Pulse Patterning For Pianists

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THE PULSE PATTERNING TECHNIQUE

Piano technique includes numerous means of using our muscles and skeleton to achieve the results we desire from the music, whether it be thunderous chords and octaves, fast rippling passage work, or an almost inaudible pianissimo. No matter whether you become a pianist or violinist, a dancer, or an accomplished athlete, it takes years of training to develop the refinements of your technique and art. One very major component of the technique for a pianist is freedom in the wrists and shoulders. This is equally as important as strong and independent fingers. However, I would like to propose that freedom in the hips is also a critical component and I would like to provide some insights on this website into the musical and technical benefits of good use of the hips. [One word of caution I would like to make at the outset, however, is that no amount of good biomechanical use of the wrists, elbows, shoulders, or hips, will make up for a lack of strong arches throughout the hand, generally developed in the small muscles of the hand. Without strong hand muscles forming strong arches (not the flexors and extensors in the arm that curl the fingers), all the good body movement in the world will be compensatory in nature, creating more problems than it solves at worst, or resulting in weak, inarticulate tone at best. For a complete study of the Feldenkrais principles applied especially to hand technique, please study Alan Frasers superb book The Craft of Piano Playing.]

I believe that music surpasses even language in its power to mirror the innermost recesses of the human soul. - George Crumb
Feldenkrais Pelvic Circle Exercises
Just as you are able to make circles with your wrists and arms, you can also do the same with your pelvis, rotating the hips in a circle on the piano bench. An inordinate amount of stiffness occurs in the hips (maybe even more so than in the shoulders), when you sit practicing or performing at the piano, whether for short or long periods of time. Some pianists instinctively know how to adapt to the requirements of positioning at the keyboard. They do so in the context of the music they are performing, and not only with ease but with an inner expressiveness that is a result of their innate physical freedom. Others, inadvertently, and without any conscious awareness, sit with considerable tension as they attempt to work exclusively with the fingers (or hopefully the arms as well), when in fact playing the piano is a whole body activity.

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Postural Positioning
The Pulse Patterning technique is derived from the work of the noted physical practitioner Dr. Mosh Feldenkrais (1904-1984) in his lesson on awareness of movement while seated on a chair or bench. It begins with postural positioning. In the first place you need to sit forward on the bench so that your pelvis is able to roll forward, allowing the hips to rotate somewhat forward, thus bringing your torso and head into their upright alignment with no muscular effort such as is required when sitting further back with more of your legs on the bench. The further back you sit on the bench the more you will naturally hunker down because you are off your rockers (no pun intended!), the bony protuberances called the ischia, and you are sitting on your tailbone and legs. Sitting upright then takes considerable effort. On the other hand, in this comfortable forward upright position your head is in alignment over the hips and is in a perfect position to read from the score or, by nodding the head, to look down at the keyboard.

Where to Sit
Sitting forward on the bench also distributes your weight to the feet so that the pelvis and feet form a tripod. You should be able to stand up without having to place the feet under the bench.

Even with the feet on the pedals you can feel some of your weight in your heels. Although it is common to observe pianists performing with the left leg under the bench, it is unnecessary to do so and causes needless contraction of the hamstrings and extension of the quads. Furthermore, when the left foot is forward it is readily available for use on the soft pedal. (N.B: Organists must sit further back on the organ bench so that they can have dancing feet on the pedal board. This makes their positioning at the organ somewhat different from that of the pianist.) As to bench height, the rule of thumb is to have your forearms parallel to the floor. (Interestingly, pianists experiment throughout their careers sitting just a little higher for power or ease or lightness, or a little lower for greater finger control.) The distance from the piano is also determined by marking an arms length from the fall board: a straight arm from shoulder to wrist (or fist if leaning back slightly).

The Two Pathways

The forward and back movement and the side-to-side movement of the hips create two principal axes that form the basis of the Pulse Patterning technique. The forward and back movement is what I call the Energy Pathway. The side to side movement I call the Keyboard Pathway. The latter allows you to negotiate the keyboard with ease from one end to the other. It has a neutral quality. On the other hand, moving forward and back has a powerful dynamic feelingfrom strong and authoritative in the forward position to soft and gentle in the rounded back position.

The Energy PathwayForward and Backward

If you forward tilt the hips to the extreme, the back arches and the head falls slightly backward in a C formation. This forward tilt and arched back (a concave lumbar curve) brings the body closer to the keyboard when your hands are playing wide apart at opposite ends. In this position you may tip your head forward slightly (as in a yes nod) so you are able to look at the keyboard, but the neck should never break, dropping out of alignment with the spine. This forward tilt of the hips with the concave lumbar curve may often be observed in a student sitting in a normal, straight position. This is a hyperextended position of the back and is not uncommon in many pianists, particularly those who are of slender build. Even if we as teachers observe this position in students, we may overlook it for we see it as good posture, when in fact it has negative consequences equal to those of the slouch. It is especially harmful if you sit in this straight (hyperextended) posture and then bend the neck at a sharp angle to look at the keyboard. On the contrary, the back should appear flat, or even, from the shoulders to the hips. One should see neither a swayback or inward curve of the low back, nor a slouch or outward curve that we will consider next.

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Tilting the hips slightly backward, away from the piano, results in a rounded back with the head tipped forward in an opposite C shape, a convex lumbar back. There is nothing inherently wrong with this position, the so-called slouch, when used knowingly and as part of a complete use of space that one has available while seated. You may find this position advantageous when the hands are playing close together or in a hands-crossed position. The backward convex position is also extremely useful for soft, delicate, slow playing that places no complex demands on the technique. However, if you are always in this position at the piano you will then most certainly develop back, neck, or wrist problems, often serious ones, as well as limit your technique and range of expression. (Because we all learned to play the piano with our hands directly in front of us and not at the extremes of the keyboard, it is easy to see why perhaps many of us have come to adopt this rounded back position.)

The Backward Lean

Alternatively you may tilt the hips backward while keeping the back straight, a position of strength and authority, which also provides room for the hands playing in front of the body or when playing hands-crossed passages. You can estimate the lean to be about ten degrees past the vertical. For the greatest dexterity, the back and neck need to be in alignment over the hips while the chest is lifted and feels expansive. When the body is hunched over the arms are unable to operate from the shoulders within their optimum range and with maximum freedom. The feet are forward on the pedals and this helps to counterbalance the backward lean. This postural position may be the one of greatest use to the pianist as the arms are now straighter with the hands and have much space to move freely, yet the whole torso may be brought forward or tilted side to side as necessary. The wonderful painting of Brahms at the piano comes to mind.

The Keyboard PathwayLeaning Side to Side

The hips can also tilt left and right. (If you move your hips at all, it is this movement to which you are most likely accustomed.) You lean right to play with both hands at the extreme top of the keyboard and left when both hands play in the bass register. You should balance on one sit bone (ischium) or the other, and counterbalance by tipping the shoulders and head in the opposite directionagain forming a C shape. It is this counterbalancing that pianists often dont do, and find themselves getting stiff holding the torso in a straight line while leaning right and left. As you position yourself in these different C shapes, you will notice that there is a plumb line from the head to the pelvis; stiffness and fatigue result when the head is maintained outside the vertical axis of the body.

Around the Clock

The magic is that your hip movement is not confined to straight lines, but is capable of articulating circles as well. Feldenkrais teaches that you should imagine sitting on a clock dial. If you tip the hips forward you are at 12:00. Move slowly to the right and back and you can stop at 3:00. Continue the circle and you find yourself in the rounded back position of 6:00. Circling left and forward takes you through 9:00 and then back home to 12:00. (All the time, you are mindful of your head remaining centered so that you are not circumscribing clocks on the ceiling!) Having completed a clockwise movement, you should then practice doing the same movement in a counterclockwise pattern as well. You should also take note of all the hours along the way. Furthermore, you can move from any point on the dial to any other point in a straight line with perfect ease, say from 2:00 to 8:00, or 5:00 to 11:00. Observe that the movement is principally in the lower torso. The upper torso hardly moves, except to counterbalance. Although you dont really bend at the waist line, you do need to be supple in the center of the body and be able to yield easily forward and back, and side to side. This is a fantastic warm-up exercise before beginning to practice or perform. At first, hold onto the piano somewhere in front of you for stability and balance as you do the rotations, and then try placing your hands on the keyboard in different locations as you circle left and right, forward and back. (I sometimes refer to this as the Hoola Hoop warm-up.) You should also practice tilting the hips straight back from 12:00 to 6:00, taking the head and back with, as described under the Backward Lean When in this position, you will use more of the lower half of the clock dial from 3:00 to 9:00. (See pictures above.)

Conclusion
Thats it! Thats the basic postural positioning technique. There are also small refinements and specialized movements, e.g., the use of clocks within clocks, or the use of swiveling (corkscrewing) the torso together with the clock for special case use. Although I have already indicated some uses for postural positioninghaving both hands together at the extreme ends, hands at opposite ends, hands directly in front or hands crossed, I invite you now to click on Applications for a more detailed use of this hip movement for Pulse Patterning. You will not only learn to achieve maximum technical fluidity and comfort, but you will also learn to achieve rhythmic flow and energy as well as breathtaking dynamic contrast and phrasing.

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THE APPLICATIONS OF PULSE PATTERNING

To illustrate the Applications of Pulse Patterning I have chosen my musical examples exclusively from Robert Schumanns Carnaval. Although this may seem a narrow focus, the work is highly illustrative of all the uses of Pulse Patterning and, as a single and unified work, provides continuity as well as practicality to this topic. Of course, the principles may be applied to music of every composer, genre and style, as well as to teaching literature.

Explosive Use of Energy PathwayAccents and Big Chords

Having coaxed relaxation through the movement of the hips, you can now start to coax dynamic and rhythmic impulses from this very same pattern of movement. Once your body has integrated postural positioning through large, circular movements and you have discovered an ease of movement in the lower torso as you navigate the keyboard, you may notice that you naturally begin to roll the hips forward for crescendos, or for strong chords where it becomes an instantaneous impulse that some pianists (Adele Marcus for one) describe as coming from their stomach or mid-section. A slight forward movement of the hips done as a lightning-flash thrust sends an energy impulse through the entire torso and arms and directly into the keys. Stable fingers and hand arches direct the energy into the keys. There is little outward/upward movement of the elbows in creating this big tone. Additionally, you may activate your straight fingers in a grab that further strengthens the tone and helps to balance all the notes of chords. When the forward tilt of your hips is small you may not notice the independence of the hip bones (ilia) from the sacrum. Without realizing it you may have a fixated lower back and you may be leaning with the entire spine, which is a slower, bigger, and more sluggish movement that is actually a push. Note that there is movement in the hips in two places: where the leg bones (femurs) are joined to the pelvis, and where the lower (lumbar) spine joins the pelvis (the sacroiliac). You need an awareness of movement in both locations for the explosive jolt, the sudden onset of energy for big sharp chord playing. The opening of Carnaval contains powerful chords that also set up the metrical structure.

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Controlled Use in Crescendos and Diminuendos

You may also observe that you can roll your hips forward more slowly in a crescendo leading into the climax of a phrase. (N.B: if you are leaning forward from the waist line while holding or locking the hips (in Park) in both locations described above, you will find your chest sagging or collapsing, your shoulders hunching forward, and you are thus not providing the necessary skeletal support for the arms, limiting your breathing and risking low back problems. (Please revisit the clock movements described previously under Technique.) As you reverse the energy into a diminuendo, you relax the hips and they return in a slight backward tilt. The spine shortens, your lungs expand in an inhalation and the body gathers for another forward movement, a lengthening of the spine and an exhalation. Practice the Energy Pathway as a large movement including an inhalation as you tilt the hips toward 6:00 and an exhalation leading to 12:00. Then gradually refine and diminish the forward and back movement so that it is almost imperceptible to a person watching. You now have at your disposal an enormous range of dynamic energy that you may tap for expressive use without having to force or muscle with the arms and fingers. The following example (Valse Noble) shows an expansive phrase growing in volume and in opposite directions drawing the body slightly closer to the keyboard. Roll the hips forward to the fourth bar and somewhat to the right. The answering phrase follows suit but with a smaller climax.

Playing from the Navel

Arthur Schnabel spoke of playing from the navel (as cited at a lesson with Stanley Fletcher) when playing soft chords, especially in a continuous diminuendo, or when resolving a suspension figure or a V7 or diminished seventh chord, or perhaps resolving a V to a VI in a deceptive cadence. In the context of the present discussion, this sense of resolving, playing from the navel, is what I am describing as a rolling back of the pelvis toward 6:00--to a greater or lesser degree depending on the desired softness or the amount of time available for the movement. Try this forward and backward movement of the hips, (keeping the head in a plumb line over the pelvis), and you will find that this is a startling and convincing use of hip movement for expression: for crescendos and diminuendos, for dramatic echo effects, for forte-piano situations, and of course for sudden accents and sforzandos as described above. From Promenade comes the following example of a sudden soft passage, almost like an aside, that immediately takes on the right character if played with a roll-back of the hips.

Schumanns introspective persona in Eusebius is nicely projected when played in a soft 6:00 position. Dont hesitate to bring your head down close to the keyboard if you so desire. In the middle section the large rolled chords in the left hand and octaves in the right hand are comfortably performed in a backward lean position.

By now you have the means of using the clock patterning to express loud and soft while at the same time being in front of the keyboard anywhere you need to be. You can play softly to the right at the top of the piano (4:00), and then forte to the left at the bottom of the piano (10:00). Directly in front of you, play a forte dissonant chord and then resolve it by rolling back. If your hands are close together or your hands have to be crossed, lean backwards but take your head with you. You can still play softly by rotating the hips slightly backward, or with more vigor by rotating the hips forward even as the entire torso is leaning in a small backward tilt. Note the 4:00 position favorable to the Pi presto passage in Estrella.

Rhythmic Use of Pulse Patterning

At this point you are ready to explore the use of postural positioning for purposes of Pulse

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Patterning, my initial application of the Feldenkrais clocks and my earliest use in presentations nearly twenty years ago. Because pulse is felt as an ebb and flow towards a strong beat, or towards the strong point in a phrase, the lower torso movement we have been discussing is a very natural and physical way of accomplishing this sense of motion in performance. Dance music, because of its overtly rhythmic nature is a wonderful source of piano literature to investigate Pulse Patterning. A lilting waltz, a stomping lndler, a slithering tango, a boisterous march, a hopping gavotte or a skipping gigue all evoke physical movement. Dancing on the bench or chair is not just a figurative or imaginative thought, but is an actuality limited only by the fact that we are seated rather than on our feet. For any seated musician, the Feldenkrais clock movements are what elegantly coordinate the largest possible motor movements of our lower torso with the most refined, delicate, and precise movements of our fingers, hands and arms.

Duple and Quadruple Meter

You can use the 12:00-6:00 pathway to replicate the conducting movements of the arms (and incidentally you might also use in the feet if you are actually conducting). 12:00 represents the strong beat of the measure (or by extension, the exhalation of the breath), while moving towards 6:00 represents the ebbing towards the weaker beat (or beats in quadruple meter). This then gathers momentum to prepare again for the crest, the strong beat at 12:00. Because the movement at the hips may be so small as to be imperceptible, the idea of lengthening and shortening the spine by leading up or down with the head may be more appropriate (a principal concept drawn from the Alexander Technique). This sense of up and down occurs naturally with the forward and backward movement of the hips. (Often it is just the thought of leading with the head or moving the hips forward that makes a remarkable difference.) The movement is quite easily applied to rhythmic music in duple or quadruple meter, but what about the tempo? It will only feel natural and comfortable in the appropriate tempo relative to the size of the movement. The quickest that you are going to move the hips or raise and lower the spine, even with only the thought of doing so, is about the rate of your normal pulse, c. 72-80 BPM.) Therefore you must discover a pulse pattern that may embrace a measure or a hypermeasure depending on the tempo of the music. A spirited allegro or presto may take in two or more measures in one complete Pulse Patterning cycle. Try playing the following pieces, Papillons and Reconnaisance, with a strong, if small, 12:00 strong beat in each measure, and then try it in hypermeasures, one strong beat every two bars. Which do you prefer? Which gives you more speed? Which gives you more control?

(On the other hand, a notated measure of music in a slow tempo, no matter how many notes, as in a slow movement of a sonata by Beethoven, must not have more than one complete cycle per measure, lest the music breaks into too many measures or too many beatsa situation which makes a performance notey or stodgy.) In a lively buoyant rhythmic tempo you may want to bounce to the beata very natural and delightful way to capture the quality of the rhythm. This latter movement some have compared with horseback ridingwith posting. Pantalon et Columbine is a good example of such buoyancy. Try bouncing with this. (Push with your feet to get the idea.)

Triple Meter: Swinging on a Swing.

But what about three-beat time, triple meter? Here I would cite a remark by Nadia Boulanger as heard in a class attended by the author: 3/4 time is just like 2/4 time, only the first beat is twice as long. You will either hold the first beat at 12:00 and then relax on the third, or when the tempo is quick as it so often is in waltz music, you will likely pattern the hypermeasureforward on one measure and back on the next. This felt swing of the body is not at all unlike the actual swing of a child on a swing set, pumping forward and releasing going backward. This is a very powerful analogy. I include this here, as the movement of swinging is not so much one of loud and soft as it is simply that of a rhythmic cycle of ebb and flow. The nadir (back) of the swing cycle may be felt just as strongly as the apex (front). Lettres Dansantes and Valse Allemande are good examples of swinging to and fro in alternate measures. (Mark the special accents in Lettres Dansantes with the use of the fingers and arms only.)

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Peak of the Phrase

Often in slow melodic music, the highest note is the strong point of the measure or phrase, and it might often occur on the third beat of, say, a four-beat measurein the middle of things, so to speak. Here, reverse pulse patterning would be appropriate, starting from 6:00 and moving in the direction of 12:00 for the peak of the phrase. A single pulse patterning cycle may be stretched out over several measures. In the beautiful Chopin the left hand arpeggiation in 6/4 carries an accent at the top. Begin in the direction of 6:00 and move towards 12:00 at the apex of the left hand pattern. (The melodic peaks in measures three and six may be played with more subtlety in the 6:00 position rather than at 12:00.)

SyncopationA Tug of War

Another situation needs to be taken into consideration and that is the existence of syncopation. For its effect, syncopation plays off the implied beat, whether a single syncopated note or a whole chain of syncopations that results in a tug of war with the metrical beat. If the performer lunges into the syncopation, zealously accenting the syncopation, the effect is entirely lost and confusion results. It is all the more reason for the performer to truly feel the principal beat. Counter the metrical beat felt in the body with the drop of the arm for the syncopation. The same of course could be said for any unusual accents that the composer has inserted to contradict the normal metrical progress of beats. The leaping, somersaulting Arlequin needs a physically felt first beat if the landing on the accented beat two is to have the right effect.

In the dizzying Paganini, pulse along with the right hand for the most interesting and exciting result.

Choreography
We now have at our disposal what constitutes a complete choreography of the bodythe ability to sit on a chair or bench and navigate the piano keyboard comfortably, while feeling the meter or phrase and dynamically shaping lines with the strongest fortes and accents to the most delicate, fragile and disembodied pianissimo sounds. The clock does it all. Much of the time we scarcely move from the center of the dial where the clock hands are attached, yet at other times we visibly move right and left and forward and back. Also consider that there are clocks within clocks. Are you playing a long passage to the right at 3:00? Imagine a smaller clock at that point and continue your Pulse Patterning. The opening of Paganini above is a case in point.

Projecting Musical Gestures

The degree to which you as the performer leave Pulse Patterning behind in order to project or partake of the musical gestures in the music is the same issue that a conductor faces. How much regularity will you use versus how much flexibility? Like all fine conductors, pianists know their beat patterns. However, the patterns are only a point of departure, and can lead to other creative, spontaneous movements, gestures, or patterns.

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The beauty of Pulse Patterning is that it gives pianists a physical tool to use in developing an interpretation of the score. It leads the pianist to a comprehension that goes beyond that of the intellect alone. With a physical, kinesthetic understanding of the rhythmic and metrical shapes and tensions in a composition, the phrasing then has a chance to emerge. Furthermore, our listening expands and tonal coloring takes on more subtlety. Finally, Pulse Patterning provides the means to work out personal and practicable solutions to interpretive and technical problems. Pianists all have different bodies, different hands. There is no one interpretation fits all. The piano keyboard is standard, but we are not. If we do not learn how to adapt ourselves to the instrument, it will be no more musical or personal than a computer keyboard.

Tips to Teachers:
Warm-ups: Hoola Hoops and Waves
Postural positioning is a nice way to begin a lesson or a practice session. Take hold of the piano in front of you (not the keyboard) and make a strong forward stretch by arching the back. Then do hoola hoop clock circles in both directions and from one number on the dial to another. Play some four-octave scales with side to side movement including a slight forward and back to mark the beats. This will result in a wavesmall forward arcs and backward arcs of the body. Play a few big chords with explosive forward impulses from the hips (with no apparent forward lean of the body.) Then stroke the keys softly in an extreme 6:00 position for exquisitely soft sounds.

Improvisation
I like to introduce students to postural positioning and Pulse Patterning through improvisation. Using the LH ostinato pattern of F#-C#-F#-C# in quarter notes, your student may lean from left to right along with the direction of the LH, while at the same time feeling the regularity of the 4/4 measure. Have your student lean left and forward to 10:00 and then to the right and backward to 4:00. This complete gesture keeps the LH going in its regular pattern while the RH is available to improvise notes on the black keys. The right hand should feel free to use quarters, halves, eighths, clusters or combinations, in different registers and in different dynamics. The pedal should be held down throughout for the beautiful resonance it produces. You, as teacher, may play along in the treble or at another piano. The student is able to explore musical materials, keyboard geography and positioning, and rhythmic movement all at the same time. For a step by step process of discovering musical elements and rhythmic and bodily co-ordinations, please see Forrest Kinneys wonderful Pattern Play books. Home | About Me | Technique | Application | FAQ Copyright 2009

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: What do you mean by Pulse Patterning for Pianists?
A: Pulse Patterning is a term I use for a technique of torso movement I have adapted for the purpose of experiencing and projecting the beat, metrics, and phrasing of the music. At the very least, the movement allows the torso to remain free of fixation and tension.

Q: Many pianists move their bodies while they play, while others sit perfectly still. Is it necessary to move while playing?
A: Yes, absolutely! If the torso does not move, stiffness and rigidity take over. Its like having the body in Park when our natural impulses want to respond to the swing or beat of the music. Even worse is sitting at the piano ramrod straight when the music requires that we be at one end of the keyboard or the other. No wonder pianists can feel awkward or uncomfortable at the instrument. Often the movement is so natural and so minimal as to be invisible. When I give demonstrations, people in the audience will remark that they dont see anythingcould I exaggerate more!

Q: So you dont advocate sitting still?

A: No, no, we must never confuse stillness with stiffnesswe need to be acutely aware of the difference. We can choose stillness, if that is what we desire, without becoming stiff. This is what separates the great artist from the novice.

Q: If moving is natural, why do we need a technique of torso movement?

A: Playing the piano, (like playing the violin, or dancing, or pole vaulting, or walking a tightrope), is a very complex physical operation which requires incredible coordination of fingers, hands, arms, feet, (and, yes, the torso), along with the ears, eyes and mind. Pianists spend inordinate amounts of time training the fingers, often as if their fingers are detached from the rest of their body. If these pianists happen to be comfortable with their arms and torso in performance, then they are lucky, and we say that they are naturally talented. Other pianists may find that their arms and body get in their way, either through stiffness (non-movement), or becauseand this is a most important pointthe movements of their arms and torso are not synchronized with each other, or with their fingers, or with the rhythm of the music.

Q: Can you actually teach pianists to move correctly, so that the whole body is coordinatedand connected to the music as well?
A: Definitely. Moving the torso needs to become a conscious process, like learning how to move the hand, the wrist, the forearm, the elbow, the upper arm, etc. Then later the movement becomes automatic, and one doesnt even have to think about it.

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Q: So what is this movement? Is it bending at the waist, or just what?

A: Most pianists who exhibit visible movement during their playing, bend and sway from the waist, or raise their shoulders. If its excessive, it can of course be visually distracting. More importantly, though, this type of movement can be harmful to the pianist, both physically and musically. The waistline, just below the ribcage, articulates the separation of the upper torso from the lower torso, and provides the torso with great flexibility for bending and twisting. Largely, however, the movement Im talking about originates in the hips, where the legs, the pelvis and the lumbar back converge in a most extraordinary kind of hinge. This hinge allows us, while seated, to lean forward or back, to the right or left, sit upright or slouch down, or even to swivel in a corkscrew manner. It permits a far wider range of motion than we ever imagined possible. At the same time, the flexibility of the waist allows the upper torso to be relatively still and upright, so that it serves as a stable fulcrum for the movement of the arms.

Q: In what way is movement of the upper torso, which is common, harmful to the pianist?
A: This is a topic that generates considerable controversy among pianists and teachers. On the plus side, this freedom of movement in the upper torso is powerful in releasing interpretive, emotive instincts, while at the same time seemingly creating a sense of physical freedom and spontaneity. On the other hand, there are several problems with uncontrolled movement of the upper torso from the waist. First of all, the coordination of the fingers is so intricate and refined, that extraneous movements of the arms and body can easily interfere with this delicately trained mechanism. Often we rely on these movements to compensate for what the fingers should be doing. Furthermore, if we leave the body movements to chance, then we also leave the interpretation completely open to chance. The modern piano is a touch sensitive instrument, and as such, responds to every change in pressure and speed applied to the keys by the bodythis is the miracle of the piano. The bottom line, finally, concerns the serious biomechanical problem of moving from the waist while holding the hips in a fixated, or locked, position. This way of moving the torso simply places too much stress on the lumbar back, leading first to discomfort, and then, ultimately, to injury. This is why I teach lower torso movement. It is even more powerful than the upper torso in releasing the interpretive, emotive instincts I mentioned previously, and creating a true sense of physical freedom, spontaneity and well-being. Additionally, correct alignment, balance, and movement counteracts the tension, shallow breathing, and general lock-down that contributes to performance anxiety, whereas, good use of the body contributes to focus, efficiency, being in the moment, and performance satisfaction and pleasure.

Q: Have you had positive feedback and endorsements from pianists, students, or teachers?
A: Indeed! Im going to list for you just some of the comments and reactions I have heard over the years: I am impressed with the technique! Its such an excellent way to get students movingto begin breathing and feeling the music, especially those students with fixated postures. Having a back problem, I am deeply interested in Pulse Patterning. There are so many valuable suggestions that can help teachers free their students from immobility that both interferes with musical performance and endangers pianists. This is the first time Ive ever felt musical! Im a physical therapist, as well as an organist and piano teacher, and I know and use the (Feldenkrais) exercises; never did I imagine that I could coordinate the one with the other! Ooh, I dont know what to do with all this (new) dynamic potential! Pulse Patterning makes senselike a rediscovery of what ought to be natural to us. It helps one find a pattern for oneself as well as for the music, and it creates a sense of freedom on the piano bench. Home | About Me | Technique | Application | FAQ Copyright 2009

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8/06/2009 9:14 AM