers to support their students to improvise on their instruments. This would likely increase students’ creativity and achieve positive effects associated with improvisation.

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Quel rôle le Concours international Marguerite Long joue-t-il dans le contexte de la Guerre Froide, en tant que vecteur culturel où s’affrontent deux écoles opposées d’un point de vue esthétique, à savoir les Écoles de piano française et soviétique ? L’objectif de cette thèse est de comprendre les mécanismes du concours Marguerite Long et leur impact sur le jeu pianistique qui, depuis les années cinquante jusqu’à la fin des années soixante-dix, évolue considérablement sous l’impulsion des succès de l’École russo-soviétique. Le lien apparent entre concours et politique internationale est déconstruit pour laisser place aux enjeux esthétiques et culturels qui seuls influencent le palmarès. Le deuxième volet de notre étude nous amène à envisager les particularités de chacune des écoles de piano, puis à les comparer pour établir dans quelle mesure elles s’influencent mutuellement et se distancient. Des facteurs cruciaux des échanges franco-soviétiques sont pris en considération, comme l’essor de la vie culturelle souterraine en U.R.S.S. à partir du milieu des années soixante. Notre étude se fonde sur le dépouillement de six fonds d’archives, notamment le Fonds Long de la Bibliothèque Mahler, les archives de la Fondation Long-Thibaud-Crespin, celles du Centre des archives diplomatiques de la Courneuve ainsi que celles de l’A.L.A.P. / What role does the Marguerite Long International Music Competition play in the context of Cold War? In other words, how important is this culture transmission vector, where two piano traditions so contrasted as the French and Soviet piano schools confront each other on the basis of aesthetic matters? The aim of this thesis is to understand the mechanism of the Marguerite Long competition and its impact on piano playing, which significantly evolves from the 1950s until the late 1970s, influenced by the successes achieved by the Soviet-Russian piano school. The apparent link between music competitions and international politics is deconstructed to put an emphasis on cultural issues, which solely determine the list of award winners. The second part of this thesis consists in examining the particularity of both piano schools, comparing them to ascertain to what extent they mutually influence each other or distance themselves. Crucial aspects of Franco-Soviet cultural exchanges are taken into account, such as the full development of underground culture in the USSR from the mid-1960s. This study was conducted on a systematic analysis of six archival holdings, notably those kept by the Fonds Long of the Bibliothèque Mahler, the Long-Thibaud-Crespin Foundation, the Center of diplomatic archives in la Courneuve and archival sources regarding the A.L.A.P. (Parisian Literary and Artistic Agency).

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.