International Piano Research Articles

Ценность улучшения китайского фортепианного образования

In China in the past, the piano belonged exclusively to princes and nobles, but now it has entered thousands of homes of ordinary people. Countless preschool children have started learning to play the piano with the support of their parents and teachers. According to incomplete statistics, the share of pianos in China has exceeded two million units, which is one tenth of the total in the world. Currently, at least one million people in China are learning to play the piano, of which beginners and young students make up the majority. Today, in the field of education, the piano has become one of the musical instruments of many learning enthusiasts in China. The piano has become a hot topic in society after reform and openness. In 2023, the fifth International Piano Art Festival was successfully held in the Futian district of Shenzhen. China has turned Shenzhen into a “piano city” and this theme has become a big focus in Shenzhen. Then, with such a tense status quo, the problem of piano education in China arose. The text below contains a discussion of this issue.

유튜브 댓글 분석을 통한 클래식 음악 시청자 반응 연구

This study analyzed Korean-language comments on YouTube videos of pianist Lim Yunchan’s performance of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 during the 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition finals, exploring domestic viewers’ reactions and emotional perceptions of classical music. The research methodology involved selecting only Korean comments collected via the YouTube Data API from June 20, 2022, to December 1, 2023, refining the data, and conducting keyword frequency analysis, LDA Topic Modeling, and sentiment analysis using R. The analysis indicated that viewers expressed deep emotional resonance and admiration for the artistic excellence of Lim’s performance through the identified keywords. The LDA Topic Modeling yielded three themes: ‘the Van Cliburn Competition’, ‘viewer responses’, and ‘the bright future of K-Classic’. Although the sentiment analysis showed some limitations, predominantly positive responses were observed. This study provides substantive data on how viewing classical music performances on YouTube can elicit emotional resonance and admiration for artistic excellence in viewers. Additionally, it confirmed that YouTube plays a crucial role in enhancing the accessibility of classical music and serving as a conduit for appreciation and communication. This research contributes to understanding the current landscape of Korea’s classical music consumption and offers insights into the consumption patterns of classical music in the digital media era.

The Role of Creative Competitions in the Formation and Development of Chinese Musical Culture (the case of the China International Piano Competition, Beijing - Xiamen)

The Role of Creative Competitions in the Formation and Development of Chinese Musical Culture (the case of the China International Piano Competition, Beijing - Xiamen)

Ukrainian piano competitions in the space of global intercultural dialogue

The article clarifies the influence of globalization on the musical culture of Ukraine, in particular, on international piano competitions. It emphases the role of global music organizations, which play an important integrative role in the processes of international artistic exchange and at the same time are a communication field for the demonstration of the best national artistic creative practices. In the field of international music competitions, the most influential organizations, in particular, are the World Federation of International Music Competitions, European Union of Music Competitions for Youth, Alink-Argerich Foundation, etc. The study of information materials of Ukrainian international piano competitions, which are the members of these prestigious international organizations, revealed global trends in the development of the competition and festival movement. Specific examples of international music festivals and other art projects initiated by the organizing committees of Ukrainian piano competitions have shown that they contribute to the development and promotion of Ukraine's cultural identity globally, help spread the best national traditions of musical performance in the world and are one of the best forms of cultural diplomacy.

Wobec społecznego i kulturowego fenomenu "Chopinowskiego Igrzyska"

The article is a review of the book The Chopin Games on the history of the Fryderyk Chopin International Piano Competition 1927–2010. In the author’s opinion, the synthesis organizing selected cultural, social and anthropological aspects of the Chopin Competition was very useful, and it’s authors completed a large part of the tasks declared in the introduction to the work.

Brief Analysis on the Present Situation and Future Development of Piano Education in China

Piano originated in Europe. It is a keyboard instrument invented by Italian Bartolomeo Cristofori in 1709, known as the king of musical instruments. It is often used in solo, accompaniment, ensemble and other performances. The piano came into China at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. At first, the appreciation and acceptance of the piano by Chinese people was not high. Later, foreign missionaries often used the piano in the church. As time went by, people’s acceptance of piano increased day by day. After the founding of new China, China’s pianists won many awards in international piano competitions. After the reform and opening up, China’s economy has developed rapidly, and it has also absorbed the culture from all over the world. More and more Chinese people begin to appreciate piano music and learn to play. Piano education has also entered the public’s vision. In higher education, many art colleges and universities have set up piano learning related courses. Piano is no longer a rare thing hundreds of years ago, but gradually integrated into Chinese culture. At present, China’s piano education has been orderly popularized, occupying a place in art education, but at the same time there are also some aspects worth thinking about the piano education in the cultivation of aesthetic and artistic accomplishment. From the current situation and development of China’s piano education this paper gives the corresponding countermeasures.

Didactic qualities of piano pieces for children by Miłosz Magin (1929-1999)

Miłosz Magin was a renowned Polish pianist and composer. He was born in Łódź, studied in Warsaw, was a prizewinner of several international piano competitions, successfully concerted all over the world and in 1960 he finally settled down in Paris. His compositional output covers numerous piano pieces, orchestral, chamber and vocal works, as well as a ballet. Pieces for children constitute an important and relatively large part of his oeuvre. The article discusses five cycles of miniatures (38 pieces in total), dedicated to pupils at the elementary level of piano learning: Obrazki z Polski (1982), Miniatury polskie (1982), Kółko graniaste (1987), Karnawał lalek for four hands (1990) and Zaczarowane zabawki (1996). The pieces have didactic qualities and play the two roles: they gradually introduce a pupil into the world of music and they help to master the piano technique. They develop, in particular, fingers’ dexterity, chordal and arpeggio technique, precision while realization various rhythmic structures, mastery of large leaps on the keyboard. Performing Magin’s music sensitizes to the timbre of pitches in different registers, to changeable dynamics, original harmony, bitonality, phrasing, articulation, agogic and proper interpretation. His compositions develop children’s imagination and familiarize them with diverse timbres of the piano. They are little masterpieces, put into a terse form of a miniature.

Juliusz Kaden-Bandrowski about Music, Work and Writing – a Writer at the Piano

The paper recalls the figure of the leading writer of the Second Polish Republic, Juliusz Kaden-Bandrowski. Alluding to his biography and his acquired musical education in his youth, it makes the point that this influenced his artistic attitude. The center of analysis is Kaden-Bandrowski’s article devoted to Aleksander Michałowski, an excellent pianist in the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The main thesis of the article is Kanden-Bandrowski’s great respect for Michałowski’s work and creative effort, which he partially owed to his early musical education. The author also references to Kaden-Bandrowski’s critical texts from the beginning of his literary career as well as his association with the Fryderyk Chopin International Piano Competition; which began in 1927 in Warsaw. Kaden-Bandrowski was a member of the organizing committee for the first competition.

Juliusz Kaden-Bandrowski o muzyce, pracy i pisaniu – czyli pisarz przy fortepianie

The paper recalls the figure of the leading writer of the Second Polish Republic, Juliusz Kaden- Bandrowski. Alluding to his biography and his acquired musical education in his youth, it makes the point that this influenced his artistic attitude. The center of analysis is Kaden-Bandrowski’s article devoted to Aleksander Michalowski, an excellent pianist in the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The main thesis of the article is Kanden-Bandrowski’s great respect forMichalowski’s work and creative effort, which he partially owed to his early musical education. The author also references to Kaden-Bandrowski’s critical texts from the beginning of his literary career as well as his association with the Fryderyk Chopin International Piano Competition; which began in 1927 in Warsaw. Kaden-Bandrowski was a member of the organizing committee for the first competition.

Kulturowe znaczenie IV Międzynarodowego Konkursu Chopinowskiego w kontekście odradzającego się po II wojnie światowej polskiego życia muzycznego

The article aims at summarizing different activities undertaken to organize and run the first post- war Chopin piano competition. It is an attempt to collect facts, accounts and memories concerning actions initiated by Polish music culture environment after the Second World War. The author fo- cuses on a detailed description of the organization and proceedings of the 4th International Piano Competition, making use of information that has existed in independent sources so far. The article uses diaries, biographies, autobiographies, private notes, interviews with representatives of Polish culture, archive films and documentaries belonging to the Polish Film Chronicle. Press excepts were not used on purpose, as most press information was included in the aforesaid bibliography entries. The analyzed sources let us conclude that the organization of the first post-was Chopin piano competition in Warsaw was an event requiring both the engagement of all state institutions and personal contribution of musicians and music teachers. The author considers such a detailed historical-cultural account justified and necessary, especially in 2020, the 210th birth anniversary of Frederic Chopin, the year in which the 18th Frederic Chopin International Piano Competition was supposed to take place.

Cultural Importance of the 4th International Chopin Piano Competition in the Light of Polish Music Life Reviving after the WW II

The article aims at summarizing different activities undertaken to organize and run the first post- war Chopin piano competition. It is an attempt to collect facts, accounts and memories concerning actions initiated by Polish music culture environment after the Second World War. The author fo- cuses on a detailed description of the organization and proceedings of the 4th International Piano Competition, making use of information that has existed in independent sources so far. The article uses diaries, biographies, autobiographies, private notes, interviews with representatives of Polish culture, archive films and documentaries belonging to the Polish Film Chronicle. Press excepts were not used on purpose, as most press information was included in the aforesaid bibliography entries. The analyzed sources let us conclude that the organization of the first post-was Chopin piano competition in Warsaw was an event requiring both the engagement of all state institutions and personal contribution of musicians and music teachers. The author considers such a detailed historical-cultural account justified and necessary, especially in 2020, the 210th birth anniversary of Frederic Chopin, the year in which the 18th Frederic Chopin International Piano Competition was supposed to take place.

Piano Competitions in the Socio-Cultural Realities of Globalization

This article investigates the impact of globalization on music culture, in particular, on international piano competitions. New forms of interaction between the artist and the listener are emphasized, such as online broadcasting of music events, their advertising on social networks, presentation of video and audio recordings of concerts on personal or specially created pages of social networks, and specialized Internet platforms, etc. One of the most serious problems in the development of music culture in the context of globalization, the authors consider the problem of the selection, reliability, and quality of information, which leads to the demand for reputable consultants in the field of music information. The emphasis is placed on the role of international music organizations, which play an important integrating role in the processes of international artistic exchange and at the same time is a prestigious field of demonstration of the best artistic and the creative achievements of national cultures. Based on a study of information materials from more than 40 international piano competitions, authors have proposed their classification according to concepts and revealed global trends in the development of piano competitions. It is proved that competitive movement in the field of piano performance is clear evidence of the phenomenon of globalization, that is, the simultaneous influence of global and local cultural and artistic processes. Ways of implementing the idea of creating and performing new music in the framework of piano competitions have been identified. Specific examples of international music festivals and other artistic projects that include piano competitions or at their own initiative show that competitions promote the development and promotion of the cultural identity of countries at the global level help to spread music performance in the world and are one of the most popular cultural diplomacy.

Artistic and aesthetic ideas in “Plays” for two pianos by P. Dambis

Artistic and aesthetic ideas in “Plays” for two pianos by P. Dambis

The Value Of The Uzbek Piano School In The Development Of The World Piano Music Performing Culture

The milestones of the stages of formation and the development of Uzbek piano performing school, which reached unprecedented flourishing in the world cultural space in the years of independence, are considered in the article. The basic pedagogical principles are characterized and the activities of leading teachers, in particular, O. Yusupova, T. Popovich and others, are briefly covered. Particular attention is paid to the piano school’s international relations with compatriots working abroad, in particular with Stanislav Ioudenitch, Professor of International Center for Music of Park University (USA), Vice-President of the Lake Como International Piano Academy (Italy), who arrived in Uzbekistan with his students for the project WORLD CONCERTO TOUR. The article summarizes the role and importance of mutual enrichment of cultural contacts for the development of performing culture in general.

Composer – Artist: The role of pianist Hsu Fei Ping in the creative activity of Huang An Lun

Composer – Artist: The role of pianist Hsu Fei Ping in the creative activity of Huang An Lun

Oleg Polyansky: About Piano Technique and Pedagogical Work

Oleg Polyansky – Virtuoso pianist, Germany (Cologne), Laureate of the International Tchaikovsky Competition and international piano competitions in the USA, Canada, France, Italy, Japan. Oleg Polyansky talks about piano technique, his pedagogical work. Keywords : piano performance, piano pedagogy, laureates of the International Competition of P. I. Tchaikovsky.

Kinematic Origins of Motor Inconsistency in Expert Pianists

For top performers, including athletes and musicians, even subtle inconsistencies in rhythm and force during movement production decrease the quality of performance. However, extensive training over many years beginning in childhood is unable to perfect dexterous motor performance so that it is without any error. To gain insight into the biological mechanisms underlying the subtle defects of motor actions, the present study sought to identify the kinematic origins of inconsistency of dexterous finger movements in musical performance. Seven highly-skilled pianists who have won prizes at international piano competitions played a short sequence of tones with the right hand at a predetermined tempo. Time-varying joint angles of the fingers were recorded using a custom-made data glove, and the timing and velocity of the individual keystrokes were recorded from a digital piano. Both ridge and stepwise multiple regression analyses demonstrated an association of the inter-trial variability of the inter-keystroke interval (i.e., rhythmic inconsistency) with both the rotational velocity of joints of the finger used for a keystroke (i.e., striking finger) and the movement independence between the striking and non-striking fingers. This indicates a relationship between rhythmic inconsistency in musical performance and the dynamic features of movements in not only the striking finger but also the non-striking fingers. In contrast, the inter-trial variability of the key-descending velocity (i.e., loudness inconsistency) was associated mostly with the kinematic features of the striking finger at the moment of the keystroke. Furthermore, there was no correlation between the rhythmic and loudness inconsistencies. The results suggest distinct kinematic origins of inconsistencies in rhythm and loudness in expert musical performance.

Notes for Notes

Notes for Notes Donald Manildi, Mary Black Junttonen, Maristella Feustle, and Deborah Campana The International Piano Archives at Maryland (IPAM), part of the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library at the University of Maryland, has acquired an extensive collection of materials documenting the professional activity of New York composer, pianist, critic, entrepreneur, and radio personality, Jed Distler. A Virgil Thomson/Deems Taylor ASCAP Award recipient and a MacDowell Colony fellow, Mr. Distler has donated audio and video recordings of his concerts and recording sessions, airchecks of his radio broadcasts, complete documentation of his output as composer, his correspondence, photos, programs and clippings, as well as materials relating to his organization ComposersCollaborative, of which he is a cofounder. During the 2015–16 academic year, IPAM celebrated its fiftieth anniversary as the only institutional archive devoted specifically to the history and performance of classical piano music. Founded in Cleveland and originally established independently in New York, IPAM became part of the University of Maryland Libraries in 1977. The collection offers comprehensive holdings of recordings in all formats from 1889 to the present, scores both published and unpublished, and documents covering the careers of thousands of concert pianists. Donald Manildi University of Maryland The Michigan State University Music Manuscript Collections have moved from their previous home in the MSU Libraries’ Special Collections to the MSU Archives and Historical Collections. The collections include works of emeritus faculty H. Owen Reed, Jere Hutcheson, James Nib-lock, Ernst Victor Wolff, Merrill Sherburn, and Paul Harder. Also contained in the collections are the commissioned music of the Verdehr Trio, Elsa Ludewig-Verdehr’s clarinet music collection, the compositions of alumni Wallace De Pue and Eloy Fominaya, and the saxophone orchestra collection donated by alumnus Dick Charles. Music together with theater and dance are represented in the collection of choreographer, dancer, and alumnus Forrest Coggan. The Joe Cappo Band and the Floyd von Richter Orchestra (donated by Roger Grove) comprise popular music of the twentieth century. Several of the collections are still being developed, and new donations sought. Finding aids are available at the library Web site http://www.lib.msu.edu/branches/fal/musicmancoll/, [End Page 268] and at the University Archives Web site http://archives@msu.edu. Mary Black Junttonen Michigan State University The University of North Texas Music Library has acquired several noteworthy collections in recent months. Received as a gift from Al and Anna Julian in November 2015, the Woody Herman Society Collection consists of the official records of the Woody Herman Society; it also includes an extensive set of photo albums, scrapbooks, and memorabilia (as well as Woody Herman’s music stand). In that same month, the library purchased a small collection music manuscripts and dye-line copies of music by Duke Ellington, Johnny Hodges, Cat Anderson, Lou Carter, and Paul Gonsalves from J&J Lubrano Music Antiquarians. In March of 2016, composer and former UNT College of Music faculty member Larry Austin donated his extensive collection (comprising personal papers, compositions, and sound recordings) to the Music Library. In April, the library received the band library of Guy Lombardo’s Royal Canadians as a gift of director Al Pierson. Most recently, the library received donations from Mrs. Madeleine Forte, widow of the late music theorist Allen Forte, which complement the existing Forte collection and focus on Mrs. Forte’s own performing career, and that of her aunt, Sonia Chalon. In June, the UNT Music Library purchased additional correspondence and other materials from Chalon via J&J Lubrano. Maristella Feustle University of North Texas As tradition has it, Notes column “Prices of Music Monographs and Scores” appears in the December issue of each volume. This issue is no different—save for the fact that we are bidding Kerri Baunach Scannell adieu with this, her last installment on the topic, and we welcome Peter Munstedt, who will take the reins from Kerri for future issues. Thank you, Kerri, for your contributions as part of the Notes staff, and welcome, Peter! The “Prices” column provides a snapshot of how our music collection funds were spent. We have grown accustomed to working with dedicated vendors, honing collection development plans, and observing...

Chopin’s Prophet: The Life of Pianist Vladimir de Pachmann by Edward Blickstein and Gregor Benko (review)

Chopin’s Prophet: The Life of Pianist Vladimir de Pachmann by Edward Blickstein and Gregor Benko (review)

Higher, Faster, Louder: Representations of the International Music Competition

Competitions have been a visible and controversial part of the classical music world for over a century, yet sociologists have strangely neglected to study their social significance.This article explores the competition's ongoing contest for legitimacy by considering the case of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition.Through a discourse analysis of publicity materials and media coverage, I reconstruct the symbolic frameworks that guide the construction of the event and the interpretation of competitors' performances. I also trace the critical challenge to the idealized representations of the event, and decode the gender ideologies implied in commonly used metaphors. Demonstrating the centrality of meaning in musical production and reception, I aim to expose the limitations of the production perspective and Bourdieu's model of the artistic field, offering in their place a new approach based on social performance.